--- title: But They Said I Won A Cruise?! |How You Know Your Free Vacation is a Scam! description: When I first got the call that we had “WON A FREE TRIP OF YOUR CHOICE!,” I hate to admit it now, but I was already duped at “free.” image: https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/VacationScam-620x420.jpg --- [![Hiya logo](https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/hiya-new-purple.svg)](https://www.hiya.com/) Solutions Solutions [For Mobile Operators Protect your network](https://www.hiya.com/solutions/operators) [For Businesses Brand your calls](https://www.hiya.com/solutions/businesses) [For People Get the mobile app](https://www.hiya.com/products/apps/hiya-spam-blocker) ###### Webinar Branded Calling 101 Weekly Webinar Make your company's calls more recognizable. Learn how Hiya can drive value for your business. [Sign up today Arrow Right](https://www.hiya.com/lp/webinar-series-intro-to-hiya-branded-call) Products Connect ###### [Branded Call Display your branded caller ID](https://www.hiya.com/products/connect/branded-call) ###### [Number Registration Display your branded caller ID](https://www.hiya.com/products/connect/number-registration) ###### [View Plans Flexible pricing for teams of all sizes](https://www.hiya.com/products/connect/pricing) Protect ###### [Spam Analytics Stop spam & fraud on your mobile network](https://www.hiya.com/products/protect/spam-analytics) ###### [AI Voice Detection Real-time AI voice detection](https://www.hiya.com/products/protect/ai-voice-detection) Mobile apps ###### [Hiya Spam Blocker Fraud & AI voice protection](https://www.hiya.com/products/apps/hiya-spam-blocker) ###### [Hiya AI Phone Productivity for busy people](https://www.hiya.com/products/apps/hiya-ai-phone) ![](https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/sotc-report.avif) ###### Report State of the Call 2026 86% of unidentified calls go unanswered. Read the benchmark report for what is happening in voice today, and what you can do to drive business. [Read the report Arrow Right](https://www.hiya.com/state-of-the-call) Why Hiya? Overview [Why Hiya Your voice innovation partner](https://www.hiya.com/why-hiya) [How it works Get started quickly & easily](https://www.hiya.com/how-it-works) [Customer Stories Real companies, real results](https://www.hiya.com/case-studies) [Voice Intelligence Platform Industry’s leading voice platform](https://www.hiya.com/why-hiya/voice-intelligence-platform) [Trust Center Compliance, security, & privacy](https://www.hiya.com/why-hiya/trust-center) Company [About Leadership and history](https://www.hiya.com/company/about) [Careers We're hiring!](https://www.hiya.com/company/careers) [Contact us Get in touch](https://www.hiya.com/contact-us) ![](https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/bclc-hero-img.webp) ###### Customer Story BCLC increases business KPIs with Hiya With Hiya Branded Call BCLC was able to increase contact rates, campaign efficiency, and revenue. [Read their story Arrow Right](https://www.hiya.com/customer-stories/bclc) Resources Resources [Resource Center](https://www.hiya.com/resources) [Partner Program](https://partners.hiya.com/) [Get Support](https://hiya.com/support) [Developer Docs](https://developer.hiya.com/) [Hiya Blog](https://blog.hiya.com/) [Newsroom](https://www.hiya.com/newsroom) [Events](https://www.hiya.com/events) ###### eBook 10 Tips for customer-friendly phone calls Prevent caller reputation issues and complaints with customer-friendly calling practices. [Read eBook Arrow Right](https://www.hiya.com/resources/ebooks/10-tips-for-customer-friendly-phone-calls) [Get Started Arrow Right](https://www.hiya.com/#audience) [Log in](https://connect.hiya.com/login) [Get started](https://www.hiya.com/#audience) - [Home](https://hiya.com) - [Blog](https://blog.hiya.com) - [But They Said I Won A Cruise?! |How You Know Your Free ...](https://blog.hiya.com/how-you-know-your-free-vacation-scam/) # But They Said I Won A Cruise?! |How You Know Your Free Vacation is a Scam! [Hiya Team](https://blog.hiya.com/author/hiya-team) Sep. 19, 2020 [![](https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/icon-fb.svg)](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https://blog.hiya.com/how-you-know-your-free-vacation-scam/) [![](https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/icon-x.svg)](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https://blog.hiya.com/how-you-know-your-free-vacation-scam/&text=But+They+Said+I+Won+A+Cruise%3F%21+%7CHow+You+Know+Your+Free+Vacation+is+a+Scam%21) [![](https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/icon-linkedin.svg)](https://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https://blog.hiya.com/how-you-know-your-free-vacation-scam/) ## At a glance ![](https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/VacationScam-620x420.jpg) When I first got the call that we had “WON A FREE TRIP OF YOUR CHOICE!,” I hate to admit it now, but I was already duped at “free.”   After sitting through a 2-hour presentation, receiving a voucher to redeem our tickets if we included a $100 refundable check, along with a number of other hoops we were to go through to receive the “free trip”, I finally got the feeling mid-way through the process that we definitely had been had. But hey it happens to the best of us right? Yes..but it really doesn’t have to! Here’s a few things you need to know about vacation scams, and why hanging-up will prevent you from getting caught-up: **1. It all starts with a ring…** A majority of vacation scams start with a phone call promising an unbelievable prize from a raffle or survey you may (or may not) have entered. As you rack your brain wondering what you may have unknowingly entered, you can’t help but feel that what they’re offering is too good to be true. If you’re getting that gut feeling, it probably is. **2. It’ll just be a “quick” presentation** Key word here was “quick” and they’ve convinced you to redeem your prize at their “showroom” after a presentation. Before you know it, you’re stuck in a 20-minute sales presentation, followed by a couple hours of sales pitches convincing you to invest in some sort of traveler’s membership. **3. Don’t miss out on this “one time offer!”** Try as you might to let them down easy, these sales sharks won’t take NO for an answer. But don’t give in when they tell you a timeshare, club membership, or vacation offer is a one time deal that you’ll never come by again. As persistent as they are to make a sale, they will still be as persistent with the same offer later down the road if they didn’t get you to bite the first time around. **4. Show them the money!** You’ve sat through the presentation, the sales, pitches, and now you can finally redeem your “free vacation”. Or so you thought. There’s one last thing you need to do before you earn the free plane tickets and hotel, hand over that moolah! To be eligible for your free trip, you will have to pay for travel membership, a reservation deposit, or tax and fees. Then, they’ll contact you (of course on their timeline) once they’ve received payment. What happened to “free”?! Seems like a lot of wasted time and money with a side of headache if you ask me, and let me tell you it was and to make matters worse we didn’t get the “free trip”! So if you find yourself on the other end of a “free vacation” offer, remember what it takes, and just hang up. Aside from hanging-up, to best avoid being a victim of the vacation scam, if you haven’t already, sign-up to the [Do Not Call Registry](https://www.donotcall.gov/), report the number to the [FCC](https://consumercomplaints.fcc.gov/hc/en-us/requests/new?ticket_form_id=39744), or download the [Hiya caller ID app](https://hiya.app.link/blog?itm_medium=website&itm_source=blog) to help you block unwanted calls. [![banner-hiya-reg](https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/banner-hiya-reg.jpg)](https://www.hiya.com/products/connect/number-registration) ### Latest Articles ⚡️ - Hiya awarded 16 G2 Summer 2026 badges for branded caller ID Lena Prickett Jul. 9, 2026 - How Canada is leading the fight to stop bank scams Stephanie Boulanger Jun. 26, 2026 - How to check phone numbers for spam labels Michelle Wallace Jun. 9, 2026 ## Related articles ![](https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/rogers-toronto-event-blog-hero.webp) ## [How Canada is leading the fight to stop bank scams](https://blog.hiya.com/how-canada-is-leading-the-fight-to-stop-bank-scams?hsLang=en) Stephanie Boulanger Jun. 26, 2026 ![](https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/Blog_How-to-check-phone-numbers-for-spam-labels_B.webp) ## [How to check phone numbers for spam labels](https://blog.hiya.com/how-to-check-phone-numbers-for-spam-labels?hsLang=en) Michelle Wallace Jun. 9, 2026 ![](https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/Hiya%20x%20DNA-blog@2x.webp) ## [Hiya and DNA Finland launch network-level call protection](https://blog.hiya.com/hiya-and-dna-finland-launch-network-level-call-protection?hsLang=en) Stephanie Boulanger Jun. 2, 2026 [![](https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/hiya-new-purple.svg)](https://www.hiya.com/) [![](https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/linkedin-1.svg)](https://www.linkedin.com/company/hiyainc) [![](https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/facebook-1.svg)](https://www.facebook.com/hiyainc/) ###### Products - Connect - [Number Registration](https://www.hiya.com/products/connect/number-registration) - [Branded Call](https://www.hiya.com/products/connect/branded-call) - [View Plans](https://www.hiya.com/products/connect/pricing) - Protect - [Spam Analytics](https://www.hiya.com/products/protect/spam-analytics) - [AI Voice Detection](https://www.hiya.com/products/protect/ai-voice-detection) - Apps - [Hiya Spam Blocker](https://www.hiya.com/products/apps/hiya-spam-blocker) - [Hiya AI Phone](https://www.hiya.com/products/apps/hiya-ai-phone) ###### Solutions - Company size - [Enterprise](https://www.hiya.com/solutions/enterprise) - [Call Centers](https://www.hiya.com/solutions/call-center) - [Small and Medium](https://www.hiya.com/solutions/businesses) - Service providers - [Operators](https://www.hiya.com/solutions/operators) - [OEMs and technology](https://www.hiya.com/solutions/technology-partners) ###### Considering Hiya? - [Why Hiya](https://www.hiya.com/why-hiya) - [How it Works](https://www.hiya.com/how-it-works) - [Customer Stories](https://www.hiya.com/case-studies) - [Voice Intelligence Platform](https://www.hiya.com/why-hiya/voice-intelligence-platform) - [Trust Center](https://www.hiya.com/why-hiya/trust-center) - [Modern Slavery](https://www.hiya.com/company/modern-slavery) - [About Hiya](https://www.hiya.com/company/about) - [Careers: We're hiring!](https://www.hiya.com/company/careers) - [Contact us](https://www.hiya.com/contact-us) ###### Resources - [Resource Center](https://www.hiya.com/resources) - [Partner Program](https://partners.hiya.com/) - [Get Support](https://hiya.com/support) - [Developer Docs](https://developer.hiya.com/) - [Hiya Blog](https://hiya.com/blog) - [Events](https://www.hiya.com/events) - [Press Kit](https://www.hiya.com/newsroom#press-kit) ![ANAB](https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/logo-anab.svg) ![ISO 27001](https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/logo-iso27017.png) ![AICPA](https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/logo-aicpa.svg) ![IAF](https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/logo-iaf.svg) [Privacy Policy](https://www.hiya.com/legal/privacy) [Terms of Service](https://www.hiya.com/legal/terms-of-service) [App Data Privacy Policy](https://www.hiya.com/legal/app-data-protection-and-privacy-policy) ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Hiya Team", "url" : "https://blog.hiya.com/author/hiya-team" }, "dateModified" : "2021-11-02T00:04:55.206Z", "datePublished" : "2020-09-19T22:10:59.000Z", "headline" : "But They Said I Won A Cruise?! |How You Know Your Free Vacation is a Scam!", "image" : [ "https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/VacationScam-620x420.jpg" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://blog.hiya.com/how-you-know-your-free-vacation-scam/", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://blog.hiya.com/hubfs/hiya-logo-3.svg" }, "name" : "Hiya Inc." } } ```