How to Cut Risk With Online Travel Auctions

Online travel auctions may tempt travelers looking to cut expenses with bargains on trips, airfare and hotels. As with any auction, online or off, a bidder may be successful and get exactly what he had hoped for, in this case the dream vacation at a budget price. Of course there's a chance that things won't turn out quite that way.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

1. Read the fine print, as you should with any travel plans whether or not they involve auctions. Check for blackout days and additional fees. Complaints about online auction fraud often involve blackout dates, refund rules and unexpected commissions, fees, surcharges and taxes, so it pays to be diligent.
2. Compare the auction deal with what you could get by working directly with the hotel or airline. Don't get carried away in the heat of competing in an auction and wind up paying more than if you had booked your trip through more conventional channels.
3. Try eBay, where online space is provided to licensed travel agents or other businesses to sell vacation packages, trips and airline tickets. Individual sellers can only sell travel vouchers or gift certificates. Other travel auction sites include Luxury Link, for upscale travel plans; Bidding for Good, where non-profit groups can auction off donated trips to raise money; and Generous Adventures Travel Auctions, a non-profit group that donates some of its profits to charities.
4. Pay for your auction trip using a credit card or PayPal. If the trip does not live up to your expectations, you have recourse to complain to such agencies as the Internet Crime Complaint Center, the Better Business Bureau and the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.