VACATION FIASCOS - Consumer Rescue

Norse Atlantic Airways Facebook groups hosted by scammers are stealing from members.

She went to Facebook for a Norse Atlantic refund. Instead, scammers stole $5,100 from her

March 26, 2026March 22, 2026 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Norse Atlantic Airways customer Joanne Reston joined the airline’s official Facebook group to complain about a missing refund. At least that’s what she thought she was doing. As it turns out that Facebook group had no affiliation with the airline. In fact, it was just a trap set by scammers pretending to be helpful Norse agents.

What happened to Reiss after joining that Facebook group can only be described as a whirlwind of one scam after another.

Why did these Celebrity Cruises passengers believe they could stay on board the ship in Brazil and skip the visa requirements?

Help! Celebrity Cruises denied boarding to us. Whose mistake was this?

March 26, 2026March 12, 2026 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Loyal Celebrity Cruises passenger Cherie Johnson booked a transatlantic cruise from Europe to South America a year in advance. She and her husband were greatly looking forward to celebrating her 75th birthday during the 3-week voyage. But when the day came to set sail on Celebrity Equinox last November, they were shockingly denied boarding the ship.

A United Airlines passenger arrived in Mexico as a no-show after a gate agent failed to scan his passport.

United Airlines didn’t scan his boarding pass. Will it cost him $2,743?

March 19, 2026March 1, 2026 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

While boarding a recent United Airlines flight to Mexico, Fred Glatz accidentally handed over his wife’s boarding pass. He says the agent pointed out the mistake but waved him onto the plane without asking for his own pass. As the couple settled into their seats, they had no idea that the unusual oversight would cost them $2,743.

A rental car crash in California, even with LDW, causes big problems for a Hertz customer.

Help! After my rental car crash, Hertz charged me a $1,900 impound fee

February 19, 2026February 17, 2026 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

PhD student, Rayhan Rashed, doesn’t have a personal vehicle and he doesn’t have car insurance. So when he recently rented a car for the first time, he wisely purchased Hertz’s Loss Damage Waiver (LDW). As it turns out, he would definitely need it.

He crashed that car on a twisty California road less than 24 hours later, totaling it.

Scam call center pretending to be Costco Travel ticks cruise ship passengers

Cruise ship passengers tricked out of $6,000 by fake Costco Travel

February 7, 2026February 6, 2026 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

On Black Friday, Shane McCormick called Costco Travel to book four cabins on a Royal Caribbean cruise to Alaska. At least that’s what he thought he was doing. In reality, he dialed the wrong number and instead of Costco Travel he reached a scam call center.

Of course, the man on the other end of the line didn’t alert McCormick of his error. In fact, the call was exactly what the fake Costco Travel agent had been waiting for all day. The bad actor was more than happy to collect $6,000 from his unaware target.

Could your lost bags end up at a store in Alabama, Unclaimed Baggage, Original photo of a delivery from Unclaimed Baggage, Michelle Couch-Friedman's photo

What do airlines really do with all that lost and unclaimed baggage?

March 28, 2026January 27, 2026 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

If an airline misplaces your luggage and cannot find it within a reasonable time, the carrier must pay for your loss. If you accept the compensation, that ends the airline’s liability to you, and your belongings are considered permanently gone. But could your missing property eventually reappear on display at Unclaimed Baggage, a resale shop in rural Alabama?

Unclaimed Baggage is an unusual place where all sorts of lost items get a new lease on life.
Here’s what I learned about America’s only retail store that buys, restores and then sells travelers’ orphaned stuff.

Travel agent arrested, Tavia Thomas gave her clients fake cruise documents, no reservation on Symphony of the Seas

Travel agent arrested, charged with stealing $35,000 from cruise ship passengers

March 28, 2026January 13, 2026 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

A Long Island travel agent has been arrested and charged with scamming would-be cruise ship passengers out of $35,000. And that’s not all that Tavia Thomas of Hempstead, New York, is being accused of doing. Other clients say Thomas collected almost $8,000 for a destination wedding that she booked — and then canceled — behind their backs. Another disgruntled customer paid over $10,000 for a nonexistent Caribbean luxury vacation to celebrate her grandmother’s birthday.

Cruise passenger mistakes to avoid in 2026, mild to extreme cruiser mistakes

8 cruise ship passenger mistakes ranked from mild to extreme in 2026

March 29, 2026January 2, 2026 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Kesha Green* made what is arguably the most dire mistake a passenger can make on a cruise ship. Just hours after boarding Carnival Conquest in Miami, she found herself unexpectedly brawling with two young women. Green says the surprise fisticuffs happened after the strangers stole her son’s iPhone and other belongings from a pool chair.

She tracked down the duo and demanded they return her boy’s property, but instead, the confrontation quickly became physical.

An original photograph by the author, Michelle Couch-Friedman, digitally enhanced to depict the isolated Mississippi gas station where the rental car failure occurred.

Help! Avis billed us $8,090 after our rental car died at a gas station

February 14, 2026December 24, 2025 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Friends on a celebratory road trip strangely experienced the total mechanical failure of not one, but two Avis rental cars. What caused these mysterious problems and who is ultimately responsible to pay for the engine and transmission damage?

A consumer advocate's comprehensive guide to American Airlines travel credit, AA aircraft at the airport, original photo by Michelle Couch-Friedman

American Airlines travel credit: How to use it before you lose it

January 28, 2026December 15, 2025 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

No one could fault Kristina for overlooking the expiration date on her family’s $2,622 travel credit from American Airlines. For over a year, Kristina was in crisis mode after her husband’s brain cancer diagnosis. Of course, during that time, taking a vacation was last on her list of things to do.

When doctors deemed Kristina’s husband well enough to travel, her mind turned back to their AA credit. She intended to use it to book flights for a memorable trip while her spouse could enjoy it. Unfortunately, by then the expiration date had come and gone.

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