Brian Jeffrey
An incident involving booking scams during a Ha Long trip was highlighted by Vietnamese American Yen Nguyen Bruno Lerulli. She recounted the challenges faced by her family in locating rented apartments and the pressure to cancel bookings, risking lost deposits.
A detailed account of the unfortunate experience was shared on Facebook by Yen Nguyen Bruno Lerulli following a vacation in Ha Long, Quang Ninh Province. She cautioned others about deceitful practices encountered when reserving accommodations.
Yen Nguyen Bruno Lerulli and her family, seeking a four-bedroom apartment in Ha Long for two nights, initially booked a property via Booking.com for over 236 USD. However, upon arrival, they struggled to find the apartment as it had been unavailable for weeks according to the rental service.
After a failed attempt with Airbnb for another apartment, where similar issues arose, Yen Nguyen Bruno Lerulli eventually secured a different three-bedroom apartment for 6.3 million VND (around 270 USD) for three days. However, the new accommodation was in poor condition, uncleaned since the previous guests, and emitted foul odors.
Expressing her hope to spare other tourists from such experiences and scams in Ha Long, Yen Nguyen Bruno Lerulli shared her story.
In response to the reported incident by VietNamNet, the People’s Committee of Ha Long City issued a directive to promptly investigate and address the situation, acknowledging the negative impact on the city’s tourism reputation.
With recent complaints concerning substandard accommodations, the People’s Committee assigned the Ha Long City Police Department to investigate further, aiming to take strict actions against those involved and report their findings by July 15.
To combat unauthorized lodging activities, particularly with villa and apartment rentals, unannounced inspections of residency declarations will be conducted, with violators facing severe penalties including business suspension.
The Department of Culture and Information will provide and publicize a list of recognized lodging facilities, aiding in selecting reliable services, while local agencies will continue to monitor and update a comprehensive list of active lodging establishments for proper oversight.
Additionally, the Ha Long City Media and Cultural Center will enhance information dissemination about tourism activities and services to guide tourists on avoiding unlicensed services and safeguarding against financial losses while preserving the city’s tourism reputation.
