Aussie traveller books dream hotel in Paris... only to arrive and find out it NEVER existed: 'We are in disbelief'
Showpo CEO Jane Lu and her team booked what they thought was a dream Parisian four-bedroom apartment, just minutes from the iconic Eiffel Tower.
After a long-haul flight from Sydney to France, the group was shell-shocked when they learned the accommodation they had been promised wasn't actually available.
In fact, when they tried to check in at the reception desk, an employee claimed the luxury apartment they had booked was 'not a real place'.
It suddenly dawned on them that they'd been duped by a fake listing on Booking.com - after putting down a €2000 ($A3,570) deposit to secure the property.
'We got scammed. This work trip is completely cursed,' Jane said in disbelief.
One of her colleagues Jess explained that the group had arrived at the accommodation after a 30-hour flight - only to be told they had nowhere to stay.
'We were super excited... When we got to our accommodation, we were trying to check in and we went to this one counter where you grab the keys and the receptionist is like, 'This is not a real place, I have no keys for it',' Jess explained.
According to the listing, which is still available via Booking.com, the spacious unit offers four bedrooms, two bathrooms, a dining area, and a fully equipped kitchen
'Side note, we've given €2000 ($A3,570) to the scammer as well as a deposit. So that's something we're gonna have to deal with at the end of this trip,' Jess said.
According to the listing, which is still available via Booking.com, the spacious unit offers four bedrooms, two bathrooms, a dining area, and a fully equipped kitchen.
Under its 'house rules', guests are automatically charged a €2,000 ($A3,570) damage deposit seven days before arrival. The listing claims guests will be reimbursed within a week of check-out.
'We're sorry to hear about this guest's experience and we are following up to support their refund,' a Booking.com spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia.
'Our top priority at Booking.com is to facilitate safe and enjoyable travel experiences for our customers and partners.
'Should travellers need support, our customer service is available for them 24/7 and in 45 languages. Travellers can simply select the booking they have a question about in their Booking.com account and choose how they want to reach out, for instance via phone or message.'
Every accommodation on Booking.com go through a strict verification process to prevent customers from falling for potentially fraudulent listings.
'We are constantly optimising the robust security measures we have in place to protect our customers and partners, and take the process of verifying accommodation listings extremely seriously,' the Booking.com spokeswoman said.
'In the very rare instance that there might be some cause for doubt or concern with a specific property we investigate immediately, and where needed close the listing.'
Jane and her colleagues had planned to use the space to shoot content for Showpo's homecoming fashion campaign.
But things didn't go to plan, as the panicked girls spent the next three hours trying to find a new place to stay.
'We found an Italian restaurant to sit out for three hours trying to sort out with booking.com how we're going to deal with this all,' Jess explained.
'But all three of us have Australian numbers so in France, we can't call anyone... All of the numbers go to a French customer representative.
'I'm calling everyone, anyone that's awake, and this is literally the last thing we want to do after a 30-hour flight.'
After hours of searching, the group finally checked into a new place to stay.
'It's so nice,' Jess said.
Despite falling for the fake accommodation listing, Jane was just grateful to be in Paris - especially after her trip hadn't started off on the right foot.
Jane said the work trip had been nothing short of a nightmare - after she nearly missed her flight from Sydney to Paris due to water damage on her passport.
She was trying to check in at the airport when she was warned she might not be allowed into Paris because of water damage on her passport.
'I'm at the airport and they're telling me that I can't get onto my flight to Paris because my passport has water damage,' she said.
Jane said she was eventually allowed to board the plane, but she had to sign a waiver to 'say that if Paris turns me away, I'll just have to come back'.
'So I signed it, but now I've got this 24 to 28 hour flight journey, and I still might get turned back,' she said.
'So hopefully the French are chill. It's a really long flight to get turned away but I got to try it, right?'
She was heading to Paris for a work trip and had all the gear for the photoshoot with her, so if she didn't make it through customs, the campaign wouldn't happen.
Jane appeared visibly nervous as she waited to disembark after her plane landed in Paris.
'This is the moment of truth: let's see if I get in or not,' she said.
'Maybe they'll be super chill, or maybe I'm going straight back to Sydney.'
Thankfully, she managed to make her way through customs without a problem... until she discovered the apartment she had reserved through Booking.com didn't exist.
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