Group of Women Wait for 11 Hours at Airport, Scammed by Travel Agent, Netizens Concerned

• A group of South African women had their vacation plans shattered after being scammed by a travel agent
• In a video posted on TikTok, the ladies waited for over 10 hours at the airport for the agent to send their tickets
• The online community reacted to the video, with many encouraging people to make their own travel arrangements
• The ladies spoke to Briefly News and gave a little detail about their unfortunate incident

A group of South Africans planned a trip to Zanzibar. They went through the route of using a travel agent. However, things went south when they had to wait 11 hours at the airport for the agent to send their flight tickets.

@gontse.sa_ posted a video of them waiting at the airport. The TikTokker said after waiting for several hours, they decided to go home. They are demanding their money from the agent.

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"How we were waiting for our agent to send us our tickets to fly to Zanzibar, and we ended up going back home. We waited 11 hours at the airport."

In most cases, travel agencies are convenient and have made a name for themselves. They take off the time and the hassles that often accompany vacation planning.

South Africans scammed by travel agent

Watch the sad TikTok clip below:

Women speak to Briefly News

Speaking to Briefly News, the women said they paid R18k each for the trip. However, they didn't mention the travel agent as she said that they must give her 30 to 40 days for the refund.

The ladies haven't taken any legal action yet. But they are planning to, should the agent not refund them.

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"Our plan was to travel to Zanzibar and we got scammed by someone we know. We all paid R18k each of us and we haven't got our money. She said we should give her 30-40 as she is waiting for refund."

TikTokkers felt sorry for the group

The video got over 48k likes, with many online users feeling sad for the group and others suggesting that people make their travelling arrangements to avoid such scams or at least thoroughly check the agencies they want to use.

@leilakhan538 gave some recommendations:

"Stick with the big agencies like flight centre, Africa Stay, or buy directly yourself. Sorry, this happened to you."

@JameelaMbalenhle_Lacoste suggested:

"Please do your own bookings, guys, it’s easier or go to credible places like the flight centre."

@Thandaza shared a similar experience:

"Lol had a similar experience but my agent waited until I got to Mauritius, and I had no place to stay. That time, I paid for a 5-star hotel"

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@semakalengdube said they are a DIY person:

"I love travelling and I book, verify and confirm all by myself. No 3rd party for me. I'm so good at it I can open my own company."

@cebi_shwazy expressed:

"My biggest fear"

@Sweetblack observed:

"This is happening often "

Lady scammed by travel agency on her birthday

In another story, Briefly News reported about a woman who was scammed after she booked and paid for a trip to Mozambique on her birthday.

Thandi Mayekiso uploaded a video saying how she was scammed of thousands of rands for a trip she booked through a travel agent for her birthday in Mozambique.

However, her dreams were shattered when she discovered she had been scammed, losing her hard-earned money and hope of experiencing the trip she envisioned.

Source: Briefly News