Planning a trip to Italy should be about choosing the right piazza to stay near and arguing over which gelato flavour wins, not dealing with fraud. Yet holiday scams in Italy are affecting millions of people each year.
According to a survey commissioned by Facile.it and conducted by research institute EMG, more than 4.3 million Italians were victims of a holiday-related scam or attempted fraud in the last year alone. The total estimated financial damage exceeds €195 million.
If you’re booking accommodation, flights or car hire for Italy, these are the figures and risk areas you need to know about.
The scale of holiday scams in Italy
The issue does not affect all age groups equally. Young adults are particularly exposed:
- Among 18–24-year-olds, 44.6% experienced a scam or attempted fraud
- The national average stands at 14.0%
This means the youngest group is affected at more than three times the national average.
Accommodation scams in Italy
The most common type of holiday scam in Italy involves accommodation that simply does not exist. Over the past 12 months, more than 3.4 million Italians were affected by scams involving non-existent properties. These could be holiday homes, hotels, or bed & breakfasts.
Not everyone lost money entirely:
- 31% of victims identified the scam before departure
- However, over 1 million people only discovered the fraud on arrival, finding themselves without accommodation
For travellers arriving in an unfamiliar Italian city, this can mean being left without a place to stay.
Accommodation different from advertised
Other scams involve properties that exist but do not match the listing. In the past year, nearly 440,000 travellers found accommodation completely different from the advert.
Around 389,000 people arrived to find the property already occupied due to multiple fraudulent bookings
Where holiday scams in Italy most often happen
Booking platforms
Booking portals, either genuine or fake, are the main channels used by scammers. Over 1.7 million holidaymakers were scammed through these platforms.
Even traditional methods still pose risks, with around 33,000 Italians affected by rental signs displayed in the street.
Airline ticket scams affecting travellers to Italy
Holiday scams in Italy are not limited to accommodation. Transport is also heavily affected. In the past year, 2.5 million travellers encountered fraud or attempted fraud when buying airline tickets.
Reported cases include non-existent discounted flights, fake booking confirmations and websites imitating airline companies and collecting payment without issuing valid tickets.
Car rental scams in Italy
Car hire is another major risk area, with 2.4 million cases involving car rental fraud or attempted fraud. Problems are linked to complex contracts, excess charges or unfair or misleading conditions.
How to avoid holiday scams in Italy
Facile.it has outlined practical steps to reduce the risk of fraud when booking travel services.
1. Check prices carefully
- Offers that seem excessively cheap are likely to be fraudulent
- Pursuing maximum savings increases direct exposure to scams
2. Choose booking channels carefully
- Booking through established platforms offers access to assistance and the possibility of refunds
- Outside these systems, recovering lost money is described as almost impossible
3. Verify details in advance
Before confirming accommodation:
- Read listing reviews
- Check whether photos have been reused on other platforms
- Confirm that the property address exists on a map
4. Use traceable payment methods
- Use credit or debit cards to ensure traceability
- Prepaid card top-ups are commonly used by scammers because they are difficult to reverse
5. Read contracts carefully
Before confirming any booking:
- Review terms and conditions
- Check for excessive excess charges or hidden costs
- Ensure clarity on exactly what is being purchased
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