Dozens of people looking to spend a night watching the constellations have been caught out by a stargazing scam in North Yorkshire.
Holidaymakers who booked stays with ‘Star Domes’ found themselves out of pocket in an empty field after following fake directions to a farm in Knayton.
Local farmer Julian Potter said that he has seen around 30 mystified travellers trudging his fields in search of the domes in the last six months.
He told the BBC News: “Young families with kids, they have no idea until they get here that they’ve lost their money and they’re not going to go on holiday - it’s absolutely heartbreaking.”
The website advertising a ”luxury stargazing dome” with “breathtaking” views of North Yorkshire’s skies for £99 a night seems to have shut down, although still appears on a Google search.
“The police just can’t keep up with putting them down,” Mr Potter said of the rental fraud.
Victims Samantha Cook, 39, and her fiance Ryan Swain, 34, discovered they had been scammed after stopping for directions to the fake accommodation at a local pub.
“I was devastated, I burst out crying because I had Ryan in the car,” said the pregnant woman from Malton.
Ryan added that the scam website had “looked really authentic and legitimate”.
The couple’s bank agreed to issue a full refund.
Images of the supposed stargazing domes appear to have been stolen from a popular Australian listing on Airbnb.
Tim, the host of the real listing – OMG Star Gazing Bubble ‘Asteria’ Bubble Retreats in Agnes, in the state of Victoria – said they have been “trying all we can to get them to take down their scam websites. It’s terrible”.
According to those duped by the stargazing deal, the website had faked Trustpilot reviews and included a booking calendar.
The fraudulent site has since been reported to North Yorkshire Police by the owner of a nearby caravan site and referred to Action Fraud, the official fraud reporting service.
Action Fraud advise: “The safest way to protect yourself from booking bogus accommodation is to book directly with an established hotel or through a reputable travel company.”
They suggest that travellers research the property or hotel that they are booking and “verify that the address exists through web searches and online maps”.
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