A California mother was purportedly scammed out of going on a Carnival cruise with her children that she had planned a year in advance — and initially lost $900 — after she fell prey to a fraudster, according to a new report.
Brittany Paine, of Castaic, was set to voyage to Ensenada, Mexico over Mother’s Day weekend but her plans were shockingly wrecked when her Carnival booking was canceled just days before, leaving her on the verge of tears.
The sea-sickening scam began when she called a number for what she thought was Carnival about a cabin upgrade and spoke to someone who claimed they were a company rep, according to NBC 4 LA.
“We noticed here that you have an outstanding balance on your upcoming cruise for $294,” she said the so-called rep told her, “and you will not be able to board if that’s not taken care of.”
She paid the “deck fee” and hung up, but she instantly grew suspicious and she dialed up another number for Carnival. An actual rep over the phone this time told her a “deck fee” didn’t exist.
“She said, ‘No, ma’am, that was a scam,” Paine told NBC 4 LA this week. “We wouldn’t have charged you a deck fee. Go ahead, and dispute that with your bank.’”
She disputed the charge and got her money back, but that wasn’t the worst of it.
“I get an email alert that pops up on my phone. It says ‘Your cruise has been canceled.’ And my heart sank,” the devastated mom recalled to the station.
Paine told the outlet that Carnival said someone had logged into her account and canceled her trip. She suspects the fake rep, who had asked for her booking number, was behind the cancelation.
“I was in tears. I said, ‘Please, this is Mother’s Day weekend with my kids,’” she said.
But the cruise line couldn’t help her. Her cabin was already rebooked to another customer and the ship was full, leaving Paine marooned at home.
The mom also lost the full $900 cost of the cabin — as the cancellation happened within 15 days of the cruise date, per Carnival’s policy. But she was refunded after NBC 4 LA reached out to the company.
“To come up with $900 for a trip for my kids, it was only feasible by making payments and taking out a loan. So it was a lot of money for me,” she told the local station.
The Post has reached out to Carnival for comment.
“Unfortunately scammers target travelers,” a company rep said in a statement to NBC 4 without sharing any details on Paine’s case.
Paine, who plans to jump on a cruise with her kids later this summer, warned others to watch out for cyber-criminals.
“Nobody is safe from these scams. And they get better and better,” she said.
A Kentucky family fell victim to a similar scenario in May when their $15,000 Carnival vacation was canceled on them two days before their cruise date.
The couple had accidentally shared their booking number on social media by posting a screenshot of an email with a countdown to the cruise that also listed the number. Someone then used the number to cancel the family’s trip.