Post by stontyro on Jan 14, 2009 21:23:29 GMT -5
I want to make a trip to Helsinki, but besides that my trip will be in W Europe. It makes sense to take the ferry round trip from/to Travemünde or another port between legs of the rest of my trip. For just a few days in Helsinki, the round trip cost for a single passenger is a little out of my price range, so I would like to arrange a cabin-sharing scheme to reduce the price (by €272 if I can find just 2 other people in both directions, via the Finnlines Star ships; that's 3-4 days worth of my budget wasted!).
I'm planning this journey for a holiday in Helsinki, which could increase my chances of meeting other travelers. Also, it means that waiting around outside the ticket office is a little risky because the ferry might already be booked.
How do I set this up:
1) Without getting scammed.
2) Without putting others at risk of getting scammed.
3) So that it works.
4) Or is there a meet-up service that already does this, I just haven't found yet?
1: I probably won't find other backpackers where I live, so online is the most obvious option for finding partners. It might not do someone else much good to request a ticket and then disappear (they never get money from me). However, I would still have to foot their portion of the bill. I could attempt to sell their ticket to someone else, but I really want to avoid the situation in the first place. If someone disappears, I want them to have already payed me. If someone decides they want to cancel, I want them to be responsible for re-selling the ticket.
2: The arranger might be in a really good position to run a scam by collecting money without buying the ticket. Is there any way to guarantee the transaction? Paypal comes to mind, but I'm not sure what they offer for this situation (thinking out loud here... I'll go take a look in the meantime).
3: We have to agree on dates. Someone has to pay. Others have to pay them. Everyone has to end up with a ticket. Then we all have to board the vessel. Do we all have to board together, or can members of a group all arrive independently? If independently is possible, then tickets might be distributed by mail (which also finalizes the transaction a lot sooner). Or do we all have to meet up outside the boat?
I'm planning this journey for a holiday in Helsinki, which could increase my chances of meeting other travelers. Also, it means that waiting around outside the ticket office is a little risky because the ferry might already be booked.
How do I set this up:
1) Without getting scammed.
2) Without putting others at risk of getting scammed.
3) So that it works.
4) Or is there a meet-up service that already does this, I just haven't found yet?
1: I probably won't find other backpackers where I live, so online is the most obvious option for finding partners. It might not do someone else much good to request a ticket and then disappear (they never get money from me). However, I would still have to foot their portion of the bill. I could attempt to sell their ticket to someone else, but I really want to avoid the situation in the first place. If someone disappears, I want them to have already payed me. If someone decides they want to cancel, I want them to be responsible for re-selling the ticket.
2: The arranger might be in a really good position to run a scam by collecting money without buying the ticket. Is there any way to guarantee the transaction? Paypal comes to mind, but I'm not sure what they offer for this situation (thinking out loud here... I'll go take a look in the meantime).
3: We have to agree on dates. Someone has to pay. Others have to pay them. Everyone has to end up with a ticket. Then we all have to board the vessel. Do we all have to board together, or can members of a group all arrive independently? If independently is possible, then tickets might be distributed by mail (which also finalizes the transaction a lot sooner). Or do we all have to meet up outside the boat?
