'I'm a cruise expert - tourists making a simple error could have future cruises cancelled'

A well-known travel personality has warned tourists to take care in the run up to a cruise holiday, else they could make a very expensive error.

Ilana Schattauer is a cruising expert who runs the YouTube channel Life Well Cruised, regularly posting videos in which she shares tips to help passengers get the most out of their time on board and avoid dangerous scams.

In a recent video, Ilana discusses a recent story published by Cruise Radio about a lady who had her whole trip cancelled by scammers becuase of a mistake she made online.

She explained: "Sharing your information online. Now, you might have read this story, but a lady booked a Carnival cruise and was sailing in a suite. It was an expensive journey, $12,000 (£9,500) including flights and accommodation, it was very pricey.

"Well, the day before the cruise, she found out that her cruise had been cancelled. She thought that the cruise line had a glitch, but it turns out that wasn't the case. What happened was, that lady had posted her booking information online, making her booking number visible. Somebody created a fake account on Carnival's website and put her booking number into that and cancelled her booking."

After booking a cruise, it is only natural that passengers-to-be will feel excited and want to let people know. One of the most common ways to do this is to join a Facebook group related to that voyage.

However, whilst these groups are a perfect way to meet fellow passengers and get some travel tips, tourists must always be careful about what they post.

Whilst Carnival has currently refused to give the unfortunate tourist a refund for her cancelled trip, the company has offered $10,404 (£8,186) in future cruise credit.

Illana suggested that all cruise passengers should take this as a warning never to share their booking information online.

She explained: "Did they do it maliciously? Was it someone that knew her? I don't really know the details.

"However, I think the lesson for all of us here, not just first cruisers, is not to post details like flights and cruise information online. It's never a good idea."