Groupon is selling $199 mystery vacations, where you don't know your destination until after you book. There's a catch.
The package covers flights and a hotel, but things like checked baggage, seat selection and resort fees can turn the bargain into a pricier vacation.
Would you book a vacation without knowing where you're going? That's the premise behind Groupon's mystery getaways : a package offering round-trip flights and hotel accommodations for as little as $199 per person to a destination revealed only after you redeem the voucher. But whether this sort of trip works for you depends a lot on what kind of traveler you are.
The concept of a mystery vacation isn't new. Mystery Vacations launched in 2014, planning itineraries for travelers who don't mind a surprise at budget prices. Today, companies like Journee and Pack Up + Go offer similar services. But Groupon's offering has gone viral, with customers on social media talking about how they scored a trip for as little as $199 per person.
How do the mystery vacations work?
The deal, which is still available to purchase , goes like this. You book a Groupon voucher for your mystery getaway, which includes round-trip flights and accommodations at a 3- or 4-star hotel. After purchasing your vouchers, you complete the online redemption form to select your preferred dates, and a travel provider contacts you within 72 hours to reveal your destination and trip length.
While your preferred dates help determine your destination, Groupon doesn't guarantee them — a tour operator team member will work with you to confirm your departure.
Technically, you could wind up on a far-flung trip across the globe, but only six of the 2,000 available vouchers are in the Gold Tier. Those packages include seven-night premium trips to destinations such as London and Paris, Athens and Santorini, or Phuket and Bangkok. The Silver Tier has 12 trips available and also includes a more premium experience: a four-night trip to destinations such as Hawaii, Los Cabos, Aruba or Curaçao. Iceland is also included in this category.
The majority of the vouchers are in the Bronze Tier, with 1,982 two-night trips — about 99% — to domestic cities such as New York, Miami, Las Vegas, San Diego, New Orleans, Nashville and more.
How much will it all cost?
The packages start at $199, and Groupon uses a tiered pricing model based on your departure airport. For example, flying out of Dallas/Fort Worth is $199, flying out of San Francisco is $249 and flying out of New York's LaGuardia Airport is $299.
Groupon says the listed prices include no additional surcharges or hidden fees, but the package doesn't cover all potential travel expenses. Want to take more than a personal item on the plane? It'll cost you. Staying somewhere with a resort fee? It's not included. Going solo? Each trip requires a minimum of two vouchers, so customers traveling alone must either pay an additional $150 surcharge or purchase a solo mystery trip for $299.
Once you submit your voucher code to the travel provider, it's considered redeemed — and nonrefundable. Because your destination is revealed afterward, you generally won't know where you're going before you've passed the refund cutoff. While you can't get your money back simply because you don't like your assigned destination, the tour operator may be able to discuss alternative options based on your dates and departure airport.
What are people saying about Groupon's mystery getaway?
A lot . But exactly how happy they are with the experience varies widely. (Yahoo reached out to Groupon for comment but has not heard back.)
One woman took to TikTok to share that she scored a Silver Tier trip that was originally planned for Iceland, but due to the timing of the vacation, she rescheduled and chose to go to Los Cabos, Mexico, instead.
Someone else who went on a mystery trip in May was sent to Houston and said she enjoyed exploring the city on the low-cost vacation. However, she said she had to pay $50 more to fly out on a Sunday, rather than on the day the company had arranged for her and her friend.
Another TikToker who already went on her mystery trip said she enjoyed her two-day trip in Las Vegas — but that it wasn't exactly as cheap as it seemed. As a solo traveler, she paid the additional $150, and with extra baggage and seat selection fees on the flight, plus resort fees on top of that, the whole two-day trip cost her more than $700, she said, not including the activities and restaurants she paid for out of pocket.
Some people, however, regret booking their mystery trip altogether. This person is attempting to get her money back: She says Groupon tried to upsell her on switching her dates and airport, even though the trip didn't make logistical sense. Another person said her mystery trip didn't happen at all. According to her video, when she arrived at the airport with her family, the airline couldn't find their reservation. She said the San Diego hotel where they were supposed to stay also had no record of their reservation. Ultimately, she said, the trip that didn't happen cost her $900.
Are Groupon mystery trips really saving you money?
Gold Tier trips have the highest potential for savings, especially when you factor in the cost of flights to destinations like Bali or Singapore. But for the rest of the trips, it depends. In fact, the mystery trips might not save you anything at all. Since Bronze Tier trips are only two nights in a domestic city, it's possible you could find a flight on a budget airline and a hotel at the same level for a similar price.
Ultimately, if the surprise element is what excites you most about a mystery trip, then the experience may be worth it. But if you're strictly looking for a cheaper travel option, there may be even better ways to score a deal .
