It does not have to be a scam at all, it can just be very annoying and I would mention that in a review as well.
* It might be a way to save the hotel the cc processing costs (or even just time, if outside a 1st world country). This easily adds $10 to my bill for having to use my EC card (EC := debit card used a lot in Europe) in a foreign country at a foreign bank's ATM.
* That deposit could just be the daily limit for your card in that country. You'll unfortunately have to eat at the hotel because they are the only ones who graciously let you pay the day after.
* It might be a scam to get you seek the next ATM where someone is waiting for you and you start the millionaires' tour: Use all cards at gun- or knife point until their limits are reached.
> get you seek the next ATM where someone is waiting for you
Am sure this is what a bar in the Canaries tried with me, a 4 level bar/restaurant with about 10 rooms and their story was "this card machine is broken" "this one's out of battery" etc, then "there's an ATM just over there, I'll take you there...".
If it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, don't be surprised if they steal your bread.
On the Canary Islands I'd rather expect a skimmer in the ATM, not getting mugged. Also, the tourism industry there is notorious for exploiting employees - when people pay in cash tips tend to be higher.
I'm not saying it was a scam. What I am saying something odd was going on.
I booked and prepaid the hotel with my Visa debit card. When I arrived they wanted a deposit for £150, which they would only accept using a Mastercard. I have never encountered any business that only accepts Visa OR Mastercard.
I don't have a Mastercard, so I was told I had to pay the deposit in cash. That was just really odd.
>IIRC there's also video reportage about it to be found...
The VICE piece is here:
How to Become TripAdvisor’s #1 Fake Restaurant
The Shed at Dulwich was the number one rated restaurant in London, with foodies, celebrities and bloggers trying to get a table. The main obstacle for them, however, was that it didn't exist. Over the course of 8 months VICE's Oobah Butler used an assault of fake reviews to get his 'restaurant' to the hallowed top spot on TripAdvisor.
