free cruise/timeshare question...again..

[Juliah67]

I know I read this awhile ago, but....we got a $1600 voucher for Carnival for touring a Ramada timeshare. I know there are catches, but am still wondering if this might significantly decrease the cost of our next cruise. I remember a guy named Tom (Cruising for life?) who had a site that listed stuff about this. Can anyone direct me to his website? Anyone have anything to say about this timeshare deal? Thank you so much, Juliah

[Juliah67]

Ok, I did some research and I believe most of these to offer little to no savings at best and scams at the worst. If it's too good to be true...

 

Anyhow, I'm suffering major withdrawals from my May cruise and was hoping I could afford another cruise before NEXT May...

 

Must start saving NOW! LOL!

 

Love, Juliah

[afrayedknot]

I, too, would like to hear more info about this.

 

Paid $178 per person for "fees" for a 3 day baja cruise after attending a timeshare presentation at Shell vacations in Anaheim.

 

first you have to pick 3 dates 30 days apart which I 've done twice and been told the dates weren't available and I have to go on the cruise within a year.

the next dates I picked are 9-24, 10-30 and 12-29 so will see if these are available. then what?

[cjar855]

The Last Cruise we were on in January (Pride) We took the timeshare tour in Matzalon (I Know I spelled that wrong:o ) They gave us a two for One cruise Vacation. When I checked it out ,you had to book through them and pay full Brochure price,It is cheaper to book on your own. Believe me ,they are giving you nothing.. Although the tour was nice ,we got to use the hotel facilities and got free lunch and drinks..

[robbyxoxo]

hey! :)....i received the same Ramada offer last week....and being the nosey traveler that i am, i called and found out the details.....IMO its not much of a deal!.....if u have kids that u take on vacation maybe it works out as a better deal....but anyways, heres some of the details.....for $1398 you get a 2 night cruise on the Regal to the bahamas.....If im not mistaken the Regal is like a 50 year old rust bucket of a ship.......you get a total of 3 nights in fort lauderdale staying at the Ramada resort.....another 2 nights at the Orlando resort....you get a rental car for 7 days......if you decline their first offer they will then throw in all meals as well while your staying at the resorts!...also provided is some sort of half day cruise around fort lauderdale coastline...they also throw in 10 mini vacations that are all 2 niters....in the past ive always found these to be very difficult to use and so of little value!...the rep tried to tell me that THESE were different from the others ive experienced....ALRIGHTY!.............so after I declined this offer another rep called me back the next day.....this time for $898 i was offered one week in either the Orlando resort or the fort lauderdale one......pretty much all the same perks but without the cruise being offered....i was a bit more tempted with this offer....but not enough!....for $898 i can still find a discounted 7 day cruise to the caribbean.....and as much as i love Florida, id take the hassle free cruise over the land vacation, if forced to choose.........and funny enough, after an hour on the phone during both discussions NEVER was the timeshare TOUR mentioned! lol.....they kinda hope you'll not focus on the fact that you have to go through the dreaded time share tour!...................so in the end I never found out about the third option being offered which was a combo carnival cruise and land resort stay.....im sure it probably cost more than what a 7 day cruise cost, so i had little interest............so thats the scoop as far as i know it.......Fairfield Resorts offers more freebie type tours if you ever get a chance....this winter we are scheduled to do another with them.....for doing the tour you get 2 free nights in Orlando, $100 worth of dining vouchers which can be used anywhere, a free night voucher for any Wingate hotel, and some $25 off vouchers for Avis rental cars.......all for the grand price of ZERO.......Zero always works for me:)...

[derf5585]

Ramada Travel Scam

from

http://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/ripoff11337.htm

 

(yes, you may now trade your timeshare for a cruise!)

from

http://www.timeshares101.com/timeshare-industry.phtml

 

Ramada Plaza - Successful Refund Demand

from

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/travel/ramada_refund.html

[robbyxoxo]

You sure know how to dig up the dirt!:)....those stories are soooo not a rarity when dealing with time shares!......it seems as if your vacation ends up ruined by the stress and hassle that they put you though.....including the dumpy hotels they put you up in!......as well as the hidden surprises that they dont want you to find out until its too late to change plans.....so buyer beware on these deals........know each and every detail before commiting to one and sleep on it overnite if possible!.....they push hard to sell you on the initial phone call, but its not near as urgent as they make it out to be:)

[glrounds]

"You'd better hurry cause they're goin' fast"

 

Any time you hear that phrase or anything even remotely related to it, hang up or leave (whichever applies). :D

 

I love the qualifying line the timeshare promoters always ask you. Do you have your American Express with you? Time is not on their side. They want you "locked in" from the git go. Giving you time to reflect on their "hot-shot" offer is not conducive to timeshare sales. :rolleyes:

[bethm214]

I was always very wary of time share deals too....but, i once got a call from Marriott. I was a business traveler at the time and used Marriott somewhat frequently. The call was asking me to come to their new resort in California - I think it was called Desert Palms, sort of near Palm Springs. We were already going to be in Las Vegas for a long weekend, so we arranged to get a rental car and drive there. The drive was great and we arrived in good spirits.

We had a BEAUTIFUL condo with beautiful resort amenities. We took the required tour and, although longer than promised, it was not horrible. Actually, it was a great way to see what all the resort could offer us for our time there. There were 3 pools, golf, tennis and other things we probably would not have found otherwise.

By doing various things, we racked up resort credits.....by coming in on a weekday, by taking the tour at an unpopular time, by spending an extra half hour with the high pressure sales manager, etc. The credits could be used for anything inside the resort...drinks at the bars, meals at the restaurant, golf at either of the 2 courses, etc etc.

Once there we didn't pay for a thing. We ate at an excellent on-site Japanese steak house one night, i had drinks by the pool each day and my son had room service Pizza Hut delivered a few times. Oh, and this included maid service, although purchasing guests would have had to pay for that amenity.

WE had so much credit that we stopped at the last little store on their property to use it up on candy bars, sodas and other snacks for the ride back. WE saw very little of the surrounding town as we were so happy at the resort.

I feel like i DEFINITELy was compensated for my time. I would do it again in a heartbeat if i got another offer like that one!

So, that is my bright side to this often ugly story!

[Juliah67]

Thank you all for your input. I read the travel scams and appreciate the information. I am glad I thought about this and got feedback before I called! Love, Julie

[luv2travel!]

I also love to do the 'land' timeshare tours. Have visited many places for little or nothing thanks to Fairfield & Marriott & a few others. However, when I received a Ramada one several years ago. I also researched & found there were many, many complaints about them at the Better Business Bureau. I think it is the BBB out of Florida. But many people lost money, ended paying more than originally was told, etc.

I would check out BBB in Florida before doing this. I still receive these documents in the mail. But they now make a quick exit to my trashcan :)

Gina