Vacation Tour & Travel

Finally, frustrated, I fill out a complaint form for Bluegreen AND Vacation Travel. Lo and behold, Bluegreen calls me back and then TRANSFERS me to the Vacation Travel people. I now have my vacation scheduled... haha. After reading all of these comments, I can't wait to find out what actually happens. I may just completely skip the promised cruise. Don't think I need the hassle.

This tour also skips places that it stated in the itinerary. If you ask them, they say no time or blame to the company. Every stop you go, expect around 10-15 min. Some you'll just pass by sitting in the bus. Suitable for people who just want highlight of places, but definitely not a tour to really see things.

Also explained it's for 2 adults and 2 children (extra fees if more people). Fair. Still hesitate so after asking more questions about the hotel and info got it down to $149. Ok, to me that’s a fair price for any hotel for 2-3 nights (I would pay about 80-100 a night on average). Let's get to the bonus(s). We will see if I get the 2x $25 GC (I don't see why they would not). "The cruise" - I have cruised before so I already know it’s going to be the "cheap stuff" (cabin room with no windows). I prefer space so they explained I can upgrade at my cost (fair). Also understand I would pay port fees and taxes (can't get out of that, it’s the government also common).

On average I pay 400-800 a person for a 4 night cruise so the fee for an upgrade and port fees will cost me about 200-300 a person. Not a huge bonus but a very nice discount. So all in all, I'm happy, 4 stars. I would probably only recommend to my friends who (no offense) have common sense! Hope that helped. I'll "try" and remember to update after we take our vacation(s). Remember people, nothing's FREE!

My main complaint started when about 2 weeks out from our trip, I called and wanted to know where exactly I was going. Since I was driving there with my wife and 3 little kids, I was not too keen on going until I knew the specifics. I asked to speak with a manager and they were on the edge of rude and told me they would send me my information the next day. The next day I got the email but it was nothing more than a confirmation of my trip. I luckily rescheduled. I am scheduled to go again in a month but I don't know the specifics and no one has contacted me or returned my (probably 5) phone calls in a month.

My husband filled out the paperwork required for the tour and miscalculated our joint income by $20K. He's not a mathematician. Because of that, they disqualified us for the offer due to the $40K household income requirement. Instead of allowing us to fix the little check mark on the stupid application, they gave us a number we had to call. When he called, he was treated like pond scum by the rep and the manager he spoke with. They told us that we had disqualified ourselves for life due to a miscalculation of our income. The rep also told us he had paid $160 when he has it recorded it was over $300 on his bank statement. He was also told it was a 3-night 4-day stay but when we got there, they had only booked us for 2 nights.

On top of that, because of that little check mark on that paper, we were told if we continued our stay at the Bluegreen Club 36, we would be responsible for paying for it with no refund in the extra my husband dishes out for the trip in the first place. This place is out to take advantage of good people who are trying to enhance their quality of life by making promises that are never kept.

I asked for the supervisor. She called back the next day and I told her the same, and she said, "We have you recorded, and that the package explained that there were no refunds." I asked, "What package," and she said, "The one you received after signing up." I explained that I received an e-mail stating everything and no package.... She refused to budge. This is not a good company to do business with!

While it took me a while to pinpoint dates most convenient to my family and me, I finally booked our trip, which changed from Anaheim to San Diego. The dates requested and submitted were an arrival date of June 21, 2013 and departure on June 23, 2013. We received an emailed confirmation letter from Vacation Tour & Travel (VT&T) on May 22, 2013 stating our Friday, June 21, 2013 arrival date and check-in instructions at the Crowne Plaza hotel. I received a telephone call from VT&T as a courtesy confirmation of my arrival dates and location and to ensure that I received my email instructions. Additionally, on June 20, 2013, I received an email reminder requesting that I contact VT&T to confirm our planned arrival for the following day. Early June 21, 2013, I called Wanda **, Confirmation Manager, and confirmed my family's planned check-in around 3:30 pm that day. She provided confirmation of our reservation and reiterated the requirements for my husband and I to attend the two-hour tour prior to receiving the $50 Amex gift card.

My family arrived at the Crowne Plaza - San Diego hotel at about 4:25 pm and when we attempted to check-in, we were told that our reservation was for Monday, June 24, 2013, and not June 21, 2013 and that I'd have to talk to the manager. The manager stated the same thing as the first agent and stated that his hotel was overbooked and he had already given away the extra rooms that were held aside. He also stated that the other area hotels were also at capacity. He said that he's seen this before and that I should hold on to all of the emails and other documentation that I have showing my confirmation from VT&T, since they did not confirm directly with the hotel prior to sending me my confirmations, because if they had, they would have known that the hotel was booked and had been fully booked for a long time.

So, I had to tell my disappointed family (the kids already in their swim suits) that we weren't staying at the hotel after all. I had to call local family and cancel our plans to visit the Zoo together on Sat., June 22, 2013 and to have breakfast on Sunday, June 23, 2013.

Needless to say, I am extremely dissatisfied with the entire situation, mostly due to the inconvenience and disappointment to my family and young kids. We drove home that evening and I spent the rest of the entire weekend trying to make up for the fun we had previously planned by attempting to substitute other kid-friendly activities and restaurants. Fortunately, my kids are forgiving. My husband, on the other hand, is not!

On Monday, June 24, 2013, I called VT&T to express my dissatisfaction and explain what happened to us. Additionally, I requested a refund of the prepaid package price. While the agents I spoke to appeared genuinely apologetic and surprised by what happened, I still have not received a verbal or written confirmation that the monies I've paid will be refunded to me. At this point, I am ready to file a formal written grievance and request for more than a refund of the package price paid. Today, I also want my family compensated for our time, inconvenience, disappointment and other related expenses in our attempt to have a San Diego vacation getaway, which didn't materialize.

I also would warn anyone else to stay clear of this type of "vacation bargain", because in the end, you pay more than it's worth - assuming that you actually get to take the promised vacation.

I went to the booth at Bass Pro Shops the next day to request my money back. It was after 5PM so they were unable to reach anyone by phone. I also spoke to a manager at Bass Pro Shops, who passed the information up the chain there. Apparently, BPS contacted Vacation Tour and Travel about the situation because a rep from VT&T contacted me the next day. When they called, I informed them of being misled and that I wanted a refund. They told me they could upgrade me to another part of Big Cedar Lodge, but could not give me a refund. They kept pushing the trip. I simply wanted my money back. I told them I had already been misled. I didn't want to travel from Louisiana to Missouri just to find I had been misled again. They passed me to more reps or supervisors, but they simply kept pushing the trip when I just wanted my money back.

The last supervisor I spoke to wouldn't budge. I requested a copy of the taped conversation from the original date I paid over the phone. She refused to provide the recording. I asked her for the address of their legal department. She gave me an address for the company. She told me if I contacted an attorney, I needed to show him the letter they mailed after I paid for the trip. I advised her I didn't recall getting a letter from them and asked if they sent it certified mail. It was not. She told me they give an 800 number to call in case you don't get the letter. I advised her I had already requested the original recording that would verify that. She again refused to supply a copy of the recording.

It appears that I am just out of luck. I will continue to pursue this however. I am going to urge Bass Pro Shops to evaluate how this company reflects upon them. I think BPS should look at all the consumer complaints about this company and consider disassociating from the company. I also intend to contact the BBB.

If they treat former employees like this, how do you think they'll treat you as a customer (And their employees, mostly college students, ex-cons, and people who couldn't work anywhere that required a drug test, usually come back after a break from telemarketing burn-out)?

Don't believe the sweetness in the voice of the girl who called you - the moment you show interest, there will be five "managers" swimming around her like sharks, ready to plug in their headset and eat you alive. The goal is to sell, not satisfy.

She continued talking as if I hadn't said anything. So I let her finish reading off her screen, and then she told me, "$299.00. Isn't that a great offer?" I then told her that I am not going to pay for any vacation where they take up my vacation time taking tours and listening to sales pitches. I explained to her that we just came back off one of these vacations with our current time share. Her next statement was so upsetting. This is why I am writing a review now. Her next statement was, "Well, I hope you enjoy your little getaway", and then hung up in my face as if our time share was beneath them. I have news for her. I hope that someone reads this before making a decision to purchase one of these vacations. You should never pay for a vacation where they take up your vacation time to try to sell themselves… our time shares that we have... They pay you to come and see what they have to offer! Remember that. I hope this helps someone.

You can apparently upgrade to an actual BlueGreen resort once you are trapped and try to book but now you are just paying full price (and probably more) anyway. It also turns out the day you book affects how many days you get in the hotel so unless we gave up our weekend plans, we only get 3 days which wasn't mentioned originally either. So we took this all in stride and prepared for our trip anyway. We then decided on a cruise and called VT&T to confirm if we could reserve at their current price through Carnival and then transfer (standard for travel agents) to VT&T to apply the voucher when we get it. However, to further prove this is a scam company, they said they cannot do this and it must be booked fully with them and of course, without the voucher, they cannot lock in the advanced pricing.

I asked the VT&T agent if we had the voucher today, how much would our requested cruise cost and even with the voucher, it would be the same price as just booking on our own! Wow. Deal's off! Why? Because upgrading any combination of adding extra nights and/or upgrading room quality from bunk beds over the engine room all but voids any value the certificate holds. I was also told during our sales pitch that this was upgradable and did not have blackout dates. However, when I told them our date, a full year out, I was told it was peak season which further damaged the upgrade value. Apparently, upgradable means at a complete loss of value.

As soon as I mentioned all the scam articles on the internet to their fake escalations manager, he said that he can only cancel my reservation but cannot refund. I had 30 days to cancel yet until you try to book anything (usually more than 30 days out), you won't find out all of their dirty little secrets. So at this point, our $99 is simply a sunk cost and we're done with this scam company other than anything Consumer Affairs, the BBB, BlueGreen, or Bass Pro can do for us. I can only imagine how much worse it would have been if we had actually gone to Branson and especially paid them even more money to book the Carnival cruise!

After never receiving anything, I called back on 2-18-2013. Again I was told it would take 4-6 weeks and should arrive soon. It is March 18, and I have seen nothing. I called again and the guy I talked to, KJ, told me there was no record of me contacting them since 11-30-12 to book our Charleston stay. I explained to him I had notes written of each time I called and what I was told. He was condescending and wanted to argue when I told him the dates I had called (again) and what I was told. He told me I should have gotten a name if I talked to someone and nothing they did there took 4-6 weeks and said he would email me the cruise info and that it would take 72 hours.

I then called back the 800 number to find out what company I was even speaking with as no one had ever said when they answered the phone. I asked for an email address and was told they didn't have one. I told them I had a complaint and would like to know how to file it. He told me the records showed the info was being emailed to me and it should be resolved. There is no way I would attempt to go on this cruise or upgrade as I had planned.

Bass Pro Shops, Carnival Cruise lines, and Blue Green Resorts need to reevaluate the wisdom of being affiliated with Vacation Tour and Travel. I had purchased a similar visit with Wyndham Resorts and am about to immediately seek a refund, as we are property owners with Wyndham, and I feel sure they have already received complaints about this "cruise deal". This company should not be allowed to do business - and I should not be allowed to answer the phone because I have stupidly been trusting and booked not one, but two of these rip-offs. At least we had a good weekend in Charleston for the $169 I spent, but I do not appreciate being ripped off. Just not sure if it is worth the time and effort to pursue this. I will be informing Bass Pro, Carnival, and Blue Green Resorts of the problems I have encountered.

How many adults sleep on bunk beds? Do not go to Wyndham Resorts or any other presentations given from people at any Bass Pro Shop. This was a free gift from the presentation, but the charges are just as much as purchasing a cruise on my own without the certificate and with a better room than bunk beds. There is nothing free on this. Gratuities and port fees are not even included on this one and are included on the one I purchased making my cruise cheaper in the long run. Run from these presentations as fast as you can. At least I received $75 in Bass Pro gift cards that were valid and a free 2-night stay in Pigeon Forge.

I waited for 30 minutes to get someone on the line only to find the people were very rude, talked over me, and were quick to get an attitude, in particular, a guy named Spencer. He got snappy within the first 5 min. of our conversation. People there don't care about helping you at all. They structure the conditions of your "free" cruise so that you must upgrade and they train their people to be extra rude so that it's a pain to call and redeem your gift. They will try everything to save their money and not pay for your package. Good luck working with them... It's not worth it!

The problem I have is with the certificate I received after attending the timeshare presentation for a free 4-day cruise for 2 adults. I called Vacation Tour and Travel to book my cruise and was told there were no cabins available until October 2013 that met the certificate criteria. That, I find hard to believe. I was told I would have to pay $186.00 per person for government taxes and agency fees. I would also be required to upgrade to another cabin, which would be an interior cabin with two twin beds that can convert to a King. The total price quoted to me was $741.00! I don't understand how an upgrade to another interior room would cost me an additional $369.00?! How is this supposed to even be considered close to being a free cruise?! It appears that Vacation Tour and Travel are bumping up their prices big time.

I checked online and Carnival taxes and fees were approx $80 or so per person so how does Vacation Tour and Travel charge $186.00? An upgrade to another interior room would have only cost me approximately between $70-$80 total, so where does $369.00 come into play? I will be calling Blue Green Resorts and Bass Pro Shop to complain about this as well.

On one of my calls, I left the dates open-ended and told them to just give me a date when they could accommodate me. And lo and behold, they had no inside cabins in any port for 6 months! (My coupon expires in 6 months.) This same conversation and scam also happened to others I knew who purchased the coupon. So therefore, I have purchased a valueless piece of paper called IcouponOnline.com with terms which they never intended to honor. To make it even worse, they refused to refund my account and refused to book the cruise knowing it would expire soon. They basically laughed in my face and said I was nearing the end of 12 months and there was nothing I could do other than upgrade.

So, I have sent dispute letters to my credit card company, the Today Show for promoting and helping a sorry company to carry out false advertising, to Carnival Cruise Lines for affiliating their cruises with them, and to the Better Business Bureau. I am also mailing a letter to the legal department with NBC News. This is highway robbery and I will not sit around and allow it to happen without a fight. If they do not want to honor the voucher and they feel they made a bad deal, then the least they could do would be to refund my money. However, they choose to be the thieves they set out to be and steal customers’ money without ever intending to honor their advertised deal. I hope someone puts them out of business and recovers punitive damages!

It would seem that the Today Show and Carnival Cruise Lines would stand up to this company that they are helping to make rich by fraud! These huge companies certainly have the resources to do a full investigation and apply pressure for them to do the right thing. If I do not get some satisfaction, I fully intend to never cruise with Carnival and to never watch the Today Show again and to pursue every legal avenue I can find. I hope all the many others that I've read about will do the same. Do not ever buy from Icoupon Online as Vacation Travel and Tour Agency (doing business as Great Resort Destinations, Weston FL). Unfortunately, they use a lot of names so it’s harder to keep up with them! Also, if you have been a victim, please report your case to all the above offices and agencies as well as other sites such as Trip Advisor and other consumer complaints. Thank you and good luck.

Wow, so why even book through VT&T? I guess, it's to scam me out of more money. When the price was the same as what I had looked at buying through Carnival.com, I asked the VT&T representative what exactly the cruise certificate was for. He replied that it only covers a 1A bunk bed cabin. So, I guess they can't really upgrade you; they can only sell you a new cruise. I'm glad I did my research before I called. It's so sad that so many people paid so much for the "upgrades". This is very questionable ethic by this company.

All went well until the day of the cruise. Due to a medical condition diagnosed 3 weeks before our cruise, my husband was not on correct medication, which left him mentally confused. As a result, my husband forgot his passport, which he didn’t realize until 3-4 minutes before the flight was scheduled to leave. We sat there in the airline seats not knowing what to do: Would they let us off the plane, or should we just go to sea and see what we can do? We stopped after the first leg of our flight and I called Vacation Tour & Travel for help. Drew ** was not available but the agent said to call the travel insurance company. Since my husband was not hospitalized, the policy did not cover our inability to board the ship to enter international seas and return to the mainland without a passport. Our cruise was over before it began.

On Monday, I called VT&T and talked to Drew **. He was sorry but there was nothing he could do. I was more concerned about my husband's health and still in shock about not taking the cruise, but tried everything I could do to see how we could somehow "save" our cruise and take it in November 2012. The rest of the flight tickets were good for one year and I thought for sure someone would be willing and able to help me. When I asked if there were any alternatives (same cruise next year, half of the cruise price [$750.00] voucher for another cruise, some type of refund, anything to help...), “nothing I can do" was his only reply. I called Carnival Cruise Line for help. Since we made the booking through Vacation Tour & Travel, I was at a dead end with them. I also called our saleswoman (C. in Las Vegas) at Wyndham who repeatedly said, “Give me a call if you have any problems,” to see if she could help. I gave her all the information, and she never called me back.

I still wanted to find some kind of resolution and felt that Vacation Tour & Travel had our $1,500.00 and they were not willing to look at any alternatives. So I called them back. I talked to another agent since Drew ** was now a supervisor! When I asked if I could speak to him, I was told that since Drew already told me, “There was nothing VT&T could do,” talking to Drew would not help me. Really? You had our $1,500.00, and because my husband forgot his passport due to a medical condition, you're not willing to budge one iota? I only wish VT&T could have been a fly on the wall to see what my husband went through for 3-4 weeks before he was on the correct medicine. But since they had our money, they didn't have to care. While I realize some time has passed, the disappointment and the inability to get VT&T to help me in any manner has finally worked its way out of the back of my mind to see if there is any possibility to get some resolution. Far too long I put the word “cruise” out of my mind. Between my husband's health, teaching, other family responsibilities, and VT&T's attitude, I simply did not have the time or energy to deal with it any more, until now.