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My wife and I went to a large event last week and registered to win a free trip to Vegas/Florida. She got a phone call a few days later saying she won a trip, worth about $4,800, from Dream Vacations Inc. out of Ft. Lauderdale Fl. and their subsidiary, Dream Travel Vacations out of West Palm Beach.The trip was to a choice of 30 different locations, including cruises. "All you have to do is pay a small registration fee of $398!" (which I later got worked down to $250). He said the registration fee was to avoid paying the 35% winnings tax on the $4,800 trip and insurance or something. "Also, you will have to pay for transportation" Alright fine. "...and spend 90 minutes in a time-share meeting, then you can tell them to leave you alone and bugger off". He said the resorts are well aware that younger people like my family don't buy timeshares, and they wouldn't pursue me. He insisted it wasn't a scam, that people do it all the time, blah blah blah. I wrote down names, addresses, and phone numbers and stuff. I told them I wanted to take a few days to make sure they were a legit operation. After 30 minutes of arguing on the phone and not getting good reasons why he wouldn't let me call him back in a few days to pay him the registration fee, I hung up. Has anyone done these timeshare sightseeing trips before? Is the registration fee a legitimate way of avoiding winnings taxes? Is this a scam?
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Aug 8, 2014 01:51
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| # ? Apr 24, 2024 00:45 |
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It sounds scammy scam scam, though I looked into it a little more and couldn't find anything to disprove this feeling (or prove it). $400 is a lot though. There's not a single review about them online, despite them supposedly existing since 2011, which is odd for either a scam OR for an actual business. I couldn't find much about its "President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Director" Joseph J. "Mildred" Granino either except that he's quite old (83) and the "president and director" of a ton of companies in that area of Florida, including also "Gran-Do Inc" and "J&T Auto & Tire Center"
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Aug 9, 2014 11:44
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It's not so much a scam as it is a giant marketing ploy that is in no way a good deal. Those "Win a Cruise!" contests are pretty much just a front for getting your information. There are a large number of "winners" and they try and lure you in to a high pressure sales pitch with the "free" cruise. Bottom line is that the "prize" is in no way an actual good deal, you should walk away, and never register for random free trip prizes at large events again.
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Aug 9, 2014 11:46
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41BottlesOf posted:Is this a scam? read it now and and this doesn't get any scammier than that.
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Aug 9, 2014 22:06
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1) Do you have to pay an upfront fee? A: Yes - scam. A: No - maybe.
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Aug 10, 2014 14:39
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41BottlesOf posted:Is this a scam? The trip isn't going to be good value for the money, and they will absolutely subject you to high pressure sales pitch for time shares, which are pretty much a scam. Don't go.
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Aug 10, 2014 17:24
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Saladman posted:It sounds scammy scam scam, though I looked into it a little more and couldn't find anything to disprove this feeling (or prove it). $400 is a lot though. I Googled them and Trip Advisor has a two year old thread about whether they're a scam or not http://www.tripadvisor.com.au/ShowTopic-g1-i12290-k5763617-Dream_Vacation_Club_Scam-Bargain_Travel.html My feeling is that you shouldn't be paying any money if you win a competition like this.
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Aug 10, 2014 23:05
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| # ? Apr 24, 2024 00:45 |
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If the destination was better, I'd sit through a slimy sales pitch no problem. But Vegas and Florida are both the two cheapest and two shittest US vacation spots ever. Maybe Napa Valley could be worse.
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Aug 11, 2014 07:14
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