Complaint Review: Ramada Plaza Resorts

My fiance purchased a package from this Company for a cost of $1,396.00, to be paid in two payments of $698.00 each prior to taking the vacation. We planned to use this trip as our honeymoon. On 1/9/04, by telephone, I approved an upgrade package at a cost of $379.00 for a larger rental car, beach front motel in Ft. Lauderdale and an upper berth on the ship instead of the lower deck. This made the total cost of the package $1,775.00.

For this price, we were to receive:
Full size rental car at no extra charge
Two nights at Ramada Plaza 1000 with king bed/smoking room
Two nights at Ramada Beach Resort with direct beach access,
king bed/smoking room.
Two nights aboard either Carnival Line or Imperial Majesty
Cruise Lines
Two more nights at Ramade Beach Resort with direct beach access
king bed/smoking room.

This was all confirmed by 45 minute telephone conversation with an agent of Ramada Resort.

What we received was the following:

A full size (Pontiac Grand Prix) which, with taxes, gasoline, insurance and many other add-ons cost us $441.00 extra.

Two nights at Ramada Plaza 1000 in a "Kids-Suite" with onedouble bed and BUNK-BEDS(non/smoking room). We were unable to upgrade due to what they called no additional rooms.

Two nights at Ramada Beach Resort across a heavily traveled 3-lane highway from the beach with two double beds/ smoking room. No chance to upgrade.

Two nights aboard the Regal Empress 60 year old cruise ship (about 2/3 the size of a normal cruise ship). Our upper berth room had a very uncomfortable, lumpy queen sized bed with about a 2 ft wide aisle and a 1-1/2' X 1-1/2' shower, tiny sink and a toilet that nearly sucked you in when flushed

We had about 7 hours that we were able to spend on the
mainland at Nassau, Bahamas.

Two more nights at the Ramada Beach REsort across a heavily traveled 3-lane highway from the beach with two double beds/ smoking run. No chance to upgrade.

At our 2 hours resort tour, our tour guide sat and shot the bull with us for the full 2 hours about how we never would have to stay in a Ramada Resort again and put up with all their B.S. if we would buy into their time-share program at a cost of about $27,000.00.

This vacation was a total disgrace from start to finish and Ramada should be ashamed to even make people pay for something like this. Everything we were told about cruises before we left was totally not included on this cheap imitation. These people must be stopped from ripping off more innocent people.

What we wanted was a nice honeymoon; what we got was a lot of grief.

Dave
Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania
U.S.A.