Complaint Review: Ramada Plaza Resorts

We were strong-armed into purchasing this vacation. We were told that it was a now or never deal. We had to take the offer now or it was lost. Then, I was asked for my credit card information before I was ever given any information about the offer. I was told of the vacation package for 4 days and 3 nights in Ft Lauderdale, 2 days and 2 nights on a cruise, and 3 days and 2 nights in Orlando. We were told that we would have to cover taxes, gratuities, gambling, and alcoholic beverages. We were not told of all of the extra fees, besides those previously mentioned, that would be taken from us upon arrival at our destinations. We also purchased the upgrade for $199 and an extra day for the hotel and rental car for $135. We spent a total of $1730.00.
My husband and I finally decided on a travel date.

When I began doing some research on our destinations, I found reports on RipOff Report.com that the accommodations were sub-standard. I found reports that the hotels were bug infested and unmaintained. I found reports that the ship had the same problems.

I called and spoke to several different operators about my concerns. Specifically, my husband and I spoke with a supervisor named Kevin. We were told that those reports were false and misleading; that we should just give it a chance. If we went on the trip with a bad attitude expecting the worst, then we would have a miserable time regardless of the where we were staying. We were told that this company travels millions of people each year and if we would go to the website RamadaDreams.com, we would find many reviews of happy travelers. We went to the website and found nothing that spoke of the wonderful trips that people had experienced. Kevin gave us the name of Leslie Maynard to write to if we were still displeased after returning from the trip.

We flew into Orlando and got our rental car. There was no problem there except for the fees that we were told we had to pay and were not made aware of by this company's operator.

We then proceeded to drive to Ft Lauderdale to check the conditions of our accommodations. Since we were told where we were staying, we got directions and drove there without stopping at the visitors bureau just to see the hotel ourselves. If it was acceptable, we would have gone back and checked in at the visitors bureau. The accommodations were just as they were described in so many of the reports that I had found.

We then drove to the ship and found that it was in the same run down conditions. We then proceeded back to Orlando and checked out the accommodations there. Once again, they were as described. We were very disappointed.

Thankfully, my family also read these reports and gave us some extra money in case things were as they were described. We were able to get a better hotel for the price of one of their tickets. We enjoyed our stay but only because we didnt use their facilities.

When we returned, we wrote a letter to Leslie Maynard, Dan Lambert, and Robbyn Walters stating the facts of our trip and mailed it certified. We asked for a refund of $1130 since we did use their rental car for 8 days. I gave them a time period of 10 days to respond.

Within 6 days, there was a credit of $698. On the tenth day, I called and left a message on Leslie's voice mail stating that while we were pleased with the refund that we had gotten, we wanted to rest of our refund. Then, the next day, I checked our credit card and there was another refund for $502. We got back $70 more than we asked!!!

Amanda
Dayton, Tennessee
U.S.A.