Complaint Review: Ramada Plaza Resorts - Ft. Lauderdale Florida

My boyfriend called me to say he had a surprise treat for me: a trip to Florida and a cruise to the Bahamas! Immediately I was suspicious because of the $1,600.00 voucher he received in the mail for the trip.

Now, he travels all the time with business, so he gets hotel points and freebies left and right, so the trip voucher made sense when he opened it. He made the call to RPR, made the $598 deposit, and then called to let me know. While we were on the phone I started doing a ton of Google research and pulled up just about everything I ever needed to know about this despicable scam: trashy accommodations, broken promises, and hidden expenses out the wazoo. I felt horrible letting him know he'd just been duped, especially when he was calling to tell me he'd gotten a nice vacation for us.

When we called RPR back, we were of course transferred to the so-called "manager" who said all reservations were made on a non-cancellation basis and that any additional information would be in the terms and conditions available in the package being sent to our address. He also said "since the package has already been mailed out, there's nothing we can do." He would not elaborate on anything in the supposed T&C that would arrive in the package.

When we called the CC company to see if we could dispute the charges, the lady (who was very nice) pointed out that since the charge was authorized, we'd have to wait until it posted to dispute it. And even then, we'd need cancellation receipts and other proof (an overwhelming abundance of which is available on the Internet, of course). So we still have yet to tackle that debacle, but when it comes down to it, I'm glad we found out about the scam this early on instead of being egged into making more payments, reservations, upgrades, extensions, and retainers.

Thankfully we're in the position right now where losing $598 won't be financial suicide, but from reading reports online, countless other people have had their financial situation completely destroyed by this scheme when they were unable to cancel or obtain a refund.

This is all not to mention the BS time-share undercurrent beneath all of this. My boyfriend was informed ahead of time that there would be a sales presentation (I'm not sure if that information was released before or after he submitted his credit card information). From what I've read, the properties are an absolute joke and the sales people can turn into absolute jerks if you don't snag the bait. Part of me wants to attend just to see what kind of nonsensical venture these people pitch, but then of course, I wouldn't be willing to pay the $20 - $90 invitation deposits to get into the presentation to begin with.

Painful as it might be if you're already out some money, your best bet should be to scour this website for any and all other consumer complaints about RPR and other similar names for the same scam enterprise. Google also provides endless amounts of information and material on how many people have been on this wreck of a vacation and lived, through litigation and many months of relentless toil, to see a refund. The following website contains some valuable information:

http://www.inreview.com/archive/topic/10257.html

I'm just glad I found out about all this before actually attending this adventure through the bowels of hell. Lesson learned for my boyfriend and me: Google google google before you even think about getting out that credit card!

Clete

Visalia, California
U.S.A.