Vacationurway.com
Very sleazy vacation membership club

Shortly after experiencing an identity theft situation, I began to receive a high volume of solicitation calls and emails. I received one particular call from a call center in Manila identifying its self as Delta Airlines on caller ID with a Portland Oregon phone number. The caller stated he was in Richardson Tx. The caller was pushing a brand new concept in discount travel and Vacation UR Way was opening a new call center in Richardson and would like to offer me two round trip tickets as well as a restaurant.com gift card just for attending a one hour tour of their center and critique their offerings. I had to meet all the minimal criteria one would imagine for a typical time share promo. More for curiosity, I followed along and took the tour and demo.

These guys are real slick with their softer "hard sell" approach. First, you arrive at your scheduled time with maybe 8-10 other couples, some could be plants, it's hard to tell. Each couple is separated off with a sales counselor for prescreening before the presentation. Once the presentation begins, all couples are shuffled into a small media room with a large screen tv. The presentation begins simple enough with general travel questions to the crowd. The presenter then moves directly into the condo vacation pitch while showing the hundreds of condo locations where members can rent one week blocks for anywhere between $199 and $900 for luxury condos. We were told this company has been around for over 30 years and has the buying power to pass off the best deals in the industry. We were teased with a printed out stack of supposed last minute deals and promised the moon. Toward the end of this very well orchestrated presentation, they throw out a price of $8900 for a lifetime membership which guarantees four one week vacations plus unlimited last minute deals.

The presentation moves from these fabulous deals to the investment potential and how this deal can be passed down to family in your will. There's a lot of outrageous math to get you emotionally pumped up at the opportunity they're offering. At this point, the presentation ends and we're once again shuffled off to our private offices with our personal sales consultant. Now is where the emotional pressure begins, the numbers get thrown around and that special offer just for you gets put on the table. We were down to $3900 when I stated I wanted to do my due diligence and investigate this a bit more before signing anything. I also stated directly to the sales guy (and his boss at this point) "if this deal is legitimate, it'll be there tomorrow". Their reply left me speechless. Basically I was told the deal was on the table now and never again because if they let me think about it and come back, the Texas Attorney General would close them down. At this point, I looked at my wife and said outloud, "Dear, how long were you and I in law enforcement? In all that time have you ever heard of such a thing?" I even stated I'd worked in the AG's office myself and never once heard of such a thing. It was about this time our sales consultant went from friendly to pushy and realized we weren't on the hook. He rushed us through the free gifts (both scams of their own). We received a voucher for two free round trip airline tickets (requiring $79 processing fee each) to claim and a $100 restaurant.com gift card. The airline vouchers were from Fly America Premium Incentives a well known scam company, just Google them and you'll know for yourself.

During my due diligence, I discovered the vacationurway.com URL was so new, there was absolutely zero information about them.in addition, a whois report shows the URL has been registered by proxy making it impossible (without a court order) to know who owns the site. Every last thing about this company stinks. Google travel club membership scams to find more than enough information for yourself. Below, you will find my whois data as well as an MSNBC writeup. Stay safe everyone.

From MSNBC.com http://www.msnbc. Msn.com/id/6867582/ns/travel-travel/t/top-travel-scams/#. TxHb7vlmnd4

Scams are all around us and
unfortunately, travel scams tend to be near the top of the heap. It seems that
for every legitimate travel offer there is one that isnt.

According to the National Fraud
Information Center, the average loss to fraud in 2004 was $803 per
incident up from $468 two years before. While travel is not at the top of the fraud list
(that is reserved for online auctions), it is number two in frequency of
complaints. Be sure to steer clear of the folks who are only out to separate
you from your travel money.

Dont be a victim of these 5 top travel scams.

1. Discount travel clubs

Usually a bad idea. If your travel club is asking for more than a few dollars for membership, they are probably
scamming you. They will offer a discounted menu of trips (of course it is discounted they said so didnt they?), only available to members. For this membership, you get the privilege of booking the trip, probably a substandard
product and a newsletter. They get your money plus the commission paid by the travel supplier. Its a great asset to anyones cash flow. Travel clubs should be geared towards social engagement and any dues or membership paid should be reasonable and cover only the true costs.

2. Become a travel agent

This is a scam that is running rampant now. Once you pay a fee to a company, it will issue credentials allowing you access to travel agent freebies and discounts and commissions on selling travel. First off, the days of freebies and discounts are done trust me, they are few and far between. Secondly, in order to sell travel and be recognized by a supplier, you need to be affiliated with either a travel agency or be registered as an independent seller of travel with either the Cruise Lines International Association or the Airlines Reporting Corporation. Believe me, this is a perfect example of the old axiom, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is.

3. Deceptive pricing

Know the real price. Know the final price. Look at any major airline ad and you will see their too good to be true fares. The problem is the fine print. The ads are for a one way fare based on round trip purchases. Presto, your cost has doubled. It seems the airlines are more adept at creative pricing than flying their own planes. From
frequent flier redemption to unavailable seats, to bogus two-for-one offers, they know all the tricks. But be careful, while the airlines are masters of this scam, they do not have a patent on the practice. Be sure you read all of
the fine print before you hand over the credit card or click on the buy button.

4. Timeshares

People marketing timeshares are slick. They are not afraid to lie, cheat, or steal to make a sale. Most timeshare offers are made while you are already on vacation and your guard is down, but many are from contest entry forms where you fill out a form while waiting for your Chinese take-out. Very simply, never agree to a meeting or a presentation. Ask that any information be sent to you. Once in a presentation, you have put yourself in physical and fiscal danger. A client of ours just returned from Mexico where he thought he agreed to extend his stay to try out a timeshare. When he returned, he found that his credit card had been charged $37,000 and he was a proud new owner of a timeshare Spanish contracts tend to be confusing if you are not fluent in the language.

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5. Out of business

If you want to make a donation, do it to a charity for Tsunami Aid and not some corrupt or failing business.
Cruise lines, tour operators, airlines, and yes, even travel agencies, have all gone under and left the consumer holding the bag.

While life offers no guarantees, you can hedge your bets a little.

Check out the company

Are they members of a professional organization such as the American Society of Travel Agents, Association of Retail Travel Agents, or the Cruise Lines International Association? Do they belong to a local Chamber of Commerce? These are all indicative of someone who is serious about doing business with you.

How long have they been around?

Question the experience and tenure of the employees. Are there any complaints with the Better Business
Bureau? Dont pay with cash or checks. Remember, just because someone says they have the best deal, does not mean it is so. Anyone can open an online store in less than ten minutes for less than $200? It will take less time than that to recoup the investment tenfold.

Do your due diligence

ASTAs consumer site, TravelSense offers more tips for keeping your travel purchases safe from the con artists.
If you suspect you have been a victim of travel fraud, notify ASTAs consumer affairs office, or call the National Fraud Information Centers hotline at (800) 876-7060, and check with your local law enforcement agencies to see if they can help you.

Be careful out there. Scams are everywhere and they prey on you when you are least expecting.

John Frenaye is the president of JVE Group, Inc., a diversified company which operates the Carlson Wagonlit Travel
associate office in Arnold, Md. With a background in business management, he writes about the travel industry as an insider with an outsider's perspective. E-mail himor visit his Web site.
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15111 N. Hayden Rd., Ste 160, PMB 353
Scottsdale, Arizona 85260
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Registered through: GoDaddy.com, LLC (http://www.godaddy.com)
Domain Name: VACATIONURWAY.com
Created on: 10-Oct-11
Expires on: 10-Oct-12
Last Updated on: 10-Oct-11

Administrative Contact:
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15111 N. Hayden Rd., Ste 160, PMB 353
Scottsdale, Arizona 85260
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(480) 624-2599

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Domains By Proxy, LLC
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15111 N. Hayden Rd., Ste 160, PMB 353
Scottsdale, Arizona 85260
United States
(480) 624-2599

Fax — (480) 624-2598

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Company: Vacationurway.com
Country: USA
State: Texas
City: Richardson
Address: 1202 Richardson Drive, Suite 300

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