Even though I knew it was a scam, I went to that presentation (or one very similar). They try to sell you into a travel club. I forgot why the travel club was a rip off, but it was.
As to 'the incentive', they make you pay for the cruise before you even know what port the cruise will leave from, and before you even have a rough estimate of the date of the cruise. Oh, they say the payment you're making is for the taxes and fees, so the cruise is still free. The airfare thin is similar...they make it almost impossible to use. Forget trying to use the airfare to get to the departure port! Both the cruise and air have large swaths of blackout days, and very screwy rules about timing of you activities to qualify. There are four back and forth actions, and if you don't do it perfectly, they disqualify you. There are folks that, not having anything better to do, decided if they could get the cruise, and even though they hjumped through all the hoops, still got disqualified. And you can't call and talk to anyone...you just get ignored.
HERE IS WHAT I LEARNED ABOUT "WORLD TRAVEL":
The pitch was for "Royal Palms Vacations", supposedly started in 1994 and supposedly has 18,000 members. The base offer is $7700 one time fee and $250/yr, which enables you to stay at resorts for about half price. In order to get this "deal", you need to book far in advance. By the end of the pitch, they've got a reduced package for sale for $69/mo for 3 years (plus the $250 annual), but that allows you to get the half price only once per year. I have no background on whether this offer is any good or not, but I did learn a bit of about the "direct incentive marketing" fulfillment company: "Certs, Inc." (
http://www.certsinc.biz)
At the end of the presentation, you get a "Thank you for attending our travel presentation" form. It says:
"Please complete the form below and send it within 14 days with a self addressed 4"x9.5" envelope to: Gift Redemption Center, 8437 Tuttle Avenue #334, Sarasota, FL 34243-2868"
"Frequently asked Questions: Can I bring this paper in or call soemone to ask questions about the offers before I choose? No after filling out the front of this form it goes to a mail house, from there you will be mailed the chosen promotional gift. After receiving the gift you may contact the company providing the promotional gift to answer your questions. Please understand that gifts are provided by an outside company and the terms vary according to your choice. DO NOT SEND MONEY WITH THIS FORM."
HERE IS WHAT I LEARNED ABOUT THE INCENTIVE:
Based on some research on the internet (just googled "Royal Palms Vacations"), I figure that the incentive provider is "Certs, Inc." (
http://www.certsinc.biz). It seems that this company's business model is to use whatever means they can think of to keep you from getting your gift (you can read some experiences for yourself at
Certs, Inc. Complaints, Reviews - Travel scam). I will summarize what I found, not by experience, but by reading the complaintsboard.com site:
They make you pay $100 "processing fee", which I presume is in addition to the "taxes and port fees" you agreed to on the original post card. Then, later, they make you pay another $50 later, for something else. You still don't have confirmed travel dates. They also have a trick about having at least 30 days between travel date choices, so if you pick 2/1 and 3/1, they void your gift, no recourse, end of discussion. The $40 is gas is only payable $10 at a time, each one requiring a separate submission, at least one month apart. On respondent said the gas must be purchased in exact $10 amounts.
MY ADVICE TO YOU, IF YOU GOOGLED THIS WHEN YOU GOT THE POSTCARD IN THE MAIL:
My wife and I had a nice night out. We had dinner at a favorite spot near the venue of the sales pitch, and we stopped at another cozy spot for a beverage on the way home. Except for the high-pressure sales pitch at the end, the presentation wasn't bad. But we won't be trying to get the free travel.
So unless you just want to sit through a sales pitch for no incentive, or you think you can be the few, the proud, that actually GET the incentive travel (after paying who-knows how many extra undisclosed fees), just throw the post card in the trash.
--Dale--
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