# Anyone get a call from RCI offering a cruise + resort package?



## squierjosh

I got a weird call from RCI tonight claiming that I was selected for a super duper cruise + resort package, including $500 off the price. I was scared to ask what the total price was, but luckily I could honestly say I wasn't interested in the cruise right now, so he let me go.


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## scootr5

Yes, I got the call Friday evening. No interest in a cruise at all and never got as far discussing price, but he did say something about prepaying it at a cost of over $100 per month...


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## flexible

squierjosh said:


> I got a weird call from RCI tonight claiming that I was selected for a super duper cruise + resort package, including $500 off the price. I was scared to ask what the total price was, but luckily I could honestly say I wasn't interested in the cruise right now, so he let me go.



The person calling you to offer a RCI CRUISE was probably working in Scottsdale, AZ at the "cruise fulfillment center' vendor of RCI. Same people who call me at dinnertime to tell me that we have neglected to fully utilize our multiple SFX memberships.

RCI Cruise/ICE/OVC/SFX/etc/etc: please read: 
http://tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=175308

I would love to read MORE feedback. And by the way, I know WHICH resort they most likely want you to stay at (the one we give them for our cruises!)

PLEASE tell us here on TUG what quotes you get. I'd love to know. Apparently RCI Latin America said we can use 700,000 or our annual 3.8M ECVC points for RCI Points Partners. (I thought it was supposed to be 1/3 of our annual allotment but I can NOT get anyone to verify what the limits are really supposed to be.)

Unfortunately I have yet to get a fair quote from RCI Cruise. Maybe because I only mentioned by Costa de Oro/RCI Points account.


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## LannyPC

There's a strong possibility that it is not RCI who is calling you.  There are many of these 2-bit travel agencies telemarketing to unsuspecting customers (usually of RCI) posing as RCI or a third party allegedly endorsed by RCI.

Take note that they are not in anyway affiliated with or endorsed by RCI.  RCI does not use third parties to sell vacation packages.  These telemarketers put "RCI" in their name in an effort to deceive you into thinking that it is an RCI partner or affiliate so that they can try to gain your trust and a listening ear.

These groups likely get your name and phone number from a disgruntled RCI employee (or ex-employee).  There are threads in the Buying/Selling/Renting Forum discussing where the upfront fee scammers get owners' information.  It's likely the same source that is feeding these travel clubs information.

Just for the record, I believe the only time the real RCI will call its members would be for either their membership status (perhaps encouraging you to extend your membership) or to remind you of an exchange request you made.  RCI does not sell vacation packages.  It sells memberships, exchanges, and (much to the chagrin of many members and former members) rents out deposits.

If the telemarketer on the line insists that he is with RCI, maybe try this suggestion.  Ask him for his name and extension number.  Then say, "I am going to hang up and call RCI back and ask for your name and extensions.  Then we can continue this conversation."


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## squierjosh

Good idea to call RCI and ask them about it. I thought it was odd that the guy gave up so easily. He's like "Oh, not into a cruise huh? Ok, have a good night." Sounds like he was looking for an easy target.



LannyPC said:


> There's a strong possibility that it is not RCI who is calling you.  There are many of these 2-bit travel agencies telemarketing to unsuspecting customers (usually of RCI) posing as RCI or a third party allegedly endorsed by RCI.
> 
> Take note that they are not in anyway affiliated with or endorsed by RCI.  RCI does not use third parties to sell vacation packages.  These telemarketers put "RCI" in their name in an effort to deceive you into thinking that it is an RCI partner or affiliate so that they can try to gain your trust and a listening ear.
> 
> These groups likely get your name and phone number from a disgruntled RCI employee (or ex-employee).  There are threads in the Buying/Selling/Renting Forum discussing where the upfront fee scammers get owners' information.  It's likely the same source that is feeding these travel clubs information.
> 
> Just for the record, I believe the only time the real RCI will call its members would be for either their membership status (perhaps encouraging you to extend your membership) or to remind you of an exchange request you made.  RCI does not sell vacation packages.  It sells memberships, exchanges, and (much to the chagrin of many members and former members) rents out deposits.
> 
> If the telemarketer on the line insists that he is with RCI, maybe try this suggestion.  Ask him for his name and extension number.  Then say, "I am going to hang up and call RCI back and ask for your name and extensions.  Then we can continue this conversation."


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## flexible

LannyPC said:


> There's a strong possibility that it is not RCI who is calling you.  There are many of these 2-bit travel agencies telemarketing to unsuspecting customers (usually of RCI) posing as RCI or a third party allegedly endorsed by RCI.
> 
> <snip>
> Just for the record, I believe the only time the real RCI will call its members would be for either their membership status (perhaps encouraging you to extend your membership) or to remind you of an exchange request you made.  RCI does not sell vacation packages.  It sells memberships, exchanges, and (much to the chagrin of many members and former members) rents out deposits.



I received a telephone call from a Supervisor at RCI a few weeks ago. I had spoken to her the day before after I called RCI and an agent transfered me to her. She LAUGHED at our problem during that telephone call.

But after I posted her first name and employee ID on TUG and posted on RCI's fb page, she called ME! Thankfully she waited until 8 AM PST. She apologized, had a different tone etc.

FYI RCI reads TUG and does call people up if they want to apologize or make amends.


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## geekette

While this is true, RCI did have a cruise + resort "special" that they were peddling a few years back.  It was not a good value and had a ton of blackout dates.  Is it bacK?  Maybe.

Also note that Royal Carribean can sometimes be known as "RCI".

Always a good idea to ask "What does that stand for?"  

If you get stammering, well, they don't know, so it's probably not their employer.

regardless, if you are looking for a ship + shore vacation, you can put it together more economically than RCI can package for you because, of course, they will always get their cut.



LannyPC said:


> There's a strong possibility that it is not
> RCI who is calling you.  There are many of these 2-bit travel agencies telemarketing to unsuspecting customers (usually of RCI) posing as RCI or a third party allegedly endorsed by RCI.
> 
> Take note that they are not in anyway affiliated with or endorsed by RCI.  RCI does not use third parties to sell vacation packages.  These telemarketers put "RCI" in their name in an effort to deceive you into thinking that it is an RCI partner or affiliate so that they can try to gain your trust and a listening ear.
> 
> These groups likely get your name and phone number from a disgruntled RCI employee (or ex-employee).  There are threads in the Buying/Selling/Renting Forum discussing where the upfront fee scammers get owners' information.  It's likely the same source that is feeding these travel clubs information.
> 
> Just for the record, I believe the only time the real RCI will call its members would be for either their membership status (perhaps encouraging you to extend your membership) or to remind you of an exchange request you made.  RCI does not sell vacation packages.  It sells memberships, exchanges, and (much to the chagrin of many members and former members) rents out deposits.
> 
> If the telemarketer on the line insists that he is with RCI, maybe try this suggestion.  Ask him for his name and extension number.  Then say, "I am going to hang up and call RCI back and ask for your name and extensions.  Then we can continue this conversation."


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## glypnirsgirl

I got this call more than a year ago AND like an idiot I enrolled. It appears to be legitimate, simply not cost effective. 

As geekette says, you can put it together more economically.

I am paying $165 per month for a cruise to Alaska. It isn't cost effective. But I have wanted an Alaska cruise for a long time. And this way I am forced to save for it. 

Don't make the same mistake!

elaine


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## flexible

geekette said:


> While this is true, RCI did have a cruise + resort "special" that they were peddling a few years back.  It was not a good value and had a ton of blackout dates.  Is it bacK?  Maybe.
> 
> Also note that Royal Carribean can sometimes be known as "RCI".
> 
> Always a good idea to ask "What does that stand for?"
> 
> If you get stammering, well, they don't know, so it's probably not their employer.
> 
> regardless, if you are looking for a ship + shore vacation, you can put it together more economically than RCI can package for you because, of course, they will always get their cut.



*RCI subcontracts ALL their: *
RCI Cruise
RCI Points Partner Transactions (They renamed that subsidiary RCI Travel last summer)
AND probably more.

The FULFILLMENT CENTER for all of the above and more is: ICE/OVC. Granted I sometimes get confused in at my advanced age. Sometimes the Corporate Chart displayed in Wyndham Sales Offices changes. I sometimes lose track of which company is the PARENT company and which is the SUBSIDIARY. But I am certain the reason could be it is more difficult to hold the SUBCONTRACTOR accountable to HONOR the agreement you have with the company you signed the contract with. 

*A Rose by ANY other NAME smells the same*
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RCI Cruise/ICE/OVC/SFX/etc/etc: please read:
http://tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=175308

Question OurVacationCenter.com & ICE Enterprises feedback needed
We have enjoyed many wonderful cruises using our http://ElCidVacationsClub.com contract with El Cid’s cruise fulfillment provider which uses many company names & websites including:
http://www.iceenterprise.com/
http://www.icegallery.com/
http://ourvacationcenter.com/
http://www.myplatinumrewards.com
http://carnivalvacationclub.com
They also book all RCI Cruise reservations.
SFX appears to be one of their subsidiaries too.

Our El Cid contract for 3.8M annual points includes 4 AI (all inclusive food & beverages) at no additional cost whenever one of us is a registered guest. Reservations are handled by http://RCI.Latam.com in Mexico City. We can use our points for many Wyndham resorts with no exchange fee. We can bank them for RCI as 3.8M ECVC = 3.8M RCI annual points. Please do no consider this as an endorsement of the program. We paid US $356,901.00 for our ECVC contract which expires in 2029 when my husband is 103 & I am 73. Our annual MF is currently US $7564. I use "US $" because some El Cid employees who saw our contract assumed the numbers MUST be in pesos. "How could my husband have been so stupid or craxy to make such a risky investment?" is their attitude.

There are days when I would love to cancel the contract and walk away from the grief of making cruise reservations. But overall it has provided wonderful experiences traveling the world.

http://RCI.Latam.com recently said we are limited to 700,000 points per transaction with RCI Points Partners per year. I thought RCI allowed members to use 1/3 of their annual contract for point partner transactions. Since we need to burn up so many points we are desperately trying to figure out our options.

My husband purchased many timeshares beginning in the 1980s. He paid separate membership fees with ICE/OVC affiliates with Velas Resorts, Pueblo Bonito, Polo Towers contracts etc. Polo Towers sent us a letter on June 11, 2010 letter stating "The Board recently completed a review and learned that over the past 18 months, only 74 out of approximately 18,500 potential Polo Towers members took advantage of the relationship with ICE. The Board has decided to cancel the contract with ICE as it does not justify the annual cost of $100,000 Polo Towers is required to pay ICE."

I have NEVER found any of those ICE/OVC memberships or RCI Cruise (or II cruise program) to provide a fair value. But since we could use unlimited ECVC points to FULLY pay for some great cruises, we were happy to book them.

I have been exchanging emails with executives at both OVC & El Cid regarding their programs. ICE/OVC/ECVC is starting to modify their contract. I would be very grateful for feedback from other tuggers who have booked or tried to book cruises or land tours with any of their companies.

Has ICE/OVC honored their ADVERTISED redemption rate associated with your timeshare/cruise program? If you have booked with them, have you had to pay a substantial amount of cash for your cruise/land tour in addition to giving them your timeshare week or points? Or are you able to book cruises with NO cash outlay except perhaps port fees, taxes and gratuities.

ICE/OVC uses Sabre Global Distribution System (GDS) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sabre_(computer_system). It would be very helpful to learn about your experiences especially when booking Non GDS Cruise lines with their company. ICE/OVC agents need to call Non GDS cruise lines to verify prices when booking (Their agents can book companies like Princess, RCCL etc on their Sabre GDS system without verifying prices.

Non GDS cruise lines include:
Amadeus Waterways - http://www.amawaterways.com
Globus
http://www.Hurtigruten.us
Majestic American Cruise Line - does someone know their official website URL?
http://www.OceaniaCruises.com
Regent Seven Seas http://www.rssc.com
Silver Sea Cruises - does someone know their official website URL?
Uniworld - does someone know their official website URL?
http://www.VikingRiverCruises.com/
http://www.WindstarCruises.com/

Thank you in advance for any information or feedback. If you do not feel comfortable sharing feedback publicly please send me a email or TUG PM.


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## tschwa2

per this 2010 rci http://www.rci.com/CDA/Common/Documents/PPart_Terms.pdf points partners are limited to 250,000 per year so if you can still use 700,000 you are lucky and you might find yourself further limited in the next several years.


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## flexible

tschwa2 said:


> per this 2010 rci http://www.rci.com/CDA/Common/Documents/PPart_Terms.pdf points partners are limited to 250,000 per year so if you can still use 700,000 you are lucky and you might find yourself further limited in the next several years.



THANKS for the heads up. We used to be able to use *UNLIMITED ECVC Points - Current + Future (3.8M Current + 3.8M Future = 7.6M ECVC points) for cruises*. Our 2008 Princess World Cruise, 103 days, was 6M ECVC points. BUT then ICE/OVC has been saying *"NO, We will only accept 1M points PER cruise" EVEN theough our ECVC contract has NOT CHANGED! They claim the ICE/OVC contract has changed*!

Our contract is with ECVC. 
ECVC contracts with ICE/OVC as a "fullfillment provider" for cruises. 

Royal Sunset owners used to be able to use UNLIMITED points too BUT then there was a contract termination?


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## kashicaat

I received this phone call tonight. The 'premier' family package was basically 2 cabins for a 7 night cruise (I have a big family and we'd need to cabins to cruise) AND a 1 week resort stay (or if you didn't want the resort stay, you could take two 3-day hotel stays). The cost, with the $500 off the price, was $3200. A $199 deposit was required up front and the rest would be broken up into monthly payments with a maximum of 18 months to pay it off. 

There was a 'standard' package and it was $1700 I think - and it was 1 cabin for a week or 2 cabins for a 3-4 day cruise and I don't remember what, if any, changes in resorts.

You'd have 18 months to choose the cruise and another up to 18 months to travel.

We didn't buy, but I did listen to her entire sell. They are out of Arizona, that much I found out...she did say she was RCI. Not that it means anything,  but that's what I was told.


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## Chilcotin

I also got the same phone call yesterday morning.

They do have some affliation with RCI because he knew when I joined RCI, had my points account number and the last four digits of my MasterCard.

I didn' t purchase either but he gave me his phone number and extension.


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## squierjosh

Boy, if he had your credit card info, he BETTER be with RCI.  



Chilcotin said:


> I also got the same phone call yesterday morning.
> 
> They do have some affliation with RCI because he knew when I joined RCI, had my points account number and the last four digits of my MasterCard.
> 
> I didn' t purchase either but he gave me his phone number and extension.


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## LannyPC

kashicaat said:


> They are out of Arizona, that much I found out...she did say she was RCI. Not that it means anything,  but that's what I was told.



When they say they are "RCI", RCI could stand for almost anything.  The "real" RCI stands for Resorts Condominiums International.  Also, the real RCI is based out of IN and not AZ.

Besides, are you going to give your credit card info over the phone to a total stranger who calls you over the phone trying to deceive you (implying they are the "real" RCI)?


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## kashicaat

LannyPC said:


> When they say they are "RCI", RCI could stand for almost anything.  The "real" RCI stands for Resorts Condominiums International.  Also, the real RCI is based out of IN and not AZ.
> 
> Besides, are you going to give your credit card info over the phone to a total stranger who calls you over the phone trying to deceive you (implying they are the "real" RCI)?




Nope! I definitely don't give out my card. I was just relaying the information I received when they called me.


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## LannyPC

kashicaat said:


> Nope! I definitely don't give out my card...



Smart move.

As a side point, the original post mentioned a $199 deposit.  That likely (but not necessarily) means that you will be required to do a timeshare tour at that resort and the deposit is to ensure you attend.


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## netsirkx2

*RCICRUISER Cruise Resort package Phone Call*

I've been a member of RCI since 2000. I received "THE PHONE CALL" in November. After a very lengthy phone conversation and a chat with the "manager" I agreed to a $199 down payment.

OK the details:

$3299 Package certificate (includes two cabins for 2 people ea on a cruise and a 7 day resort)


I booked 2 cabins on a Norwegian cruise
cabin #1 3 guests Extra Fees/taxes- $945  
cabin #2 4 guests Extra Fees/taxes- $1331.55  
Travel insurance for both cabins:      $458

I booked the 7 night resort in Hawaii at the Waikoloa Colony Villas
"UPGRADE FEE" CHARGED at $1523.00    salesman said "Hawaii is a desirable location" There are thousands of condos available for rent without a $3299 certificate...


GRAND TOTAL:  $7556

If I booked this on my own the EXACT SAME CRUISE and RESORT same dates:
Grand Total: $6282

Yes. I have many calls into "RCICRUISER" I am not even sure if they are affiliated with my RCI where I exchange my home condo happily every year. I usually do my homework with "deals" like this but I trusted the "RCI" name. And I trusted that the $3299 was just that. $3299... How could $3299 turn to $7556 so quickly! Ugh disappointed in myself for falling for the car salesman like pitch...

I'm not even sure if we will be eligible for the free upgrades (children sail for free) when they are announced...  Our cruise is 2015.


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## LannyPC

netsirkx2 said:


> I agreed to a $199 down payment.
> 
> OK the details:
> 
> GRAND TOTAL:  $7556
> 
> If I booked this on my own the EXACT SAME CRUISE and RESORT same dates:
> Grand Total: $6282.



$7556 minus $6282 equals a savings of $1274.  That might be worth forfeiting your $199 down payment.


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## squierjosh

the one that called me actually said I "didn't need to verify" that she was with RCI, so I hung up. She must have been new to this scam.


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## netsirkx2

Oh No. It's already been paid for, I only owe a bit on the $3299 "certificate" part) They won't let you -book- anything unless you pay the UPGRADE fees UPFRONT... AND you don't know the TOTAL fees until you book.  No one twisted my arm in paying for it. It wasn't until I started doing price comparisons that I figured out how OFF the numbers were (which was after I had already paid)


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