# Getaway Travel Services (GTS) scam - Vallarta Gardens



## bbtravels (Oct 7, 2018)

I almost didn't post as I'm mortified I even got caught on this but it looks like I've been scammed.  On Thurs. Oct 4 I was at a presentation at Vallarta Gardens.  After I checked in at the desk a slick looking guy looked me up and down, sat down at the table and asked me some questions.  He got up and left and was soon replaced by a blond, middle-aged woman, think her name was Lisa.  She said she didn't know what I had said to him but I wouldn't be pitched on a timeshare, rather she was going to give me something they felt I was interested in which was a travel package: units of $799/unit from Getaway Travel Services (GTS), buy a bunch for use through the company's website to get ALL airfares, hotels, car rentals, etc. with 20 years to use them all for super discounted rates.  I bought in and did my research when I got back to the hotel.  Long story short, looks like it's a scam that's been around for a long time and has gone under different names: Holiday Rewards, Elite Travel Journeys, Ultimate Vacation Club (UVC), Global Distribution (GDS), and these are just the ones I found.

Because I only did a down payment with a subsequent monthly payment plan, I haven't gotten the site's user name/pw but as I understand from everyone else, those won't come until 30 days after final payment so I can't even check out the site. I got on the phone with my credit card company and requested a dispute investigation on the transaction.  As per others stories I was able to find mescam.com with instructions on how to file a rescission letter (I'm within the 5 day timeframe) and request the contract cancellation.  I sent it by email to all addresses within the travel company's contract, PROFECO, and the resort, and will send hard copies to Canadian Consumer Affairs.  Of course an email bounced back from GTS (*surprise!*) as undeliverable.  Also, GTS nowhere provides a proper address, only an intersection in Omaha, NE bounded by a park, the State office building, a cafe, and what looks to be some LLP set up beside the bus stop.

There were so many warning bells that I ignored, but she came across as polished and professional, and oddly, not pushy compared to the others I've heard about.  I think most people find these forums after they've been screwed, but if you're here because you're smarter than me, things to look out for: a proper company name with complete address, no typos in the business card (for real, the phone number format was/is incorrect).  I do remember when she logged into the site in the office she entered 'Sapphire' somewhere which also seems to be a name that comes up as a scammer.  Get the full name of the person you are talking to, ask to see their ID or credentials as a certified sales rep.  And again, if it sounds too good to be true it probably is.

I will update this post if/when I'm able to provide any further info on the outcome of the rescission letter, credit card dispute, etc.  I'm crossing my fingers everything works out.  Thanks to everyone on these forums who take the time to provide details of their issues and any helpful information in recovering the funds which were maliciously taken from them.  These communications are so important.  Enjoy your trip, don't go to a presentation!!!!!


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## T-Dot-Traveller (Oct 7, 2018)

Glad you smelled this early .
There is a long TUG thread started in 2014 about Vallarta Gardens
worth reading . 

In My Opinion - The “resort “ is simply there as a front for scams .

Make sure your credit card company cancels the card number used and issues you 
a replacement .


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## T-Dot-Traveller (Oct 16, 2018)

Bump - so the Vallarta Garden - threads are side by side for an evening 
Oct 16 - 2018 

IMO - it is a resort that exists just to run SCAM sales operations .


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## Fredflintstone (Oct 16, 2018)

T-Dot-Traveller said:


> Bump - so the Vallarta Garden - threads are side by side for an evening
> Oct 16 - 2018
> 
> IMO - it is a resort that exists just to run SCAM sales operations .



Funny, at Puerto Vallarta I usually stay at Friendly which is smack dab in the middle of Timeshare booth heaven. I learned to quickly cross the street and problem solved. If I stay on the other side, I get slammed every 50 feet.

Downtown Melecon area can be bad too.  Especially those tequila shops posing as tequila but are just timeshare booths.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


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## Haabda (Nov 7, 2018)

Have you learned anything more about GTS. I am at Vallarta Gardens right now and considering purchasing GTS. As of right now, the answer is no. If it sounds to good to be true....

The website is just Wordpress which pulls up different travel search sites in frames. When I asked how the sites use your credits, the representative said “promo codes”. She said the promo code ties back to your GTS account. It all sounds fishy.


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## bbtravels (Nov 7, 2018)

Hi there, I haven't posted anything yet because I'm still waiting to see the refund on my credit card.  I would advise you against purchasing the deal though, it has been a struggle dealing with getting everything taken care of.  Fortunately my credit card has frozen the charges so there's more time to deal with it, but it is still frustrating.  DO NOT BUY.  Let me know how it goes.


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## bbtravels (Nov 7, 2018)

May as well update now, I was hoping I'd have something positive to say but we are more than 30 days since I notified GTS I was cancelling my purchase within 5 days of the signing the contract.  I have sent repeated emails, phoned numerous times, and am always told 'accounting is working on it'.  On occasion the phone number doesn't work either so I now phone from different numbers just in case they are blocking my calls.  The wheels move slowly over there.  PROFECO responded to my initial email within 5 days of sending it which I thought was a good sign, not that they are doing anything about it but they have registered my complaint.  My suggestion is if you are going through the same thing as me, correspond as much as possible by email to maintain a history of your contact attempts.  I did receive one voicemail from GTS saying they were cancelling the contract, fortunately my computer picked that one up so I can save it forever.  You will need these things when you work through the dispute with your credit card company and in case GTS does not honor its commitment to returning your funds.  Frustrating, worse than dealing with cell phone companies


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## Haabda (Nov 7, 2018)

I’m pretty sure I wont take the chance. It sounds way too good to be true.


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## TUGBrian (Nov 7, 2018)

im not sure id count on a company that is legitimately trying to rip you off to "make things right" with you trying to cancel.

id be on the phone with your credit card dispute department asap.


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## Haabda (Nov 10, 2018)

We are back in the States now. We chose not to take the chance. Upon further research, Vallarta Gardens has been selling this scam for many years. 

If you have not already, while you still can, you need to dispute the charge with your CC company.

Check out this thread to read about others who fell for it:
https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTop..._World_Class_Travel_SCAM-Puerto_Vallarta.html


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## T-Dot-Traveller (Jan 9, 2019)

BUMP - read & learn


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## Timesharenightmare (Jun 11, 2019)

We are also a victim of this scam but it was a Puerto Vallarta Boutique Resort. October 2018. Unfortunately they got $3,300 of our money and have been giving us the run around for the last 3 months, sending a bogus verification code in an unopenable format multiple times. We called the sales office at the resort, talked to a person that said someone would call us back the next day. We are retired & this is alot of money to us. We are currently attempting to file a fraud claim with our credit card company but are worried that it is too late. It doesn't pay to be an optimist, trusting person these days, especially in Mexico.


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## Steve Rogers (Jan 11, 2020)

I must say I was skeptical at first. I was convinced by a friend to try it and I must say it was really incredible quality time. I have read reviews from others about Vallarta Gardens. I’m sorry for those who fell for scams but the place exists and is fantastic, it is located in La Cruz de Huanacaxtle. I have vacationed here.


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## TheTimeTraveler (Jan 11, 2020)

Steve Rogers said:


> I must say I was skeptical at first. I was convinced by a friend to try it and I must say it was really incredible quality time. I have read reviews from others about Vallarta Gardens. I’m sorry for those who fell for scams but the place exists and is fantastic, it is located in La Cruz de Huanacaxtle. I have vacationed here.




Really?????   And this is your very first post??????   Something doesn't smell right.






.


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## Karen G (Jan 11, 2020)

TheTimeTraveler said:


> Really?????   And this is your very first post??????   Something doesn't smell right.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


It is especially interesting since he's posting from Nuevo Vallarta.


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## LannyPC (Jan 11, 2020)

Steve Rogers said:


> I’m sorry for those who fell for scams but the place exists and is fantastic, it is located in La Cruz de Huanacaxtle. I have vacationed here.



So just to clarify, are you touting Gateway Travel Services or the resort where you stayed?


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## fellforit (Feb 10, 2020)

We fell for this scam. They have been giving us the run around for a year. I'd like to go back to puerto Vallarta and confront them, but I'm sure it would do no good. Anyone ever find a way to get their money back?


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## T-Dot-Traveller (Feb 11, 2020)

fellforit said:


> We fell for this scam. They have been giving us the run around for a year. I'd like to go back to puerto Vallarta and confront them, but I'm sure it would do no good. Anyone ever find a way to get their money back?



You may wish to contact Profeco-  they are the Mexican government agency that regulates
consumer purchases . Contacting them is unlikely to get your money back . It will add another negative
mark against Vallarta Gardens TS sales - but I am not sure they care .
There’s is another TUG thread about Vallarta Gardens that started in 2014 .
I will try and find it & bump it forward .


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## fellforit (Feb 13, 2020)

Thank you for the info I have also talked to the Credit card company and the Canadian Anti-fraud centre.


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## zephyr555 (Apr 17, 2020)

fellforit said:


> Thank you for the info I have also talked to the Credit card company and the Canadian Anti-fraud centre.


Please let me know if you have discovered a way to get out of the contract at Vallarta Gardens. We bought a timeshare there one year ago (April 2019) and they told us multiple lies, like we could trade for 2-4 weeks elsewhere - truth is it’s the opposite - lucky to find 1-2 days anywhere for our week! They also said we could rent our week thru a company called PILA and get our money back that way. NOT true either! We stopped paying them and now they called a collection agency in the US on us. What to do?!


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## zephyr555 (Apr 17, 2020)

TheTimeTraveler said:


> Really?????   And this is your very first post??????   Something doesn't smell right.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Yep Time Traveler something N.Y. doesn’t smell right. The place itself is very nice but the timeshare scene is a huge horrible SCAM


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## T-Dot-Traveller (Apr 17, 2020)

zephyr555 said:


> Please let me know if you have discovered a way to get out of the contract at Vallarta Gardens. We bought a timeshare there one year ago (April 2019) and they told us multiple lies,....We stopped paying them and now they called a collection agency in the US on us. What to do?!



IMO Ignore the collection agency .Mexican TS are RTU and IMO - collection agency has no ability to enforce anything in USA .

There is a good TUG Mexican Forum thread on this topic .


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## T-Dot-Traveller (Jun 11, 2020)

bump  for June 2020- Vallarta Gardens


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