If not a t/s pitch, what is this?

[Patri]

I got a solicitation to attend the Travel & Cruise Expo 2021. It will be held at a Courtyard Marriott. No date or location, of course. Have to call a number. "Freebies" are 2 RT airline tickets and 2 nights in an upscale hotel. Also 50% off a car rental. The fine print says Not a Time Share or Real Estate Offer. Pray tell, what is it then?
(Don't bother to reply if all you are going to say is it is a scam, la-tee-da. I know that. I am curious what spin they have, and what they are actually trying to sell).

 

[pedro47]

You could called the Marriott's Courtyard and asked what company is sponsoring this event? LOL

SCAM..IMHO

 

[AwayWeGo]

They're selling vacation travel club memberships -- for big bux.

We went to 1 of those locally, lured in by the offered freebies (airfare & accommodations for 2). We fended off the high pressure & got out of there with just the freebies.

The freebies had 2 notable features. First, there were procedural hoops to jump through before we actually got airline & hotel vouchers -- send in preferred dates & locations, wait, receive word that those dates & locations were unavailable so try again, send in other dates & locations, etc., wait again, until eventually an OK choice came through. (We got Las Vegas.) Second, the hotel was not only not luxurious, it was a dump -- a cheap former Days Inn with a semi-homemade sign that said Good Day Inn (modified from its former Days Inn sign). It was so bad that a security guard escorted us from the office to our room. It was so bad that only a few lights inside the room worked. It was so bad that the floor was wavy. It was so bad that I suggested to The Chief Of Staff that we forgo the free accommodations & take our chances at Motel 6 or Circus Circus or some such. (She decided to tough it out at Good Day Inn for only 2 nights. We survived.)

We might still take a high-pressure timeshare or travel club sales pitch for freebies some time, but not if the freebies offered are airfare & accommodations for 2. Been there. Done that.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[Glenn2]

Yes, that was my guess too. They are trying to sell vacation club memberships.

 

[Patri]

You could called the Marriott's Courtyard and asked what company is sponsoring this event? LOL
SCAM..IMHO

Nooo. I don’t want to cal! And I was thinking it had to be a travel club. Kind of a sneaky timeshare. Alan, I am happy you survived. What a nightmare.

 

[JudiZ]

Years ago, before we knew better, we got a postcard to attend a timeshare presentation that included two nights in a "luxury hotel" in exchange for a 90 minute presentation. We thought we would stay at the resort but no. We never made it to the presentation because the luxury hotel was a dump with a broken couch and a smelly carpet. We left 15 minutes after check in and found a nice motel down the road a bit. I called and said if they charged our credit card (the threat if you didn't show up for the 90 minutes) that I would dispute it. Never heard from them again. Had a wonderful weekend anyway. Ironically, we bought at the resort ten years later - resale! Too bad they didn't give better accommodations - we probably would have bought at developers price!!!

 

[geist1223]

Years ago Wyndham ordered a weekend in Seaside Oregon if we would attend a Sales Pitch. They said we would be in the Microtel Motel. Being very familiar with Seaside we asked why would we want stay in a No Tell Motel right on the Highway 101 1 mile from the Beach and 1.5 miles from the Resort. They changed it to a better Motel only a couple blocks from the Resort.

Previously Sales had offered 1 bedrooms in the Resort but the Owners raised a hugh fuss because this reduced the number of Units for Owners.