CTA Vacations |
CTA Vacations Cruise Travel Attractions A Travels Services Scam Atlanta, Georgia |
17th of Jul, 2011 by User839117 |
I received a card in the mail titled Award Notification with instructions to call a toll free number to collect my reward. Of course once I called I was informed that I needed to attend a 90 minute travel seminaar to earn my 2 free airline awards. When I arrived for the talk I learned that they were selling memberships in a discount travel program. For $600 plus an annual mebership fee they would offer highly discounted travel for the rest of my life. We declined the offer despite additional pressure from our personal travel consultant. When we went to the desk to collect the promised awards, we were given another brochure for something titled "Fly America" vacation passport. In order to qualify for this program they wanted a $50.00 activation fee plus a $4.95 processing fee per person. The fne print listed many rules and restrictions on using the promised "free award tickets. These included no travel for 7 days before or after any federal holiday. Only one ticket per household in a 12 month period. These rules make the award virtually useless. In short we were not given what was promised. |
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My wife and I experienced the same scam as described below by another victim:
"I received a card in the mail titled Award Notification with instructions to call a toll free number to collect my reward. Of course once I called I was informed that I needed to attend a 90 minute travel seminaar to earn my 2 free airline awards. When I arrived for the talk I learned that they were selling memberships in a discount travel program. For $600 plus an annual mebership fee they would offer highly discounted travel for the rest of my life. We declined the offer despite additional pressure from our personal travel consultant. When we went to the desk to collect the promised awards, we were given another brochure for something titled "Fly America" vacation passport. In order to qualify for this program they wanted a $50.00 activation fee plus a $4.95 processing fee per person. The fne print listed many rules and restrictions on using the promised "free award tickets. These included no travel for 7 days before or after any federal holiday. Only one ticket per household in a 12 month period. These rules make the award virtually useless. In short we were not given what was promised."
A TOTAL ripoff by Cruise Travel Attaraction or as they prefer to call themselves CTA. Also involved in this scam is Fly Your America Vacation Passport and Prestige Travel Systems. STAY AWAY frrom this SCAM. |
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Not to mention another 59 dollard fee when requesting your vacation travel. We went to the same seminar knowing about the travel membership, knowing we are declining it but wanted the airline tickets. Come to find out you pay the 50 and the 4.95 then in the FAQ's only line you have to pay another 59 dollar processing fee. So much for free tickets. Then you have to mail in a request at least 92 days prior to travel for reservations. You then will not hear back from them to see when your travel time is until 30 days before you leave. How do you plan hotel and rental cars etc...not mention vacation time off from work. THIS IS A TOTAL SCAM AND WASTE OF TIME. BEWARE!!! |
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Got same deal as Rocksdebalina. Just not sure complaint should be logged against-- "Go Discount Travel" put on the sales program and then the 'certificate" is from Vacation Passport. We were told the company has been in business for over 40 years and home office in Overland Park. KS and just moving to Indianapolis and has no BBB complaints. I'm still searching! |
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I vouch for the scam, still going on. We got a ticket offered, my wife and I, $700 per ticket, by a Brumfield, Colorado-based travel agency, call themselves LAND AND SEA TRAVEL, 6343 120th Ave, Suite 235 (they use 866-299-1009, but the agency is unregistered with SOS, nor is registered with Dept of Revenue and I wonder what sort of fly by night operation they really are; the building is new, their office is bare as if they moved in yesterday); when we showed up it was a pitch for timeshare. We did not buy and got this Fly America Passport to Travel tickets instructions with all the same extra costs described above and all of the the same details how one can and can't book the tickets - just a scam, making it virtually impossible to get any tickets with all the limitations and extra fees. |
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Yep same deal here in MA at Premium Destinations, seminar put on by group calling themselves Global Connections. Claimed to be in business for 40 years with A+ BBB rating. Don't think so. After declining expensive membership in travel club, we got "vouchers" for Fly America tickets. They were supposed to be free, but with $4.75 to get registration form, then $50 to get registration "activated", then another $59 processing fee when actually booking tickets, that works out to $222.75 for 2 tickets ($111.37 each).
AND, they warn there could be additional fees. Imagine you've already paid out $222.75 in CASH (they insist on Money Order or Cashier's check or the offer is voided), and THEN they say you need to pay some more fees before they can send your tickets.
Meanwhile the 12 months before expiration is passing you by.
Do you take your $222.75 loss or do you through good money after bad, hoping this next payment will really be the final one...?
If you never get your tickets, who you gonna sue. My original invite letter had no return address, a squiggle of a signature, and the letterhead was "US Airlines" a fictional outfit, I presume, and not the US Airways, that they hoped I'd mistakenly take them for.
If you don't send in the form and money, do you have a legal case? Not sure. If you do send in the money and don't get the tickets, you probably then do have a legal case, but, again, who is the defendant? |
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Attended pitch yesterday from CERTIFIED TRAVEL SERVICES (CTA) wanting an initial investment of $7999.00 if I remember correctly. We were issued the Fly America vacation Passport after declining their offers which were reduced for us the longer we balked at the initial offer, including 0% financing. Their Terms and Conditions (TC's) are certainly fine print and the comments by others listed above us are apparently accurate. In TC 2. you will find, "The activation fee must be paid in the form of a money order or cashier's check. Any other forms of payment will void the offer." In other words they don't want you to be able to cancel your check or credit card payment. I am also concerned with the information they required before the sales pitch began. I hope my Spam Blocker does it job and my Do Not Call works. We came () this close to buying, but thankfully my wife smelled something. If it's too good to be true is most appropriate. In Ft. Meyer, Fl I'm surprised the Hilton chain is part of this. |
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yep, same thing happened to us. This should be illegal and we should be able to hold these folks up to what they advertised. Any ideas how to do that? Sure glad we did not buy into this unethical company in a bigger way than an hour and 1/2 of our time. |
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Has anyone used this discount travel agency? Are there major savings by using there company? I understand the fees in the "Free Airline Tickets" but I am interested in the savings on other travel. |
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I'm not sure about this company... I attended the meeting on 03-15-2012 and I showed up slightly late. Fortunately they said I would not have to listen to the seminar, but rather showing up qualified me for the Free package which was the same deal... Pay the $50 processing fee plus another $4.95 processing fee. I am curious to see whether the CBI Colorado Bureau of Investigation has investigated this company. I went to the Office in Broomfield, CO. Yes, it was indeed a fly by night operation.
If anybody goes to the meeting, I strongly encourage you to notify the CBI prior to attending to inform one of the investigating officers of the location of that meeting and the date.
If this is happening in other states as mentioned above, contact your local investgating authorities. |
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Has anyone signed up for the lifetime membership and seen the savings???????In the presentation they talk about 42000 families have enjoyed this incredible membership. The guy who gives presentation is very good at speaking and sounds very convincing. |
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Just another example of "lacking integrity". It's a damn shame that there are people and business like this. |
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I attended the same seminar today. They put on a great presentation with a lot of fuzzy numbers...nothing in writing...and a lot of pressure to sign up now. My wife and I did not sign up, but really came to see if the tickets were legit or not. After reading the fine print, I realized it is virtually impossible to use the tickets.
The company completely misrepresented themselves, first with their initial letter that said "US Airlines", then their many false promises that we are only required to pay the taxes and that there were no catches. They failed to mention the $4.95 activation fee, the $50 fee pp, and then the $59 service fee. These add to be much more than simply paying the taxes.
I'm not going to be a sucker and give them a single dollar knowing that I will never see those plane tickets. I feel sorry for the people that signed up and got scammed on the $8, 000.
My next step is to file a BBB complaint about this unethical company. |
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The Vacation Station - Land & Sea Travel & PASSPORT TO TRAVEL are all scammers!!!
Don't do it!!! We were scammed by the free airline tickets if we went to the presentation. Like the previous reviewer we went to see what it was about. They told us all the exact same thing the previous reviewer said. I have yet to use my membership, but I am not happy that they gave me vouchers that cost more to use than if we booked the flights ourself. The company they use "PASSPORT TO TRAVEL" IS A SCAM.
We won a "cruise voucher" at the presentation and to use it you have to send in $75.00 to PASSPORT TO TRAVEL. When I received the information on my ULTIMATE CRUISE you have to request the dates you are interested in and then they tell you what your fees per person are going to be. We wanted a cruise to Alaska - the ULTIMATE CRUISE that we "won" was going to cost us $704 per person in fees. That's not including the tips etc.
The Vacation Station and Land & Sea Travel in Broomfield says they aren't the company doing the vouchers, but why are they giving away incentives that have no incentive connected. The complimentary airline tickets we were supposed to receive for going to the presentation are going to cost over $100 in fees per person just to get the tickets. But you have to send in deposits to even get them to do a reservations, which means there will be more fees tacked on. I would rather book it myself.
I say - Don't do it, don't even go to the presentation and be enticed by the lies. I think it is time to call my lawyer and get out of this horrific scam. |
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We purchase CTA membership on March 1, 2012. On March 14th we learned that my wife needed extensive back surgery. Since we are in our 70s the Dr. said it would be possible that we would be unable to travel in the future. I immediately contacted CTA and told them of the situation. I offered to document everything. They would not listen. I had cost them nothing. I had used nothing. After the surgery on April 25, 2012 I again offered to document everything. They would not answer three messages I left on voice mail. I finally got an e-mail telling me to contact my credit card company. The credit card company said I had to contact CTA but CTA wouldn't talk to me. I realize that in the fine print you have only 3 days to cancel, but not providing for medical issues 11 days after the grace period is not the way a reputable company does business. If they need $2500 that bad, it is questionable if they are a solvent company |
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Purchased membership in Tampa, Fl. in March. Late May we called their local phone #, no answer. We drove by the local address and found that the office was vacant and no new address nor phone # posted. Strong possibility of being scammed. |
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We did the same thing yesterday (6-16-12 @ 1:00) at the Sheraton in San Rafael...Same letter stating that this was the voucher and when we called we had to attend their "Open House". I would not let them handle my credit card or license or would I sign the release of liability disclosure that they handed us with the questionaire. I am also convinced that they had their people staged in the lobby acting like they got the same letter. In the conference room they had the same thing someone that they sat in the front row that was agreeing with the guy giving the line of BULLSHIT. Basically to keep it looking like they had professional looking people interested. The odd thing is.. we were the first ones seated and received special attention from an older man which when everyone else was seated did not get. We were not sure if we made the most money out of the group or we were singled out because of my lack of cooperation with the questionaire. It is dissapointing the Sheraton would rent a space to these people. I hope no one in that group sends them a dime. |
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Unlike the rest of you, we actually signed up for the Vacation Station Travel Club becqause we thought the promised 20% rebate on all hotels, cruises and travel packages would pay for itself. We never got the free airl;ine ticket and when I tried to contact Harry Houghton, the salesman, he never responded. I certainly did not want to send any more of my travel dollars to them and so called VISA to get a refund. After several months of rangling, I got a full refund. Thank VISA! |
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