Hoping Vacation VIP does the right thing!
August 18, 2023 Hello, In January 2023 my wife found an ad on Facebook (on her iPhone app) for this amazing deal of 6-Days/5-Nights Luxury Resort (All-Inclusive) Vacation Package to Puerto Vallarta, PLUS a 6-Day/5-Night Bonus Cancun Getaway (All-Inclusive vacation package). The ad stated we had 12 months to use this, then 12 more months from that date to use the bonus vacation. The “normal rate” was listed at $4,880 but this advert listed the price as ONLY $599 TOTAL per couple. The “catch” is (why you get it for this price) that you have to attend/participate in a “fun & friendly, no-obligation 2 hour preview of the resort while in Puerto Vallarta.” We paid the $599 advertised price and got screenshots of the advert details, bonus details, and transaction details and payment with our Apple card on her iPhone. After several months we talked to them about paying for extra days/nights, and paid an additional $428 for 2 extra nights and they gave us 1 more night free, so we booked our trip for July 26—August 03, 2023 and paid a total of $1,027 for 9-Days/8-Nights. We met all their requirements and fully complied with all written Terms and Conditions as set forth by Vacation VIP and the resort(s). We attended the “fun & friendly, no-obligation 2 hour preview of the resort” while in Puerto Vallarta on July 27, 2023 which actually lasted for nearly 8 HOURS (not the 2 hours that was promised-we left our hotel at 8am and did not return until after 6pm). We actually had thought we were going to buy into the resort ownership/investment plan/timeshare at one point, but they could not work out the details exactly like the first couple of salesmen presented to us. In the beginning we were only going to pay $100 per month for 6 months, but by the end, they wanted us to pay them $1,400 on the spot. It’s kind of interesting because at the beginning, they assured us that this was not a typical timeshare presentation where they “run salesman after salesman at you” until you give in and buy it. They assured us they do not do business that way, however after 8 different salesmen, saleswomen, and “managers” came into the room (one right after the other with no breaks) to try to get us to pay many various amounts of money, they finally gave up. The last guy in the ring, rudely yelled at his associates to “get them a cab out of here!” after we said NO for the umpteenth time. So, problem #1 is that we wasted an entire day of our limited vacation when it was supposed to be ONLY a 2-hour “fun & friendly” commitment. We met and honored their Terms and Conditions, why didn’t they? My time is just as valuable as theirs; we each only get 24hrs in a day. After our vacation ended and we returned home on August 3, 2023 we attempted to contact them about how to redeem the “Bonus” vacation to Cancun that was paid for with the original $599 advertisement. After several attempts to get information from Vacation VIP, they finally referred us to a website called RESPUSH.NET to get the bonus vacation to Cancun we have already paid for. After emailing and calling them to try and figure out how the bonus vacation redemption process works they are telling me that I now have to pay an additional “resort fee” of $99--$149 to redeem the vacation to Cancun that was a “free bonus”. I don’t quite understand why Vacation VIP doesn’t take care of this, but perhaps their business is to re-sell me to the RESPUSH company or somehow fulfill their original obligation in some other way. So, this is problem #2, according to the original advert, I only had to pay $599 TOTAL per couple to receive the Puerto Vallarta AND Cancun vacations of 6-Days/5-Nights each. The advert is CLEAR; I can send you the screenshots that clearly show the ONLY TOTAL of $599 was required to receive both vacations. You can clearly see that there are no additional “fees” or payments of ANY KIND listed in the advertisement besides the original $599 price. There are additional screenshots that show the Cancun resort (Villa Del Palmar) package and the all-inclusive amenities it includes but does NOT list any additional fees of any kind. FYI, “only” means that’s all you pay! No hidden fees. I was VERY skeptical about this advertisement when my wife showed it to me, so we were very careful to take many screenshots of all the information presented before paying the $599, so rest assured, we missed no “fine print”. I am hoping to get a quick response to these issues from Vacation VIP or I will proceed to file a formal complaint with the Better Business Bureau. Sincerely, Matthew & Tammy Hinkle 2809 E. Quaker St. Broken Arrow, OK 74014 USA +1-918-408-6100 Hi, and thank for the response. You are correct that you have given us some information regarding your "partners" but the fact remains that we paid ALL your required fees and the "partners" are demanding more $