You won the cruise for 2... Is this a scam?

[Jasalth]

While I am not one who enters (or wins) a ton of contests, my mother is!

 

She has won vacations, a PT Cruiser, and $25k in cash in the past 5 years as "big" prizes.

 

From this I have learned, if it doesn't come certified mail, it isn't real!

[maggie cruises]

I agree. I laughed all the way to the bank with the money I received selling off my fur coat at a garage sale. The buyer never knew I crossed state lines, spent all day on a timeshare tour, and got home early the following morning with the prized fur coat award that did not cost me a penny. I was happy with my ten dollars and she was happy with her rabbit jacket. What a sucker she was!

 

OP, do not do it. Throw the brochure away.

 

coka;)

 

How much did your time, energy, gas cost you?

 

$10 and you call her a sucker? You are the one that spent all day on a timeshare tour, she is just out $10..or maybe not...could be she used the coat as a bed for her dog.

[Corby114]

Throw the card in the garbage. Without question it's a scam. Even if they tell you it's free, you will pay for the port charges, government fees,etc. The weeks allowed for the so called free trip are limited and are normally weeks when the fares are the cheapest. You most likely will have the worst cabin on the ship and if you wish to be upgraded the fees will be excessive. My godson,fiance, and her parents were on a recent Carnival Imagination cruise in November 2012. After he explained what the cost of the three day cruise was I told him he could have taken a seven day cruise on another Carnival ship for less money.

[emcelh]

I got this card too.

Is NCL selling its customers information?

 

I doubt it but, if they are, they're not alone in the practice. I've received "offers" like this from companies offering other cruise lines as well as major airlines and resorts. How difficult is it to get someone's address?

Edited January 25, 2013 by emcelh

[Tymless1]

We have gotten 2 "free" except for taxes and fees, cruises this way with our air fare paid for. Got us hooked on cruising. You have to have the time to sit through 90 mins of their talk and then put your foot down and say no you don't want to become a member but it was worth it for us. Hope that helps.

[rbrugler]

I got a free cruise once from NCL and the Casinos at Sea program. I had to pay taxes and port fees. It was great getting a week on the Dawn for around $200. However, I have gotten calls and postcards about free cruise/airfare offers for Carnival and NCL ships. These are not legitimate. For your own peace of mind, do not respond. If you do not believe all of us, call the cruise line and see what they say! Also, google the travel agency. We are not wrong.

[coka]

How much did your time, energy, gas cost you?

 

$10 and you call her a sucker? You are the one that spent all day on a timeshare tour, she is just out $10..or maybe not...could be she used the coat as a bed for her dog.

 

Hahaha, exactly! That was idea of my story. I was the sucker.

 

Coka:D

[LaPrincesa]

If you're looking for a legitimate free cruise to nowhere, hop on board the Staten Island Ferry. ;)

 

 

Priceless. But don't you have to pay for the return trip back to Manhattan :confused: ?

 

~ La Princesa

[Host Jazzbeau]

Priceless. But don't you have to pay for the return trip back to Manhattan :confused: ?

~ La Princesa

 

Right -- the "guaranteed" 5¢ roundtrip fare was just another politician's promise to get Staten Island to join New York City (i.e. not worth 5¢]

[clean1owner]

I just received a card in mail saying that I have won a cruise for 2 Norwegian cruise line plus 2 air tickets to the destination of the cruise line. All I have to do is go and listen to the traveling agency presentation. From what I understand, I am not required to become a member of this organization nor do I have to sign up for anything or pay any fees.. Although, they did asked me over the phone my age, my income, and if I own a credit card. They said that credit card needed as a form of second ID for the presentation. I would not need to give them the number of my credit card, according to my phone conversation with one of the reps of this "travel agency." Does this sounds fishy of what? Does anyone has some similar experience with this? You won a free cruise for 2? Anyone? Please, share. Thank you.

 

 

Is this a scam?

 

Is the Pope Catholic?

[Corby114]

This reminds me of the old scams when you stayed at hotels in the Walt Disney World area. If you spent two hours at a timeshare presentation you would received deeply discounted admission tickets along with a cheap Mickey Mouse telephone that was made for 50 cents somewhere in China. It's all garbage so throw the cards in the garbage where they belong!

[blindrid]

I doubt it but, if they are, they're not alone in the practice. I've received "offers" like this from companies offering other cruise lines as well as major airlines and resorts. How difficult is it to get someone's address?

 

I received one that offered airline tickets on "U.S. Airlines". That's the first thing that I picked up on as there is no such thing as a company called "U.S. Airlines" but "U.S. Airways" and a free cruise.........

[davesgirl51]

SCAM !!! Funny story ... I knew it would be so we went on a Sunday afternoon for fun. I "tore" up the Presenter with comments and suggestions. They kept laughing and until the moment we walked out, they still thought WE were the scam and tried to sell it to us at a reduced rate. 9 months later ... highlight of channel 8 news ... "Watch out for scamming "free cruises" and had pictures of the building we were in and the guy whose **** I was busting. Too funny. But so sad for those who bought into it. So sad.:(

[kallie0904]

If it sounds too good too be true..it is a scam. Do not give any personal or CC info to anyone unless you have called a business yourself to purchase something!

 

Happened to me and my ex husband years ago (we were young enough to fall for it too). You had to pay 200 or 300 upward for taxes, I don't remember. We never got a cruise anyway. Be careful.

[KC Gorilla]

There was quite a discussion on that other cruise website. One of the posters went through the process. After having to pay hundreds of dollars for taxes, booking fees, port fees, and other fees, he wasn't able to get a cruise, it was always booked up. Don't fall for this.

[room010]

Actually, the front of the card stated " this is NOT a timeshare promotion. and this is NOT an attempt to sell any land or property..." ????? So, timeshare is out of question. Yet, there is still a question how legit is this offer? When I have called to NCL, the rep told me they "don't have anything to do with this kind of promotion." She added that " people call all the time about these free cruises for 2.." The NCL told me that their cruise company, basically, cannot comment on weather it is a scam or not, they just remain without comments. The travel agency did not deny over the phone that the invitation/promotion is coming from them and not from NCL. Although, it is a great deception and a falsification of presentation of their part!!! They have used a logo of NCL on the front of the card to trap the people! So, I pretty sure now, it is a scam. Plus, someone had mentioned if you did not enter, how could you win? LOL

 

Oh come on! Just because they say it isn't a timeshare it must be true?? Of course it's some kind of scam and/or they are indeed trying to sell you something. Why does common sense fly out the window when the word FREE appears on mail shots.

 

I'm more concerned about them asking for your CC details as "ID". That is pure scam. Is this "travel agent" based in West Africa or Eastern Europe by any chance?

[sjmbruce]

Actually, the front of the card stated " this is NOT a timeshare promotion. and this is NOT an attempt to sell any land or property..." ????? So, timeshare is out of question. Yet, there is still a question how legit is this offer? When I have called to NCL, the rep told me they "don't have anything to do with this kind of promotion." She added that " people call all the time about these free cruises for 2.." The NCL told me that their cruise company, basically, cannot comment on weather it is a scam or not, they just remain without comments. The travel agency did not deny over the phone that the invitation/promotion is coming from them and not from NCL. Although, it is a great deception and a falsification of presentation of their part!!! They have used a logo of NCL on the front of the card to trap the people! So, I pretty sure now, it is a scam. Plus, someone had mentioned if you did not enter, how could you win? LOL

 

it doesnt need to be a timeshare or an attemp to sell land or propety. the scams i've received were to join a vacation club.

[cruzincurt]

Out of 311 million Americans, they picked you. What luck.;)

[Cruzface]

Scam. Even if you go to the timeshare lecture and press them for the free cruise, they will give you a major run around with blocked out dates and other conditions in the hope that you will just give up, which most people do.

[bobg529]

Priceless. But don't you have to pay for the return trip back to Manhattan :confused: ?

 

~ La Princesa

 

No, they dropped the fare quite a while ago. It is actually a free trip in either direction. Take the ride sometime, it's actually very nice. :)

[Rahway742]

one of my managers got this from sundance vacations which he entered to win at dorney park i think and he went to their building in pennsylvania and had to sit thru presentations but at the end they gave him a cruise and airfare to miami and all he had to pay was the taxes so idk if all of them are fake

[75snow]

We did it !! We attended a one hour "Vacation Club" presentation by Sundance Vacations in Washington, DC in 2015. Last week, we took a 5 night cruise on the Anthem of the Seas from New York to Bermuda courtesy of Sundance Vacations. The cruise was not free, but certainly about $1000 cheaper per person. We paid an upfront deposit of $ 98 per person, then when we booked the cruise we paid for taxes, gratuities and port fees. We also opted for RCCL's cruise insurance. It took persistence and patience, holding on to all signed documents and not letting them waiver from the written contract.

 

Yes it was a hassle but got our 'free' cruise and thought it was worth it.

[mamasylvia]

> which he entered to win

 

That makes all the difference. Sure there are legitimate contests out there - you still need to pay attention to the small print but you could possibly win something nice.

 

The OP received a "prize" but HAD NOT entered a contest for one, which is one of the red flags to the people who replied.

 

I would add that even if you are tempted by such an offer and want to spend an hour listening to the sales spiel for a chance that the prize is legit - don't do it unless you know you can stand up to high-pressure sales techniques. DH and I went to a "home and garden" show locally because our house has some exterior damage and I wanted to look into what our options are to fix it. I actually signed up for a couple of "free estimates" and had 2 people come look at the home and tell us what they would do to fix it and how much it would cost us. One of them really was a hard sell and took about an hour of our time trying to convince us what a great deal it was and how good their work is. I frustrated all his attempts to get us to buy in by answering honestly: I didn't know how much to expect it to cost, I didn't know if we could afford it until we found out how much it would cost, we didn't anticipate making a decision before the end of the month, etc. Almost felt sorry for the guy. lol But we got what I wanted out of the two visitors, a plan for fixing the damage and a quote as to how much it could cost. I don't know if we will use either of them but we have a starting point now. (I also was trapped by someone selling gourmet flavored olive oils, which I am a sucker for. But he was smart, he pushed samples on potential buyers and they really were delicious. So I ignored his "most of our customers are 5-star restaurants" and "normal price is X but just for sales here at the show, I can reduce that to Y" spiels and compared the final "special deal" price to what I was willing to pay for it and bought several. There is nothing wrong with not being tough (or mean) enough to stand up to pressure, but don't kill your wallet if you aren't.

[garycarla]

Simple logic SHOULD come into play here. (no long explanations needed)

 

 

1 - Somebody has to pay for the airfare.

2 - Somebody has to pay for the cruise.

 

Who do you think will be paying for it?

[tonit964]

I just read through this darned thing and realized its over 4 years old.:mad: