Carnival Vacation Club?

[LHP]

What Programs have you found not to be true. I call and talk to my personall CVC Rep whenever I have had any questions and they are more than happy to answer them or me. As far as I know, none of the ships have an actuall CVC office. Most have a shared desk with the Super Shopper. The cruises you take plus the level of stateroom you choose determains the number of points the cruise will cost you. Basically, long story short, you are pre-paying for your cruises. If you like the suites, you will only get a couple out of the whole deal. If you travel cheap like me, you get about 5 or 7.

 

 

I was first exposed to CVC on the Spirit in July 2005.

 

1. At that time, the CVC reps were telling people they would save 30% - 60% on the cost of their cruises. This is not true.

2. They also told another couple that they could get 3 cruises with the same cabin they currently had (a balcony) for the Bronze package, that is not true.

3. It is against the law for anyone living in South Carolina to purchase this package. When we were on that cruise, MULTIPLE times people from South Carolina were asked to use FALSE ADDRESSES in order to be able to buy into this program. These people refused. They saw this as a HUGE red flag and rightfully so.

4. They were told of 7 day 5 star resorts that have been reported by at least 80 people on these and other boards that did not materialize. These are all people who bought the packages.

 

But the saddest experience was recorded on this very board. A man came on here just as proud as he could be about his CVC membership. In fact he posted on 4 or 5 different threads with statements like: "numbers don't lie"

He said that he realized that he had "lost" (his words not mine) $375.00 when he bought that $5,000.00 but $375.00 wasn't a lot to pay for VIP Check In and Debarkation, the discount resorts and the companion airfare.

 

The problem was, he had not "lost" (again his words) $375.00. He had lost $1,500.00. Here is man that spent $5,000.00 and did not even know how to calculate the 17.5 cent vs 25 cent difference. He was saying 7.5 cents per DOLLAR when he lost 7.5 cents PER POINT. And when this fact was pointed out to him, he never returned to any of the 4 or 5 posts that he had just been on bragging about only losing $375.00. Do you think all this "slight of hand" over the 7.5 cents per point isn't there for a reason? How better to confuse people?

 

Over 75% of the people on these boards that have come forward are livid that they were blatantly lied to. Why don't you visit

http://cruise-chat.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/452603081/m/5941066461

and read REAL stories from REAL people who bought into this mess?

 

The reality is that you don't get the perks on all the Carnival ships (except VIP Check In and Debarkation). And you don't get any of the perks if you go outside of Carnival to use your points. This was something else that was "left out of the sales speech" many people received.

 

Another fact "left out of the sales speech" is that 18 States here in the United States prohibit anyone from "renting" points. So what do you do when you have come to the end of your package and you have 500 points left, if you live in one of those States? Tell more lies ???

 

But the worse part of all of this is the way they treat their employees. There was a lovely lady (whose name I will not use because I don't have her permission) who worked at one of those ship's CVC offices in sales. Week after week, she would sweat making her quota. Another friend who works for Carnival went on a month's break and when he returned, this lady was gone. When he asked where she was, he was told that she did not cut it. And they literally said to him that she was fired because she was to nice.

 

Now if that is the kind of company that you want to do business with, have at it.

 

Sadly there are people out there that will spend $1,000.00s of dollars without doing 10 seconds of research. And even sadder, they don't know what they have gotten themselves into until they get back to the States. For some, they do the research immediately and bail within the 3 days. But for most, that time slips by quickly and by the time they find out they have been lied to, it is to late.

 

If CVC was such a wonderful deal, then they would not have to rely on only selling it on Carnival cruise ships. There is a reason CVC is not allowed to sell these programs in the United States. Sadly most people don't realize that until after CVC has their money.

 

If you had an honest saleperson, good for you. But I know at least 80 that did not. (and that was just from the months of January - June 2006)

[LHP]

As far as I know, none of the ships have an actuall CVC office. Most have a shared desk with the Super Shopper.

 

We have been on 3 ships (all Spirit class) and all have a dedicated CVC office.

Four walls, 2 doors, desks and chairs inside....not just the podium that the Super Shopper and Sea Miles rep use in the walkway. It is directly across from the coffee bar on all 3 ships.

[mrBit]

I am also another happy member of CVC. With 3 cruises booked all are below other websites prices SO FAR and this still includes all the perks. I have also posted and given price number comparisons for my purchases through CVC. All benefits have worked where applicable. My CVC sales rep on the Conquest was very honest, and have not found one lie. I know this may not be true for everyone.

I will admit though using their site not every cruise is cheaper using the points (But you still get the perks), but cash buys show to be very competitive. I also use the points for shorter cruises and I am very flexible, this is a problem for most that are not.

 

I will also add my CVC TA is very nice and helpful

[bonniemari]

MrBit-we must have had the same CVC rep on the Conquest. She was very honest and upfront. We were in a Cat 11 and she was honest and told us that for that Cat we would only get 2 cruises. But a balcony would get 3 and the shorter cruises would get 5-6 cruises and this is how it has worked out.

 

I have kind of kept track of CVC versus actually paying for cruises. This includes the resort and air certificates. We have taken 4 cruises and have 1 booked using CVC points.4 were 5 day cruises and 1 is a 4 day cruise. I have used one airline ticket and 1 resort certificate (that I have not actually taken the trip yet). We paid $5000.00 for our package and if I had paid outright for what I have gotten it would come to about $6400.00. Plus I still have 4 resort certificates and 3 airline certificates. This is not counting the perks like upgrades, wine and strawberries.

 

We are able to go when we want and since I prefer to cruise when kids are in school we do not cruise in the summer at high season. So I am sure that saved me some. If I had a certain time I could take vacation then the CVC would not be the same value as it has been for us because the points (cost) are higher in the summer than when we cruise.

 

Too me it works for us. I could understand it not working for everyone-but as a member it works for me. Would I advise someone to buy it-maybe-maybe not. Since I have figured out how to use it to my advantage if the person that asked me had the same circumstances I do then yes. If it was a family with kids that could only cruise in summer, holidays or spring break then no I would say don't so it.

 

ETA-one thing that has not been mentioned-when we purchased our CVC package I was asked to give them my travel agents name. I have used him for many years and that was one of my concerns that could I still go thru him. The answer was yes and he would get a commission. We paid for our membership in full while on the ship. About 6 weeks after we got home my TA called me and said he had gotten a check from CVC for $480.00. So that was another thing they were truthful about.

[Hangman]

Hello all I called again today and talked to the guy (Michael) that booked my next two cruises he was very nice and all but when I aksed him about my air voucher he told me. He asked me for my number and said he would call me right back he had someone on the other line. I knew where this was going I said sure and as of 1345 pacific (I called at 0700) I have not received his return call. I don't want to get the run around and have to call every hour I would like to get an answer yes/no not I Will l call you or let me talk to my supervisor I am military I don't need to hear this I get enough from my subordinates I don't know if I should keep calling or just wait again? Well thanks guy for listing to me hope you all get all you bought at CVC.

[2BeagleLvr]

Hello all I called again today and talked to the guy (Michael) that booked my next two cruises he was very nice and all but when I aksed him about my air voucher he told me. He asked me for my number and said he would call me right back he had someone on the other line. I knew where this was going I said sure and as of 1345 pacific (I called at 0700) I have not received his return call. I don't want to get the run around and have to call every hour I would like to get an answer yes/no not I Will l call you or let me talk to my supervisor I am military I don't need to hear this I get enough from my subordinates I don't know if I should keep calling or just wait again? Well thanks guy for listing to me hope you all get all you bought at CVC.

Hangman?Are you going on the Spirit April 8th Cruise in 2007? If you are, my husband and I ( WENNFRED ) will be on that Cruise with you. We also live in San Diego.Freddy posted to this thread ( look above ) We haven't had any troubles at all with CVC. We have enjoyed it and plan on renewing on the Spirit. We were able to get 4 Cruises out of it. But we usually go for the cheaper cabins. Anyway, if you are cruising with us, sure hope to meet you!Wendy ( Wife of WENNFRED )

[Hangman]

Hangman?Are you going on the Spirit April 8th Cruise in 2007? If you are, my husband and I ( WENNFRED ) will be on that Cruise with you. We also live in San Diego.Freddy posted to this thread ( look above ) We haven't had any troubles at all with CVC. We have enjoyed it and plan on renewing on the Spirit. We were able to get 4 Cruises out of it. But we usually go for the cheaper cabins. Anyway, if you are cruising with us, sure hope to meet you!Wendy ( Wife of WENNFRED )

 

We where on the Spirit Jan 05 this time we are going on the Pride April 15 07 then the conquest Jan 08. That about does it for our points with CVC but that is my two boys my wife and myself so two trips for four is not too bad. I think you will like the Spirit we loved it have a lot of fun.

[yoyo1985]

We bought ours in July and I am currently booking 2 cruises for next year just to use it up. After we got home and started really looking into it we figure we probably just paid for some cruises in advance. We haven't been able to use any of the resort coupons and to tell you the truth most of the places don't look that great. Apparently, there is a beautiful one in Orlando but we have been there so many times (orlando, I mean) so we really don't have a desire to go there. Anyway, I called to ask about the friends and family benefits they spoke of and apparently they don't exist unless you use your points to buy their room too. So, we are taking another couple on one cruise and they are paying us for the use of our points 17.5 cents per point, which is a bargain for them since we paid 25 cents a point. Then we are taking another cruise shortly after that and all of the points will be used up. That is that. We are already booked on a cruise with RCI for 2008 with the same couple and are looking forward to that. From now on we won't go to anything that carnival offers especially when we are having a wonderful time and drinking all week. :) We chalk it all up to experience. Still, love Carnival and will continue to cruise with them. We will just book it through Carnival or get one of the great deals you see on the internet all the time.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Did you know that CVC and RCI are part of the same company?

[Sashalanda]

Ok I think I am confused. Is CVC owned by carnival or is it a company that just pays carnival for an office on their ship? Like a middle man?

It would seem to me to be a big disadvantage for carnival to "scam" their future customers if they own it..well actually just allowing them to do this isn't good either.

If CVC had maybe more of a variety of packages that appealled to a larger group of ppl..maybe they could sell more just being honest. Lets face it, cruises can sell themselves and even at a discount, its better for any cruiseline to know rooms will be sold rather than sailing with empty rooms or deepppp discounted rooms (granted that would be on lower times).

I am like the one poster that stated she had flexible schedule. While I have two sons..one is in college..one is 13...my husband and I enjoy time by ourselves too. So have no problem sailing when school is in session (tbh prefer that lol).

Also...do you pay cash up front at the time of sign up or can you make bulk payments? (<<<<modest means person here lol).

It makes sense that a suite would use up points faster than an ocean view..lets face it..suite costs lotssss more than ocean view.

If you plan on taking many cruises...schedule is flexible...it doesn't seem like a "bad" deal all in all..maybe not a fantastic deal but still.

One thing about a flexible schedule..am considering trying some of those last minute (book less than two months before cruises) deals. Has anyone tried these? I realize less choice in rooms since by then the cherry rooms are sold out but even with adding taxes and stuff..you still save a good deal (ones I figured out were carnivals not outside TA). Now with TA's buying grouped cabins..you may actually save more with one you trust since for them its lost money for sure if not sold. Anyone do this?

[Luanne21]

I have enjoyed all of you talking about CVC. We have never attended a meeting, but might have next time.

 

 

 

I was curious, so I went to their web site. This is what I found.

Managed and sold by Solutions at Sea. "Carnival", "Carnival Vacation Club" and other Carnival related trademarks and logos are used by Solutions at Sea under license from Carnival Cruise Lines. Solutions at Sea is not an agent for, affiliated or in partnership with, Carnival Cruise Lines.

 

So this is not Carnival at all. It's like Sea Miles, they sold their name. Has anyone ever complained to Carnival, and got anywhere? Has anyone ever checked out "Solutions at Sea"?

[GoinCruisin]

I have enjoyed all of you talking about CVC. We have never attended a meeting, but might have next time.

 

 

 

I was curious, so I went to their web site. This is what I found.

Managed and sold by Solutions at Sea. "Carnival", "Carnival Vacation Club" and other Carnival related trademarks and logos are used by Solutions at Sea under license from Carnival Cruise Lines. Solutions at Sea is not an agent for, affiliated or in partnership with, Carnival Cruise Lines.

 

So this is not Carnival at all. It's like Sea Miles, they sold their name. Has anyone ever complained to Carnival, and got anywhere? Has anyone ever checked out "Solutions at Sea"?

 

They are definitely NOT Carnival!! We hung out a great deal with 2 of the CVC members last year, and they were in NO way affiliated with Carnival... which was good for them because they were allowed certain liberties that Carnival employees aren't allowed. We had a freaking blast with them and still keep in touch!!!

[Sashalanda]

Well I am glad that carnival doesn't own them. I do think carnival should be made aware though of the bad experiences. It may take a magnifying glass and a calculator when at those meetings so you know then and there what you are actually buying. Maybe ppl that are having bad experiences is like cruisers who had bad experiences..expectations were different due to seller not being perfectly honest. Either way I would let carnival know about their practices but keep in mind carnival isn't responsible for their actions either. I am guessing carnival can pull their name though if they don't shape up.

[LHP]

Well I am glad that carnival doesn't own them. I do think carnival should be made aware though of the bad experiences. It may take a magnifying glass and a calculator when at those meetings so you know then and there what you are actually buying. Maybe ppl that are having bad experiences is like cruisers who had bad experiences..expectations were different due to seller not being perfectly honest. Either way I would let carnival know about their practices but keep in mind carnival isn't responsible for their actions either. I am guessing carnival can pull their name though if they don't shape up.

 

Here is another thread that had more information to that folks can make an informed decision if it is a good deal for them.

 

http://cruise-chat.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/452603081/m/5941066461/p/1

[Cruzman]

MrBit-we must have had the same CVC rep on the Conquest. She was very honest and upfront. We were in a Cat 11 and she was honest and told us that for that Cat we would only get 2 cruises. But a balcony would get 3 and the shorter cruises would get 5-6 cruises and this is how it has worked out.

 

I have kind of kept track of CVC versus actually paying for cruises. This includes the resort and air certificates. We have taken 4 cruises and have 1 booked using CVC points.4 were 5 day cruises and 1 is a 4 day cruise. I have used one airline ticket and 1 resort certificate (that I have not actually taken the trip yet). We paid $5000.00 for our package and if I had paid outright for what I have gotten it would come to about $6400.00. Plus I still have 4 resort certificates and 3 airline certificates. This is not counting the perks like upgrades, wine and strawberries.

 

We are able to go when we want and since I prefer to cruise when kids are in school we do not cruise in the summer at high season. So I am sure that saved me some. If I had a certain time I could take vacation then the CVC would not be the same value as it has been for us because the points (cost) are higher in the summer than when we cruise.

 

Too me it works for us. I could understand it not working for everyone-but as a member it works for me. Would I advise someone to buy it-maybe-maybe not. Since I have figured out how to use it to my advantage if the person that asked me had the same circumstances I do then yes. If it was a family with kids that could only cruise in summer, holidays or spring break then no I would say don't so it.

 

ETA-one thing that has not been mentioned-when we purchased our CVC package I was asked to give them my travel agents name. I have used him for many years and that was one of my concerns that could I still go thru him. The answer was yes and he would get a commission. We paid for our membership in full while on the ship. About 6 weeks after we got home my TA called me and said he had gotten a check from CVC for $480.00. So that was another thing they were truthful about.

I'm really glad that you posted those numbers as I now have something with which to compare. My next four Carnival cruises that I have currently booked without any assistance from a third party and the pricing that I paid for two people total are as follows:

Carnival Liberty 6 days cat. 8C balcony $1356

Carnival Holiday 5 days cat. 4B inside 786

Carnival Liberty 8 days cat. 9A balcony 2498

Carnival Glory 7 days cat 4A inside 1214 (peak season)

 

That is a total of 26 days of cruising for $5854. You paid $5000 for 24 days of cruising, all of which were off season (don't know about the cabin cat.). I cannot see how you gained anything by going through CVC. I am Carnival platinum, so I get all of the same perks too. As far as the $299 resort certificates; they are virtually worthless. Anyone who does a little research can book the same resorts for that price through a number of sources. Try veteransvacations.com for example. It all sounds like a timeshare scheme to me and I am quite familiar with those, having had first hand experience.

[jandjfun]

Well as you cantell, CVC has a mixed bag of reviews. I am no different. We bought the lowest amount of points possible. We got 2 air vouchers, 3 resort stays (1-5 day, 2 -7 day) the points we bought, plus all the "perks of just being a member.

The perks are nice. Priority check in and disembarking is wonderful! Anyway, we have used two of the 3 resort vouchers. First we went to Cabo. Then we went to mazatlan. WONDERFUL resorts! Especially Mazatlan! I will go back there for sure. El Cid hotels/condos are sooo nice!! I should tell you that we are rather snobby when it comesto where we stay, so you know they were nice resorts!

We have tried to use the voucher for airfare but it seems that the black out dates are ALOT! MLK birthday? A blackout date? OK.....

Anyway we will use the perks as long as we have them, and then just go on our merry way. But if you bought in, don't be ashamed, just think of it as prepaid vacations. Now you can go even if you think you can't afford it! It's free!

[cruisin zonies]

We recently bought the silver package $5000/20,000 points.

They never said anything about 17.5 cents to us.

We had a suite on our first cruise, loved it, but realized that we may not be able to afford it every cruise, so we are flexible there.

We can travel off season and last minute.

The salesperson made it clear that these things are what would make the package worthwhile.

We received our airline voucher and three resort stay certificates in our packet before we left the ship.

We bought it so that it would force us to pre-pay for vacations and make us go.

We received VIP debarkation for our entire group of 17 and since we arrived in port almost four hours late due to a man overboard situation, that was a huge relief to get off the ship so quickly as all but one of us made our flight.

A pleasant surprise was that some of the resorts do have 2-3 bedroom units so we can bring family with us...since we're so close to Mexico, flights are cheap, and that will make the resort stay certificates worth even more for us.

After reading all the info here on the CVC, I am going to make sure we just use our points wisely and get the most for the money that we can...thanks for all the heads up!

[bonniemari]

Zonies-you will get a wide variety of opinions on the CVC. Most of us who have purchased it and use it have been really pleased. A lot of the negative you hear will be from people who are not members so therefore have never used it.

 

I have saved quite a bit Now this is factoring in resort certificates and airline certificates. Like you we can travel whenever we want and last minute. We have used our points for shorter and off season cruises cause I hate to travel when there are a lot of kids on board.

 

We also were in a Cat 11 when we booked and our salesperson was upfront and told us we would probably on get 2 cruises using CVC points for that Cat.

 

Now what is up with this "force ourselves to go on vacation"? My DH would love to have to force me to go on vacation. I drive him nuts with vacations-but he goes happily when and where I tell him to.

[LHP]

Zonies-you will get a wide variety of opinions on the CVC. Most of us who have purchased it and use it have been really pleased. A lot of the negative you hear will be from people who are not members so therefore have never used it.

 

I have saved quite a bit Now this is factoring in resort certificates and airline certificates. Like you we can travel whenever we want and last minute. We have used our points for shorter and off season cruises cause I hate to travel when there are a lot of kids on board.

 

We also were in a Cat 11 when we booked and our salesperson was upfront and told us we would probably on get 2 cruises using CVC points for that Cat.

 

Now what is up with this "force ourselves to go on vacation"? My DH would love to have to force me to go on vacation. I drive him nuts with vacations-but he goes happily when and where I tell him to.

 

Bonnie: I have to respectfully disagree with your statement that "a lot of the negative that you will hear is from people who are not members".

 

The research I did from January - June 2006 on the various boards were of MEMBERS ONLY. Not even people who listened but did not join...but of people who did actually purchase one of the packages.

 

Of the 102 separate individuals across the boards, some 80 people were livid about having been blatantly lied to (not just mad or disappointed, but livid to the point of wanting to sue). The other 20 stated that while they did not feel like they got exactly what they were promised; they would make the best of the situation and that it would work out ok for them. However, they would not be renewing. Only 2 people said they would renew.

 

Of 102 people who actually bought these packages, 80 had completely negative reviews. These are not the opinions of people "who are not members".

 

As I recall, you yourself said you would not be renewing. Seems to me if this was such a great thing, people would be lining up to renew their membership.

 

I think the fact that the complete opposite is true, tells the entire story.

[Rowan555]

Add us to the members who realized the vacation club was a total scam. We joined last fall on the Conquest and I cancelled the membership our second day back home. I reviewed the information and checked out the resort availability (which was just about nil) and immediately cancelled. We would have lost a LOT of money had we kept the membership. Much of what the salesperson told us was TOTALLY inaccurate.

 

I will say that there were some repeat cruisers at the private CVC party who seemed happy with their memberships. However, I got the impression from those that I talked to that they really weren't concerned with the actual numbers and whether they were saving or losing money. For us, the crucial factor in cruising is getting the best deal possible - so CVC was definitely not for us.

 

That being said, since we joined on our cruise we got to go to the free party, we had chocolate covered strawberries sent to our stateroom by the CVC people, and we received VIP privileges which got us off the ship more quickly when the cruise ended. I think we also could have still used the airline certificate - but we don't fly. So it wasn't all bad - I'm glad we signed up, and I'm even more glad we cancelled :)

[bonniemari]

I did say that I would not be renewing-but it has nothing to do with being unhappy with my membership.

 

The reason I won't be renewing is because we are planning to sell our business and retire within the next 6-8 months. We have decided to purchase an RV (ye-hah) and travel the country some. Although we will continue to take a couple of cruises a year they will mostly be European and I know I would not get my money's worth cause on cruises of 5 days or longer I prefer Cat 11 or Cat 12 and those just eat up the points.

 

Apparently I was one of the lucky ones that was not lied to. I got exactly what I was promised and what I paid for.

 

I just can't understand why people who are not members and have never actually booked or used CVC have so much negativity about something they have no personal knowledge or experience with.

 

If the membership is used the right way-like in my case off peak and last minute-you can get your monies worth. I also said that if you only can cruise in summer or have a set amount of vacation you need to schedule in advance then the CVC is probably not for you.

[bonniemari]

Just like the cruise portion if you use the resort certificates on off season months you won't have a problem finding a nice resort to go to. I will agree your salesperson should have been upfront with this info.

 

We have booked a 7 day stay at a resort in Myrtle Beach for the first week in May. This is after spring break but before summer break. We paid $299. I went to a travel website and looked up the reviews and prices. The reviews were excellent and it would have cost $199.00 per night.

 

I am one of the happy ones. I have more than got my $5000 back and still have 4 air certificates and 4 resort certificates.

 

Thinking those resort certificates will come in handy. I'm thinking I am so not an RV person and I might have to get DH to drop me off at one of those resorts and him and the doggies can go RV'ing and come back and get me in 7 days.

[Hangman]

I can't yet say what this club will do for a memeber since we just booked for April 07 and Jan 08 but when I called to book my trips we were well taken care of. I did join like other people said to make sure we take a vacation once in a while. I hope this works out for us sorry it has not worked out for everyone but like I said you will always get some possitive and negative feedback from everything. I will post what type of service I get after our cruise in April.

[wisefamily4]

I just can't understand why people who are not members and have never actually booked or used CVC have so much negativity about something they have no personal knowledge or experience with.

 

I've never called the number on the homemade sign posted on the telephone pole that reads "work from home - $80K - $110K your 1st month" - but I'm pretty sure it's a scam too.

[cruisin zonies]

If someone asked me whether to buy into CVC, I would definitely tell them a resounding NO! $3500 out of the $5K I spent goes towards cruise points at 17.5 cents per point. And yes, their cruise prices are better than even Carnival's military/veteran rates. But you lose it in the long run because the extra $1500.00 I paid got me 3 resort certificates, an airline voucher, and VIP perks. Oh yes, they also don't tell you that you have to pay for all of the package before you are granted the VIP status. Once you pay for half of the points, then you can use up to 1/2 of your points.

 

Now the extra $1500 I paid basically covered the " real rent " for the 3 resort stays, so to make myself feel better, I'm figuring that I really paid $700 per resort week with $400 paid up front per certificate in the package. A hundred dollars a night is great for the resorts I am booking. So there's $1200.00 which leaves $300.00 for the price of the VIP Perks.

 

Oh, the lies you tell yourself to make yourself feel better....LOL. Don't buy into CVC- run the other way!