ComplaintsforTripps Travel Network

• Initial Complaint

  12/07/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  My husband and I attended a presentation in Las Vegas at the Embassy Suites 9/11/23. ****************************** was the spokesman, he was very likable. However we have since found that he is deceitful, non-transparent and not forthcoming. One issue is with their marketing group Vegas Strong, which ************* even admitted that their gifts were worthless. That tells me much about TTN. ************** discussed the program and the savings which we have not realized and we investigated properties in desirable vacation locations and did not experience nearly the savings presented to us. We contacted ************* 9/12 am to back out of the contract and were told it was not possible. We advised that we would dispute with our credit card company and he stated, 'do what you have to'. I attempted to dispute this transaction with my credit card company which was declined due to a non cancelation clause in the contract. My issues here: 1. my credit card was taken before we ever saw a contract 2. You are presented with a contract to read in a binder, then you are emailed an edoc to sign. I do not recall the cancelation clause in the hard copy contract (is believe this to be a bait and switch) 3. The charge was processed on my credit card prior to me signing the contract. Seems wrong. I have sent several emails stating our displeasure and requesting a refund. No replies to these requests. I stated that if they were truly interested in their 'great' customer satisfaction rating then they should be agreeable to refunding unhappy customers. No reply! I advised that my next email was to BBB.Getting any information from this company regarding our free trips has been like pulling teeth. It was never stated in the presentation that the cruise was only with 2 lines, nor was it stated that the ****** trip was only with one resort group and NOT an all-inclusive.I feel that this company operating in Las Vegas is perfect, the city of slight of hand and magic tricks, same as we feel about TTN/Tripps Plus.

  Business response

  12/18/2023

  Thank you for allowing us to respond to this complaint. We don't agree with a number of the allegations the consumer stated in their complaint. Let's address them:

  1. The consumer is aware they purchased their Las Vegas package from Vegas Stronger. Yet they try to blame us for the gifts provided by Vegas Stronger. They also complained about the hotel quality which didn't match what Vegas Stronger allegedly promised them. Our question is why aren't you complaining to Vegas Stronger? They charged this consumer $499 not us?

  2. Let's address the contract process. First, there is no bait and switch. The hard copy contract in the binder is the exact same contract that is sent to the consumer's email in an e-signature format. The hard copy does contain the same verbiage stating in bold print there is no rescission period for this type of transaction. The consumer voluntarily initialed next to the cancellation paragraph and signed directly below. The credit card is charged only after a customer hands us their drivers license and credit card. The card is charged and a charge slip is brought to the customer to sign. If the consumer had any issues with this process they did not have to hand over their credit card to our representative. This is the way we have done our contract verifications for the 9 years we have been in Las Vegas.

  3. As far as the price the consumer paid, our company has consumers that pay various amounts depending on the travel program they purchase. Some consumers get the travel program for fewer years or receive fewer benefits. Why is this even a point of contention? If you go to a *** dealership, does every customer buying a 5 series pay the same amount? Of course not! It depends on what features they are getting with their vehicle. In theory this is how our pricing works for our Travel License Agreement we sell to consumers.

  4. The consumer complains about pricing. We offered to have a travel supervisor contact the consumer but they didn't seem interested in getting any assistance. To this day, we have no firm evidence the consumer is not finding savings with our travel program. 

  5. As far as the "free" trips which are actually complimentary, the consumer was made aware in writing the ****** trip was NOT all-inclusive. It states on a page initialed by the consumer this option is available as an upgrade. As far as only having one company to work with in ******, that should not be an issue. Vidanta Resorts have several locations throughout ****** in all the popular places like ******, ****, *************** and many more. They are all 4 and 5 star resorts. By using our Vidanta certificate, the consumer would save thousands of dollars on lodging..

  Evidently we have abided by our contract, as we sent in a rebuttal covering these topics to the consumer's credit card company along with all the pertinent documentation and our company won the chargeback. We are under no obligation based on the signed contract and winning the chargeback to offer a refund. In a sign of good faith, we will offer the consumer a one time partial refund of $1,500.00, along with offering an all-inclusive trip to ****** and our company will pay the upgrade fee. If the consumer is interested in this offer, we ask they reach out to our customer service department by phone or email.

  Thank You,

  Tripps Management

  Customer response

  01/01/2024

   
  Complaint: 20973347
  
  I am rejecting this response because: we sent an email to TrippsPlus in response to their offer. We were asking for additional information regarding the all-inclusive offer. The reply from them was that the certificate was not for all-inclusive being included.  I again sent a screen shot of the offer and have not heard back from them.

  We would like to counter with an offer of a $4,000 credit and no trips and we will end our association. 
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *******************

  Business response

  01/05/2024

  The customer's complaint revolves around a complimentary trip which does not originate from our company. Our company never claimed the Vidanta certificate was all-inclusive. Since that is what the customer wants, we have made a special request to the company we purchase certificates from to make an all-inclusive certificate available. We are providing what knowledge we have about these certificates. We do not pretend to be experts regarding all of the details of the vacations, as we are not the company that books these all-inclusives. 
  Here is what we know as far as room type, names of resorts and locations available.
  5 Night All Inclusive Certificate (MX & *********) 
  End Consumer responsible for Security Deposit and any Upgrade Fees 
  6 Day/ 5 Night Stay for Two 
  Destinations Include (Puerto *******, Cozumel, Mazatln, ******, ************) 
  All rooms are based on ************************** Room Options to upgrade available. 
  El Cid, ****, Solaris Resorts (Some exclusions may apply)
   Adults only resorts
  This certificate has a value of $1,000 to $1,500 per person. These are well known resorts. We are countering what the customer asked for in their latest complaint We are willing to up our offer from $1,500 to $2,500. This additional $1,000 can be used for anything including paying for upgrades on room types, etc. tied to the all-inclusive offer. So all travel benefits remain available to the customer, plus an all-inclusive trip that can be taken in the next 2 years. Plus a $2,500 partial refund. We feel this is more than a fair offer.
  
  Thank ***************************************

  Customer response

  01/21/2024

   
  Complaint: 20973347
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  Still several issues/comments:

  1. How can TrippsPlus state 'they are not experts' when this is their business. If they have outside partners they should be aware of their practices/policies. Regarding the complimentary trips we are not comfortable saying that we accept as we do not have the time to completely investigate however quick glance there are few destination options and they do not appear to be truly all-inclusive.

  2. In trying to find reasons to accept this offer, we have reviewed a number of locations and do not see the results that were strongly and repeatedly expressed in the presentation. We are researching desirable locations; *********, ********* and *******. We only find the discussed deep discounts on 1 to 3 star locations. Not the 4 - **************** that they push in the presentation. 

  3. We have asked a couple of times in emails how points/rewards are able to be claimed? No response. 

  4. We were never contacted by a representative regarding any of our issues/concerns.

  5. TrippsPlus BBB rating was discussed at length in the presentation, being so proud of this you would think they would not have to tie customers to a contract with a no cancelation clause. Oh yeah, they want that money!!! Their only interest.

  I am planning an upcoming trip to our home in *********** ******* so I only need flights and rental car. Per their website, no flights available (attached screenshot), per Allegiant there are flights (attached screenshots). Rental car provided a ****% discount. 

  We continue to request a refund/credit of $4000. We will consider the remaining as school of hard knocks ****** learned. If it sounds too good to be true, it is!

  
  Sincerely,
  
  *******************

  Business response

  02/06/2024

  Let's go over some of the consumer's issues.

  1. When our company states we are not experts in travel, it's because we are not travel agents. This was made abundantly clear in the presentation. We are a sales distributor for arrivia. ******* has 25 years of experience booking travel for their distributor's customer base. As we explained to the consumer, if you have a travel request or question, do a chat online, or call and talk to an agent from arrivia. 

  2. As far as airfare, again we made it clear we do not save consumers money on airfare. arrivia agents can help customers locate the best flights by price, non-stop flights, etc. They do not book the flights. This is for the personal security of the customer not giving out their personal information over the phone. We suggest if the consumer wants to fly Allegiant then book it through Allegiant. 

  3. Saying we don't have savings on higher end hotels in ******* ********* and ********* is not true. Not to mention. its such a broad statement with no dates, how can we even verify what they are looking at. We did a couple of random searches over the next couple of months in *********, and there are 4 star hotels with 20-40% savings depending on the dates. 

  4. Claiming no one will respond to the consumer is not true. Our customer service manager has spoken to ***************** several times. He even sent her options for the complimentary trip to ****** along with all-inclusive options which she seemed interested in. We've heard nothing back from her regarding booking one of these trips.

  5. We won the credit card chargeback, so technically we do not have to offer any type of refund. We can just abide by what the credit card company's decision was. We offered a $1,500 partial refund. We are willing to go as high as $2,000 with all travel benefits including the ****** trip still being available to the consumer. We will await their answer.

   

  Sincererly,

  Tripps Management
  

  Customer response

  02/14/2024

   
  Complaint: 20973347
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  

  1. Our contract is with TrippsPlus not Arriva. TrippsPlus should be our 'expert' contacts.

  2. We were not discussing costs of airfare, we understand that is not something you can discount however you show airfare on your website so we assumed you can at least book it.

  3. I have asked questions about how rewards can be used a number of times and have not received answers. Correct that we received information regarding additional Mexican options and we have not responded as we wanted this settled before we proceed any further. 

  Your prior offer was $2,500 which we will accept. 

  
  Sincerely,
  
  *******************

  Business response

  02/26/2024

  Hopefully this reponse clears up any misunderstandings with the consumer.

  1. While you signed a contract with TrippsPlus, the contract states on Page 3 that the Licensor (TrippsPlus) has contracted with arrivia to provide the technology that customizes our online travel platform. In essence, we are a distributor for arrivia. They have approximately 200 distributors worldwide. They are contracted by our company to provide all travel benefits to our customers. We use their various travel feeds which make up the website the consumer has access to. When she calls the travel department she is calling arrivia. Our company is not a licensed travel agent. Our company has a manager from arrivia assigned to our account whenever any issues arise that we can reach out to.

  2. Regarding flights, the consumer can book flights on the website. Travel specialists can assist with locating the best fares and travel dates etc. They are not allowed to actually make the bookings. This must be done by the consumer.

  3. We are not experts when it comes to Reward Credits, but basically a consumer accumulates credits in various ways: Booking travel, family members they have on the family plan booking travel, referrals, using the Boomerang Program and more. On the website the consumer can check they wish to pay for a trip with a credit card or using Reward Credits. If the consumer needs additional information on this topic, we recommend they reach out to arrivia and talk to an agent.

  The consumer can reach out to our company by email or over the phone to take care of the refund issue.

   

  Sincerely,

  Tripps Management

• Initial Complaint

  11/25/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Offered to sell existing timeshare. Foolishly after 1year and NO offers, i opted for another year. Still No offers. I have reduced the value of the timeshare 3 x just to try and recoup my expenditure. Its a sham.

  Business response

  11/27/2023

  Hello,

  In regards to the consumer's complaint, we want to point out the consumer is asking for a refund based on a service that was being provided by a third-party company. The consumer is aware TrippsPlus is not in the business of selling their customer's timeshares. We offer a referral to a reputable company that has an A+ rating with the BBB. ***************************** We are including documentation signed by the consumer that clearly states TrippsPlus is referring the consumer to **************************** and they are under no obligation to use this service. In writing, the consumer can read we do not offer a guarantee his timeshare will sell. We will not offer a refund to a consumer due to his unhappiness with a company we referred him to. The consumer paid thousands of dollars to receive discounts on travel using the merchant's travel program back in 2021, and there is no mention of any issues with the travel discounts the merchant offered the consumer

  We did offer the consumer the option to cancel his timeshare and get out of his maintenance fees if his timeshare did not sell within a year. To resolve this issue, we ask the consumer to reach out to our company via email or phone to assist with the cancellation of his timeshare if this is the direction he wishes to go.

  Thank You,

  Tripps Management

• Initial Complaint

  11/14/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On 4-3-2023 attended travel presentation and advised would get 7 day carribean cruise and 3 day ****** trip with air if taken within 2 yrs. I was advised would need to take within 12 mos from activation. Sales person (veteran) was very misleading. Altho I knew I would have to pay taxes for cruise- he did not tell me that it would have to be paid prior to scheduling. They would not tell me, when calling to schedule,which cruiseline, or if I would be able to upgrade from inside cabin to outside cabin. I had informed them at presentation I was claustrophobic and just recovered from pancreatic cancer. They said I would have that availability . Who wants to pay $300 for taxes prior to even knowing what cruiseline, itinerary, or whether could upgrade. Altho they couldnt promise amount of savings, my experience in using ***** for hotel etc- you usually only save a ************* and they are very limited with any hotels above 3 stars. For over **** I spent on this. -it certainly is a rip off. I would request at least $4000 back since I cant use the above vacations. The other $3000 plus I will unhappily accept as a ****** learned. I wouldnt have thought a veteran would be so misleading

  Business response

  12/21/2023

  Hello,

  We are going to address the consumer's complaint. The cruise the consumer is referring to is not part of the travel program she paid for with our company. It's a complimentary ********* Cruise which costs our company several hundred dollars. During the contract process, the consumer was given a page informing her how to go about booking the cruise through a third party Casablanca Express. This is a reputable company that has been in business for 40 years. We have never had someone tell us the customer service team with Casablanca would not be up front regarding what cruise lines are available, port fees and taxes, etc. Again, we do not book the cruise, we simply pay a fee to Casablanca so the consumer gets a complimentary cruise where all they have to pay is the port fees and taxes. Based on the consumer's issues, we are emailing Casablanca to look into her complaints.

  We have not been made aware of any pricing issues the consumer brings up in her complaint. We never promise a specific percentage of savings on vacations. It could be 5% or 50% depending on where someone is traveling, the type of accommodations, etc. We do have a price match guarantee if the consumer finds a better price on a public travel website.

  If the consumer wants to wait to get some clarification on the cruise, we can work on getting that information and allow her to make a decision on whether she wants the cruise. If she does not, we can offer another type of complimentary trip. As we mentioned above, the trip she is complaining about is not part of the License Agreement she purchased from our company. We will do what we can to assist with booking the complimentary cruise or offer another complimentary trip. We will also offer a $1,500 partial refund to cover any inconveniences the consumer has had trying to book this cruise.

   

  Thank You,

  Tripps Management

  Customer response

  01/16/2024

  Case was closed when I tried to log in.  i was gone for a month

  i would like followup for the complimentary cruise. I need to know if I can upgrade from interior cabin  and what cruise line and itinerary I would have prior to paying fees they requested.

  i have tried several times to book hotels and never found any for my destination or ***** was higher except one case where i saved a few dollars 

  please refund me $1,500 would make me feel a bit better about the company

  Business response

  01/16/2024

  Hello,

  If the consumer is looking for additional information regarding ************* Cruise she received as a complimentary gift, she will need to reach out to ******************. This cruise is not booked by our travel partner arrivia, so we do not want to give out any incorrect information. We do know there is the ability to upgrade from an interior cabin. Casablanca can go over pricing and what cruise lines are available for this cruise. They can be reached at **************.

  We will put in a request for the partial refund. The consumer will be sent a form going over the details of the revised price for her membership. Once signed, she will receive her refund in approximately 7 days. She will still retain all travel benefits available to her. We are aware that the hotel portion of our platform is adding additional vendors which will make hotel prices even cheaper in the near future.

  Thank You,

  Tripps Management

• Initial Complaint

  10/20/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On 8/31/23 we attended a meeting hosted by TrippsPlus. They told us they had a relationship with ******** ****************** (***); which, if we purchased their product, *** would arrange for us to sell our timeshare points. **************, the TrippsPlus representative, even called the *** representative, ***********************, and let us talk with her. ************** assured us *** would arrange to sell our timeshare points, for an amount that would allow us to get our investment in the timeshare back. We would have to pay *** a one time fee of $199 for them to market our timeshare.**************, said ************* was involved helping another customer in selling their timeshare, as we were talking to her on the phone. This is the only reason we agreed to purchase TrippsPlus, and we told ************** that. in addition, after selling our timeshare points, we could still travel, at a savings, by using the services of TrippsPlus. We did pay *** the $199 fee on 9/8/23, however; *** has not done anything to sell our timeshare.TrippsPlus promised us we could use their services to book: hotels, cruises, car rentals, airfare, all inclusive trips, unlimited resort stays, and private homes (air b&b) rentals, at discounts because they eliminated the middleman fees that travel agencies charged.We have tried to book services through TrippsPlus, but we have found NO savings over other services we have available without TrippsPlus; specifically, a cruise we had booked to ******, TrippsPlus couldnt save us any fees when we tried to book the same cruise through them.We also found that TrippsPlus is unable to book reservations at many resorts we currently have available to us using our timeshare. They promised us specifically that they could book those resorts through them - not the case.TrippsPlus promised us wonderful travel options at reduced fees, and that we would be able to sell our timeshare so our annual maintenance fees could be used for travel options through them.

  Business response

  11/01/2023

  We are responding to the complaint from this consumer: 

  1. The consumer seems to have an issue with the third-party company we referred regarding possible sale of their timeshare. Again, this was a referral. TrippsPlus is in no way affiliated with **************************** Should someone join our travel program, we provide information on setting up a simple agreement between AVM and the consumer to list and hopefully sell their timeshare. We include a section of our contract stipulating this is a third-party company and we are not involved in the sale of the consumer's timeshare, nor do we profit in anyway should the timeshare sell. There is no guarantee the timeshare will sell. We also want to point out the purchase date with our company was October 31. Somehow the consumer is questioning why their timeshare had not been sold by the middle of October. Not even 60 days after listing. This is an unrealistic expectation considering the consumer has a one year contract with AVM to list their timeshare.

  2. The other issues the consumer brought up we cannot discuss at this time because the consumer filed a chargeback on this transaction with ***************** Our company has responded to this chargeback, and we plan to abide by ****'s decision on this transaction. Once the case has been settled, we will correspond with the consumer regarding any existing issues he has.

  Thank You,

  Tripps Management

  Customer response

  11/15/2023

  The company has NOT resolved our complaints. They were not honest with ** and they have not communicated any attempt at a resolution.

  We have disputed the charge with the credit card company, but that has not been resolved with them.

  We still have a complaint with this company.

  Business response

  12/13/2023

  In regards to the customers complaint, we will address several of their issues:

  1. We did not work with customer regarding a potential refund for two reasonsfirst, the customer signed a no rescission contract. Second, the customer filed a chargeback with their credit card and we the merchant won the chargeback. 
  

  2. As far as the customers timeshare, all we offered the customer was a referral. The customer is aware we have nothing to do with the sale of their timeshare. We dont understand the issue of the timeshare not being sold. As of the date of their complaint, the timeshare had not been on the market for 2 months. Sometimes these transactions take time.

  3. The customer is trying to claim we dont offer good prices because we could not beat  a price for a cruise they had already booked. Our company has never claimed we would beat the price on a cruise that was previously booked by a customer. Who knows how much the price has changed since the customer booked their cruise. The customer has already requested a complimentary cruise for 2 from our company to ****** with airfare, along with a trip to ******** with airfare. Our company is out over a thousand dollars for these vacations and the customer has not taken either trip.

  4. We checked the notes travel agents have on this customer and besides the cruise, there are no comments about the customer being unhappy with pricing.

  The customer was aware once they did a chargeback we would abide by what their credit card company decided. We won the chargeback, so we are under no obligation to offer the customer any type of refund. To close this matter, we are willing to make a one time offer of a $1,500 partial refund, with the customer keeping all ********************** benefits and complimentary trips. The customer can contact our customer service department if they want to accept this offer.
  

  Tripps Management

• Initial Complaint

  08/07/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  My wife and I attended a Tripps Plus presentation at Hilton on July 17, 2023. The presentation given by Mr. **************************** an Army Veteran, was dishonest, misleading, deceptive, and false practices. I emailed and called several times only to be given one number after another or different email address. There has been no response to my calls or emails. We spent $7995.00 for a travel plan that is not near what was advertised. I am writing to express my deepest dissatisfaction and concern regarding the deceptive, dishonest, and false practices that I have encountered since becoming a member. Due to these unethical practices, I hereby request the immediate Refund and cancellation of my membership fees I have paid.I initially joined your organization hoping to benefit from the products and services you offered. In reality, I was presented with misleading information, false promises, and dishonest representations. In addition to being unethical, such practices violate customer trust.Some of the issues I have encountered include:1. Misrepresentation of Benefits: It was significantly different from the benefits described during the membership signup process. This misrepresentation is both misleading and lacking transparency. When researching two vacations, the cost, inferior hotel options, and discounts demonstrated during the presentation were widely misrepresented. 2. The closest discount to the two bedroom, all timeshare shown during the presentation was at a 1-********** while using the website for an ******* ********** trip from Oct *****. Savings of $293 and 37%. Accommodation and cost were grossly misrepresented. Having served in the military myself, I felt comfortable with **************, who also claimed to be a veteran. I am requesting a refund and cancellation of my membership.

  Business response

  08/24/2023

  Hello,

  We would like to respond to the consumer's complaint. First, we want to be clear there has been no attempt to mislead the consumer. The consumer complains about the amount of savings at a particular location. Anything shown during the live presentation are examples of savings. We do not promise a specific amount of savings for hotels, cruises, timeshare condo rentals, etc. There is no mention of specific savings in the contract signed by the consumer. We are not sure why the consumer is under the impression there's huge savings on every booking. Our presenters mention during our live presentation savings can vary from for example 10% to 50% depending on where you are going, where you want to stay, if it's a high demand time of year, etc.

  Regarding the trip to ******* we want to clarify a few things. First of all, TrippsPlus management confirmed the pricing on the hotel the consumer was referring to. It was the ************* in *******. We believe there was a typo in regards to the quality star level of the hotel. On our website it is listed as a 1 star. Our management team has checked ******** rating for this hotel (3.6) ************* (3.3) and Trip Advisor (3.0). It's apparent this is not a 1 star but is a 3 star hotel. We have notified the IT team regarding this issue with the rating of the Clarion. In the consumer's complaint, they mention savings of almost $300 and 37% savings. What is wrong with that? It may not be the exact hotel they were looking for, but savings of almost 40% for a popular location like ******* is very good.

  Let's clarify the way things work as far as Timeshare rentals. We have thousands of resorts throughout the world we have access to, but as it states in the contract it's based on a first come first serve basis. We cannot guarantee availability, especially with short notice to a popular tourist destination like *******. Plus, the consumer is looking for a 2 bedroom unit which are not as readily available as Studio or 1 bedroom units. We believe the consumer needs to have more realistic expectations as far as how much they will save and availability. When they are looking to book someplace popular, try to book as far out as possible.

  We have serviced the consumer per the contract. We have shown we can save the consumer money. We do not feel this particular complaint justifies a full refund. We remind the consumer they signed a no rescission contract. In an effort to work with the consumer, we are willing to offer a $1,500 partial refund with the consumer retaining all travel benefits. The consumer was given as a first day a complimentary trip to ****** for 2 valued at $3,000-4,000, plus a complimentary ******* Cruise for 2 with airfare. We are waiting for the consumer to reach out to us regarding these vacations.

   

  Best Regards,

  TrippsPlus Management

  Customer response

  08/30/2023

   
  Complaint: 20430975
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  At no time during the presentation did ************** demonstrate, talk, or show anything less than 50% savings on ***************. This blatant oversight in providing accurate information has left me feeling misled and taken advantage of.
  
  Furthermore, ************** audaciously claimed that Tripps has access to 51% of the timeshare inventory, implying that this would provide more access than actual timeshare owners. This statement explicitly attracted my attention as it highlighted the possible benefits of choosing Tripps over traditional timeshare ownership. However, the reality turned out to be far from what was promised.
  
  Upon further investigation, I discovered that Tripps' proclaimed access to 51% of the timeshare inventory was nothing more than a hollow promise. It is evident that this misleading statement was used to sway potential customers like me, who were seeking an alternative to owning a timeshare with maintenance fees. It is disheartening to realize that such false claims were made solely to allure us into signing up, without any intention of delivering on these broad assertions.
  
  In light of these misleading tactics,
  
  I appreciate you addressing my complaint.However, I still believe that the issue I encountered justifies a full refund.
  
  I would like to propose a compromise. I am willing to accept a refund of $3,997.50 partial refund, which represents 50%of what I paid. In addition, I am happy to accept the complimentary trips.  However, the trip forms are for ****** and the ******* Cruise, including airfare.
  
  In light of this, I kindly request your confirmation and any necessary arrangements to resolve this matter.
  
  Thank you again for responding to my complaint,and I look forward to a resolution that satisfies both parties.
  
  

  Sincerely,
  
  *************************

  Business response

  08/31/2023

  Hello,

  The customer is bringing up claims of what was said during a presentation that cannot be verified. In order to satisfy the customer, we will accept their counter offer. We will be in touch with the customer on the next 7 days. Complimentary trips promised to customer are still available.

  Sincerely,

  Tripps Management

• Initial Complaint

  03/06/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  My husband and I went a presentation for Trippsplus August 13 2022 at 1P.M. At the presentation they talk about all the money we would save on hotels, resorts, cruises. After the presentation you then speak to a representative. If they can't sell the product they have another rep. speak to you. during this time we ask about a restroom the rep even walked to the restroom with me probably to make sure we didn't leave. Everything at presentation was a lie. I told them about a couple of Viking Cruises that I was looking at and ask how much I would save She said 30%. Also the second rep said that he and his family stayed at the ************** for $199.00 in Las Vegas for a week. He said I can't stay at home for that. Those prices sounded good. You could take a vacation and save lots of money. So we purchased for $3698.00. I started checking prices. I called the reservations department and ask about the Viking Cruises. I was quoted 10% savings on 1 and less that 5% savings on the other. A long way from30%. I also checked online for hotels in ******* and overseas. I found pricing at less or if theirs was less just a few dollars. I called and spoke to **** dozens of times. He said to send Email with complaint. I did. the only thing they acknowledged was the issue with the free gifts nothing else. **** said that he spoke to the marketing rep[****} and he said he would get back with me. He never did. Gifts were not as described. **** also said that a supervisor from reservations would call. They never did. he said they would leave a message or send an email if they can't reach me. NOTHING. He even put in my file that they spoke to me and everything was fine that I was happy. This has been going on for months. The only people that are calling are a third party company that collects the yearly fee of $199. I've received several. Told them I was not paying. One even said these companies close down after a while and and reopen under a new name. Wish there was more space.

  Business response

  03/14/2023

  A lot of what the consumer is stating is false. There is no guarantee of getting a condo week for $199. The contract signed by the consumer even states the average condo week goes for between $369-899. This consumer complained multiple times about gifts provided by a third party marketing company, not TrippsPlus. The marketing company interacted with her several times and resent the gifts to her and she still claims she didn't receive them. The exaggerations about not answering phone calls, etc. are simply untrue. The consumer looked for one excuse after another to receive a refund. Interesting she contacted our company for a complimentary ********* Cruise that costs our company hundreds of dollars, but she never mentioned she got this cruise from our company in her complaint did she??? 

  We agreed to refund her to just put an end to all of this complaining, and she still did a complaint. We have sent her a form to fill out to sign stating she will take no further action against our company once she is refunded. Once we receive the form she will have her credit card credited for the amount charged. This complaint should not even have been about our company, as we gave her all the benefits promised. Her issue is with Wholesale Holiday the marketing company. She gets a refund, we get an unwarranted complaint and pay money for the consumer to go on a cruise. What a Deal!

  Sincerely,

  Tripps Management

• Initial Complaint

  12/14/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  We attended their presentation on 10/21/22 at the ******** Casino. During their presentation they claimed their prices for all travel, (hotels, flights, cruises etc.) are the cheapest to find anywhere. Because we travel often it seemed like a great way to save money. We paid $6,300 to join. While in the process of planning vacations we did a lot of comparisons of prices and found that TrippsPlus was always more expensive than every comparison we made. Their claims to us turned out to be a scam!

  Business response

  01/03/2023

  Hello,

  In regards to the consumer's complaint, our travel partner ******* found the following information. arrivia compared the prices the consumer listed in an email to our company for various hotels and found our prices were lower than the competition. We do not claim to save consumer's money on airfare, so it's certainly possible the consumer found lower airfare on another site.

  We ask the consumer to reach out to our customer service department by email or phone with the name of the website he found for the pricing he quoted in the email to our company. We will then discuss with the consumer what steps we will take to satisfy all parties involved.

  Thank You,

  TrippsPlus

  Customer response

  01/04/2023

   
  Complaint: 18572979
  
  I am rejecting this response because: ************ lied to us and apparently thought they could take advantage of elderly people, (I am 79 and my wife is 76 years old). They were aware that we travel extensively and assured us that we would receive our initial investment back in a short time. They are scammers of the first degree! We sent them prices of what we are paying for our next trip and they simply state that their prices are much lower. We have been traveling many years and we know how to compare prices. The prices on their website are considerably higher than what we are paying. Simply stating that they are cheaper isn't proof that they are indeed cheaper. They are liars and cheats. They conned us out of $6,300. We couldn't amortize that amount if we lived to be 150 years old. If the BBB cannot or will not help us we are prepared to take legal action against them. Someone must put these crooks out of business.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *******************

  Business response

  01/11/2023

  Does ************ think the way to work towards a resolution with a company is to slander them? Funny how our company is in our 13th year, has thousands and thousands of members, has worked out of a Hilton property with for 8 consecutive years and somehow we've been scamming everyone along the way? It's preposterous!

  ************ is using a double standard. He accuses our company of simply claiming our prices are cheaper when he is doing the exact same thing! We had a supervisor with arrivia our booking partner price out every trip ************ listed. The email response we received states quote "Tripps beats external OTA's (Expedia, Priceline, etc.) on each booking the member (****) made. Do we know what booking engine the member used to book their trip?" In our previous response to ************ we ask please provide us with the booking engine he used to price out the potential vacation sites he listed. He never responded to us. So somehow we are scammers, etc. when all we want is all the information. We cannot do a specific price comparison if we do not know where he is claiming to see lower prices than what is on our website. 

  To recap, we have found our prices to be lower than public websites on hotels and resorts. ************ was correct that he found cheaper airfare than on our website. We will remind ************ we do not claim to save member's money on airfare. We will reach out to ************ along with submitting this response. We again ask for some cooperation from him on this matter.

• Initial Complaint

  12/09/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  My wife and I participated in a Travel Club Presentation for the business known as TrippsPlus, on June 21st, 2022 at the ****************************************** Las Vegas specifically ******************. What they presented to us is not what we have experienced in just the short time we have been members. Every single dealing with TrippsPus has been a nightmare and complete circus production. We bought a membership in Las Vegas after the group orientation meeting. We feel they used very unfair and deceptive business practices which the bottom line of very insignificant if any savings claims. The whole concept is based on the service being able to offer deep discounts for Cruise, Motels, Airfares and Car Rentals. The deals shown in the presentation along with the very smooth presenters were indeed impressive enough for us to make the purchase of $7995. Once we started trying to book our first cruise, which took an act of congress to book and come to fruition, the savings were nonexistent. We were no better off in savings than what we can and could do with our own research and using our general accounts with the merchants directly. We have booked one cruise through TrippsPlus and the service saved us no money when taking all the fees into consideration and comparing all services and offerings apple to apple. But if that was the only issue that would be one thing. We had the cruise department (not owned or operated by TrippsPlus but a company named Arrivia.com) put us on hold (stating they were having system issues due to a new system) more than 5-6 times over 3-4 days just to finally get us a price and book the *** cruise. They stated they were with TrippsPlus but billed us by a completely different name which my credit card company called to confirm the charge and I was unaware of this third partys identity, so we ended up mistakenly denying the 3 different charges. We ended up having to redo the whole booking process. What a pain. We have had several inquiries made to try to save friends and family money and turn them onto the service but only to have them experience the no savings offered by TrippsPlus. The inquiries were for all-inclusive destinations, and cruises. Again, no savings. Very frustrating and embarrassing for trying to promote this service.We tried to book again during the Black Friday weekend and Cyber Monday only to go through exactly the same putting us on hold multiple times over multiple days to only get *************************** (with Arriva not TrippsPlus ) to give us a price and try to pressure us into booking when we told him to gives us 30 minutes to discuss. Again, this took almost 5 days to make happen, but the experience is deplorable and unbecoming to a quality business. Bottom line, the TrippsPlus representative quoted ******** plus the travel insurance which is approximately another $260- $300. We were able to book directly with Norwegian for $3921.82. This is at least $1020.84 higher. I am attaching both companies' quotes at the end of this document to see its an exact comparison. I have since started communicating with ********************* whose signature states she works in the Office of the President for TrippsPlus. The claim that my wife and I both along with everyone in the room in that presentation heard was 110% of the difference. When speaking with ****** the offer that they came back is $200.00 worth of on-board cruise credits. I have told her that this is unacceptable and insulting. We have patiently waited a return call to discuss my demands of a full refund but again, no return call as promised. I did hear from ***** on 12/6/2022 which claimed to be the man of authority and could make my problems go away and was very apologetic and to let him try to make it right. We ***** who would not give me his last name or contact information did not call back when promised but did call back said that this was above his level of authority and passed me on to a person named ***** who was supposed to call me back on 12/7/2022 and didnt. So, I reached back out to ********************* who listen to me again and told me after my discussion, she would communicate to ***** not even call if there was not the intent to honor the 110% Buyer Guarantee in hard cash. ***** called and wanted to take over my already paid for reservation with the cruise line and deposit some token on board credits. Then when told that this was not an option, came up with depositing some token future spending credits which again is no acceptable nor what the 110 % Price Guarantee was communicated to. Again, I am also including the email from the prior mentioned cruise consultant and the paid for invoice inset from Norwegian. I have even tried to use the service for car rental for a December 25th, 2022 return to Vegas week. I can book with **** for $155.00 plus fees making it $244.27. TrippsPlus as low as $59.00 making it $416.00 with tax. Again, no savings but wants me to book the higher price and apply for a possible 110% difference when my experience so far is a resounding denial and insulting alternatives. WE DEMAND A REFUND for no less than a clear and documented Breach of Contract and Contract Non-Conformance and no intent to honor any of the commitments made to entice buyer to make the purchase. Upon checking this business on the BBB website, we see that they have charged other individuals varying lifetime membership fees, from $3,000.00- to $6,000.00. (We were not offered any other type of membership). These are very unfair and deceptive business practices. We feel as almost seniors, we were fully taken advantage of. Also, during the signing of the documents there was undo pressure and duress placed on us to sign quickly, before we had an opportunity to fully review them. It seemed they were ******* us out to bring in the next group for their orientation. Our experience thus far with this company has not met our expectations or seen any commmitemts or promises made or implied. We have found we could do better on our own and have done so. We are demanding for our $7,995.00 membership fee to be refunded to us due to the facts above. I have chat logs and call records for review as well.

  Business response

  01/03/2023

  Hello,

  We are very interested in looking into the consumer's issues further. The complaint states the consumer attached comparable quotes for cruises with our affiliated company arrivia and with the cruise line. We do not have access to those price comparisons. We are asking for the consumer to please forward all pertinent attachments regarding his complaint to ******************************** Once received, we will go over any price discrepancy with the cruise department and then deal with the consumer regarding appropriate compensation.

  Thank You,

  TrippsPlus

  Customer response

  01/04/2023

   
  Complaint: 18525312
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  This is a complete unacceptable response on Tripps Pluss part. They already have the information sent to then on December 5th email( when they sent me on a  internal round and round with ********************* with ************************************************* ****** of the President  
  TrippsPlus
  ************
  Ext. 4593
  ***************************    

  Then they passed me on to another hid behind the ****** employee which would only give his first name and no phone or email contact, aka ***** who made promises with no ******. Would not give last name.

  What about all the other issues that are being presented? Oversight on TrippsPlus? You do not even give a point of contact to deal directly with. Again, you choose to hide behind the ****** due to the unaddressed issues.

  Every one of these issues were already sent to you!   Bottom line is that you are stringing me out!

  Sincerely,
  
  ***************************

  Business response

  01/11/2023

  ****************** has received incorrect information. Sharme does not work for our company. ****** is an arrivia employee who works with TrippsPlus members to help them book travel. We have notified arrivia of the way this employee's job title is listed and it has been changed. We bring this up because we have asked more than once for ****************** to send us the quotes where he claims he found cheaper pricing for a cruise through the cruise line. We do not have full access to what is sent to arrivia. They are the booking partner for our company, therefore they book cruises, etc. We do not. We are not going to string ****************** along as he claims asking for documentation we already have. That's absurd. We don't have it and still do not have it. All we wanted to do before discussing an amicable resolution was to see all the pertinent material regarding his cruise. Apparently that's not going to happen. 

  We will also point out ****************** in his own complaint admits to rejecting 3 charges by ******* on his credit card because he didn't know who was charging him for his cruise. By rejecting these charges, who knows what happened to the price of any cruises he was looking into. The contract he signed states arrivia not TrippsPlus services all travel requests.

  It's apparent going back and forth through the BBB has not resolved this issue. Our customer service manager is reaching out to ****************** to attempt to put an end to his complaint once and for all.

• Initial Complaint

  11/28/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  My husband ****** and I were given a presentation by TRIPPSPLUS 19NOV22 at **** hours, and it lasted 90 minutes. During the spiel many suggestions/promised were made verbally. However, afterward we were presented paper work which in no way dovetails with verbal promises. For instance, we were particularly interested in selling our *************** to find a recommendation to an additional agency, for another fee, of course.After signing up we were given copies of documents, a couple of business cards, etc., only to find out there's no recourse because the website (TRIPPSPLUS.COM) only contains scenic pictures (no mailing address or telephone number for redress).Also upon closer examination, page 5 of documentation states "I/We understand the purchase of this License Agreeent forbids us from attempting to dispute this transaction based on Vis or Mastercard regulation which allow Cardholders to chargeback a timeshare or related purchase ___ ___ (Please initial). Please notice this was not at Agreement, but an Agreeent, which cannot be considered legally binding (because there is no such thing)..Bottom line: We want to be reimbursed 100% of our money due to gross misrepresentation on the part of TRIPPSPLUS. We told them at the outset we were interested in cruises, not hotel stays. By the way, we paid $6,995.00! After reading other complaints made to BBB, I realise the charges are not consistent, which is a red flag. They say hindsight is 20/20!

  Business response

  11/30/2022

  Hello,

  We are going to respond to the consumer's issues one by one.

  1. If there were any verbal promises made the consumer did not see in writing, they should have asked to have it in writing. To avoid a conflict over supposed verbal promises, we have a question within the documentation in bold print that asks "Has everything that was promised to you been documented?" The consumer initialed YES.

  2. Regarding the consumer's interest in listing their timeshare, our sales representative made it clear we do not resell timeshares. We can offer a referral to a company we have done business with for over 10 years. This third party company has an A+ rating with the BBB with zero complaints. The disclosure states we are not guaranteeing the sale of any customer's timeshare. We also do not profit in any way from the sale of a customer's timeshare. We are simply referring them to a reputable company. The consumer is complaining about paying additional money to the timeshare resale company. Because this consumer purchased our program, the timeshare resale company only charges $199 from A to Z to list and sell their timeshare. Most companies in this marketplace charge $1,000-2000 for the same service. Did the consumer expect someone to list their timeshare for free?

  3. In the complaint the consumer talks about a website that doesn't have any discounted pricing. This is because the consumer went on our public website, not the private website that is available for member's only. The public website has travel tips, etc. but again, it is not the website a member uses to book travel. The consumer received the correct website on the business card she was given at the time of purchase. The consumer received an email 2 days after purchasing with the log-in details to the website. If the consumer had any issues, she could have emailed our company or called the toll free customer service number. At the time of this response the consumer has not reached out to our customer service department, and has not logged into the travel website.

  4. Regarding the statement on Page 5 the consumer has an issue with, less us explain. The statement lets purchasers know they cannot dispute their credit card purchase with our company based on them buying a timeshare or a timeshare related product. We include this clause because what we sell is the opposite of timeshare. We do not offer a deed and there are no maintenance fees like in timeshare. **** and MasterCard have separate regulations regarding timeshare purchases, so we make it clear in the paperwork this is not what the consumer is purchasing.

  5. The consumer writes they are not interested in hotels, they like cruises. Well we offer cruises, river cruises, etc. All major cruise lines to all destinations at a discount. We have travel agents who specialize in booking cruises.

  6. The consumer also writes other purchasers of our product paid a different price than she did. Why is this a bad thing? Does everyone that buys a ***** Accord pay the same price? NO! It depends on the incentives available at the time and the equipment, or add ons that are purchased. Millions of people own timeshares. Some pay $10,000 some pay $100,000. Again, the benefits vary, so do the prices. It's the same thing with our Travel License Agreement. People buy various packages based on how much they travel, what type of travel they prefer, the length of the membership, whether there are any first day incentive trips included. 

  We feel the consumer should reach out to our customer service department to discuss what they purchased. We can be reached at **************. All benefits the consumer were promised per the contract signed with our company are available to the consumer. Therefore, at this time there has been no misrepresentation, and no reason to offer a full refund.

  Sincerely,

  Tripps Management

• Initial Complaint

  10/03/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  I have a longer letter to them than your space allows.As such, I would appreciate submitting the letter as a PDF, along with TrippsPlus response. They are claiming I need to take this up with Vegas Stronger, but I know that TrippsPlus hired Vegas Stronger to sell this membership on their behalf. So to me, TrippsPlus is not off the hook on this complaint/issue.

  Business response

  10/05/2022

  In regards to ********************************* complaint, we want to address several issues. Number one, the consumer brought her issues to us a year ago in September of 2021. She mentioned in an email to our company she had financial concerns. The consumer and our company agreed to a $1,200 partial refund due to her financial concerns. A year later, she is now asking for a full refund. We cannot remember in 12 years of owning this company when a customer agrees to a partial refund and then comes back a year later asking for a full refund. It's our position, that once you agree to a settlement/partial refund, that's it...you have given up your right to receive a full refund at a later date. The consumer is well aware she signed a no rescission contract, so our company offering her $1,200 was a goodwill gesture.

  Second, her insinuation that TrippsPlus and Vegas Stronger's companies are intertwined is absolutely false! TrippsPlus has a vendor agreement with Vegas Stronger. The contract states Vegas Stronger will purchase their own leads, call those leads, and sell a 4 day 3 night mini vacation to Las Vegas. If the customers who bought the package meet TrippsPlus qualifications, TrippsPlus will then allow the customers to attend one of their travel presentations. All the complaints in the consumer's letter about issues with her hotel when coming to Las Vegas are not TrippsPlus's responsibility. The package sold by Vegas Stronger provided 3 nights at a hotel in Las Vegas. If there were issues with the hotel or additional money that had to be laid out, this is something the consumer needs to take up with Vegas Stronger and the department that booked her hotel. Any other issues with gifting such as the "food credit" etc. once again need to be taken up with Vegas Stronger. In a separate email, we are scanning to the BBB a check-in sheet the consumer signed with TrippsPlus before attending the presentation. The check-in sheet states in bold print the gifts given out for attending the presentation are from the marketing company. TrippsPlus takes no responsibility for these gifts. The consumer signed below this statement.

  It appears the consumer had multiple issues with the travel package she purchased. She bought one of these packages in 2021 and was refunded the entire amount at a later date due to her dissatisfaction with the Las Vegas package. Why would the consumer turn around and buy another package from the same company? That's exactly what happened. The consumer purchased a second package for $419.00 and received a partial refund of $100.00. We are going to make sure the consumer is refunded the remainder of what she paid for the package, $319.00. We highly recommend she does not buy any future packages.

  The consumer is also not being truthful about the travel service department not being available to give her a webinar of the travel website. On 4/23, the travel department called the consumer and emailed her 4 times since she did not pick up the phone at the agreed upon time of the webinar. She did answer the phone a week later when the travel department attempted to do the webinar. The consumer said her daughter was not available to be on the call so they would have to do it another time. These interactions show travel department did everything in their power to do a webinar with the consumer. We have no proof the consumer was finding cheaper prices on other public websites. We have a 110% price match guarantee if the consumer can prove an apples to apples trip is cheaper on another public website.

  We take issue with the accusation that we scam consumers. We are one of the longest running companies of its kind in the US. We didn't last 12 years by pressuring older customers as the consumer asserts. Also, she is again confused about who has been calling her regarding coming back to Las Vegas. TrippsPlus does not own a phone room. We never call customers to come to Las Vegas. She has shown she will buy these packages, thus telemarketing companies keep calling her.

  We feel we have gone above and beyond to help this consumer. She was given a partial refund a year ago, which she agreed to. There's no reason we would offer her a full refund a year later. She has not paid her annual dues to the travel department, therefore her account is currently inactive until she pays the $199. We would be willing to pay the $199.00 for the consumer to make her account active so she can begin using the travel program she purchased from us. The $199.00 renewal fee and getting her a refund of $319.00 for the last mini vacation package she bought, that is all out company is willing to do for this consuner.

   

  Sincerely,

  TrippsPlus Customer Service

  Customer response

  10/06/2022

   
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is somewhat satisfactory to me.
  

  I can definitely reply to some of the accusations made on their behalf but it is obvious to me any more words will not be beneficial to anyone! 
  

  Therefore, I accept the refund and the renewal fee being offered (fee either paid/waived by you) for another year.  

  I do not wish to have, nor hold any more animosity or terse words with anyone from this company. I am choosing to move on and accept the terms you have offered me.  
  

  I hope I can utilize the services yall offer this year and come away with a positive outlook and attitude going forward. 
  

  Finally, thank you for responding and working on a resolution.  I appreciate your generosity and kindness in this matter.

  Sincerely,
  
  *****************************

  P.S.  To the BBB:  Thank you for what you all have done for me in attempting to settle this matter. I really do appreciate the time and effort your staff took to help resolve this.  I am so very happy and honored to say thank you to the BBB for everything yall did in helping me. 

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩