Sensible traveler Destinations Where they went Travel gear Student travelThe trouble with this offer is the timing
By Bruce Mohl, Globe Staff, 07/28/02
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Sensible traveler Destinations Where they went Travel gear Student travel |
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The catch usually materializes after you do some digging — an air fare that's not included, a time-share solicitation that's barely mentioned, hotels that are nowhere near the beach, hidden taxes and fees, or a cruise ship that turns out to be more like a barge.
But Tracy Mead said he was stumped by an offer from a company called FunSunTravel.com that he spotted in some pop-up ads on the Web. The offer included round-trip air fare to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., from any one of 55 cities (including Boston and Providence), a sail to the Bahamas on a 435-foot cruise ship, four nights at a three-star resort there, a cruise back to Fort Lauderdale, a rental car to drive to Orlando, a two-night stay at one of three hotels there, and passes to Disney World for a day. Seven days and six nights for two for only $598.
"When I called them and asked what's the catch. They said there was no catch," Mead said. "There's got to be a catch."
The catch, in this case, doesn't appear to be anything sinister. All the trip elements really exist. It's just that they don't fit together very well, at least to my taste.
As with any unsolicited travel offer from an unfamiliar company, the best approach is to check out the company with a third party and go over the itinerary step by step to see if it's really what you want.
According to the Better Business Bureau of Southeast Florida, FunSunTravel is the travel agency arm of Discovery Vacation Clearing House, based in Montreal. The company has been in business since February 1998, and active in Fort Lauderdale since January 2000.
Lots of people must call the Better Business Bureau about FunSunTravel because the organization has a recorded message about the firm on its phone line. But the message is positive, saying that all complaints about FunSunTravel have been satisfactorily resolved and that the number of complaints has been normal for a travel agency business. The recording notes the company's 30-day money-back guarantee. Officials at the bureau could not be reached for further comment.
FunSunTravel books its customers on flights to Fort Lauderdale on one of five major airlines, either American, Delta, Southwest, US Airways, or United. The cruise ship that runs from Fort Lauderdale to the Bahamas is operated by Discovery Cruise Lines, which sails each morning and returns each night. The ship has seven decks, a casino, and pool. Breakfast and lunch are served on the trip to the Bahamas, and dinner is served upon return. All meals are buffet style.
What FunSunTravel doesn't tell you is that the timing is a bit off. The cruise ship departs each morning at 7:45, which means you would have to arrive the night before in Fort Lauderdale — and spend an extra night in a hotel — or take an incredibly early flight to arrive in time for the departure.
Accommodations in the Bahamas are at the Island Palm Resort in Freeport. The Island Palm is not on the beach, and pictures of it on the Web don't make it look grand. Promotional materials are a bit ominous, giving as big a plus to 24-hour security as to the pool and two restaurants.
The return cruise to Fort Lauderdale gets in at 10 p.m., with a long way to go before you can rest. The itinerary calls for renting a car from Thrifty and driving the 220 miles to Orlando that night. Hotel options include a Holiday Inn, a Best Western, or the Grand Lakes Resort, all near Disney World.
FunSunTravel was upfront about the fact that the $598 price does not include port charges and hotel taxes. The customer service representative I talked to said the port charges were $58 per person, and the hotel taxes $7 to $12 a night. With these included, the total cost comes close to $775.
To its credit, FunSunTravel doesn't rely on a time-share tie-in. There are no blackout dates on travel, and agents don't insist you have to buy the trip on the spot, although the one I talked to said the offer wouldn't be available much longer. FunSunTravel has been selling the trip package since May.
Perhaps the biggest drawback is that you pay up front and book later. You have up to a year to travel, but you have to give 60 days' notice of when you want to leave. FunSunTravel suggests you come up with three possible departure times, since "availability is limited."
Will Allouh, operations manager for FunSunTravel, said the travel package's cost is so low because FunSunTravel is filling empty seats or beds for the various providers. He said Discovery Cruise Lines charges FunSunTravel nothing because it wants more bodies to fill its casino. The hotels and airlines sell in bulk at reduced prices, he said. FunSunTravel makes its money when customers upgrade, or add extra passengers to the traveling party.
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Check finally arrives
Albert and Florence Koster of Vineyard Haven finally got their check.
Back in early June, Grand Circle Travel of Boston promised to send the couple $370 to clear up months of delays in refunding money the Kosters were forced to shell out to fly from Amsterdam to Zurich when Sabena Airlines went bankrupt during their river tour of Europe. (See Sensible Traveler, June 23, for details.)
By mid-July, the check still hadn't arrived, so the Kosters called me again. A Grand Circle spokeswoman looked into the matter and discovered the company had credited the money to a credit card the Kosters had previously canceled. It was the identical mistake Grand Circle had made the last time a refund had been promised.
But this third time was a charm. A check was sent by Federal Express and a fruit basket was sent from a local florist with a kind note of apology.
ufauthorBruce Mohl can be reached at mohl@globe.com.