Mexico Vacations May Not Be Cheaper With Air-Fare Offering

Distributors of memberships in a Bellevue-based travel services company have irked some consumers by offering free air fare to Mexico to those who attend sales presentations, then backing off. But a spokeswoman for Platinum Passports Ltd. said the come-ons are not services offered through the company. They should be scrutinized like any contract, she said.

The Platinum Passport distributor in Spokane is Royal Holidays.

Deer Park retiree Tom Cubbage said he was contacted about a Royal Holidays presentation last month.

At its conclusion, he and his wife were told there were no more airline tickets, but that they would receive theirs in the mail.

What they got instead was another air fare offer - available only after sitting through another presentation at their destination in Mexico. And they had to agree to buy a preset package of accommodations.

The room rates were so high - $70 per person, double occupancy - there was little or no saving over arrangements a conventional travel agency could make, he said.

“I didn’t think their deal was all that good,” agreed Jon Gellner, who attended the same presentation.

When he and his wife declined to buy a Platinum Passport membership on the spot, as demanded, Gellner said they were hustled out the door with only a proof of attendance certificate.

After weeks of calls and letters, the couple was finally told they could be booked into Cancun or Acapulco in late April, but at unspecified hotels.

Instead, Gellner said, the couple made its own arrangements in Puerto Vallarta at a better time and comparable cost.

Platinum Passports has been in business a little more than three years.

Chief Financial Officer Sandy Isaacs said the company has sold memberships to more than 4,000 travelers who get discounts on everything from recreational vehicle rentals to Amtrak tickets.

The lifetime memberships start at $1,500, and there are annual dues. Besides discounts, Isaacs said, members receive a 5 percent rebate on everything but the cost of accommodations when they return from a trip.

She said Platinum negotiates with wholesalers and consolidators to get low-cost tickets and reservations. The company also owns its own travel agency.

“It’s not unlike the Costco theory,” she said.

Isaacs said the distributors contract for the right to sell Platinum memberships.

But she stressed that the travel certificates distributors might use to encourage attendance at their sales promotions are not offered through Platinum.

Better Business Bureau officials on both sides of Washington say they have received several inquiries about Platinum, which is a member of the Puget Sound area chapter.

But, said Director of Operations Judy Ostendorf, the distributors are not, although some refer to Platinum’s membership in discussions with potential customers.

She said the company has agreed to advise its distributors to discontinue that practice.

Regarding the travel packages, Ostendorf said Platinum Passports is responsible for correcting any problems with the bookings.

The company has responded to complaints brought to its attention by the bureau.

If there is a concern with the way a distributor is selling the packages, that should be resolved at the local level, she said.

Ostendorf said the bureau has received some complaints the Platinum Passport packages were misrepresented. Other consumers have been satisfied with the service provided by the company, she said.

“They have to read the contract,” Ostendorf said. “There’s no free lunch.”

Teresa Maher, director of communications for the bureau, said consumers are often more upset with discounted travel packages because they overlook hidden catches.

She advised potential buyers to prepare a list of their obligations to determine their true costs.

The Better Business Bureau of the Inland Northwest has received only a few inquiries about Platinum Passports, according to General Manager Lisa Stephens.

Isaacs said Royal Holidays only recently signed on to sell Platinum memberships.

“They’re working out the kinks,” she said, adding that new representatives are sometimes overzealous.

She said Platinum encourages distributors to join local Better Business Bureaus.

, DataTimes