# Did I really win a free cruise? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 24, 2005, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-really-win-a-free-cruise/309698 "2005-06-24T17:51:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SanibelMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@SanibelMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanibelMan)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2005, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-really-win-a-free-cruise/309698/1 "2005-06-24T17:51:34Z")
At a chinese restaurant the other night, my girlfriend filled out a form to “Win a free vacation to the Bahamas!” There was no fine print on the box or the form, other than a notice that port fees and taxes were not paid. Yesterday, I got a 5-minute long call on my answering machine telling me I’ve won and I need to call and pick up a packet by Tuesday. The website for the company, [Security Travel USA](http://www.securitytravelusa.com), also offers sign-ups for the free cruise, as well as offers on other vacations in the Bahamas. No details are available on the cruise. There are testimonials, but I tried using Switchboard to find a couple of names and only got disconnected numbers. The website says this is not a timeshare offer. [The Better Business Bureau’s report is currently “on update” and is not available.](http://www.bbbwestflorida.org/commonreport.html?bid=18000166) Has anyone had any experience with this company? Is this a scam, and if so, what do they do? I can’t imagine they can do too much with the info they have, since they only have my name, my parents’ address and their phone number. ---
**Author:** ![js\_africanus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/87869e/32.png) [@js\_africanus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/js_africanus)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2005, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-really-win-a-free-cruise/309698/2 "2005-06-24T18:05:01Z")
I’m supposed to have won a trip to Dublin from Guinness. (Going in September.) Based on your comapany’s web site, you could called the Tampa Chamber of Commerce for a start. You could also call them back and see if they want any money. Other than that, they’ve got your phone number, so calling them isn’t going to give them a means to hassle you. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2005, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-really-win-a-free-cruise/309698/3 "2005-06-24T18:11:50Z")
They’re probably going to try to sell you a timeshare. ---
**Author:** ![JerH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bb73d2/32.png) [@JerH](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JerH)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2005, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-really-win-a-free-cruise/309698/4 "2005-06-24T18:14:07Z")
It’s a scam - or at least not entirely on the up-and-up. Here’s a link: [http://www.tampabaylive.com/stories/2005/05/050519travel.shtml](http://www.tampabaylive.com/stories/2005/05/050519travel.shtml) ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2005, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-really-win-a-free-cruise/309698/5 "2005-06-24T18:14:16Z")
:smack: I missed that part about it not being a timeshare offr (sez them). They’re still going to try to sell you _something._ ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2005, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-really-win-a-free-cruise/309698/6 "2005-06-24T18:15:08Z")
Yep. Timeshare. In order to pick up your free cruise, you have to go into their office. Oh, and there’s going to be a short presentation. That you have to sit through. Followed by a one-on-one discussion with one of their sales representatives. Followed by you getting your free cruise. Which leaves from a port 500 miles away from where you live. How you get there and back, and what you spend on meals, is up to you to take care of. ---
**Author:** ![SanibelMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@SanibelMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanibelMan)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2005, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-really-win-a-free-cruise/309698/7 "2005-06-24T19:03:18Z")
Thanks for the info, especially that link to the news story, **JerH.** I did try to use the search function of the Tampa Chamber of Commerce, but I couldn’t get it to work. It looks like I’m not going to the Bahamas after all. At least not on a deck chair. ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2005, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-really-win-a-free-cruise/309698/8 "2005-06-24T20:23:19Z")
You _could_ sit through the timeshare sales pitch, then just say “no” to everything at the end and claim your prize. I did that once, only it was for two free vacations of your choice. There were a number of loopholes involved in getting the vacations – you had to register three months in advance, you had to pay a (refundable) deposit for the taxes, you couldn’t pick specific black-out dates, your accomodations were definitely low-tier places, etc. I ended up picking the free vacations to Las Vegas and Catalina, but never actually redeemed them (though I did get my deposit back, and a little extra as well). So yeah, you can get freebies from those time-share sales-pitches; you just have to be willing to slog through a lot.