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The good, the bad, and the ugly - discover what customers are saying about International Vacation Services

Welcome to our customer reviews and complaints page for International Vacation Services. We understand that making informed decisions about where to invest your time and money can be challenging, which is why we've created this platform for our community to share their honest feedback about their experiences with International Vacation Services.

On this page, you'll find a comprehensive collection of reviews and complaints from real customers who have used International Vacation Services's products or services. Our reviews are authentic and unbiased, providing you with a complete picture of the company, its products or services, and their customer service.

Whether you're considering doing business with International Vacation Services, or you've already had an experience with them, our community's reviews and complaints will give you a valuable perspective on what to expect. Our goal is to help you make informed decisions about where to invest your time and money, and we hope that our platform will be a valuable resource for you.

Please feel free to browse our reviews and complaints and share your own experience with International Vacation Services. Your feedback is an important part of our community and will help others make informed decisions.

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3:43 pm EDT
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International Vacation Services Refund

I cancelled the membership as soon as I got home from the presentation, and saw the word scam associated with them. After several letters back and forth, I sent a compliant to the South Carolina Consumer Affairs. In reply to their questions, they were sent by Gayla Smith a note that ITS had changed their way of business and I would get the remainder of my money refunded. Even having this in writing, I have note received my money. Thru advice from the Lawyer at consumer affairs, I have contacted Landrum County Court. I am in the process of filing out their papers. The new person at IVS is Michelle Vann. Please note you can file at the court, but claims can not be older than three years.

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4:32 pm EDT
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International Vacation Services STAY AWAY!!

Stay far away from International Vacation Servies. They are a scam, no matter what the comments saying this is not a scam company - it is. If it was not a scam company they would return phone calls and have a customer service department. They promise cheap vacations and a "high top" customer service department, well they offer neither. All they do is take your money and never return your calls. If you get a postcard in the mail from this company THROW IT AWAY!

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5:13 am EDT
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International Vacation Services free aint cheap!

These guys were in Evansville, IN at the Clarion Hotel on hwy 41. Didn't buy into this...so glad we didn't. They did ask to see credit card, which didn't leave our hands. Also asked for drivers license. Covered numbers and info with our finger. After saying NO to the deal, we were asked why we came to the meeting if we weren't going to buy. We were given the "free airfare and cruise certificates". You have to pay non refundable fees to use these. The cruise tickets are for a room with a porthole and bunk beds! We probably have to clean rooms and "bus" tables in order to qualify to use them! Will shred these certificates. Lesson to this: "Free ain't cheap."

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4:12 pm EDT
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International Vacation Services cancellation fee problem

1) High pressure initial phone contact.
2)Sales personnel misrepresent or omit critical details of the program.
3) The only chance you have to rescind the contact without incurring major penalties is prior to your signing the "acknowledgement of Benefits."
4)The documents sign place many legal limitations on the buyer while effectively eliminating the critical responsibilities of the travel agency.
5) The sales person does NOT mention The high "cancellation fees." After checking out the company on the web (immediately after I got home from the presentation where I signed up) I discovered a penalty clause. The penalty clause states:"IN WITNESS WHEREOF, You may cancel this agreement with only the $399 fee plus a 20% administration fee charged, and no further obligation, with 3 business days after signing this agreement." The statement does not say exactly what the 20% refers to so I assume it is the amount that was charged to my credit card ($2995 membership price + $399 administrative fee + $199 annual service charge) for a grand total of $3593. 20% of 3593 is $718. $718 + $399 = $1117.60 which appears to be the cancellation fee! THE PENALTY IS ABOUT ONE THIRD OF THE AMOUNT PAID! Also the Cancellation request must be sent by certified mail within 3 business days or there will be no refund whatsoever.

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Chrisinda
4506 orrick ct, US
Apr 05, 2013 6:06 pm EDT

I signed up for VSI not IVS, you think they changed they're names again?. I had 3 days to canceled, which I did-faxed in & mailed the 2nd day, but 8 days later (RR Venture charge me $9063 off my discover card, not the 495 processing fee-just the large amount. Can't believe all they offered but nothing on website and no one
answer phones. So mad that that I've been taken in to this scam. Sounds like they keep changing names to avoid bad B B rating

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wildmandahl88
Charleston, US
Feb 07, 2012 9:21 pm EST

hello, i am a member of the services myself. i did not try to cancel and have been using the service for more than a year. i absolutely love it! they have been able to save me thousands on travel, which i do very frequently. i was a little nervous at first because it did seem too good to be true. but as my travel unfolded i found that they can really save you thousands and book all your travel for you. the one consistency I'm seeing in these reviews is that NONE of you have ever used the service. how can you bash on something that you have never tried! that's like saying you hate a food that you have never tried.

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Dontbedumb
, US
Jan 20, 2012 3:02 pm EST

This bussiness is renting space in a hotel having presentations nightly many people are calling the hotel and coming back in complaining, DO NOT SIGN UP FOR THIS MEMBERSHIP it is a scam!

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canuhandleit
, US
Jul 21, 2011 12:41 am EDT

For the record. If you don't sign up the day you go to the presentation, and you went back the next day or hell even 3 weeks later and asked them for the promotional items and the same cost, they will honor it. Don't think you are getting a good deal just because you join the first night. You're getting ripped off either way around. You pay $4000 for a membership to have a couple of condo weeks per year, that you STILL have to pay for, then when you use your condo weeks, your limited to availability, and chances are the company is making at least an additional $500 on you because they mark the condo weeks up from their price.

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canuhandleit
, US
Jul 21, 2011 12:21 am EDT

They want you to send a certified letter to a PO Box in Aynor, SC. Have any of you ever been to Aynor, SC? It barely has a gas station, let alone a legitimate travel service. They just opened up shop in Lexington, SC a few months ago after being ran out of Lexington a couple of years ago under the name of VIP Travel, Elite Escapes, and Resort Reservation Services. The Department of Consumer Affairs of SC had a class action lawsuit again the owner Michael Mitchell. So he did what a coward would do and filed bankruptcy on his business, laid low for a couple of years, and is now back in the act.

I can't believe people are still falling for these scams. The cruise isn't free. And you do have to pay more for port fees and taxes. And with the airline companies, why do you think they are charging baggage fees? Because they were losing money. Do you think they are going to provide "free" airline tickets to these scam companies and lose money in the process. HELL NO! Don't be a fool and don't waste your time.

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Godzilla76
Fayetteville, US
Jul 19, 2011 12:59 am EDT

We have not been able to. They have denied us refund and cancellation. We are pursuing other options. Happy to share with you. Best to reach me at arleneu@cox.net.

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Bayou2002
, US
Jul 18, 2011 5:12 pm EDT

Have you been able to receive your cancellation and all money paid to them? We are trying to cancel ourself.

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Godzilla76
Fayetteville, US
Jul 16, 2011 8:15 pm EDT

We too bought in to their "membership" and were led on well past our cancellation period. They have been giving us a run around. Please contact me. We may be of help to each other. arleneu@cox.net

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Cindi Menzies
, US
Jun 13, 2018 9:30 pm EDT
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Replying to comment of Godzilla76

We filed with the State of California no one else has filed they don't have any other claims against VSI

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5:00 pm EDT
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International Vacation Services Scam/ Bullyish

I received an unsolicited call from this company on my cell phone. That is a flag right there. It's an unlisted phone, they shouldn't have it. Well they called me up and said that they were a new vacation rentals agency in my area and they were running a promotion where you receive either free airline tickets or 8 nights in a hotel of choice. You get the free gift if you attend a 90 minute seminar. I thought this would be your typical time share presentation where they try to sell you, but at the end you get your free gift. So I foolishly made an appointment. Well, upon doing my research I found out that they won't give your the "FREE" gift unless you pay all of these processing fees and surcharges. I had also read worst stories, so I decided to call and cancel my meeting the next day. When I call up they act as nice as can be. When they find out that you would like to cancel your visit, they try to intimidate you by saying that I HAD to come out that night because they had already purchased my gift. Well I told them no still and said that I did not feel comfortable with doing business with them. He then proceeeded to get pissed and tell me to do him a favor and not waste his time. Then he hung up on me. What kind of professional company takes business personal? What kind of professional business hangs up on potential clients? Professional businesses don't do that. International Vacation Services is not a legitimate honest business. They con you into a sale and try to bully you if you catch onto them. Ignore phone calls from [protected] and from [protected] DO NOT FALL FOR THESE ###.

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Daisy Davidson
, US
Sep 13, 2011 6:40 pm EDT
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September 13, 2011
I received an automated call from [protected] stating free cruise. When I spoke to the rep "Vincent" I asked the name of the company and he got skittish and put me on with his supervisor "Krystal" she told me the name of the company was GREAT VACATIONS, did not want to give the location of their office, they were doing presentations on 9/14 and 9/15 at the Courtyard by Marriott in Clearwater but the times were during normal working hours "so sorry, we'll call you back when they are on the weekend". Courtyard had no bookings for them for either day. Krystal didn't want to give me the GREAT VACATIONS phone # but finally relented (she said because she gets so many complaints from people on do not call lists - REALLY?!) and gave me [protected] which does work because I had to call back to question why I can't find RESORTSPLUS.COM but they put me on hold for 20 minutes then disconnected the call, surprise surprise. Be careful folks, they are at it again.

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CS1125
, US
Aug 11, 2011 3:41 am EDT
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We received a full refund from International Vacation Services (Travel Services Unlimited) after falling for their tricks. But you must act fast.

My husband and I went to a presentation last night after receiving a postcard for a free cruise and airfare, and we ended up getting suckered. I didn't have a good feeling about it, but went against my gut and bought a 2 week package for the grand total of $3, 593. On our way home, my husband and I started discussing what we thought was a little strange about it. What was funny is that we both noticed different "flags", and when we started putting them together between the two of us, we realized what a mistake we made. Immediately after getting home, we started researching them on the internet and found several complaint boards indicating that their services were as not as legit as they claim. I wouldn't go so far as to call it a scam because I'm sure they do provide travel services, but I don't believe the validity of their discounts. After reading site after site, I began to feel like we were never going to get our money back.

We immediately called our credit card company (mastercard) to see if we could dispute the charges. Unfortunately, they said we couldn't do anything with a dispute until the charge actually posted, which would take a couple of days. The following day, I took to research to determine my rights. I began looking into FTC regulations on the "cooling off period" for sales. This transaction falls under that law, and found that we had 3 days to request cancellation (in writing, according to the contract) for a FULL refund within 10 business days. I contacted the FTC help line and discussed my situation with a representative that explained everything to me and my rights. He suggested that I request cancellation as indicated on the contract and contact the Ohio Attorney General's Office to verify the laws in my state.

Then, I called the Ohio Attorney General's Office to verify the "cooling off period" for sales. It was determined that this transaction did in fact fall under that category, and that I was entitled to a FULL refund of the transaction within 10 business days of cancelling. (Ohio Revised Code 1345.23). I printed out my documentation for these laws and attached it with my letter requesting cancellation. I also indicated in the letter that according to the Ohio Revised Code 1345.23, I was requesting the full charge to be credited within 10 business days, and if it wasn't, I would be disputing the charge with my credit card company.

I was able to obtain a number to call "John" who handled cancellations from calling the booking number on the travel website. I called him and requested that my membership be canceled and issued a refund. He explained that I would need to submit a letter, but would be charged the $399 processing fee and 20% cancellation charge (a total of almost $1, 100). I told him I would not be paying that and according to Federal and State laws, they were not able to do that. I told him that I would be disputing the charge with my credit card company, as well as, going back to speak with the group later that day. I also sent an email to the email address provided, and sent a copy of the letter I mailed certified/return receipt stating that I had already sent this letter via mail, but wanted to send it electronically as well. I received a response within 10 minutes from them. I got the feeling that they were kind of worried because they mentioned knowing the "laws" for Ohio and that they were operating well within the laws, then said that I didn't need to result to "threats" (which I did not, I simply stated what would happen if they did not comply with my request under Federal and State laws).

Fortunately, we only lived about 15 minutes from where the presentation was held, and planned on going back right before the first presentation for the day (I called the hotel and verified what time their room was held for). We arrived about 25 minutes before the first presentation. As soon as we walked in, they recognized us. We asked to speak to the person in charge and were immediately taken into the presentation room with the doors shut. We politely requested a refund indicating that I was not the kind of person they wanted on their bad side. He refused (obviously). I explained my ordeal about feeling deceived and went over the laws I reviewed that day, and told them that it would be in their best interest to issue a credit to my card now versus dealing with the headache I would cause them. I had planned to talk with the hotel manager to tell them of the shadiness that was going on in their facility. I also have a friend that is a special reports investigative reporter, and told them that I would have no problem calling her to request a news story be done on their little business. I also have several friends that are police officers, including the police chief for the area that I would call if he felt the need to involve the authorities with my request. He said corporate had already notified them of my previous contacts with them (which indicated to me that they were worried I wasn't going to stand idly by). It got extremely heated at certain points, and I told them that I would no problem telling everyone waiting for the presentation outside not to waste their time, as well as everyone coming in for the remaining presentations for the remainder of the week. They held strong and said no refund would be issued since I already disputed the charge with my credit card company (which I had not). We walked out the door and told the four couples waiting not to waste their time for the garbage they were about to listen to, and proceeded to the front desk. We requested to speak to the hotel manager, and went inside the hotel restaurant for more privacy. We explained that we felt the group was not representing what they selling, and that they might want to know about what was going on. As we were talking to the manager, the IVS "manager" found us and asked us to follow him. He requested our credit card (which we did not hand over, and said we wouldn't let it out of our sight) so he could issue the credit since he called and spoke to the company owner. Apparently, they didn't like the idea of not selling another "membership" for the rest of the week. They issued a credit to our card for the full amount on the spot, and I guarantee that their first presentation for the day resulted in no sales.

We were extremely lucky, and counted this as a valuable lesson, even though we only lost a night of sleep and a day of work. A refund can be received, but you have to act fast and become knowledgeable on your rights through the FTC and State, so you can be prepared to fire back with any BS they feed you about why they can't do something. Make detailed documentation of who you spoke to, at which number you called, and what was said/discussed (your credit card company will need this if you end up disputing this). You CAN get your money back, but you MUST act fast and be extremely detailed. Good luck to anyone having to fix this themselves.

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Forever Friend
, US
Aug 07, 2011 6:01 pm EDT

I received an unsolicited phone call from these people even though I am on the do not call list. Very nice and friendly up front. I was even given a rep's cell phone number. (Incidentally, when I tried to call it on the day of the appointment, a message said the person was not taking phone calls). At the meeting, right off the bat, my husband and I were told that they were out of certificates for the gifts. A red flag went up right there. During the presentation, we were told (and there was only one other couple in attendance) that the corporate office Travel Services Unlimited was located in Fort Mills, South Carolina. That's what showed up on the screen. Better do their homework. It is not Fort MillS - it is simply Fort Mill, South Carolina. Not very professional if they don't know where their corporate office is - or the spelling. They wanted to make sure we were between the ages of 30 and 70 and that we had a major credit card and driver's license. As soon as the man who sat at the table with my husband and me found out we were not going to buy anything, he abruptly ended everything which is fine with me. I doubt we will get a free gift, and then have to wonder what it is going to be and what it will cost us. This whole thing is a scam and DO NOT FALL FOR IT! One package was being sold for almost $8, 000 while the one that had to be purchased right then was almost $7, 000. Then they tried to sell another package at a lower price. By the way, we weren't even given the correct name of the company prior to attending the presentation. I guess so we couldn't look it up on the internet and find out what a scam it really is. We were given another name - Great Vacations. Then when we get there, it is International Vacation Services and Travel Services Unlimited. You can get better deals going on line and won't be part of this scam in the process. BE WARNED! DO NOT LISTEN TO THIS SCAM! If they call you, hang up!

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shadowsmom63
, US
Jul 07, 2011 8:42 pm EDT

My mother received a call from them the other day, which doesn't make sense because she is on the "do not call list" the number they listed as a call back # was [protected]; same thing 90 minute mtg and then you get either the 8 day vacation or airline tickets for two to whereever you want; they needed two pieces of i.d. that night of the presentation; your driver's license and a credit card; sounded fishy to me. You can only be between 30 and 70 and if you didn't fall between those age groups you can recommend someone who did. Thanks to those who already listed complaints I'll tell my mother not to call them back.

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CelticTurtle
Davenport, US
Apr 29, 2011 3:12 pm EDT

oh, by the way they've changed their web site to getmygetaway (dot) net

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CelticTurtle
Davenport, US
Apr 29, 2011 3:09 pm EDT

I received an unsolicited call as well. The question that got me is when they asked 'when someone was home'. I of course said that we work different shifts so someone is always home. I'm so glad people have taken the time to complain on this site, so all I've wasted is 15 minutes on the phone. However, has anyone had any problems with theft in their home after talking to these people?

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10:28 pm EDT
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0 Votes The big red flag for you VACATIONGIFT.NET is the website you will use before being introduced the scam company "INTERNATIONAL VACATION SERVICES" IVS offers "free" (vacation packages) gifts which are not worth the taxes and service fees needed to redeem them... in exchange for your listening to a 90 minute +++ presentation They say no high pressure...

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