News1 min ago
Phoenix First travel company?
Does anyone know anything about a travel company called 'Phoenix First'. They say they are not a timeshare company or a holiday points company, but they are offering a free holiday for going to one of their presentations. We had a very good free holiday once from Sunterra for sitting through a presentation. It was well worth the few hours we put up with the sales promotion, so we've agreed to go on this one with Phoenix First, but I can't find out anything about them on the web, other than them being on the 'Crimeshare' blacklist!
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Well don't you trust the Crimeshare website? - I find it a pretty reliable indicator. If you know anything about the way this industry works, they will never say they are a timeshare operator. And many of the holiday offers have strings attached such as incovenient dates or having to pay over the odds for the flights. I'm sure you appreciate that they use the unfilled timeshare weeks to offer for free.
'they say they are not a timeshare company or a holiday points company'
Then they are either lying or are something else - most probably a 'holiday club' . You pay them several �K up front plus an annual fee for the 'privilege' of booking holidays through them that you could get cheaper in a travel agent - that is if they last that long.
The free holiday may or may not exist but will certainly have strings attached.
Then they are either lying or are something else - most probably a 'holiday club' . You pay them several �K up front plus an annual fee for the 'privilege' of booking holidays through them that you could get cheaper in a travel agent - that is if they last that long.
The free holiday may or may not exist but will certainly have strings attached.
Thank you to both who sent answers, but I was really looking for anything specifically about this company. I know all about timeshare scams and similar schemes, and yes I do trust the Crimeshare rating, but I can find no information as to why they are on the blacklist. I would really like to know who they were before they became Phoenix First! I also know all about the 'strings' attached to the free holidays, but being retired I can take holidays at short notice and the last free one we had from Sunterra was excellent - and we didn't sign up for anything. We have no intention of buying anything (we are already holiday property bondholders) - our aim is to get a free holiday!
Surely then Coppernob, as you have no intention of buying anything, it is of little importance who 'Phoenix First' are?
Will the flights be through a bonded airline? Will you make any payments with your credit card? If so, don't worry take the 'free' holiday, and enjoy your 'mooch'.
For clarification, the Crimeshare site is an anonymous venture that hosts any written contributions from any source regardless of truthfulness or veracity. It accepts no liability for the accuracy of it's content, and therefore has on it's lists 'almost' every timeshare operation in existence. Please realise that even the most professional of organisations will at some point incur the wrath of a disgruntled employee or unhappy customer.
To accept, or place any kind of judgement value (good or bad) on anonymous, unsubstantiated accounts is, at best, unwise.
Although I have no doubt it's intentions were honourable, its anonymity and lack of editorial control has compromised its value, as clearly its content is open to manipulation and wide-scale abuse. The road to hell, and all that.
The fact that there is so little known, or reported on the Internet about 'Phoenix First' can only really demonstrate that they are new, or newly formed, any consumer reaction to there trading methods and products (again, whether good or bad) usually shows up somewhere pretty quickly.
Will the flights be through a bonded airline? Will you make any payments with your credit card? If so, don't worry take the 'free' holiday, and enjoy your 'mooch'.
For clarification, the Crimeshare site is an anonymous venture that hosts any written contributions from any source regardless of truthfulness or veracity. It accepts no liability for the accuracy of it's content, and therefore has on it's lists 'almost' every timeshare operation in existence. Please realise that even the most professional of organisations will at some point incur the wrath of a disgruntled employee or unhappy customer.
To accept, or place any kind of judgement value (good or bad) on anonymous, unsubstantiated accounts is, at best, unwise.
Although I have no doubt it's intentions were honourable, its anonymity and lack of editorial control has compromised its value, as clearly its content is open to manipulation and wide-scale abuse. The road to hell, and all that.
The fact that there is so little known, or reported on the Internet about 'Phoenix First' can only really demonstrate that they are new, or newly formed, any consumer reaction to there trading methods and products (again, whether good or bad) usually shows up somewhere pretty quickly.
I have just been contacted by Phoenix First too. They seem to be based in Scotland. I too would have won a holiday for 4 in a 5 star hotel in one of 20 destinations (in Europe) but I need to "go and get it" at a Marriott Hotel in Portsmouth. Could not make the dates they offered so they will supposedly call me back in a couple of weeks. Can't find any information about them either...
hi. I've just had a call from this company too. I entered a competition at good food show and she says it's definitely not a time share. We have to go to Marriott at portsmouth too and I don't want to endure hours of presentations to claim my holiday! Did you enter this competition too? It seems very suspicious.
Hi nurse41, we think it came from a prize draw at a holiday exhibition, and if so it's the second 'prize' we had for filling in a form at the same show. The other one turned out to be Sunterra (formerly Grand Vacation Club) and we got our holiday without sitting through the presentation! However, that was because we had been to one of their presentations before and said 'no' to the Club and they saw no reason to put us through it again. They gave us �50 worth of Argos vouchers AND the holiday.
Thanx Coppernob. Out of interest how long was the presentation. We have to travel from Horsham to Portsmouth the day before we go away anyway and are wondering if it's worth it. The girl who rang said it definitely wasn't time share...but we don't want hours of presentation..it's a 7 day 5 * break and obviously we'd love to have it but without hassle.
We have just come back from the presentation, and we were there for about 2 and three quarter hours - but I'm sure we could have walked out sooner and still got a free holiday. Phoenix First is simply the marketing company and nothing to do with the Holiday Club who are doing the presentation. This company is called DWVC - there's plenty about them on the web if you put this into Google. It isn't timeshare, and neither is it a points-based vacation club, but an organisation selling discounted holidays. You have to make an initial outlay for membership of several thousand pounds, which they reckon you will recoup quite quickly in the amount you save on your holidays. I don't know about that, but it took 2 hours and 20 minutes before we got the figures out of them, but that may have been because we were hassling them to find out how much they could save us off cruises with our favourite cruise line, and we never did find out! You do have a 7-day cooling off period, but they are a bit coy about that! However, we definitely have our free holiday, but it could be anywhere and any time over the next 18 months. However, if you are able to take up this offer, which will be made somewhere within 15 and 60 days before departure, I think it's probably worth it. We shall give it a go.
I have also been offered a free holiday and felt very unsure when the person on the phone refused to give me a phone number to call them back on. I have been asked to go and see their exhibition tonight. Has anyone actually been on one of these holidays? Or have you got air tickets without paying anything more than the admin fee?
In answer to the last question from Scotwalk, if Phoenix First are the people inviting you to the presentation, and the holiday being offered is provided by FOURCAN TRAVEL, then don't bother!
Having had a brilliant holiday after a Sunterra presentation, which was provided by a company called 'Feria' and which cost us only the initial admin fee, we thought it was worth sitting through this presentation in the hope of another good one. The offer finally came through on Monday this week, the holiday is in 2 weeks time and it was going to cost us another �53 each in taxes and charges, car hire of at least �145 (it was free with the previous holiday) plus the �65 we'd already paid and �12 each if you wanted a meal on the plane. Parking costs at Manchester airport would be on top of all that.
Worse still, they wouldn't tell you where the holiday would be other than 'Spain', the flight times or any other details until you'd sent them the money! We had a few hours in which to make a phone call accepting the offer - to an automated phone line. The money and paperwork had to be received back by them by Wednesday. Friends of ours who are out at work didn't even get the letter in time to have returned the paperwork in time, as the letter had to be signed for.
So in this case - definitely NOT a free holiday. We've resigned ourselves to having lost our initial payment.
Having had a brilliant holiday after a Sunterra presentation, which was provided by a company called 'Feria' and which cost us only the initial admin fee, we thought it was worth sitting through this presentation in the hope of another good one. The offer finally came through on Monday this week, the holiday is in 2 weeks time and it was going to cost us another �53 each in taxes and charges, car hire of at least �145 (it was free with the previous holiday) plus the �65 we'd already paid and �12 each if you wanted a meal on the plane. Parking costs at Manchester airport would be on top of all that.
Worse still, they wouldn't tell you where the holiday would be other than 'Spain', the flight times or any other details until you'd sent them the money! We had a few hours in which to make a phone call accepting the offer - to an automated phone line. The money and paperwork had to be received back by them by Wednesday. Friends of ours who are out at work didn't even get the letter in time to have returned the paperwork in time, as the letter had to be signed for.
So in this case - definitely NOT a free holiday. We've resigned ourselves to having lost our initial payment.
Hey Coppernob!
Just to say thank you for your posting! As after reading what you said about Pheonix First my fiancee and i also declined to go down to a presentation they were having down in Peebles. We live in Edinburgh so it was going to be quite a journey. Also, luckily my fiancee is more suspicious than i am. I just hope there is not as many trusting people out there, as it's obviously a con!! Thanks again!!!
P.S. The number for the marketing company Pheonix First is 01412290886!! We dialled 1471 since they wouldn't give out the number!!
Just to say thank you for your posting! As after reading what you said about Pheonix First my fiancee and i also declined to go down to a presentation they were having down in Peebles. We live in Edinburgh so it was going to be quite a journey. Also, luckily my fiancee is more suspicious than i am. I just hope there is not as many trusting people out there, as it's obviously a con!! Thanks again!!!
P.S. The number for the marketing company Pheonix First is 01412290886!! We dialled 1471 since they wouldn't give out the number!!
hey there kygo2!! phoenix first is nothing to do with fourcan travel at all i have aready checked that out!! i was the person who gave you that call tonight and i was the one who says to you to dial 1471 because i DID NOT know the phone number!! you were the one who declined to go to the presentation but that was your choice as i saids you are not made to do nothing out of your will!! but it is a serious holiday!! you do gwet your holidaY at the end of the presentation and i have already had a few phone calls thanking me for there holiday so that was your choice to decline our offer!!
To vodkashots66 - I didn't suggest that Phoenix First is anything to do with Fourcan Travel! But as a person who has been to a presentation and been offered the holiday, and who has also been on a similarly offered holiday before, I think I am qualified to tell it as it is!
Phoenix First is the company who sent out the letters inviting folk to the presentation (having got their names and addresses from the Holiday Show at the NEC by suggesting they were entering a competition to win a holiday).
The presentation we went to was by a company called DWVC who offer discounted holidays for people who become members.
The 'free' holiday offered after the presentation was from a company called 'Fourcan Travel' who provide such holidays for presumably a variety of timeshare companies, holiday clubs whatever who offer these 'prizes' for going to their presentations. This particular holiday would have cost us a minimum of �171 without car hire, insurance or a meal on the plane. But you would have had to pay for airport transfers if you didn't hire a car. If you don't have your own travel insurance that would have cost you another �70. If you wanted a meal on the plane that would have been another �12 each.
This does not compare favourably with the last 'free' holiday we had which cost us literally only the initial admin fee, and car hire was included.
Phoenix First is the company who sent out the letters inviting folk to the presentation (having got their names and addresses from the Holiday Show at the NEC by suggesting they were entering a competition to win a holiday).
The presentation we went to was by a company called DWVC who offer discounted holidays for people who become members.
The 'free' holiday offered after the presentation was from a company called 'Fourcan Travel' who provide such holidays for presumably a variety of timeshare companies, holiday clubs whatever who offer these 'prizes' for going to their presentations. This particular holiday would have cost us a minimum of �171 without car hire, insurance or a meal on the plane. But you would have had to pay for airport transfers if you didn't hire a car. If you don't have your own travel insurance that would have cost you another �70. If you wanted a meal on the plane that would have been another �12 each.
This does not compare favourably with the last 'free' holiday we had which cost us literally only the initial admin fee, and car hire was included.
hi cobbernob, i do understand what you are saying and i disnt suggest you said phoenix is anything to do with forecan but other people has and i am just saying that it is nothing to do with that company, even if it is a company!!
i think you can only take you own opinion as a respectable answer, because everybody does have different likes and dislikes and opinions, some people may like these promotions, some may not, but you wont find out until you try them first!!! and i do respect your opinion because everyone is entitled to there own!!
i think you can only take you own opinion as a respectable answer, because everybody does have different likes and dislikes and opinions, some people may like these promotions, some may not, but you wont find out until you try them first!!! and i do respect your opinion because everyone is entitled to there own!!
Thank you for someone finally being able to give me some information on the above company. My husband and I were approached in Oct 06 about our free holiday after filling in a survey at a local garden centre and I wasa bit taken aback when ai got the call. Like all of you I was sceptical about the company and could not make the first dates in Aberdeen as we were already going on vacation.
They called back finally this last week (Jan 07) and said they were giving another presentation on 28th Jan and could we attend, we made the appointment but had very little intention of attending as I was pretty sure that it was something to do with timeshare or another system, I am glad now however that I have found out for sure. I would love the "free" holiday but with a 5yr old at school we just cannot go at the drop of a hat at their say so.
So thank you again.
They called back finally this last week (Jan 07) and said they were giving another presentation on 28th Jan and could we attend, we made the appointment but had very little intention of attending as I was pretty sure that it was something to do with timeshare or another system, I am glad now however that I have found out for sure. I would love the "free" holiday but with a 5yr old at school we just cannot go at the drop of a hat at their say so.
So thank you again.
We were called last night - i apparently completed a survey on a flight home (???) They offered us a holiday for �32.50 each, that we could take in the next 18 months? Thought there would be a catch but not sure what - now i know!!..They have asked us to go to a presentation on March 17th at 10.30am in the Holiday Inn, Bothwell Street, Glasgow - guess i will be phoning to cancel! Cheers Coppernob and co!
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