I was in my local Sam's Club and they had a wide assortment of travel deals available. The one that caught my eye was a package that said 2 cruise tickets for $99! I read the card the offer was printed on and it said that the price reflected a inside cabin and off-season price of $99. Still...that''s not too bad a deal anyway. I talked to the salesperson and they verified that the $99 was for 2 tickets, inside cabin, off-season and that all I had to pay was port charges and tips in addition to original $99. They said that I could select from many cruise lines, sailing dates, and could even upgrade my room for additional charge, so I bought 2 packages. The packages said that I had to register my cruise ticket purchase online to get the various options and prices sent to me in the mail. All I had to do was select what I wanted and then call them up to book the travel. I found that this is not how it goes down.

I registered my purchase online and waited for my great prices and options to arrive. After almost a month (you get 30 days to return the cruise package) I finally got my options in the mail. EXCEPT NOW I had to send another $50 to get my package "registered" and THEN it said I would get the prices. I called the travel agency that this offer was provided by (PTS Travel) and they told me that I would have to send the $50 and then they would send more information. I asked about the $99 cruise offer and they said the $99 was a "handling charge" and the cruise prices averaged between $300 - $800 per person depending on the length of the cruise and time of the year. IN FACT THERE IS NO $99 CRUISE TICKET AT ALL. What a rip off!

I went to Sam's Club and told them all this and they cheerfully refunded my purchase price since I was on day 25 of my 30 day refund guarantee. It was close, but I almost got taken.

I write this to warn others about these kind offers and to remind others that you get what you pay for. There is no free lunch and THERE IS NO $99 CRUISE TICKETS AT SAM'S CLUB. I hope they ban Smart Circle and PTS Travel from their stores in the future.