Do we save from AARP Travel?

[SamY5968]

I am a newbie to AARP. AARP travel air ticket charges more compared to my Expedia air ticket search. Is it stupid to use AARP Travel? I wonder. Your thought is to be appreciated.

SamY

[Epster]

Hi @SamY5968 and welcome to the online community.

I shop around. Sometimes I find marginally lower cost deals via AARP, but mostly I find better hotel and package deals elsewhere. I don't fly enough to make use of airline rewards programs, but I have read time and again comments from those who do that those discounts are far better than anything AARP's travel center offers.

In general, I think AARP needs to offer deeper discounts. In general. 🙂

Epster

[nctarheel]

@SamY5968,

I, too, welcome you to the board here but I am afraid not with good news.

AARP discounts are mostly a sham.

While a few can be garnered no where else; the discounts at most entities such as hotels, restaurants, travel, and attractions can be gotten from other sources and usually at a much better price.

The biggest sham of them all is AARP's Rewards For Good Program, especially as relates to the restaurant offerings. Close to 100% of the offerings in that program(where you have to spend points to get the offering); can be gotten from other sources, with usually a better offer, and without having to spend any "points" to get it. Many many of the offerings are advertised, direct to you, in other sources of media regularly by the restaurants themselves. The Program is rarely updated so you regularly run into restaurants that are either closed for good or under new management that will not accept the coupon offering.

A blatant example of how this program is run is as follows:

There was a golf course in my area. There was spurious activity going on at that golf course. It got embroiled in all sorts of legal issues. It went bankrupt. Chain link fences were erected around the property while the legal wranglings were in progress. Weeds grew. The property looked abandoned. A year and a half passed.

It was then and only then, that AARP came out with a coupon for this golf course for a "buy one round, get one free"!!!!!! The place had been closed for over a year!!!!!!!