Thanks so much for posting this. I don’t know you but found this on the internet googling the Events and Adventures group. I was afraid it might end up being something like that and I am so glad you verified this for me and saved me all that trouble. Best of luck to you, –L

Thanks for letting me know the price! I had the same experience during my initial contact and told them at that time that I was not interested if they could not give me more information, specifically cost. They tried two more times and finally gave up.

Thank you as well for posting this, i did not have a good feeling about this place after they kept calling me from a 425 Area code, they have a Dallas and a Houston office and I am in Dallas; why cant they call from their Dallas office or at least use a toll free number instead of calling long distance???

I also remember that another company which is a singles dating service wont give out membership fees over the phone either; Great Expectations. So beware of them too, they are the same way. I talked to my mom about this company and it just seemed off. I called them today and cancelled my interview. They asked if I wanted to reschedule and I said I am no longer in the market for this.

I’m married now but I was a member of the Seattle Events and Adventures for a year (I had a one year membership). I’m not sure how you can complain about a club you never even tried. sounds like you got a rude employee or something, but I went through the whole process and everyone was nice enough. They do screen everyone, and they have an office you have to go to before you to to any events. Its a company, what can I say about that? I think the women might appreciate the screening, as I guy it seemed silly.

But as a member I spent my time with other members, and since I had recently moved to Seattle at the time (this was about 3 years ago) I met a lot of people that were single instead of sitting at a bar or home watching TV. Pretty much everyone I met was nice, and there were more women than men at most events WHICH WAS FINE FOR ME :-). I’m married now, and I did not marry someone I met at E&A (what members call it), but I was introduced to her by a friend that I DID meet at E&A. Does that count?

No, E&A isn’t cheap, but if you “Get around” as much as you imply then you know that Yahoo groups et. al. are mostly free, but also mostly a waste of time. You are right that they don’t give their prices over the phone. I have no idea why.

I do know club was worth the price for me (I think I paid 1500 plus the dues, so your pricing is in the ball park, at least).

There are a lot of people who can’t afford a nice car or nice house, and bitch about people who can, maybe you’re one of those people, I don’t know. The way I see it, I nice social club is the same thing. You get what you pay for.

Greg, thanks for leaving a comment. It’s good to see someone had a good experience that they wanted to share since many of the reviews out there are so poor.

I don’t usually respond to comments, but regarding some of your points:

I make a reasonable living. I could easily afford this without batting an eye. Money was definitely not an issue in my experience.

Also, If you click on the photos link here on my blog, you can see that I regularly host events and volunteer outings for friends, my company and my own staff that I manage. You will also note that I already have a large group of friends of both sexes. You will see a wide variety of activities that I participate in. Perhaps someone new to the area without a strong friend group such as mine, or without a lot of experience in gathering and meeting others may find value in having someone else coordinate this for them. I can see where with you being new to Seattle this may have been a good thing for you. In my particular case though, “E&A” does not have a strong selling point in being able to bring people together or find activities.

To briefly sum up what I found distasteful about “E&A”:

1) They were more interested in getting my personal information, and then trying to get me in for a personal interview than honestly answering my questions

2) They were evasive about specific questions. As I mentioned in my original posting, it felt a lot like a timeshare presentation. (Some people do buy timeshares too, and are happy with them).

3) Their website did not inform on the specifics of their activities and only served as a portal to capture your information. As I had mentioned, some actual photos of the activities would help to illustrate what the club was about and could even improve the marketing of Events and Adventures.

4) Every other review I had found in my research (as well as some of the comments left in response to my review) show Events and Adventures in a generally poor light.

5) When I let them know I wasn’t interested they were either horribly disorganized and couldn’t get their act together to stop calling me, or they did not honor my request and continued to phone me anyway. So either option: Inept or Dishonest, doesn’t help their image too much. I wouldn’t trust them with my money based on what they displayed.

Basically, it came down to (for me), Would I begin a business relationship that I can’t back out of (due to contract, and no trial period, and additional fee if you don’t sign the paperwork the same day) with a company that won’t provide specific information, avoids answering my direct questions, and is poorly reviewed on the internet? In my case I found this to be a less than ideal proposition.

Your mileage may very, and I can only share the experience I had with them, which I did in detail on my website here.

To see some other experiences of Events and Adventures, here are the links I used in forming my opinion:

http://www.jenniferinc.com/blog/?p=596

http://seattle.citysearch.com/review/41911836

http://atlanta.citysearch.com/review/41871423

http://portland.citysearch.com/profile/8476028/

Did I read every link out there on Google that returned a hit? Of course not. I basically read the top Google hits (above) and read until I felt I had enough information to make up my mind.

Best of luck for those of you in the dating world, and congrats to Greg on the marriage.

-Chris

I went to one of their personal interviews and what they told me at the time was that there was a “lifetime” membership that would get you out of paying dues but it was like $3,600.

My other peave with these guys was that you still get to attend club events if you are going steady. In other words, “single” means “not married” rather than “available”.

Thanks for writing about this topic. I recently went to an interview with E&A and was less than impressed by the sales person. I had to wait 40 minutes for my appointment, then had to deal with multiple evasions to my questions about the cost. After almost an hour, I finally got her to give me a straight answer as to the cost of membership. Of course (she said), they were still honoring a holiday special of $100 off the membership fee, but it expired that night. Sounded a little fishy to me, but I willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.

When I told her that I might need to wait a couple of months (I’m taking some classes now and wouldn’t have time for many events), I was told that they have openings now but might not have any in a couple of months. Again, that answer raised a red flag…kind of an “it’s now or never” sales pitch. When I stuck to my guns and said I’d have to wait, she said “thanks for coming. Good luck with everything.” Then she turned to her computer and started typing away, totally dismissing me like I wasn’t worth the time to be more polite.

While E&A might be a great club, and might be worth it in the long run, the sales person left me feeling cold. I don’t respond well to hard sell tactics, and that’s what it felt like to me. Unless they change their tactics, I think they’ll continue to turn people off this way.

- Chris W

Thanks for all of the tips: this is the first really solid review/comments I’ve found. I’m glad to know the ballpark price: as a person in an entry-level job I don’t think that I can afford $1500 or so a year plus a monthly fee! I’d prefer to pay per event. My sales rep didn’t ask too many questions, really only if I’m single, my age, where I live, and what my job is. However, when I told her I’d call back to schedule an interview, she seemed mad/disappointed (perhaps she works on commission?). Though now that I hear the price I think I’ll pass on the interview. Thanks again all!

I had to laugh at Chris W’s comment because I almost had the exact verbatim experience when I went for my interview. But firstly prior to my interview, I mentioned on the phone that I didn’t care for the pricey dating services that I had tried in the past, and the girl told me that this service was much cheaper and that they would be willing to work with my budget. Well of course as you can see from these posts it actually turns out to be muuuch more expensive. I don’t get why you are paying a flat fee of $1795 (for the year membership) and then a $25 membership fee on top of that, plus then having to pay for some of the events on top of that seems a little ridiculous.

I arrived for my appointment 5 minutes early and I also was taken into my appointment 20 minutes late, which kind of turned me off to start since I only had an hour before I had to leave. Then I got the same spiel about the $200 off holiday special which coincidentally was ending that day, no pressure or anything. Now mind you I should have done my research before I went into the interview of course because at this point I was still excited about the whole idea and was totally on board until she brought me the pricing sheet. As I was adding it all up I finally realized it was going to be about $150 a month just for the year membership (no cancellations allowed) which comes to about $37.50 a week. Now if you are anything like me you do have somewhat of a life already so attending 2 or more events a week is out of the question. You’d basically be paying $40 to go bowling or sing Karaoke. They of course do have events like seeing plays and what not, but you still have to pay for the tickets for these type of events, though they are discounted. So after I went over all of the pricing in my head I determined I just was not in a place to socially fit in enough events to justify paying the cost that was presented to me. I also was a bit coldly dismissed I thought whenever I told her I would call back again if my schedule cleared a bit because I didn’t want to be locked into something I couldn’t cancel or wouldn’t have time for. I said “thank you for you time and have a nice night” and she handed me my license back, turned to her files and not a “thank you for coming in”, “it was so nice to meet you”, or even a “goodbye”; a touch rude if you ask me.

Now on a slightly more positive note if you do you have the means to spend that kind of money and have more time to attend several events a week I would reccommend the unlimited/lifetime subscription which was $2095 plus the $25 a month membership fee. According to the sales girl you can use this membership as long as you like and this is the only membership type that can be transferred/sold to a new member. That would come to about $200 a month for the first year and then only $25 a month after that. So again, if you have the means and the time I am sure you could meet a decent group of singles in your area, but beware the slightly rude sales people.

I went to a high pressure sales pitch at the Dallas office where they “warned” me that the chances of signing up greatly decrease once you leave the initial interview, so silly me fell for it and signed up. Once I got home and actually had a chance to look over the material I started getting really skeptical. Aside from the initial $1695 (evidently I didn’t get the “Christmas discount”) and the monthly fee, you still paid for all the events. Other than getting slight group discounts on tickets, which are available to any group of 10+, I’m not really sure how they justify the cost, as the Dallas group just seems to meet up at a lot of different bars, restaurants and/or member’s houses, where you go dutch or potluck. I was at least expecting them to set up drink discounts or something.

They apparently have a 24 hour (business day) cancellation policy. Having gotten cold feet after signing up on a Sat., I called Sunday and left messages at the Dallas and Seattle offices. I spent all day Monday calling both offices, Dallas told me I had to go through Seattle and Seattle kept telling me someone from the Dallas office would call me. The Dallas office finally called me about 5:30 pm and informed me that I had to have a Certified Letter dated that day in order to get a full refund, otherwise they could charge me a $400 “processing fee”!!! I not so politely informed the guy that I’d been getting the run-around from them all day when he turned to buddy mode and said he would try and help me out but didn’t know if he could. Being an ever resourceful gal I found a Fed-Ex that was open until 8pm and got the job done. Now I’ve been waiting for 3 weeks to have the charge refunded. They keep telling me they have 30 days to “process” the return (even though the charge to my card showed up immediately). Finally today the Seattle office told me their records indicate it will be processed 3/18….exactly 30 days from the date of my cancellation letter! When pressed, the girl in Seattle couldn’t tell me why, only that it was their policy. She finally transfered me to the Accountant’s voicemail because “she was out.” Needless to say, I haven’t heard back from them yet and finally decided to call AmEx and alert them to the fiasco and enlist their help. Learn from my mistakes and run for the hills!

I am not so lucky as you guys. I actually signed up for E&A membership.
They have excellent marketing skills and sales representatives who can talk you into purchasing their membership which costs thousands of dollars. Their trial period is 3 days. If you don’t cancel membership within 3 days, you are bound to pay membership fee whether or not you like their service. When I had interview with them, the sales rep discussed the cancellation policy with me, but did not mention the 3 day trial period at all. After a couple of months, I decided that this is not the kind of club for me, just to find out I can’t cancel it any more. I am still paying the monthly due toward my $3595 membership fee, but not signing up for any events.

Be careful when you sign up, as long as they can keep you for 3 days, they keep thousands of dollars of yours! They don’t care the quanlity of services, 3 days is all they need to keep your money. They boast having thousand of members, but the turn out rate is low. Most activities are eating, drinking, playing. You have to pay extra money for signing up for individual events. Lots of events make you feel they are trying to get customers for their business partners!

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

I found their website and thought it was just what I’d been looking for - an easy way to find a group of people to go out with to do fun activities. I didn’t like that once I put my email address in as interested that I couldn’t search the rest of the site for more information. It kept taking me back to the page that said that a representative would be calling me.

So, they called me and right away I got the willies. I thought, “bait and switch, bait and switch!” The first question I asked was how many members there are locally. She said, “That is an excellent question…” and proceeded to give me a pitch that didn’t come close to answering my question.

Then she said (without taking a breath), “Now, let me ask you a few questions.” And I said that she hadn’t answered my question.

Anyway, it went downhill from there. I was sure I was being “sold”, albeit poorly because it was so blatant and plastic, but I decided to take the appointment knowing that I wouldn’t buy anything unless I got a completely different impression in the interview.

As soon as I hung up the phone, I did a quick Google search and found this post. I can’t thank you all enough. The sum total of comments just reinforced what I thought and answered the cost question which they wouldn’t answer for me either.

I called back two minutes later, talked to the same lady that had called me, cancelled my appointment, and asked to be taken off their call and contact lists. She said, “Oh, I certainly will. I just hope your name hasn’t gotten on to another person’s list already. But I’ll take you off mine.” I said that I hoped my name wasn’t on any of their other lists either because if I got contacted by anyone in their company, I would report them to the Better Business Bureau.

Whew - hopefully, one ongoing headache avoided.

Thanks again.

Fraud, They contacted me a year ago and signed up saying they give discount, and actually they dont…. they charge you the full amount and what ever they mentioned about the discount never would come in the document.

Biggest fraud.

Is Events & Adventures also Great Expectations?? They are also dallassingles.org. I have been hounded by the 3 (same) companies for for years - usually by “Heather”. She was rude last call when I told her I had read complaints online and I was aware that their cost was crazy. She told me I may not qualify anyway - they are very selective (I bet) , so she did not have to fill me in on the expense. She hung up on me. They had enough info on me to know that I am financially secure w/a good credit rating (thus the frequent solicitations). I would never spend such a large sum for sight unseen. Seems if they were worthy, they would not be so pushy and they would allow a trial period. Wonder what the events are really like? Quality of people that join? Curious - do they give you your money’s worth for 40-50 age range? Many complaints re: cost and interview but not much about the actual club. How many decent (yes, I mean in-shape, attractive, educated and white collar) are members. Like Match.com - is this also a site for men to find hook ups?

I currently have a membership here in the Seattle area and I signed up in January 2006 for the lifetime membership. I went to a few events but my health has deteriorated and I can’t do the rock climbing, hiking, and strenuous events that they schedule. In addition, most of their food events involve alcohol (wine tasting, beer drinking) and I don’t do that either. That pretty much leaves a monthly “games” night (everyone brings their own board games, like Monopoly or whatever) and movie nights (free passes to movies downtown - a long drive for me.) Needless to say this is a huge waste of money for me for something I’m not using and will never use. I’m 48 and found the average age of people were in the early 30s, or younger, and even if there were men my age there, they seemed only interested in the little 31 year olds. Whatever. Singles in Seattle are just stuck up and don’t talk to you. It doesn’t matter if you’re alone at a coffee shop, or in one of these groups. They just keep to themselves.

Now, my challenge is how to stop this membership. I got them to reduce the monthly deduction (for the membership - not dues) to $25 a month, but I”m currently unemployed and even that is too much for me. At this rate, I’ll be paying on this for a total of nine years, at least.

I’m in the same spot as “a current member of Events and Adventures” I’m paying through the nose for crap.

To point out a few problems I’ve had with them:
1) They couldn’t follow the agreement on the contract regarding what card was to be charged and when.
2) When I called about the first incorrect billing of my charge card, I was told that the number was deleted, and then the following month they magically charged it again.
3) They constantly sent the calendar of events to a Michael Carpenter at my address. There has never been nor is there currently a Michael Carpenter at this address.
4) When I sent in my letter requesting termination of my membership I received no calls or letters saying that I couldn’t terminate my membership. I had to call a few weeks later to find out.
5) I found out after driving hours for an event (more than once) that the number for the person hosting the event was really just for the club house. So, there was no one to help me find where the event was if I took a wrong turn and both my time and gas were wasted.
6) When I was forced to go to snail mail to pay my monthly bill I would get the bill on time one month and then I wouldn’t get anything the next two months and no call about where my payments were. I had to call and find out what had happened. I’m not sure how on earth my address would be correct one month and not the next.
7) Most recently they are off as far as my billing is concerned so (in the intest of keeping my credit clean) I am taking it over and sending them payments with a statement of what I have paid so far and what I owe them. I basically have to pay my way to freedom from this scam.

I really could have used that $3595 for something useful, like a laptop. If anyone knows of a class action lawsuit, I’d love to join it.

Hmmm. I was thinking of joining as well to meet others.

When i did call to find out info I was totally given the sales pitch and then I decided to reschedule my appt and the lady was like what should I tell Jane why you are rescheduling? I told her to tell her whatever she wanted. Just to throw her off.

I use to work in sales for a private school and it was totally like that a script and an interview to make you feel like you are being interview and it is their decision. Which believe me they need your money more.

I hear all of your sales pitch and expensive comments. But if one could afford this and was ok with the pricing. How are the events and the people. Do they do fun things and are people normal?

Thanks

Thanks for all this info.
this is all reminiscent of “It’s Just Lunch”–which I also learned in time was just about the money.

How sad, when clearly there are lots of people who WOULD like a service like this that actually delivers.

I’ll be cancelling my mtg!

For those trying to get out of a membership…After joining the Minneapolis Club and finding it didn’t meet my expectations due to poorly planned events, fraudulent billing practices, lack of other professionals and poor customer service I attempted to opt out of the payment plan I’d agreed to (I read the horrible reviews and thought with so members what’s a few bad reviews? But it made me not want to go in for the full $2K whether I could afford it wasn’t the question). At the time I was directed to the “CFO” (who I should add was terminated from WaMu for fraudulent financial practices, I found the public record when I googled him) and he refused to respond to me as did the owner Mark Owen even when I suggested a settlement of half the amount of my 12 month membership that I stopped using after just 5 months. I was told I signed the contract and I was stuck. That prompted me to contact my attorney, as I see this sort of negotiation in business everyday. I told my attorney I just wanted this group gone and never to have access to my finances again and was willing to settle to make that happen. He read my contract and found the only issue the club doesn’t protect themselves from…my only recourse in the event of the club not delivering what it promised was forfiture of my membership and return of all paid moneys already paid to me…the way Minnesota law is written I was able to fortiet my membership with time served and the cost of my attorney which was minimal compared to the aggrivation events and adventures caused me. You might want to look into the way your state law reads…Good luck

Thank you! This post has been the most helpful..Good luck to you all…

The phtrase that stuck with me from talking to the rep on the phone was “quality professional”…frightening in a Stepford Wives kind of way.
I’ll be cancelling my interview. Thanks!

Thank you for posting these comments. Something seemed wrong to me as well so I’m glad you provided me with more information. It seems a shame because it is a great concept. Perhaps am honest person could give it a go? I mean why not pay as you go with a small fee to the organizer? What does it take to schedule a trip to a museum or kyaking?

And a follow-up. After I politely e-mailed to cancel my appointment I never received and confirmation or reply of any kind. Class act this group.

I signed up for them. I went to their new singles mingle in the Seattle area and found the group to be snobbish. I have since asked several times to cancel my contract as I am not interested in particpates. They of course refuse. What a rip off.

I so appritiate all the information I’ve read thus far. I will still keep my appointment, in the St.Louis Park, MN office and tell you of my findings after the interview.

Wow - Thank You, Thank You. I just got off the phone after sending an email to this company. Prior to the call, I was excited about the prospect of a fun single club. I could not hang up from the “telemarketer” fast enough. I have spent my entire professional career in Sales and this organization could use some tips on how to talk to and approach future clients. I was anticipating being told about the club, what type of events the hosted, how frequently new events were added vs. recyled from the previous month. None of that, all I heard was very personal questions about my status, job and finances. When I asked their retention rate ( as they told me they would answer any questions on the phone except cost), the representative from the company was extremely confused and blamed me. Saying they didn’t use terms like retention or renewal in their industry. My gut insticts when getting off the phone was to run and after reading all your comments I am running faster……….

Thanks

Yeah, I bought into it to try to get over a bad relationship and start in a new place. It was awful, awkward, expensive, the people sucked and after they overdrafted my account several times, I started petitioning to get out of my contract. I had to forge documents saying I was moving out of the country and become a general nuisance with regular phone calls/stop payments so that they would finally let me go.

I kept hearing the commercials and seeing newspaper ads about Events and Adventures in the South Florida area. Before reading the reviews on this site, I emailed E&A that I wanted more info. I left my home number but did not return their call. They finally reached me on a Saturday complaining that I had not returned their calls (1 call) and expected me to rush over immediately for an interview. I decided to be open minded and go for the interview as I was told they had a choice of membership terms. I was hoping that I could get a 3 month or 6 month membership to try it out. When I said “yes” to everything to get the full details, I found that the shortest term was one year at $1,600 plus $25 monthly. I told them that I would have to think about it as I don’t buy anything without taking time to think it over. Then the high pressure came in to play. While I do not consider the salesperson nasty, I had to listen to her tell me how I was wasting my time and making a mistake by not joining today. Now I am glad that I read more of the reviews on this club and will let them know that the jig is up if they do a follow up call.

I recently joined the E&A in DALLAS! And to be honest I love it, I have been a member for 3 months and the events have been fun and I have already made plenty of friends. I know that the price seemed high to the most of you and it did to me at first as well, but then really I was spending 100.00 a week for 2 nights out and that was dinner and drinks, this only costs me 100.00 a month and I have something to do every single day. I just wanted to meet new people, have fun, and that’s what I’m doing! I don’t know what the events are like in the other offices, but DALLAS is a BLAST! And I haven’t had any financial problems with the company! I know you can’t please everyone, there seems like there always have to be a few that complain, I know this since I own my own Retail business. I get complaints about the clothes and then some that buy constantly. If your a negative person, you’ll only have a negative comment and a negative response.

I’D RECOMMEND E&A IN DALLAS