TL:DNR, Events and Adventures is one of the worst kinds of predatory organizations: specifically, one that takes advantage of lonely individuals that desperately seek companionship.
I was introduced to E&A through a barrage of ads preceding their opening of a new chapter in Boston, and through a YouTube podcaster that I listen to regularly. It seemed like a good thing to sign up for: do cool things with people, and hopefully find love. I should have done more research.
My association with E&A started with an "interview". Sure, they asked a few perfunctory questions to make sure I wasn't married, wasn't a criminal, and had a job. However, after that, it was a mix of high-pressure sales, making sure (and reinforcing) that I was lonely, desperate, and had money to burn, and deftly dodging any concerns I had while undercutting me. I found myself practically begging them to let me join their organization. They were very gracious, and allowed me to do so. What this meant is that I needed to pay them a pretty significant up-front fee (more than $2,000), had to pay them a monthly fee (about $15, if memory serves, but others report twice that), had to pay for every event that I signed up for (typically quite overpriced), and then had to drive an hour to an hour and a half to go to the event. When I asked about having events in a larger radius, well, that got shot down pretty quick. The reason why is fairly simple: E&A doesn't care about you, they only care about you as a revenue stream.
This was made abundantly clear to me recently. In the past 24 months, I have had less than six months of work. To say that I am in pretty severe financial distress is an understatement. Yet, despite the requirement to have a job to join E&A, my extended lack of employment, and my offer to provide unemployment documents to show that I am in fact unemployed, they trotted out their "refund policy". I put that in quotes because once you sign on the dotted line, you have three days to request a refund. When I asked to get a refund due to financial hardship, they trotted out that "refund policy", and too bad so sad for me. I would suggest that an organization that supposedly cares so much for its members' well-being should actually demonstrate that care. Instead, Events and Adventures manages to combine the sleezy, high-pressure sales tactics of used car salesmen with the financial boondoggle of buying a timeshare (and their sales tactics/brainwashing as well).
Even when I did go to the events, well, it felt like everyone was wearing a mask, or posing, so actually getting genuine connections felt impossible. But, to a starving man, any crumb seems a feast; just look at the bevy of gushing, five-star reviews to see how deep the brainwashing goes. Please learn from me, dear reader, and don't blow a few thousand dollars for disappointment with Events and Adventures. read more