Travelocity video contest awards winners $5,000 voluntourism vacation grants

by Laurel Miller on

Travelocity knows you work hard. That’s why the online travel company would like to give you a $5,000 grant to go on vacation.

Calm down now. You have to work to win your just reward. And by work, I mean you or a team need to submit a winning video. Then you have to use your five thousand smackers to take a Signature Trip volunteer vacation offered by Travelocity’s voluntourism partners. Examples include doing trail work in Alaska with the American Hiking Society, developing community projects in Tanzania with Cross-Cultural Solutions, working side-by-side with scientists on an Amazonian riverboat with Earthwatch Institute, or living in a children’s home in Peru with Globe Aware. Oh, and there’s one more catch. The top 25 finalists will be determined based on the number of online votes they receive from social networking sites.

Since 2006, Travelocity’s Travel for Good® program has been annually awarding eight, $5,000 volunteer vacation grants to American applicants. Travel for Good’s main objectives are green hotels and voluntourism. As Gadling has previously reported, voluntourism is one of the fastest growing sectors of the travel industry.

If hands-on, experiential travel is up your alley, go to VolunteerJournals.com. The site will walk you through the easy process to upload your video. You can then promote your video on social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter, and send it to friends and family for voting.
Each video should explain why you deserve to win, and which Signature Trip from Travelocity’s voluntourism partners inspires you. Volunteers and grant winners also have use of the site’s free blogging platform to share their experiences.

The top 25 finalists will be determined by 50 percent audience support and 50 percent quality of their videos. There are two contest cycles per year, and Travelocity employees will select four winners from the top 25 finalists from each cycle. There are two deadlines for entries: March 31 (voting is April 1-May 31), and July 1-September 31 (voting October 1-November 30). Get filming!

Video of the Day: Walking in Brooklyn

by Grant Martin on

I miss Brooklyn every day, though I never lived there for more than two nights at a time. Today’s video from Ken Ardito is a walk through DUMBO, the swatch of Brooklyn right under the Manhattan Bridge where the architecture is grand, the lofts more spacious and the grocery stores unparalleled. Though I was only there three weeks ago, it fills my heart with longing.

GadlingTV’s Travel Talk – Thailand Part 2: Khao San Road

by Stephen Greenwood on

Gadling TV’s Travel Talk, episode 32 – Click above to watch video after the jump

Travel Talk is back! After our fall hiatus we are excited to bring you our greatest adventure yet: Thailand.

From the vibrant heart of Bangkok to the remote countryside, we traveled by foot, car, boat, motorbike, ox cart and elephant to savor the the splendor of ancient temples, the energy of the muay thai ring, the serenity of rural life, and every single spicy bite of Thai cuisine. We’ll be bringing it all to you in the coming weeks as part of our special 12-part feature: Travel Talk Thailand.

In this second episode, our hunger for Bangkok night life overcomes our exhaustion and we and hit the streets, or roads… Come with us to explore Southeast Asia’s most notorious strip and meet the wild cast of characters who spend their nights wandering the infamous Khoa San Road.

If you have any questions or comments about Travel Talk, you can email us at talk AT gadling DOT com.

Subscribe via iTunes:
[iTunes] Subscribe to the Show directly in iTunes (M4V).
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Hosts: Stephen Greenwood & Aaron Murphy-Crews
Special guest: Late night hooligans.
Produced, Edited, and Directed by: Stephen Greenwood & Aaron Murphy-Crews
Special thanks: Tourism Authority of Thailand, Thai Air, Conrad Bangkok

Travel Talk took Thailand by storm on invitation from the Tourism Authority of Thailand. No editorial content was guaranteed and Aaron & Stephen were free to openly share all adventures that they embarked upon.

Ricky Gervais’ travel show “An Idiot Abroad” hits US TV

by Meg Nesterov on

Fresh off his Golden Globes controversy, British comedian Ricky Gervais’ latest project has hit US television. An Idiot Abroad is a travel show for non-travelers, featuring radio producer and comedy savant Karl Pilkington visiting the seven wonders of the world. If you’ve seen HBO’s animated podcast The Ricky Gervais show, you’re already familiar with Pilkington’s moronic and occasionally brilliant insights. After expressing little interest in global travel, Gervais and his comedy partner Steven Merchant decided to send Karl around the world (Merchant hopes to expand his horizons, Gervais just sees it as an elaborate practical joke).

In the first episode, Karl travels to China and expresses bafflement with Chinese street food, toilets, and even the Great Wall. The show’s funniest moments come when he experiences moments of culture shock and weirdness common to even the most seasoned travelers. I’d love to see Karl’s take on general travel problems – airport security, flying, and getting lost – as well as more of his interactions with local people around the world. He seems curious and open to the world, and has written a companion book for the series, which will culminate in an eighth episode with his thoughts and impressions about his travels.

An Idiot Abroad airs Saturdays at 10pm on the Science Channel and is available for download on iTunes. The next episode takes Karl to India to see the Taj Mahal.

Photo and video courtesy of The Science Channel.

Video of the Day – In the Air

by Stephen Greenwood on

The more I fly, the more I take it for granted. When flight starts to become a routine mode of transportation, it’s easy to lose the sense of wonder and amazement that we all had on our first airplane rides.

The thrill of taking off. The unfamiliar view of roads and cars from up above. The wingtips slicing through wisps of clouds.

Today’s Video of the Day from filmmaker Ryan Booth captures those small moments in a way that takes me right back to those early memories of flight. Set to a dreamy soundtrack by Imogen Heap, Ryan shot this video with a 5D Mark II and used Final Cut Pro for color correction. Check out more of his work here.

If you have a great travel video that we should share, leave a comment below, and we could feature it as our next Video of the Day!