Tweet your way to New Zealand

by McLean Robbins on

We at Gadling are all about the freebies, and even more so when they involve travel. Brancott Estate, a New Zealand winemaker, is helping our wanderlust take flight with their new Twitter-based promotion dubbed the #WhatIf challenge. The winner will get two round trip airline tickets to New Zealand and a tour and tasting at the winery.

(Wait, we have to drink, tweet, and we could win a free trip? Sounds like an average Friday night with a potential prize …)

“Social media, and Twitter in particular, has changed the way we share our thoughts and feelings with the world, and has democratized subjects once dominated by a select few,” said Patrick Materman, Chief Winemaker for Brancott Estate.

To enter, write a creative tweet on the traditional tasting note using the #WhatIf hashtag. The winemaker has a range of varietals ranging from Sauvingon Blanc to Pinot Noir and Pinot Grigio. The winner will be chosen based on creativity, length of tweet (get as close to 140 as you can) as well as interpretation of a tasting note form. The contest ends June 13, and complete rules are on their Facebook page.

Virgin America’s flight for Chicago challenge

by Justin Delaney on

In May, Virgin America will begin flying to Chicago O’Hare from Los Angeles and San Francisco. To celebrate their service to an airport traditionally dominated by legacy carriers, Virgin is rolling out a social media contest to entice travelers to “put the smack down on everyday air travel.”

The contest invites Chicagoans to submit a photo or video via the Virgin America Facebook fan page that will be voted on by fellow Facebookers. Entrants will receive a two for one offer on the new routes, but the top ten vote-champions will receive a whole lot more.

The votes will be tallied to crown the top five videos and top five pictures. The winners of the vote will receive complimentary air travel for two from Chicago to Los Angeles or San Francisco on a competitor airline and return airfare on Virgin America’s inaugural flight to Chicago. The winners will be challenged to contrast the stale environs in the legacy cabins of the competition to Virgin’s neon aesthetics, clean lines, and personal touch screens.The winners will also be put up for three nights at either the posh Mondrian hotel in Los Angeles or the modern Clift hotel in San Francisco. For the cherry on top, Sir Richard Branson will welcome the winners on the red carpet for their return to Chicago O’Hare airport.

So get creative and upload some shots. Who knows, maybe come May you will be soaking in the pool at L.A.’s Mondrian wondering just how your life got so sweet. The contest ends on May 11. Virgin America will donate $5 per entry to Stand up for Cancer.

Win trip for two in Air New Zealand Like Totally 80’s contest

by Mike Barish on

Air New Zealand has never been afraid to show off its sense of humor. From matchmaking flights to cheeky commercials to risque in-flight safety videos, the Kiwi airline knows how to get attention. Now, however, we might actually benefit from their creativity with prizes that include a trip for two to New Zealand. They’re celebrating the decade of excess with their Like Totally 80’s contest on Facebook. To enter, you just need to upload a photo of yourself rocking some classic 80’s clothes. Too young to have owned your own acid-washed jeans? Well, hit up the vintage stores and take a picture of yourself just dressing the part. It’s a small price to pay for the chance to publicly humiliate yourself win a trip to one of the most beautiful places in the world.

The airline’s Facebook fans will vote for their favorite photos and the final 10 will be judged by a panel. The winner wins a trip for two to New Zealand. First runner-up will win an iPod compatible “boombox” while the second runner-up will score a case of Tab cola, the soda for beautiful people. Just last year I enjoyed some cold, “delicious” Tab with my Gadling buddy Scott Carmichael. My advice: Try not to come in third place in this contest.

Tomorrow is the deadline to enter Air New Zealand’s Like Totally 80’s contest, so act fast.

Queensland Tourism’s “Best Job in the World” campaign is back with Million Dollar Memo

by McLean Robbins on

Tourism Queensland – the team behind the successful Best Job in the World campaign – today launched the Million Dollar Memo – a new campaign targeting the global incentive travel market by offering companies and workplaces around the world the opportunity to compete for AUD $1,000,000 worth of travel experiences to Queensland, Australia.

“Great companies are built by the great people within them, so we’d like to reward that hard work by giving one lucky company the chance to win the Ultimate Reward – AUD $1,000,000 worth of Queensland travel experiences for their staff,” said Tourism Queensland CEO Anthony Hayes.

“We’ve sent the Million Dollar Memo to thousands of companies and workplaces worldwide, inviting them to showcase their organization to a global audience by telling us why they are the best company in the world and why their employees deserve the AUD $1,000,000 worth of unique travel experiences to Queensland.

To be in the running, entrants need to create an entertaining 60 second video that shows what makes their company great and why they think Queensland is the ultimate reward destination. Video entries can be submitted at www.milliondollarmemo.com.

“It doesn’t matter if you work for a global sporting company, a software giant or a small-town bakery, if you have 3,000 employees or only three – the Million Dollar Memo is open to companies and workplaces around the world,” Hayes said.

The contest runs from March 18 to May 1 and consists of three phases; a Top 50 short-list, a Final 20 list and an Incentive Challenge Event which will see a representative of the final 20 companies traveling to Queensland to compete in person. People will vote for five of the top 50 contenders in a “People’s Choice” category, while the remaining 45 will be chosen by Tourism Queensland.

From the Top 50 short-list, website visitors will vote again for three “wild cards” within the Top 20. Tourism Queensland will select a further 17 entries for the Final 20 list, which will be announced on 6 July.

Those companies fortunate enough to make it to the Final 20 list will get to send a representative to Queensland for an Incentive Challenge Event which will be held in unique locations throughout the state starting on August 23.

The winner will be announced on August 31 and will enjoy the AUD $1,000,000 grand prize of Queensland incentive travel experiences.

Lufthansa contest offers free tickets on the world’s largest plane

by Justin Delaney on

Who wants to take a free flight across the Atlantic on a super-jumbo? Lufthansa is offering such an opportunity to travelers to commemorate the launch of their sixth A380. The new jet will begin flying between New York and Frankfurt on February 28, just in time to whisk you away for a much needed European vacation. The contest winners will clamber aboard the world’s largest plane, for free, and be treated to a behind-the-scenes tour.

The first contest, “A380 SeatTweet,” begins on February 16 and ends on February 19. To register, you need to select a seat on the Virtual 380 on the Lufthansa contest website, and a tweet will post to reserve your spot. Once all 526 virtual seats are filled, the day’s winners will be announced. A number of prizes will be distributed including four A380 prize packages. You can follow Lufthansa USA’s tweets @Lufthansa_USA.

The second contest is a bit more location sensitive and will be open to those in New York City. This contest is titled “Catch the 380 Crew” and involves clues and a bit of good old fashioned sleuthing. Starting February 25, @Lufthansa USA will begin tweeting clues about the contest. After the inaugural flight from Frankfurt to New York’s JFK airport on the 28th of February, 23 “crew members” will descend upon SoHo. Only one will be holding the golden ticket – a pair of business class return tickets to Europe. To successfully game the contest, you will need to pay attention to the clues and locate 10 crew members that will lead you to your destiny.

flickr image via JeremyKunz