Free Montreal travel in three simple steps

Do you like Montreal? I have to admit, I’ve been there three times in the past two years, and I just can’t get enough of it. The minute I hit the streets of Old Montreal, I find myself craving a hotdog at the St-Denis Pool Hall before dashing over to the art galleries on St-Paul Ouest. Even with winter approaching rapidly, I’m feeling the pull up north.

So, I was pretty excited by a cool contest that just hit the web from CheapOair, and the social media junkie in me was drawn in. The upside is pretty exciting: two roundtrip tickets to Montreal from Air Canada, two luxurious nights at the Montreal Marriott Chateau and tickets to a variety of local attractions around the city from Tourism Montreal.

If you win, I strongly suggest you go hang out with local foodie Katerine Rollet for a while. Ask her about the local hotdogs, and she’ll probably know I put you up to it.

So, how do score this getaway? Well, you have to click around to three sites … and maybe do a little typing. There are three simple steps:

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1. Head over to Facebook – assuming you’re already one of the 500 million users of the site. “Like” the Montreal Buzz page.

2. While you’re in Facebook, click over to CheapOair’s page and “like” that, too.

3. Finally, you’ll have to leave Facebook (don’t worry, you can – and probably will – wind up back there at some point during the day). Visit the Tourism Montreal blog and leave a comment telling everyone why you want to head up there. You won’t get extra points for mentioning the hotdogs in town, but I haven’t heard that doing so will hurt.

The contest kicks off November 1, 2010 and ends on November 5, 2010. The winner will be announced on November 8, 2010. Fortunately, you won’t have to wait long to see if you’ll get to hit the road.

Click here to see what else there is to do in Montreal!

Teva giving away adventure vacation to Fiji

Teva, the company that manufactures a host of great outdoor and travel footwear, is preparing to send a few lucky travelers on a once in a lifetime adventure to the South Pacific, where they’ll have the opportunity explore Fiji aboard a private yacht, while hiking, snorkeling, and rafting through beautiful tropical locations.

The Teva House 2011 contest will select one lucky winner from the U.S., the U.K., the Netherlands, Korea, and Australia, and award them a trip for two to Tui Tai, Fiji in April of 2011. Once there, they’ll spend 10 days living aboard a 140′ long luxury adventure class yacht while exploring remote places that few travelers ever have the opportunity to see. They’ll occupy their time by hiking jungle trails and snorkeling coral reefs that are 100 miles from the closest resorts, while meeting local villagers who seldom see visitors of any kind.

One of the highlights of the trip will be a whitewater rafting excursion, conducted by O.A.R.S., that will send the travelers down the Upper Navua Gorge on Viti Levu Island. Towering walls of black lava, overgrown with giant ferns and other jungle foliage, are the hallmark of this spectacular trip, which has been described as a “river of Eden” unlike any other place on Earth. That full day adventure will include lunch on a sandbar at the heart of the canyon and a chance to interact with villagers that still travel the river on their own handmade bamboo rafts.

For more information on this amazing trip and to enter the contest, simply go to TevaHouse.com and select the flag of your home country. Then, fill out the form and start working on your tan. It gets very sunny in Fiji.

[Photo credit: OARS]

Eat Cheerios, win a dream trip

Would you like the chance to do what you love? If so, then Cheerios is here to help. The iconic breakfast cereal, which touts itself as being good for your ticker, has launched their “Do What You Love” sweepstakes, offering us a chance to win one of ten spectacular vacations, and all you have to do is pledge to love your heart.

The ten trips are designed to offer a little something for everyone. For instance, sports fans will have the opportunity to win a trip to a NASCAR event in Florida, including VIP access to racers, cars and other behind the scenes activities. But if stock car races aren’t your thing, then perhaps you’d be more interested in visiting the set of This Old House, where you’ll have the opportunity to meet the show’s star, Roger Cook. The outdoor crowd will be interested in the trip to the Grand Canyon, which includes a $500 shopping spree to your favorite gear shop, not to mention jeep tours, whitewater rafting, and more.

Entering the contest is easy. You simply go to the official site, select the trip that most interests you, take the pledge to love your heart, and fill out the entry form with your contact info. That’s all there is to it, and best of all, you can enter once per day, giving yourself plenty of chances to win or go for multiple trips that appeal to your sense of wanderlust.

To check out all of the available trips, and to enter head over to Cheerios.com/love.

[Photo credit: chensiyuan via WikiMedia]

Intrepid Travel wants to know who your ultimate travel buddy is

Twenty years ago two good friends, Darrell Wade and Geoff Manchester, launched a new adventure travel company with the idea of sending small groups on intimate tours to some of the most unique places on the planet. Their plan was to get travelers to experience their destinations on a grassroots level, interacting with locals and getting off the beaten path when ever possible. They called their new company Intrepid Travel and today they offer more than 500 trips to 100 destinations around the globe.

To celebrate their 20th anniversary, the company has launched their Ultimate Travel Buddy contest, in which they are giving away twenty travel packs, each of which will send you and your ultimate travel buddy off on a trip of your choice. To enter the contest, you simply have to go to this website and fill out an online virtual postcard that allows you to select where you want to go and what you want to do while you’re there. You’ll also select which of your buddies you’ll be taking along with you, and then in 25 words or less, explain why you should win.

You options for your adventure are nearly endless. You can go cycling in Tuscany, hiking the Inca Trail in Peru, or ride camels through the Sahara Desert in Egypt. These are just a few of the dozens of trips to choose from. So, head on over to Intrepid’s website and fill out your postcard now. And remember, I make an excellent travel buddy!

Gadling Take FIVE Week of March – April 3

Perhaps you noticed our annual April Fool’s offerings. Although there are some odd TRUE stories here at Gadling every once in awhile–sometimes daily, nothing this past Wednesday was true. At least, I don’t think China is planning to put an escalator up Mt. Everest.

Here is a sampling of what has been true this week.

  • Annie has happily continued to sample jerky. This week’s post on Oberto Beef Jerky made me hungry and itching for a road trip.
  • If you have not taken the time yet to watch the video in Jeffrey’s post “Afghanistan, an accordion, ‘Elvis’ and Johnny Cash,” do. It’s a wonderful example of an unexpected cross cultural-exchange.
  • For anyone 30 years or younger, Allison has news about a way you can win a trip through STA. There is a free trip being given away every day this month. With several days left, you might get lucky.
  • The golden arches of McDonald’s are almost a world-wide icon, although every country has its own version of some menu items. Aaron names some of them like Israel’s The McShawarma. He didn’t say if he tried some on his trip there.
  • In his post on tourism’s effect on the Amazon, Kraig talks about his upcoming trip to Peru where he’ll be traveling on the Amazon in a riverboat. We’re looking forward to what he discovers on this venture and shares with us here at Gadling.

And here’s one more. In case you missed this bit of news, our favorite pilot Kent Wien and his wife Linda won the Competitours race in Europe. Set up like an Amazing Race challenge, Competitours is offering a unique way to travel that Kent and Linda were happy to try. We’re certainly proud!!!