Have you joined my incredibly non-annoying, once-in-a-while email newsletter?
So I had a fun brainstorm this afternoon while I was working and falling out of my chair thanks to Asia jet-lag…
If you read or follow me at all, you know I post a ton about my travel – Whether it’s blog posts I write on my flights, or FB/Twitter posts about my flight in real time, or posts about how I hate the TSA… Or how much I love United… The end result is that I fly a lot. And by a lot, I mean no less than 250,000 miles per year for the past seven years. A lot.
And so it occurred to me, in this holiday season of giving, how I could give back.
Do you live in the US and far from your family or friends? Are you bummed you can’t get home to see them this holiday season because you can’t afford the flights?
I’m going to give away some of my airline miles I earned this year to fund two round-trip flights for two people each, starting and ending anywhere in the continental US, to the commenter who best tells me below why they want the trip.
That’s it. And I won’t even be the judge. My life-saving assistant Meagan Walker will. And she’ll do it by Friday, December 7th, at 5pm. We’ll announce the two winners Friday, December 7th, at 6pm, on this blog, my Facebook page, and my Twitter account.
That’s it. No strings attached. Just leave a comment below about where you want to go, who you want to visit, and why. Family in LA and you’re broke in NYC? Sister in Miami as you live in Montana? Brother and nephew in Chicago while you work in Vegas? Tell Meagan your story below.
Meagan will pick two pairs of people on Friday, and we’ll handle the logistics over the weekend, since flights for the holidays are filling up fast. We have to say this: If you don’t get back to us by 5pm EST Sunday the 9th, we’ll have to choose someone else, because miles flights, especially for the holidays, are super-limited. So be sure to follow and subscribe, at least until Tuesday morning. I should also say that I’m simply giving two trips to two people who follow or subscribe to me, or are my online friends. I’m not selling anything, no money is changing hands, there’s nothing against my airline’s frequent flier rules here, as far as I know. If someone from my favorite airline contacts me and tells me there is, I’ll have to immediately cease my idea.
I’m psyched about being able to do this – I’m happy that my lifestyle can wind up helping people. Finally, feel free to share this post with your friends, if you can’t use it, but you know someone else who can.
Happy holidays! 🙂
Hi Mr. Shankman,
If you have any miles left I hope to be one of the lucky people you select. I heard about this a few days ago. I work 3 jobs so I can try to see my kids on the east coast. I have been hit with a lot of things over this last 6 mos. Someone had broken out the window in my car and I had to replace it. My older daughter let her car insurance lapse and decided not to tell me until the car got totalled and she was found at fault for the accident. Now I am about to be sued for that. My youngest 2 boys who are 12 and 6 are wanting to see me for Christmas and my parents too, but with everything that I have to deal with, I can’t afford a plane ticket. I am in Texas and trying to drive to NC is not conducive. If you can help me, that would be great! If not, I understand how many people there are out there who would like to go home.