Online Travel Site Calls for Entries for Volunteer Vacation Grants
SOUTHLAKE, Texas–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Feb. 27, 2007–Travelocity’s
annual forecast poll found that 11 percent of respondents plan to
volunteer during their vacations in 2007 – up from 6 percent in 2006.
From community outreach such as building homes and schools to
environment-related projects, people are simply looking for ways to
give back and get more involved in important causes.
Travelocity has created a grant program as part of its Travel For
Good(sm) initiative aimed at travelers yearning for a richer and more
meaningful travel experience and is calling for entries from deserving
volunteers. With a growing optimism among people that they can have a
positive impact through travel, Travelocity is helping with the launch
of the grant program.
Under the Travel For Good initiative, first launched in August
2006, Travelocity began a program called Change Ambassadors to help
bring the idea of “voluntourism” to a broader, mainstream audience.
Key components of the Change Ambassadors program are consumer and
employee grants that will be awarded to people who wish to help others
through volunteering, but do not have the financial means to take a
volunteer vacation. Travelocity will award two $5,000 grants per
quarter to customers and one $5,000 grant per quarter to employees.
“While there are numerous volunteers in the United States who give
of themselves locally, our recent forecast poll shows that more people
are extending their efforts to their vacation time as well. At
Travelocity we admire such dedication and want to reward individuals
who are inclined to help during their time-off but are without the
means to do so,” said Jeffrey Glueck, chief marketing officer of
Travelocity. “We think voluntourism is one of the best ways to
experience a place. Our Change Ambassadors Grants relieve interested
individuals of any financial constraints of taking a volunteer
vacation. This way Travelocity ensures that more people every year
will be free to help around the world.”
Applicants can apply for the Change Ambassadors Grant either as an
individual or as part of a team. Each grant will fund up to $5,000 for
the transportation to, as well as the cost of, any trip organized by
one of Travelocity’s volunteer travel partners for individuals or
groups deemed worthy based on the merit of their applications and
their ability to meet the grant requirements. The deadline for
applications for the grants awarded in the first quarter of 2007 is
March 31, 2007. Winners of the grants will be selected by a committee
and notified by the end of June 2007. Additional details and
instructions to apply for the grant are available at
www.travelocity.com/travelforgood. All grants are subject to terms and
conditions, which are available on the site.
The Travelocity poll conducted from Dec. 19, 2006 – Jan. 3, 2007
consisted of responses from 1,280 Travelocity members. The survey was
conducted to obtain information from travelers who shopped for or
booked travel in the last 12 months. For complete survey details,
contact Vollmer Public Relations at 972-488-4790 or
alyson@vollmerpr.com.
About Travelocity
Travelocity(R) is committed to being the traveler’s champion —
before, during and after the trip — and is the only online travel
company that guarantees not just the price, but the entire travel
experience — see www.travelocity.com/guarantee for details. This
customer-driven focus, backed by 24/7 live phone support, great prices
and powerful shopping technology has made Travelocity the sixth
largest travel agency — booking $10.1 billion in travel worldwide in
2006. Based in Southlake, Texas, Travelocity also owns and operates
Travelocity Business(R) for corporate travelers, lastminute.com, a
leader in European online travel and ZUJI, a leader in Asia-Pacific
online travel. Travelocity is owned by Sabre Holdings Corporation
(NYSE:TSG), a world leader in travel commerce.
CONTACT: Vollmer PR
Alyson Briggs, 972-488-4790
alyson@vollmerpr.com
or
Andrea Collins, 212-715-2222
andrea@vollmerpr.com
SOURCE: Travelocity