Volcanoes, Hurricanes and Food Poisoning: Travel Guard® North America Contest Captures Year Filled With Travel Mishaps

STEVENS POINT, Wis., Sept. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- In a travel year marked by tropical storms, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, leading travel insurance provider, Travel Guard® North America (www.TravelGuard.com), is trumpeting last call for stories of travel travail in its search for the World's Unluckiest Traveler®. Thousands of votes from around the country will be tallied in December to determine who will receive the dubious distinction of being named the "World's Unluckiest Traveler." Two $10,000 dream vacations are still at stake.

Launched in December 2009, Travel Guard's year-long search is entering its final months. After a year of collecting hundreds of stories of vanquished vacations, calamitous cruises and harried honeymoons, the contest will culminate in a final round of voting with the winner announced in January of 2011. Story and photo galleries can be found at www.TravelGuard.com.

"When the contest launched, we had no idea 2010 would bring such a deluge of natural disasters," said Dan McGinnity, Travel Guard North America Vice President. "'Unluckiest Traveler' has really captured a remarkable year of travel mishaps and the stories have proven to be a great way for travelers to share their experiences around many common, and some very extraordinary, travel events. It's been fun to see the search become something of a social media sensation with participants soliciting votes through popular social media sites like Facebook and Twitter."

Top vote getters to date include "Cliffhanger," a doctor's tale of a medical mission to Saigon that ended with a 30-foot fall and two broken legs; "Dazed and Confused," a teenager's first-hand account of a midnight accident from the back of a pick-up truck in Mexico and "Bad Guinea Pig in Peru," one man's run-in with the local cuisine – and who won.  

Counting down into the final two months of the year-long search, there is still a chance for hopefuls to enter. Travelers have until October 31st to submit their stories by visiting www.travelguard.com for a chance at the title of "World's Unluckiest Traveler." Voters and entrants can also learn more about winners' travel snafus by "liking" Travel Guard on Facebook or following Travel Guard on Twitter, @TravelGuard.

The World's Unluckiest Traveler contest calls for vacationers to share unusual or unfortunate travel stories, along with a picture or video on Travelguard.com. Each month, Travel Guard awards two Flip MinoHD™ camcorders – one to the entry that receives the most votes, and one to a randomly-selected person who voted for that winning entry. All of the monthly winners will vie for the grand prize in a final round of voting. The most popular entry and a voter for the entry will each win a $10,000 dream vacation.

For more information about travel insurance plans and assistance services offered through Travel Guard, travelers can log onto www.travelguard.com, call 1.800.826.1300 or contact their travel agent.

About Travel Guard

Travel Guard, a Chartis company and worldwide leader in travel insurance and assistance, provides products and services to millions of travelers around the globe, including a wide range of emergency services through its wholly-owned assistance centers located in Asia, Europe and the Americas.  Travel Guard helps leisure and business travelers alike solve problems and manage risks.  Travel Guard's global reach, unparalleled service quality and proven operational capabilities allow clients to receive best-in-class care.  Travel Guard's suite of technology platforms enables seamless integration with all major travel distribution systems and supplier channels.  The travel insurance products marketed by Travel Guard are underwritten by insurance company subsidiaries and affiliates of Chartis Inc.  For additional information, please visit our websites at www.travelguard.com and www.travelguardworldwide.com.

The Travel Guard "World's Unluckiest Traveler" Promotion ends 11/30/10 at 12:00:00 a.m. EST.  Open to legal residents of the 50 U.S. (except PR and all other U.S. territories) and D.C., who are 21 years of age and older, and residents of Canada (excluding Quebec) over the age of majority in their province/territory, at the time of entry.  The Promotion consists of a Video/Photo Contest ("Contest") and a Voter Sweepstakes ("Sweepstakes") Component.  To Enter the Contest:  Beginning 12/1/09 at 9:00 a.m. EST and ending 10/31/10 at 11:59:59 p.m. EST go to TravelGuard.com/unluckiest and submit either a video or a photo along with a story describing your submission (no longer than 200 words), about your worst travel calamity, along with the required information.  Contest Entries must be submitted by the Submission Period End Date in order to be eligible for that particular Monthly Contest.  Only Finalists are eligible for the Grand Prize Contest.  Limit 1 Unique Contest Entry per person/household per day.  To Enter the Sweepstakes:  During the voting period for each Monthly Contest go to TravelGuard.com/unluckiest, and vote for one of the eligible Contest Entries and enter the required information.  Sweepstakes begins 01/01/10 and ends 12/31/10.  You will receive 1 entry into the Sweepstakes for that particular Monthly Contest for your Vote.  Limit 1 Vote/Entry per person/e-mail address per day.  Non-winning Votes will not be rolled over into the next Month's drawing.  Void in PR, all other U.S. territories, Quebec and where prohibited by law.  Subject to full official rules available at TravelGuard.com/unluckiest.  If you want to be removed from our sweepstakes/contest mailing list, contact us at 3300 Business Park Drive, Stevens Point, WI  54482.

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© 2009 Cisco Systems, Inc. and/or its affiliates.  The FLIP VIDEO logo, the CISCO logo, FLIP VIDEO, and FLIP MINOHD are trademarks of Cisco Systems, Inc. and/or its affiliates.  

Travel Guard's sponsorship of the World's Unluckiest Traveler Contest is not intended to represent in any respect that Travel Guard's insurance plans cover any of the events depicted in any single entry. For full and complete insurance coverage details, please contact Travel Guard directly.

SOURCE Travel Guard