By entering this contest you agree to be bound by these conditions of entry and you agree that all decisions of the contest organizer will be final.

All travel writers, aspiring travel writers and hobby (travel) writers are invited to participate. Employees of Textronics Communications and their immediate family members are ineligible to enter.

You can enter the contest by submitting a travel story of between 500 and 2000 words where you talk about a travel experience that opened your mind.

Contest Prizes

The grand prize is a 2-Week Sailing Adventure for Two through the Greek Islands. The approximate value of this prize is C$3,350. The winners must be 18 or older to travel independently on this sailing adventure. The prize is for 2 persons in a shared "lower double" cabin and does not include international airfare, local payment, fuel surcharge or other associated personal travel costs. Prize is non-transferable, has no cash value, and is based on tour availability. Actual prize may be substituted at the sole discretion of G.A.P Adventures for any other tour. Prize is subject to standard G.A.P Adventures travel terms and conditions (available online and in any G.A.P Adventures brochure). Prize can not be used in conjunction with any other offer and must be booked through G.A.P Adventures head office.

The first prize is a one-week stay in a one or two-bedroom fully equipped vacation suite in one of many destinations throughout Europe, Canada, the United States, Latin America or Australia. The approximate value of this prize is $900. The exact location of the one-week vacation is subject to availability at the time of booking. Winners are responsible for transportation to and from the vacation location including possible accommodation costs prior to and following the travel date. The same applies to travel insurance, taxes, transfers, visas, personal expenses and any other expenses related to the prize that are not covered in the prize description.

The second prize is a weekend getaway for two to Toronto, including 2 nights accommodation and breakfast at the Bonnevue Manor Bed & Breakfast, free admission for two to the Royal Ontario Museum, a city tour provided by the Toronto Hippo Bus, and a culinary tour through Toronto’s St. Lawrence Market for two provided by historian/actor Bruce Bell. The approximate value of this prize is $350. Winners are responsible for transportation to and from the vacation location including possible accommodation costs prior to and following the travel date. The same applies to travel insurance, taxes, transfers, visas, personal expenses and any other expenses related to the prize that are not covered in the prize description.

The third prize is a C$150 merchandise gift certificate from the Mountain Equipment Coop, Canada’s premier and can be redeemed in their online store.

10 honourable mentions will receive a prize package of 3 magazines including Outpost Magazine ("Canada’s irreverent travel magazine"), Verge Magazine (“Travel with Purpose”) and Plenty Magazine (“The Magazine for Hip, Environmentally Conscious People”).

Contest Rules

Your contest entry must be an original work of which you are the sole author and copyright owner. You are also free to submit stories that have already been published elsewhere. Writers of all nations may enter, however, the contest entries must be in English. This competition is void where prohibited or restricted by law.

Your travel story remains your property, however by submitting your entry, you give Travel and Transitions a world-wide irrevocable royalty-free license to reproduce, publish, adapt, communicate and broadcast all or part of your entry in any form and media, and to sublicense those rights (including to its partners). By entering this contest you agree to receive our Travel and Transitions newsletter as well as the newsletter of our feature contest sponsor, G.A.P Adventures. Your personal contact information will not be shared with any other parties.

Travel and Transitions does not accept any responsibility for late, lost or misdirected mail or any errors or failures in Internet or communications. The value of the prizes is accurate at the date of the commencement of the promotion. Travel and Transitions does not accept any responsibility for any variation in prize value after that date.

Contest entries will be judged based on the literary, informational and inspirational quality by a panel of judges. Decisions of this panel will be final.

How to Enter

You can enter the contest by submitting one or more travel stories between 500 and 2000 words where you talk about travel experiences that opened your mind, sample topics are provided on this page. Supporting photos are welcome to illustrate the experience and are considered part of the contest submission and are subject to the same republication conditions as your stories.

You can enter the contest by attaching your travel story in MS Word format or by copying and pasting the content into an email. We also need to receive your full name, postal address and telephone number. Please write “Travel Story Contest Entry” in the subject line of your email and send your email to storycontest@travelandtransitions.com.

Contest Duration

The contest begins on March 14, 2006 and all entries must be received by August 31, 2006.

Contest winners will be announced by email by September 30, 2006.