Welcome to this month’s giveaways!

Each month we offer at least one giveaway to our loyal readers as a way to say thank you. These may range from anything from luggage to travel clothing to travel vouchers to photography gear.

We strive for these giveaways to be open to as many of our readers and subscribers as possible. However, given rules, legislation, and shipping restrictions, this is not always possible and many of the giveaways do have geographical restrictions (as well as other restrictions) so please be sure to note these before entering a giveaway.

**If you are a brand or company that is interested in featuring a quality travel or photography product or gift voucher, please contact us directly.**

Our Giveaways are Exclusive to our Newsletter Subscribers

We run regular giveaways that are exclusive to our newsletter subscribers. You must be a newsletter subscriber to be eligible for our giveaways. Please enter the giveaways using the name and email you use to receive our emails.

If you sign up to the giveaways and are not a confirmed newsletter subscriber, your entry will be discarded.

If you are not a subscriber and want to sign up to our newsletter, you can sign up using this form:

If you have any questions about subscribing to our newsletter, or don’t receive the confirmation e-mail, please contact us.

Current Giveaway Details: March 2019

This month we have two fantastic giveaways for you: a tour of your choice from Rabbie’s in the UK and Ireland and a compact camera.

Giveaway 1: A 1-3 day tour in the UK or Ireland of your choice for 2 people (Open Worldwide)

Brand/Manufacturer: Rabbie’s
Product Link: Rabbie’s
Approximate Value: USD $50 – $500
Giveaway Open to: Worldwide

Rabbie’s is one our favorite tour operators in the UK. They are based locally here in Edinburgh, Scotland and operate small group tours (no more than 16 people), which are aimed at independent travelers who want to see the best of the UK, but without the hassle of planning everything themselves.

We’ve taken a wide range of Rabbie’s tours, including numerous day trips and one multi-day tours, and we’ve always had a great time. The driver-guides are knowledgeable and friendly, the Mercedes buses are comfortable, and we appreciate the small group sizes.

You can read about our experiences taking a 5 day highland tour with Rabbie’s, a whisky tasting experience from Edinburgh, and a tour of the Scottish borders and Hadrian’s Wall – just some of the tours we’ve taken with Rabbie’s in the UK.

As you can imagine, we are thrilled this month to be able to give away a tour for two people in partnership with Rabbie’s.

The winner will be able to choose any Rabbie’s tour lasting between 1 to 3 days from across the UK and Ireland. Whilst the three day tours are obviously higher value, we wanted to make the giveaway as inclusive as possible, so you can also choose a day trip or a 2 day tour to fit your schedule.

Tours are available departing from London, Manchester, Dublin, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, and Inverness.

Here are some ideas of tours you could take, but there are loads more to choose from which you can see on the Rabbie’s site here.

• A whisky tasting day trip from Edinburgh
• A 1 day tour of Oxford and the Cotswolds from London
• A 1 day tour of Loch Ness from Inverness
• A 3 day North Coast 500 tour from Inverness
• A 3 day tour of the Isle of Skye from Edinburgh
• A 3 day tour of Ireland’s west coast from Dublin
• A 3 day tour of Stonehenge, Bath, & the south coast from London

One winner will receive a voucher entitling them to pick any 1 – 3 day tour for two people from the Rabbie’s website. The equivalent retail value will depend on the tour chosen and the dates of the tour.

The voucher will be valid for two seats on any tour with departure from 1st April 2019 – 1st April 2020. However, note that the tour CANNOT be booked during July, August, or public holiday weekends in the UK and Ireland. Reservations will be subject to tour availability.

The giveaway winner prize includes all the following:

• The price of the tour
• Guided tour with driver and transport

The prize does NOT include any of the following:

• Accommodation on the tour (although Rabbie’s can assist with recommendations and help you book accommodation)
• Flights or other transport to tour start location
• Entrance fees to museums and attractions
• Optional activities
• Meals (unless noted in itinerary)
• Visa fees
• Tips/gratuities
• Trip insurance
• Any other costs not specifically noted as being included

See the full terms and conditions below for more information.

How to Enter the Giveaway

Please read the rules below to enter the giveaway:

1 – You need to be signed up for our newsletter.

If you get our monthly newsletters, you are eligible! If you’re already signed up you don’t need to sign up again. Skip to #2.

If you are not a subscriber, you can sign up using the form at the top of the page, or on this page.

After you sign up for our newsletter, you’ll be sent an e-mail to asking you to confirm your sign-up. You’ll need to click the link in the email to confirm and activate your subscription before you are eligible to participate. Once you do that, come back here and sign up for the giveaway!

2. Check the rules of the giveaway

Before signing up, read over the rules (listed in detail below the entry form) to make sure you are eligible to apply. While we strive to have our giveaways open to all subscribers, some of the giveaways have geographical, residency, age, or other restrictions.

3 – Use the form below to enter the giveaway.

You must use the same e-mail address that you used to sign up to the newsletter with, as we’ll be checking e-mails this way to validate your entry. You must be an active subscriber when we make the draw to be eligible to win!

Enter the Giveaway!

Winners will be randomly drawn with 1 winner receiving a tour voucher good for two people for any tour of 1-3 days duration on the Rabbie’s website.

The retail value of the giveaway is approx USD $50 – $500, based upon full tour prices in 2019.

Applicants must be 18 years or older, have a valid email address, and have a valid mailing address.

Winners will be contacted by the email provided (so please use an email to enter that you check regularly). If a winner does not respond to email within 72 hours, another winner will be chosen.

The winner will be contacted via email by us, and we will provide them the voucher to enable them to book the tour.

Note you can unsubscribe from the newsletter at any time, but you must be an active subscriber when the draw takes place to be eligible to win. Draws take place within a week of the contest closing.

The data entered into the giveaway form will solely be used for the purposes of verifying your entry, checking you are an active newsletter subscriber and contacting you if you are a winner.

Winners (first name and last initial, and country of residence) will be announced on the bottom of this page and in our monthly newsletter.

We thank Rabbie’s for providing this awesome prize for this giveaway!

 

Full Giveaway Terms and Conditions

These are the full terms and conditions!

1. The promoter is: Finding the Universe & Independent Travel Cats
2. Finding the Universe & Independent Travel Cats contributors, and their family members or anyone else connected in any way with the giveaway including helping to set up the giveaway shall not be permitted to enter the giveaway.
3. The giveaway is only open to active newsletter subscribers of the Finding the Universe & Independent Travel Cats monthly newsletter.
4. There is no entry fee and no purchase necessary to enter this giveaway.
5. Route to entry for the giveaway and details of how to enter are via this blog post
6. You must be 18 years of age or older to participate in the giveaway.
7. You must fill out all the requested information in the entry from to be eligible. Incomplete entries will not be considered.
8. Closing date for entry is March 28, 2019 at midnight EST. After this date no further entries to the giveaway will be permitted. Only one entry may be submitted per participant. Multiple entries will not be considered, and will invalidate all entries by participant. Incomplete, incorrect or otherwise invalid entries will not be considered. The Promoter reserves the right to verify the eligibility of all participants.
9. No responsibility can be accepted for entries not received for whatever reason.
10. The prizes are as follows: 1 winner will receive a Rabbie’s Tour for two (2) people, valid for any tour of 1-3 days duration on the Rabbies website. The prize excludes tours in July, August, and public holiday weekends in the UK and Ireland. Reservations will be subject to availability.
11. The prize does not include any flights. The winner is responsible for arranging their own transport to the tour start location.
12. The prize does not include accommodation
13. The voucher is valid from 1st April 2019 until 1st April 2020.
14. The prize:
    1. is subject to availability
    2. has no cash value
    3. can only be claimed by the winner
    4. cannot be transferred to another person
    5. cannot be used for a tour already booked, paid in full or deposit
    6. Does not cover any extra fees as optional activities or entrance fees – please see your tour “inclusions” online.
15. The promoter reserves the right to cancel or amend the giveaway and these terms and conditions without notice and for any reason. Any changes to the giveaway will be notified to entrants as soon as possible by the promoter.
16. No cash alternative to the prizes will be offered. The prizes are not transferable. Prizes are subject to availability and the promoter reserves the right to substitute any prize with another of equivalent value without giving notice.
17. Winners will be drawn at random from all valid entries. The odds of winning will depend on the number of entries received. Promoters are not responsible for prize fulfilment nor for any technical failures. Winning entry will be verified. A list of winners will be displayed on this page and published in the monthly newsletter.
18. Promoter reserves the right to publish winner’s first name and last initial and country of residence. Any personal data relating to the winner or any other entrants will be used solely in accordance with current UK data protection legislation and will not be disclosed to a third party without the entrant’s prior consent.
19. The winner will be notified by email within 10 days of the closing date. If the winner cannot be contacted or does not claim the prize within 72 hours of notification, the promoter reserves the right to withdraw the prize from the winner and pick a replacement winner.
20. The winner consents to providing their name, email, and mobile contact number to the promoters for the sole purpose of enabling their prize to be delivered.
21. The promoters’ decision in respect of all matters to do with the giveaway will be final.
22. By entering this giveaway, an entrant is indicating his/her agreement to be bound by these terms and conditions.
23. The giveaway and these terms and conditions will be governed by UK law and any disputes will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of the UK.
24. Images included in the giveaway post may not depict the exact prize, and are for illustrative purposes only.
25. Residents of Canada will be required to answer a skill-testing question to claim their prize.
26. Void where Prohibited

 

Giveaway 2: A Compact Camera (Open Worldwide)

Brand/Manufacturer: Canon or Sony
Product Link: Canon Elph 360 or Sony Cybershot WX220
Approximate Value: USD ~$200.00
Giveaway Open to: Worldwide

We think a compact camera is an essential part of any traveler’s toolkit. Whilst smartphones have evolved to take great photos, there are still some things they don’t do well, most notably which is zooming in. They also often have better battery life than many smartphones.

A compact camera offers a number of advantages to the traveler – they are small and lightweight, unobtrusive, easy to use, and the batteries tend to last a while.

We’ve put together a detailed guide to some our favorite compact cameras for travel, and this month we wanted to give you the opportunity to win one of them.

We’ve chosen two of the cameras from our list, with the winner able to choose one of them. They are as follows:

1. Canon PowerShot ELPH 360

The Canon PowerShot ELPH 360 is an excellent compact camera from Canon at a budget price point. It has a 12x optical zoom and image stabilization, as well as Wi-Fi connectivity and NFC.

If you’re into video, this camera also lets you shoot at 1080p high definition, and it’s lightweight at around 5 oz.

Value: ~ USD $180

-OR-

2. Sony Cybershot WX220

The main focus on this camera is its small physical size – somehow this diminutive compact camera manages to fit a 10x optical zoom with image stabilization, Wi-Fi, and NFC into a package weighing just over 4oz!

This Sony is definitely an excellent option if size is a primary concern.

Value: ~ USD $200

Note that this giveaway is not being sponsored by Sony or Canon, we just think these are good compact cameras and wanted you to have the chance to win one of them!

See the full terms and conditions below for more information.

How to Enter the Giveaway

Please read the rules below to enter the giveaway:

1 – You need to be signed up for our newsletter.

If you get our monthly newsletters, you are eligible! If you’re already signed up you don’t need to sign up again. Skip to #2.

If you are not a subscriber, you can sign up using the form at the top of the page, or on this page.

After you sign up for our newsletter, you’ll be sent an e-mail to asking you to confirm your sign-up. You’ll need to click the link in the email to confirm and activate your subscription before you are eligible to participate. Once you do that, come back here and sign up for the giveaway!

2. Check the rules of the giveaway

Before signing up, read over the rules (listed in detail below the entry form) to make sure you are eligible to apply. While we strive to have our giveaways open to all subscribers, some of the giveaways have geographical, residency, age, or other restrictions.

3 – Use the form below to enter the giveaway.

You must use the same e-mail address that you used to sign up to the newsletter with, as we’ll be checking e-mails this way to validate your entry. You must be an active subscriber when we make the draw to be eligible to win!

Enter the Giveaway!

Winners will be randomly drawn with 1 winner receiving camera of their choice from the Sony or Canon cameras above.

The retail value of the giveaway is approx USD $180 – $200, depending on the prize chosen.

Applicants must be 18 years or older, have a valid email address, and have a valid mailing address.

Winners will be contacted by the email provided (so please use an email to enter that you check regularly). If a winner does not respond to email within 72 hours, another winner will be chosen.

The winner will be contacted via email by us, and we will ask for a shipping address to ship the prize to.

Note you can unsubscribe from the newsletter at any time, but you must be an active subscriber when the draw takes place to be eligible to win. Draws take place within a week of the contest closing.

The data entered into the giveaway form will solely be used for the purposes of verifying your entry, checking you are an active newsletter subscriber and contacting you if you are a winner.

Winners (first name and last initial, and country of residence) will be announced on the bottom of this page and in our monthly newsletter.

Full Giveaway Terms and Conditions

These are the full terms and conditions!

1. The promoter is: Finding the Universe & Independent Travel Cats
2. Finding the Universe & Independent Travel Cats contributors, and their family members or anyone else connected in any way with the giveaway including helping to set up the giveaway shall not be permitted to enter the giveaway.
3. The giveaway is only open to active newsletter subscribers of the Finding the Universe & Independent Travel Cats monthly newsletter.
4. There is no entry fee and no purchase necessary to enter this giveaway.
5. Route to entry for the giveaway and details of how to enter are via this blog post
6. You must be 18 years of age or older to participate in the giveaway.
7. You must fill out all the requested information in the entry from to be eligible. Incomplete entries will not be considered.
8. Closing date for entry is March 28, 2019 at midnight EST. After this date no further entries to the giveaway will be permitted. Only one entry may be submitted per participant. Multiple entries will not be considered, and will invalidate all entries by participant. Incomplete, incorrect or otherwise invalid entries will not be considered. The Promoter reserves the right to verify the eligibility of all participants.
9. No responsibility can be accepted for entries not received for whatever reason.
10. The prize is as follows: 1 winner will receive either a Canon Powershot Elph 360 or a Sony Cybershot WX220. Note that cameras have different model names depending on region.
11. The promoter reserves the right to cancel or amend the giveaway and these terms and conditions without notice and for any reason. Any changes to the giveaway will be notified to entrants as soon as possible by the promoter.
12. No cash alternative to the prizes will be offered. The prizes are not transferable. Prizes are subject to availability and the promoter reserves the right to substitute any prize with another of equivalent value without giving notice.
13. Winners will be drawn at random from all valid entries. The odds of winning will depend on the number of entries received. Promoters are not responsible for prize fulfilment nor for any technical failures. Winning entry will be verified. A list of winners will be displayed on this page and published in the monthly newsletter.
14. Promoter reserves the right to publish winner’s first name and last initial and country of residence. Any personal data relating to the winner or any other entrants will be used solely in accordance with current UK data protection legislation and will not be disclosed to a third party without the entrant’s prior consent.
15. The winner will be notified by email within 10 days of the closing date. If the winner cannot be contacted or does not claim the prize within 72 hours of notification, the promoter reserves the right to withdraw the prize from the winner and pick a replacement winner.
16. The winner consents to providing their name, email, mailing address and mobile contact number to the promoters for the sole purpose of enabling their prize to be delivered.
17. The promoters’ decision in respect of all matters to do with the giveaway will be final.
18. By entering this giveaway, an entrant is indicating his/her agreement to be bound by these terms and conditions.
19. The giveaway and these terms and conditions will be governed by UK law and any disputes will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of the UK.
20. Images included in the giveaway post may not depict the exact prize, and are for illustrative purposes only.
21. Residents of Canada will be required to answer a skill-testing question to claim their prize.
22. Void where Prohibited

 

We wish you the best of luck!

If you have any questions or concerns about the giveaways, please let us know in the Comments section below or email us directly.

 

Past Winners

Here is a list of some of our past giveaway winners:

February 2019

• Becky P. from London, England, UK who won a tour from Travel Talk worth up to $1,200.

January 2019

• Anissa E. from Washington D.C., USA, who won a USD $200 voucher for use to buy any backpack on the Arcido store
• Anke K. from South Africa, who won a USD $200 voucher for any walking tour offered on the Take Walks website

December 2018

• Michelle B. from Germany, who won a Travelccessories Toiletry Bag & Travel Laundry Kit with a retail value of USD $100
• Russell C. from England, UK, who won a 5-piece Manta Sleep travel package with a retail value of USD $90

November 2018

• Toni K. from Kentucky, USA, who won OOO Traveling luggage with a retail value of USD $298
• Gary R. from Ontario, Canada, who won a Tinggly Best in the World travel gift card with a retail value of USD $119

October 2018

• Tracy C. from Australia, who won a who won a free lifetime subscription to our travel photography course with a retail value of USD $99
• Vicki L. from the USA, who won a custom Passport Map with a retail value of USD $129

September 2018

• Toni A. of Evansville, IN, USA won a Vanguard VEO 2 235CB Carbon Fiber tripod with a retail value of USD $199
• Kevin C. of Wales, UK won a Thule Subterra Carry-On 55cm with a retail value of GBP £215