2010 National Sponsors

PREMIUM

GAP Adventures Gap Adventures offers the widest selection of affordable small group adventure tours, safaris, treks and expeditions to more than 100 countries on all seven continents. Offering a range of different trip styles and comfort levels to suit every traveler, their award-winning trips allow you the freedom to explore off the beaten path in an authentic and sustainable way to bring you face-to-face with the world’s most fascinating cultures, customs and natural wildlife.

We are thrilled to say that GAP Adventures will be giving away* one trip on their “The Inca Journey” tour! This 9-day adventure combines Andean culture, the most famous Inca ruin and the lush Amazon rainforest. Highlights include Cuzco, Aguas Calientes, Machu Picchu, Amazon Rainforest.

GeoVisionsGeoVisions offers exciting ways to experience first hand a new country, a town, a community through their volunteer abroad and teach abroad programs.

You have the ability to immerse yourself in a completely different land and culture while gaining a new cultural understanding. We are excited that GeoVisions will be giving away two volunteer experiences!

The first volunteer abroad program is a medical volunteer project in Cambodia. The second is a one month volunteer trip to France as part of their Conversation Corps program. And all attendees will receive $100 discount off of any GeoVision program! [restrictions will apply]

STA TravelSTA Travel is a global travel specialist with 30 years experience advising people on extended travel and adventures abroad. They offer flights, accommodation, and insurance among other valuable travel products.

They are specialists in Around the World airline tickets and you can also view sample itineraries as well as plan your around the world itinerary on their site which caters to the long term traveler. We are excited to announce STA will be giving away 2 roundtrip economy class international airline tickets from Air New Zealand** to a Meet Plan Go attendee! They will also be providing a $100 coupon with purchase of flight and insurance for all attendees.

Details: *The winner is responsible for taxes, the need to book by 31DEC10 and complete travel by 30JUN11 (holiday blackouts do apply and differ by airline, but pretty much no Christmas travel.

Unconventional GuidesThe Unconventional Guides are the brainchild of Chris Guillebeau who’s mission is to fight the status quo and live the life you want. His book and travel tips/guides will help propel any want-to-be career breaker to break free of the cubicle. Chris will be giving away his newly published book, “The Art of NonConformity”, to one person at EACH event. PLUS the Unconventional Guides will be donating a ‘Career Break Kit’ for one lucky Meet, Plan, Go! attendee.

This pack includes:
Unconventional Guides* Empire Building Kit – Will help you move from the conventional working life to the life of an entrepreneur by teaching you how to build your own lifestyle business through case studies, lessons, and video interviews. It will help you escape the tyranny of conventional working life!
* Frequent Flyer Master – A guide to travel hacking (tricks/tips) on how to acquire and utilize your frequent flyer miles; helping you travel more often for less money.
* Break out of 9 to 5 – A guide to help you begin your journey to freedom and start a profitable side business
* Travel Ninja – Learn how to become an advanced traveler and travel anywhere in the world, plus get sample around the world itineraries.

Three Month VisaTaking a career break to travel the world can be one of the most transformational experiences of a lifetime. Preparing for one can often be intimidating and overwhelming. The good news? You don’t have to do it alone. One lucky Meet, Plan, Go! attendee will win a FREE 3 Month Premium “Career Break Passport” Coaching Package to work one-on-one with Tara Russell of Three Month Visa Coaching and Consulting. Since 2006 Tara has worked with dozens of clients to help them get clarity on what they want from their time off, define clear and attainable goals for their preparations and then stay on track as they work towards the day they are ready to step on the plane!

PLUS – One (1) lucky winner at each Meet, Plan, Go! location will get a 1-hour complimentary coaching and consulting session with Tara Russell of Three Month Visa Coaching and Consulting.

NATIONAL

Career Break SecretsCareer Break Secrets will give to one attendee of each Meet, Plan, Go! event, a Season Pass of its first season of downloadable Video Travel Guides. Season One includes 4 episodes each from Spain, New Zealand, Patagonia and Colombia.  Take a look at what the Video Travel Guides have to offer you on your career break.

In addition, all attendees of Meet, Plan, Go! will be offered a 20% discount on Career Break Secrets’ Season Pass for Season One.

Globe Jotter Tours Globejotter Tours are travel adventures and creative writing lessons rolled into one. Their number one focus is on creating memorable travel experiences for small, down-to-earth groups. Along the way they offer classes to help you write personal travel memoirs and stories.

Their next trip is a 14-day journaling and creative writing tour in Vietnam in late October, and they’re offering a whopping $400 discount to all Meet, Plan, Go! attendees! They’re also offering a writing safari in Botswana next March. They’ll give away copies of Dave Fox’s bestselling book, “Globejotting: How to Write Extraordinary Travel Journals (and still have time to enjoy your trip!)” as door prizes at every Meet, Plan, Go! location.

Hostelling InternationalHostelling International USA (HI-USA) is America’s largest network of quality hostels and part of a global HI network of more than 4,000 hostels in over 80 countries. Come join our “Community of Travelers”!

Enter to win an HI-USA getaway weekend for 2 at your choice of either New York or Los Angeles/Santa Monica! Enjoy 2 nights shared accommodations | Continental breakfast | A local tour pass (TBA) | A local transportation pass

HI-New York is located in the heart of Manhattan, within easy access of Central Park, Broadway, Time Square, Museums, restaurants, clubs and all that the “Big Apple” has to offer!

HI-LA/Santa Monica is located in a relaxed neighborhood of shops, galleries and cafes just 2 blocks from the beach and the famous Santa Monica Pier and with easy access to Venice, Malibu, Hollywood, Beverly Hills and more!

Mango LanguagesMango, an online language-learning system, teaches practical conversation skills for a wide variety of languages. It’s a fast, easy & incredibly effective way to learn to speak a foreign language! You can access Mango from anywhere you have an internet connection – all you need is your library card.

Each Meet, Plan, Go! location will be given one access for one person for one year of free access to the language of choice (of available languages offered) to the Mango Languages Software. (Valid through October 2011.) You’ll be able to choose any language from their 22 guided language learning experiences and learn the language before your career break trip!

yourSABBATICALDid you know that more and more companies are offering regular, PAID sabbaticals for all employees? yourSABBATICAL.com tracks and lists all of these employers on their website. But if you work for a company that’s not this progressive, you can still experience a transformational sabbatical by convincing your boss to give you one!

In every host city, one or two lucky Meet, Plan, Go! attendees will win a FREE book, “Negotiating Your Sabbatical: The Ultimate Toolkit for Writing and Presenting a Killer Sabbatical Proposal Your Boss Can’t Refuse.” This 84-page toolkit includes step-by-step instructions, a proposal template, and advice from three top leadership experts about how to make a sabbatical a winning proposition for your boss, your company, and your career!

PLUS – EVERY Meet, Plan, Go! attendee receives a 30% discount on this book and other valuable resources from yourSABBATICAL.com. Check your gift bag for the coupon code!

LOCAL GIVEAWAYS

Escape 101Dan Clements will be donating an audio (or ebook) of his book “Escape 101” for every Meet, Plan, Go! location.

Featured in The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Success Magazine and more, Escape 101 is a step-by-step guide to taking the sabbatical or career break you’ve dreamed of. Whether you want to relax on a tropical beach, write a book, save the rainforest or simply save yourself, Escape 101 is an inspirational map to guide the way.

Two Laps Around the WorldTwo Laps Around the World is a travel memoir by Bob Riel about two round-the-world trips that he and his wife took during two different career breaks. The book chronicles not only their travel adventures but also their personal journeys during these life sabbaticals.

Bob, who publishes the Travels in the Riel World website, has donated copies of the book to be given away at each Meet, Plan, Go! event.

Mapping Your Volunteer VacationWhere Is She Heading, LLC helps you create and develop a life changing travel addiction known as Volunteer Vacations, Voluntourism or Volunteer Travel. A veteran of 12 volunteer projects during a yearlong trip around the world, Jane Stanfield published “Mapping Your Volunteer Vacation” as a guide to assist you find and prepare for a powerful volunteer experience that fits your interest, time, budget and heart!

First, you work through a sequence of steps to narrow down the overwhelming array of volunteer options.  After answering Why, What, Where, When, Who and How much, you move through the chapters to plan, prepare and pack, go on and return from your volunteer trip of a couple of week, several months or even, a few years.

Jane will give away one copy of “Mapping Your Volunteer Vacation” at each event. In addition, every participant will receive a card that offers a 25% discount on a consultation to brain storm your volunteer trip.

* The prize is for a 9-day Gap Adventures ‘The Inca Journey’ trip (Trip Code PIJ) for (1) one person. The prize includes land tour and accommodations —but does not include international airfare, insurance, incidentals or other third party services as determined. The approximate retail value is $1800 CDN and is non-transferable and substitutions will not be permitted. The prize must be booked by December 31, 2010 for travel by June 30, 2011. It is the responsibility of the winner to contact Gap Adventures Sales department (as provided) by December 1, 2010 in order to claim the prize. This prize has no cash redemption value. Winner must be 18 years of age or older to claim the prize. Please note that as a prize winner, you may only book onto departures that are guaranteed to depart and have reached their minimum participant requirements. Gap Adventures reserves the right to substitute tours for operational resources and blackout dates may apply. Participants acknowledge these contest rules are to be interpreted in accordance with the laws of Canada and laws of Ontario. By entering the contest and agreeing to our terms and conditions, the winners confirm their eligibility and compliance with the contest rules and release Gap Adventures from all liability caused by, or resulting from, the acceptance or use of the contest prize.

** Terms and Conditions:
– Two tickets up to $750 base fare each for a total of $1500 (passengers can pay for difference if more expensive)
– Passenger is responsible for taxes.
– Only valid for departures from LAX or SFO on true NZ flights. Can fly from LA or SFO to the S. Pacific including Australia , New Zealand and Fiji . Can fly from LAX to London . See the Air New Zealand website for a map of available routes.
– Book travel by 31 March 2011
– No travel between 15 December 2010 and 15 January 2011.
– All travel completed by 30 June 2011.
– Must make reservations by 3 June 2011.
– Reservations should be confirmed at least 14 days prior to departure but not more than 90 days prior to departure.
– Tickets are not valid for upgrades or frequent flyer miles.

Career Break Guide Table of Contents

Meet Plan Go