The Amazing Race is cool and all, but contestants have to deal with unpredictable rules (like getting paired up with a stranger), the constant eye of network television cameras, and Phil Keoghan. If you’ve ever wanted to experience all the same thrills of world travel, championship bragging rights, and fat cash prizes, Global Scavenger Hunt may be just the trick.
Spring 2019 will see the return of the world travel championship known as the Global Scavenger Hunt. The 15th annual event is open to hardcore Indiana Jones-style travelers looking to tour the world and pit their geography and scavenging skills to the test against other elite teams. They’ll start in San Francisco and travel to New York City the long way. The first-place team will ultimately be crowned “The World’s Greatest Travelers” and, most importantly, take home a cash prize of $50,000.
The sizable cash prize motivates most travelers, but there’s a strict screening process to ensure entrants actually have the chops to pull off a victory. Event director William Chalmers notes:
“Prize money provides inspiration. We want the best international travelers to participate. The 2019 event will find out if travel writers and bloggers know the world as well as they claim to; whether social media influencers and travel agents know anything about travel; and whether some of the world’s ‘most traveled people’ and Amazing Race wannabes actually have any real-world travel skills. Participating and winning our $50,000 winner-take-all prize will be the ultimate proof.”
Next year’s three-week event will encourage travelers to “trust strangers in strange lands.” The theme of individual competitions along the way will center around taking contestants on A Blind Date with the World. The GSH tour will visit 10 secret destinations and contestants will not be provided any prior knowledge about where they’ll be visiting or when. The contest unfolds through a series of authentic, hands-on challenges designed to test their travel and cultural prowess. Previous hunts have included things like taking salsa lessons, meditating with monks, working as an elephant trainer, cooking traditional dishes with local chefs, cracking ancient temple mysteries, and learning local languages on the fly.
The next Global Scavenger Hunt kicks off April 12, 2019, and runs through May 4. The price of admission? A cool USD $25,000 per two-person team. If that sounds steep, consider the entry fee includes all international travel, first-class luxury hotels, 40 percent of meals (sadly, no booze), and bespoke travel gear.
Not surprisingly, tickets are extremely limited. So, if you want in, we recommend registering early (i.e. now).
