The Best Giveaway I’ve Ever Done, Comment Here for Chance to Win 2 Nights at Al Maha!

by Gary Leff

I’m going to visit Al Maha Desert Resort next month. Lucky called it his favorite Starwood Starpoints redemption ever. It’s an all-inclusive with standalone villas and infinity pools in the desert outside Dubai where rates can exceed $1700 per night and is consistently deemed one of the world’s best properties on TripAdvisor.

For bookings made by March 8 Starwood is offering awards there for ‘only’ 39,000 points a night instead of the usual 60,000. And I’m going to use some of my points there.

And I’m going to give away a couple of nights there, too! And it’s thanks to Luxury Travel Diary.

Luxury Travel Diary is a high-end travel blog with great reviews based in the UK that has a bunch of travel auctions with real bargains.

I suppose that folks who already know about these auctions don’t like this added attention, because frankly there aren’t enough bidders relative to the value of the offerings and some of these items go too cheap.

Luxury Travel Diary wanted to highlight some of their deals, and offered to help organize a giveaway of a 2 night hotel stay at Al Maha Desert Resort. As I said, it’s an inclusive resort. So you get breakfast, lunch and dinner. That even includes room service. And you even get two desert activities per night stay at the property. This is a giveaway worth ~ $3000 or 78,000 – 120,000 Starwood points.

To enter: leave a comment on this post with your favorite item up for auction at Luxury Travel Diary, or why you would choose to stay at Al Maha Desert Resort. You may enter two times if you wish and answer those two questions one time each in separate comments.

Contest deadline and drawing winner: Entries close Friday, January 29 at Noon eastern. I will draw winner with the assistance of random.org.

The fine print: The winner will be able to pick when to redeem the nights within 6 months. It’s not available on public holidays, Eid, Christmas and New Years (both of which are beyond 6 months anyway, but in the terms I was given). Advance booking is required and it’s subject to availability.

For avoidance of doubt, my own stay next month is paid for with my points. I have no affiliation with Luxury Travel Diary or Al Maha Desert Resort. I am not getting anything in exchange for running this giveaway other than an opportunity to share the place with readers.

I will put the winner in touch with the hotel for booking. They are solely responsible for providing prize to winner. All decisions made in the course of running this giveaway are final and unappealable and your entry signifies your acceptance. The goal here is to make readers aware of a pretty cool auction opportunity, and to give away a stay. So please don’t make it hard on me for doing so!

You probably won’t fly to Dubai and back for a 2 night stay, though you might add onto it and do other things in the region (great opportunity to spend American AAdvantage miles and fly Etihad first class at 90,000 miles each way before the March 22 devaluation, and Etihad even provides a car service anywhere in the UAE… or to spend Alaska miles and fly Emirates).

About Gary Leff

Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel - a topic he has covered since 2002. Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »

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Comments

  1. im tempted to bid on the viceroy in bali in the auction as im trveling there within the next few months anyway! al maha would make a great stop on the way back home!

  2. I would like to stay at the Al Maha Desert Resort to review the property’s wheelchair accessibility, and to gain the experience of being out in the Emirati desert.

  4. I would choose 3 Nights At Pumziko Safari & Wellness Lodge, Tanzania. Looks like a fantastic stay!

  6. I happen to have a trip booked to Dubai at the end of March, for 2 nights. Currently booked at the Park Hyatt, but would gladly switch if I win!

  7. My favorite auction item is 2 nights at the Grand Hyatt Singapore. Price looks good and I’m interested in visiting there.

  8. I’ve always wanted to see Dubai and have never stayed in a super-luxury resort, so I’d love to try the Al Maha Desert Resort and see that region of the world for the first time.

  9. I would choose to stay at the Al Maha Desert Resort because I would love to experience Dubai’s desert.

  10. My favorite item up for auction at Luxury Travel Diary is the 7 NIGHTS AT AQUILA PORTO RETHYMNO HOTEL IN CRETE, GREECE. I’ve always wanted to explore Crete and winning that auction would give me the perfect excuse.

  11. Would love to stay at Al Maha and enjoy dune riding in the desert. Did that once in Vegas and was a lot fun. But here, it should be a blast!

  13. I would want to stay at Al Maha since I love the desert and have never been to the UAE before. It would also be a good excuse to fly Etihad before the devaluation!

  16. I would choose to stay at Al Maha for the dune dining, I have always been fascinated with deserts and dining in a sea of sand sounds heavenly. My favorite auction is 5 nights in a villa in Bali. I had the pleasure of going to Bali in 2013 and have been dying to get back.

  18. I would totally love to go to the resort. For me, while I love the resort features and I’d have a hard time getting away, I’d definitely like the change to explore as well. Seems like a great mix of “safe luxury” and “Bob out of his comfort zone.”

  21. My favorite current auction is the 6 luxury nights in a villa near Avignon France. Looks like the perfect place for a lazy summer vacation.

  22. I’d love to stay at Al Maha and experience the desert. While Dubai might have its charms, nature wins, hands down.

  24. I’d want to win a stay at the Al Maha because my last trip to the UAE was in the middle of July, needless to say the weather wasn’t exactly fun

  25. Would love to experience Al Maha as I’ve not yet been to the UAE and it looks amazing!!!

  27. My favorite Luxury travel auction is the 2 nights in an Under Canvas® Safari Tent in the US

  30. I’ve never been to Dubai, but has been at the top of my list of places I’d like to go next. I would love to stay at this all-inclusive at Al Maha and experience the desert.

  31. I am in the midst of planning a trip to Greece, and will be keeping an eye on one of the hotels in the current auction: 7 Nights At Aquila Porto Rethymno Hotel In Crete, Greece

  32. I would like to stay at the Al Maha Desert Resort because I would feel like Lawrence of Arabia.

  33. My favorite travel auction is definitely the 3 Nights In A Villa At Loama Resort Maldives At Maamigili. I would LOVE to go to the Maldives! Also, a stay at the Al Maha Desert Resort would cross an item off of my bucket list! Riding a camel through the desert, and on the beaches of Dubai would make my whole life! 🙂

  34. would love to stay at the al maha resort – would be my first time exploring the middle east!

  35. The auction for the Park Suite Buenos Aires! I wonder if they would recognize diamond benefits on a stay like that.

  37. I’d stay at the Al Maha as a stopover on the way to europe. It would make paying for 2 awards worth the cost and avoid the headache of trying to book a TATL flight with any OW carrier that doesn’t charge crazy fuel fees!

  38. Al Maha would be perfect to celebrate our wedding anniversary, the activities, the scenary, the food, service…everything seems so perfect and so unique!

  39. I would choose from the auction the: 7 Luxury Nights For 4 On Cote D’Azur Near Monaco, because it is in Europe (closer than other destinations), and I would get the chance to visit Saint-Tropez and Cannes as well as Monaco :-)!

  40. I think this auction sounds fun (because I’m a Bond fan): 3 Suite Nights At Bond Movie “Spectre” Location, Austria

  41. Staying at Al Maha would be amazing! I’ve read several detailed trip reports and was in awe! I would take full advantage of everything the resort has to offer.

  43. Staying at Al Maha sounds awesome. Would be my first time in the region. And, because Lucky likes it :-P.

  50. I would choose 2 Nights At The William Hotel New York – USA auction at Luxury Travel Diary.

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