The Antelope Valley Times

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Luxury vacations are latest carrot to lure CA residents to COVID vaccines

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While the state of California plans to hand out $1.5 million in prize money Tuesday to 10 residents vaccinated against COVID- 19, the incentives won’t end there, with Gov. Gavin Newsom announcing Monday a giveaway of six vacation packages.

The drawing will be held July 1, with anyone in the state who is at least partially vaccinated eligible for the prizes.

The prizes include vacation packages to Anaheim, Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco and Rancho Mirage for up to four people, with the various tours, including dining at highly touted eateries, visits to theme parks or tickets to sporting events.

Newsom said the venues participating in the giveaway donated their services, while the state “is going to provide an additional $2,000 for travel, so your travel is covered.”

Up for grabs will be:

— a trip to Anaheim, with two-night stays at three different resorts, two-day park-hopper tickets to the Disneyland Resort, dinner at the Anaheim White House and a $500 gift certificate to South Coast Plaza;

— a stay at the JW Marriott Los Angeles L.A. Live, with two floor seats to a Lakers game, four tickets to Universal Studios Hollywood and visits to The Broad, the California Science Center and the Natural History Museum;

— a two-night stay at the Ritz-Carlton Rancho Mirage, an 80-minute spa treatment for two and daily breakfast for two at State Fare Bar & Kitchen;

— a San Diego Beach Dream Vacation, featuring a five-night stay at Catamaran Resort Hotel, surf lessons, a series of dining gift certificates and tickets to the Padres, San Diego Zoo, SeaWorld San Diego and Legoland;

— a San Diego Downtown Dream Vacation, with a five-night stay at Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina, four tickets to the San Diego Symphony, dining certificates, passes to the U.S.S. Midway Museum, a harbor tour, Padres tickets and visits to the San Diego Zoo Safari Park and SeaWorld; and

— a five-night stay at the Hotel Nikko San Francisco, four San Francisco City Passes providing tickets to various attractions, dining packages at four luxury eateries such as Jaranita and Wilder, and four tickets to a Giants baseball game.

The giveaway is a continuation of the state’s “Vax for the Win” incentive program aimed at encouraging residents to get vaccinated against COVID-19. According to Newsom, as of Monday, 72% of state residents had received at least one dose of vaccine.

The state has already chosen 30 winners of $50,000 each, and on Tuesday — the day the bulk of the state’s COVID-19 restrictions are lifted — the state will chose 10 vaccinated residents to receive $1.5 million each. The state has also been handing out $50 grocery gift cards to residents who receive a first dose of vaccine.

Individual counties and cities have been offering localized incentives of their own. And in conjunction with Tuesday’s reopening of the economy, some other perks are on the table:

— Taco Bell will provide one free beef Nacho Cheese Doritos Locos taco to vaccinated customers on Tuesday;

— Chipotle will give vaccinated customers a free topping or side serving of Queso Blanco with the purchase of a full-priced entree item on Tuesday;

— the Los Angeles Clippers will provide vaccinated customers a 15% discount on team merchandise in its online store from Tuesday through Sunday; and

— the Staples Center Team LA Store will provide a 15% discount for vaccinated customers, also from Tuesday through Sunday.

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6 comments for "Luxury vacations are latest carrot to lure CA residents to COVID vaccines"

  1. Gov. Nuisance is trying to buy his way out of recall with the money he is handing out. That money should have been broken up into smaller amounts. Taxpayers should have voted for that measure instead of throwing the money to his influencers in large amounts. How damn insane is that?

  2. I read that a partially vaccinated winner will not receive the prize until they get the second dose. Thats the fine print.

  3. When government has to give out tax payers money away you know this has become a con job! Newsome looks more like Pat Sajak from Wheel of Fortune than a governor. If you have Covid-19 antibodies you do not need vaccine you have natural immunity. Young Healthy people do not need vaccine. Remember this is an experimental vaccine, no one knows the long term effects.

    • No one knows the long term effects of CoVid infection either, but we do know that there’s a strong chance there are some because there clearly are some intermediary length & nasty residual effects of having caught CoVid that are a risk.

      Also – one of the risks of Covid is death. We know the long term effects of that and at least for some areas, that risk is greater than one in one hundred of those who test positive.

      • Don’t even try. Mr. Zink pops up once a week or so ranting about how people shouldn’t take it. Apparently Mr. Zink believes he is smarter than everyone else and must lead us out of darkness.

  4. I do commend Gov Newson on providing incentives to those getting vaccinated. However, my concern is those people who are partly vaccinated are equally as eligible as a fully vaccinated person. This makes no sense! In order for this coronavirus vaccine to work, a full dose is REQUIRED NOT PARTIAL!