AS part of its customer service program for its 20th anniversary, Star Alliance is running a global competition, inspired by the theme of Connecting People and Cultures, which will offer winners the chance to become a mileage millionaire. Each of the Alliance’s 21 FFPs is offering 1 million miles (or the equivalent of) to one competition winner.

Entrants are asked to upload a picture of themselves and to share a cultural experience they enjoyed at www.staralliance.com/mileagemillionaire. The cultural experiences will be shown on an interactive world map. The competition runs through July 31.

The Star Alliance FFPs are also providing some inspiration on what can be done with a million miles and are presenting some unique travel experiences at www.staralliance.com/mileagemillionaire.

In support of the 20th anniversary campaign, each of the 28 Star Alliance member carriers has come up with their own local cultural experience idea.

The five founding carriers, Air Canada, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines, Thai Airways and United, have gone one step further by challenging National Geographic’s Travel Nomad, Robert Reid, to test their recommendations personally and report back to travelers on his experience.

A further 23 unique cultural experiences selected by the member carriers can also be found at www.staralliance.com/mileagemillionaire and range from tile painting in Portugal to home cooking in China’s Shenzhen, to joining locals in Bogota in turning major roads in the city into cycle paths on Sundays.

The worldwide campaign will be supported by many local activities at many locations around the world. For example, customers visiting one of the six Star Alliance Branded Lounges will receive special locally inspired gifts and enjoy special menu items celebrating the cultures and flavors of the world throughout the month of May. Many airline lounges in larger hubs will also mark the occasion. There will also be pop-up events in several airports worldwide.(SD News)