Kind-hearted British couple raffle off luxury holiday – and it’s free to enter

A kind-hearted British couple are giving away a five-star holiday to help cash-strapped people across the globe – and it’s free to enter.

Jon and Annmarie Nurse, who are originally from Dorset, first hit the headlines during the pandemic, when they decided to raffle off their Italian villa.

Now, they’re doing it again but this time, the prize is a luxury trip worth £5,000 including spending money – plus a donation to the winner’s charity of choice to the tune of a further £5,000.

“Our ethos is to give back,” Jon, founder of Win Holidays VIP, told Jam Prime.

“We want to change someone’s life and to date we have given away two villas and two houses in Italy, all while supporting children's charities.

“It’s such a buzz to do something like this; it can create a positive difference to someone’s life and provides them with opportunities and experiences that they may never have had before drawing that winning ticket.

“With a lot of people so cash-strapped right now, we really hope that the winner will be someone who deserves lady luck to shine on them – and that’s also why we’ve decided to make it free to enter.”

Sign up to our new free Indy100 weekly newsletter

Jam Press/ winvipholidays.com

The live draw allows the winner to choose their own VIP holiday with a total prize pot of £10,000 (including the charity donation).

From travel to the airport to private tour guides, everything on the holiday is paid for up to £5,000.

However, if the winner would rather not go on holiday, they can swap the holiday for cash instead.

Annmarie said: “We wanted to create a turn-key competition, something that doesn’t cost you anything.”

Previously, the couple has raffled off four homes and raised £170,000 for The Children’s Society and Braceo Di Faro.

Jon said: “We loved the hard work, the grit and the amazing people [from the property raffles], so didn’t want to stop.

“Everyone wants luxury, not everyone wants a home abroad.

“Holidays means we can reach more people and give away more of them.

“We love the process and the live draws.

“It is so lovely to spread good news and 99.9% of the feedback we get is positive.”

This isn’t the couple’s first holiday draw – they did a trial run in September 2022 with an all-expenses paid trip to Italy – though this is the first time winners can choose to take the money instead.

The winner of the trial run, Ross Bury (65) from Victoria, Australia received business class flights, a chauffeur, five-star hotel, Michelin star food, private tours and much more.

“Winning the trip was a life-changing experience, to be able to stay in the finest Italian hotels and experience Michelin star dining could only be summed up as a truly magnificent experience,” he told Jam Press.

“Jon, Annmarie, thank you from the bottom of my heart for this truly amazing holiday, the detail that has gone into this holiday is truly unbelievable.

“I believe you have created a lasting legacy with the charities that benefit from your past, present and future generosity.”

While the winner can choose any charity they want, for Jon and Annmarie, The Children’s Society and Braceo Di Faro are especially close to their hearts.

After their local hospice struggled to stay afloat during the pandemic, the pair decided something had to be done to help the children affected.

Annmarie said: “We used to go to the hospice summer fête, however there was no fête during Covid. All the cash had dried up.

“We like to give and these kids deserve a chance.

“Kids were affected more during the pandemic.

“It affected mental wellbeing, drove people into poverty situations and, in some cases, abusive situations.

“The odds were stacked up against them.

“We need to safeguard the next generation.”

The prize draw closes on 28 May and is open to everyone aged 18 and over.

Anyone wanting to enter simply needs to register their details at Win VIP Holidays.

Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.