Just two weeks remain for pirates and treasure hunters to find Volvo's sunken treasure lying at the oceans' bosom. The Volvo Car Corporation's The Hunt is giving away a treasure chest full of gold doubloons and a key to a brand new Volvo XC90.
The new-generation global treasure hunting made famous by the Swedish automaker has lured more than 11,000 pirates and treasure hunters. Over the past two weeks, 'pirates' in Volvo's online search have 'visited' Cuba, the Cape of Good Hope, Ceylon, Singapore and nine other global hot spots. Individuals nationwide have less than two weeks to join The Hunt. The latter is part of the automaker's promotional tie-in with Disney's upcoming Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End. The movie opens in U.S. theaters May 25.
"There's still time to join the 11,000 people already navigating their way through The Hunt," said Linda Gangeri, the national advertising manager for Volvo Cars of North America. "Clever pirates can catch up with The Hunt and test their online game skills right up until the puzzles close May 29. There might even be some helpful hints floating around the Internet for ambitious newcomers."
To join The Hunt, participants 18 years old and older must visit a Volvo retailer to pick up a special pirate chart then register at the company's Web site any time between now and May 29. Winners will only be eligible if they can produce the original pirate chart upon conclusion of The Hunt. Once registered online, pirates could set sail on a virtual high seas adventure, sojourning exotic locations around the world and collecting clues that point to the treasure chest's location. The participants have to solve a series of challenging and cool online puzzles to get the elusive treasure.
As the online search progresses, the puzzles will become increasingly difficult to solve. On the second day of June, the first person from each of the 22 participating markets to finish the online hunt will compete against one another in one final exciting online challenge. The first of those 22 individuals to solve the final puzzle will be named the winner and will be given a trip to the burial location to retrieve the chest filled with Volvo's treasure.
In addition to the United States, Austria, Bulgaria, Canada, Germany, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Romania, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Sweden, Taiwan, Thailand and the United Kingdom also are taking part in The Hunt.
Earlier, the Swedish automaker has given ten spots where it did not sink its treasure. The spots include the Dead Sea, Red Sea, Sea of Love, Sea of Tranquility, Caspian Sea, Treasure Island, Bermuda Triangle, Atlantis, Sea World and Watergate.
"Three-quarters of the earth's surface is under water, so finding a sunken treasure chest is not going to be easy," said Linda Gangeri, the national advertising manager for Volvo Cars of North America. "We want our hunt to be challenging, but we don't want participants to become discouraged, so we thought we'd help narrow the playing field by revealing ten places where 'X' doesn't mark the spot."
"Okay, okay. Maybe it is a stretch to call The Hunt one of the greatest mysteries of the deep, but it certainly has got a lot of people flummoxed," added Gangeri. "We thought some of our more prodigious participants might enjoy pitting their wit and skill against some age-old mysteries... but even if they solve them, the only way to get your hands on Volvo's treasure is by joining our Hunt!"
The thrill of finding Volvo's treasure chest is dramatically building up. And like , the thrill is pressing harder and harder to intensify the escapade a bit farther. Who is going to be the lucky XC90 owner? We all will find out soon...