SANTA MONICA, Calif., Dec. 3, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Expedia.com(®), one of the world's largest full-service online travel sites(1), today released the holiday video, "Santa Flies Coach" -- showing how the Expedia+ reward points travelers earn this year can be donated to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital(®) to help kids fight cancer and other life-threatening diseases.

To bring this unique use of Expedia+ travel rewards points to life, ad agency 180LA enlisted the most frequent holiday traveler of them all -- Santa.

Over the course of a week, Santa traveled 19,602 miles in 49.7 hours. He went from the North Pole (via Anchorage) and flew through Honolulu, Tokyo, Dubai, Paris, Dublin, New York City, and finally Memphis to visit the kids at St. Jude. Once there, Santa handed out gifts in addition to all the points he accumulated on flights and came so far to give.

"Santa flies around the world every year for children, so we loved the connection of giving him travel points to donate to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital," says Vic Walia, Senior Director of Brand Marketing at Expedia. "More people travel during the holidays than any other time of year. We hope this campaign will encourage people to donate their Expedia+ rewards points to St. Jude, considering how quickly they can add up during this busy travel season."

"It was incredible to see everyone's reactions across the globe when they saw Santa traveling. Adults turn into kids again," says Dave Horton, creative director at 180LA. "It turns out everyone in the world really does love Santa."

People can donate their Expedia+ rewards points at Expedia.com/Santa. Donations like yours are the reason no family is asked to pay. Share with #SantaFliesCoach.

Expedia+ rewards members earn points on hotels, flights, activities and packages, and most major cruise lines. Members also have the unique opportunity to donate them in support of the lifesaving work of St. Jude Children's Hospital, which is leading the way the world understands, treats and defeats childhood cancer.

To find out more about the Expedia+ rewards program please visit https://www.expedia.com/rewards/.

About 180LA
180 is an award-winning international creative agency with offices in Amsterdam and Los Angeles. A part of Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE: OMC), 180's client roster includes Adidas International, Pepsi, Mitsubishi Motors North America, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, ("The Oscars"), Boost Mobile, Expedia, HP, and Zumba Fitness. 180 offers a spectrum of expertise, including: content creation, digital marketing, retail marketing, design, social media and advertising. For more information, visit 180LA.com or follow us on twitter @180LA.

About Expedia.com
Expedia.com is one of the world's largest full service travel sites*, helping millions of travelers per month easily plan and book travel. Expedia.com (http://www.expedia.com/, 1-800-EXPEDIA) aims to provide the latest technology and the widest selection of top vacation destinations, cheap tickets, hotel deals, car rentals, destination weddings, cruise deals and in-destination activities, attractions, services and travel apps. With the Expedia Best Price Guarantee, Expedia.com customers can get the best rates available online for all types of travel.

Expedia, Expedia.com, Expedia Rewards, Find Yours, Vacation Deprivation and the Airplane logo are either trademarks or registered trademarks of Expedia, Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries. Other product and company names mentioned herein may be the property of their respective owners © 2014 Expedia, Inc. All rights reserved. CST # 2029030-50

(1)Based on a comparison of other full-service online travel agencies, defined as those providing booking and services related to air, hotel, cruise, car and activities to a global customer base. Data based on comScore Media Metrix for Expedia, Inc. Sites, Worldwide, Average Monthly Unique Visitors, Oct '12-Sept '13.

About St. Jude Children's Research Hospital(®)?
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is leading the way the world understands, treats and defeats childhood cancer and other deadly diseases. St. Jude has the world's best survival rates for the most aggressive childhood cancers, and treatments invented at St. Jude have helped push the overall childhood cancer survival rate from 20 percent to 80 percent since we opened more than 50 years ago. St. Jude is working to drive the overall survival rate for childhood cancer to 90 percent in the next decade. St. Jude freely shares the breakthroughs we make, and every child saved at St. Jude means doctors and scientists worldwide can use that knowledge to save thousands more children. Families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food - because all a family should worry about is helping their child live. Join the St. Jude mission by visiting stjude.org or following St. Jude on facebook.com/stjude and twitter.com/stjude.

For more information, please contact:
Meagan Phillips
180LA
(310) 382 - 1477
meagan.phillips@180la.com

Ingrid Belobradic
Expedia
(425) 679 - 8253
ibelobradic@expedia.com

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SOURCE 180LA