Today Groupon Getaways (http://www.groupon.com/getaways), Groupon Grassroots (http://www.groupon.com/grassroots), the philanthropic arm of Groupon (NASDAQ: GRPN) (http://www.groupon.com), and non-profit organization buildOn (http://www.buildon.org) invite Groupon subscribers to join the adventure of a lifetime: travel to Nicaragua or Nepal and build a school, available at http://www.groupon.com/deals/ga-build-on-grassroots. Ernie Halvorsen and Cindy Chiang, winners of the 19th season of the "The Amazing Race," will accompany guests on the Nepal trip. Only 15 units will be available.

Purchasers will be part of an intimate group of no more than 15 travelers who will journey to a remote village in rural Nepal or Nicaragua. There, participants will live and work side-by-side with local villagers to construct a buildOn school for children without access to education. Outside the construction site, guests will live with a host family, likely without electricity and running water, and participate in cultural immersion activities designed to educate travelers about the issues facing the local community.

Priced at $2,583 and valued at more than $5,000, the package includes the below for both Nepal and Nicaragua trips:

  • One organized volunteer project with local community members to help build a new school
  • One-night stay in a hotel in nearby village
  • Accommodations with a local host family for the remainder of trip (houses may not have electricity or indoor plumbing)
  • Three meals daily
  • Field trip to another buildOn school site
  • Cultural workshops
  • Airport pickup in Nicaragua or Nepal and local transport

As an added charitable component, every package purchased will enable one inner-city high school student in buildOn's afterschool service program to travel to a developing country and build a school.

"We're thrilled to bring such a transformative voluntourism opportunity to Groupon subscribers thanks to buildOn and our Groupon Getaways and Groupon Grassroots teams," said Simon Goodall, VP of Groupon Getaways. "To be able to provide such an extraordinary experience to a high school student with every trip sold makes it that much more impactful."

"Having traveled around the world and seeing the need to support developing areas, Cindy and I feel the best way to provide a better tomorrow is by supporting educational programs," said Ernie Halvorsen.

About Groupon

Groupon (NASDAQ:GRPN) launched in November 2008 in Chicago, features a daily deal on the best stuff to do, eat, see and buy in 48 countries around the world. Groupon uses collective buying power to offer huge discounts and provide a win-win for business and consumers, delivering more than 1,000 daily deals globally. To subscribe for the best deals in your city, visit www.groupon.com. To learn how to become a featured business, visit www.grouponworks.com.

About buildOn

buildOn runs intensive after-school service programs that empower urban youth to break the cycle of poverty, illiteracy and low expectations through service and education. Through these programs, inner-city high school students participate in a local service learning curriculum, spending time with senior citizens, assisting the homeless and tutoring disabled children in their own communities, while also building schools in developing countries. These youth have already contributed over 950,000 hours of service and we have built 453 schools in Haiti, Nicaragua, Mali, Malawi, Senegal and Nepal. Over 70,000 children, parents and grandparents attend these schools every day and because of buildOn's strong focus on gender equality, 50% of the students are girls. Learn more at buildon.org.

Groupon
Erin Yeager, 312-999-3434
eyeager@groupon.com
or
buildOn
Carrie Pena, 203-564-9079
carrie.pena@buildon.org