Here’s how to win $296 in Ithaca’s Holiday Hunger Game

The holiday season is upon us, and with it comes the race to find the perfect gift. Something classy for mom? Check. A gag gift for dad? Check. But as all college students know, gifts cost money. Okay, everything costs money.

Thankfully, Ithacash has your back with their Holiday Hunger Game event. If you go on a scavenger hunt around the city, they’re willing to make it worth your while.

So, what is Ithacash?

Ithacash, or Ithaca Dollars, is a local currency traded within the city of Ithaca. It can be traded like regular money across the city and is available in paper (starting 2016) and digital forms.

Ithacash is accepted at over ninety Ithaca businesses, including our beloved Manndible Cafe in Mann, Aladdin’s Natural Eatery in Collegetown, and Cinemapolis on the Commons, among a host of other cafes, restaurants, and classes.

Features such as “TXT2PAY” make it easy to use.

Why make a local currency?

The Ithacash website explains:

Money “as usual” isn’t working. Businesses are struggling, families are having a hard time keeping up, and many people simply can’t get their basic needs met. External financial forces take local profits out of the area and limit local reinvestment. Ithacash plugs the leaks, fills the gaps, and provides local incentives that keep our region thriving.

In other words, Ithacash supports the local economy. By using a currency that is only accepted in the area, consumers can specify that the money they are paying to local businesses remains in the community.

Why should I care about this?

Well, there are a few reasons.

1. Cornell is not in a bubble.
2. Ithaca’s local businesses are pretty cool.
3. You can get up to $296 in Ithacash by participating in The Holiday Hunger Game.

What is The Holiday Hunger Game?

What is The Holiday Hunger Game, you ask? It’s a scavenger hunt-style event running through December 31st at over sixty locations in Ithaca, including four in Collegetown.

To play, pick up a map at any participating location and get started visiting the others. Each store has a small present hidden somewhere in plain sight. Once you find the present, tell the cashier where it is and they will give you a sticker. Each sticker you collect is worth i$4, with an additional i$2 being donated to a hunger relief charity of your choice. 

By visiting all of the participating businesses, you can earn i$256.

An extra i$40 is up for grabs if you participate in the “Pay it Forward” program and donate money to hunger relief at the Downtown Visitors’ Center.

Finished maps can be turned into any participating location, and you will be awarded your Ithacash.

I completed the Holiday Hunger Game. Here’s how it went

Over the course of two days, my SO and I spent approximately six hours working on our maps. For the sake of efficiency, we planned out the order of our stops, and then we began searching. While looking for the first box it became apparent that our competitive natures were emerging, so we embraced them and the hunt soon became a head-to-head contest. Mild trash talk and banter ensued.

We racked up stickers like it was our job and found ourselves in quite a few stores that we otherwise would have never visited.

Narrative Space and Mockingbird Paperie were among our favorites, as was Handwork, a cooperative craft store.

Other bonuses sprung up on our hunt as well.

Sunny Days, a “New York marketplace”, has a button making station.

Amuse, another store, gave us these awesome stickers.

The results

We ended up visiting 59 of the 61 participating businesses (the two we missed were Kava bars, as and neither was open when we were walking around).

As two of the businesses we visited were “2x bonuses” that were slightly further away, our initial totals were i$244. We were then awarded an extra i$4 for posting to social media using the Hunger Game hashtags.

So, our grand totals were i$248 each.

i$124 each was also given to Loaves and Fishes on our behalf.

Not bad for two afternoons of work.

All that’s left now is to sit back, relax, and buy some Gorgers tacos with my new local food fund. If only I could stop subconsciously searching for those boxes…

Grab a map if you’ve got the time. The Holiday Hunger Game is well worth it.