Yeah, I've often wondered about this. I think for the purposes of putting an exact value on the trip for the show, they have to "fly out" from somewhere, and so it's LA. But I think once you've won the trip, especially now in the day of Expedia and Kayak, it would be easy for them to finagle with the flights and allow you to fly out of where ever you choose.
Plus, they use such inflated values for all the prized on the show, let alone the flights, that they're charging you essentially the idiot rate - as if a guy walked into the airport off the street, asked to buy a ticket, dropped his pants and bent over. No one ever pays full freight like that for a flight. I'm sure you could transform whatever the value of the flight is out of LA into a more normal flight out of where ever you happen to be.
The question really becomes, is it worth it for you to actually take their vacation? Because, again, they are charging you full freight for everything - not just the flight, but also the "f@ck you" rate for the room and whatever amenities/tours they have for you when you get there.
For example, on today's show (5/10/16), they had a 5-night vacation in Seattle for two in a "club-level" room (whatever the eff that is), and a private tour of Pike's Market. Let's say for a minute that I really did want to take a vacation in Seattle. If I wanted to fly out to Seattle for 5 days and stay in a decent hotel, it would be about $750 each for the flight (and that's high, subtotal $1500) and about $150 a night for the hotel (also a bit high, subtotal $750), a total of $2250. So let's round up and say that it's $2500. They valued the vacation at $5000.
Instead of taking their vacation, you could take the cash value. They would withhold some taxes, say 30%, and you'd still have $3500 left over. You could plan the vacation yourself for $2500 and still have $1000 in cash left over.
So, the answer to the original question becomes, "No, I would not accept it."
I want the doctor to take your picture so I can look at you from inside as well.
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Dr_Ackula
8 years ago
Instead of taking their vacation, you could take the cash value.
Interesting, I didn't know contestants could opt for the cash value. That changes everything.
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jgroub
8 years ago
Well, I don't know that they can opt for the cash value either. I'm just basing that off of what people have posted here - that you can somehow reject the vacation and get cash instead. I really don't know if TPIR provides that option or not.
I want the doctor to take your picture so I can look at you from inside as well.
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davebuffalo (3009)
4 years ago
I've been on the show, and no, you can't take cash value for any of the prizes. You can accept them, pay the California state tax, and then sell it.
You won't owe Federal tax until the following April 15th, so up-front you only have to pay the CA State tax. And if you win any cash on the show (my wife won $500 for guessing her Contestants Row prize exact), they deduct this amount from your tax bill.
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