Thrifty Encourages Consumers to 'Hug Their Travel Agent' With Story-Telling Contest

Grand Prize Winner and Their Trip-Saving Travel Agent Will Each Win a Trip

TULSA, Okla., April 5 -- Thrifty Car Rental, a subsidiary of Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group, Inc. , is declaring April "Travel Agent Appreciation Month" by hosting a "Hug Your Agent" story contest, encouraging consumers to share their story of how a travel agent saved their business trip or vacation, with rewards for both the winning client and travel agent.

Grand Prize winners in the "Hug Your Agent" contest (both the storyteller and the travel agent who saved the day) will each win a trip for two anywhere in the continental U.S. The Grand Prize trip will consist of roundtrip airfare for two, three night's hotel accommodations and a three-day car rental from Thrifty. To sweeten the pot, Thrifty will award five runners-up with a free weekend car rental for the winning travel agents and their clients.

"Travel agents have always been important to Thrifty Car Rental, but they're even more of a friend to our customers," said Scarlete Pelfrey, Director of Travel Industry Sales for Thrifty. "Time and again, we hear stories of travel agents saving the day for our customers. So we thought it would be fun to share some of these great stories with the public and show our appreciation by awarding some great trips. There will be no shortage of good stories, I'm sure."

Story entries in the "Hug Your Agent" contest do not have to involve a car rental element in order to be eligible. "This is about travel agents who save the day, not us," said Pelfrey.

To enter, customers should visit http://www.hugyouragent.com/ and follow the contest entry instructions on the website. Entries may also be mailed to: Hug Your Agent Contest; c/o Thrifty Car Rental, MS 5W3, PO Box 35250, Tulsa OK 74153-0250. Mailed entries must be postmarked by May 31, 2005.

The contest will run from April 1, 2005, through May 31, 2005, with the Grand Prize winners and runners-up notified by June 15, 2005. No purchase is required to enter the contest, but winners must be at least 21, a U.S. resident, have a valid U.S. driver's license, and be able to meet certain car rental requirements. Story entries are limited to one per travel agent client. Winners and their prize-winning stories will be posted no later than June 30.

Thrifty Car Rental is a subsidiary of Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group, Inc., a Fortune 1000 Company headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Together with its corporately-owned locations and those of its franchise owners, the Thrifty Car Rental brand serves value-conscious travelers from more than 1,100 locations in 64 countries.