His heart-warming off-the-beaten-track experience was: "I was visiting Prague when I got lost. It was getting late and the streets were empty. I entered a small cafe to ask for directions, but got in the middle of a birthday party. The birthday girl was quite interested in our conversation. The following day we met for coffee... Ever since we have our coffee together in the morning... Her name is Hana and she is the mother of our beautiful two children."

Other wonderful entries we enjoyed were…

A Karoo farmhouse beyond Murraysberg. The Middle of winter. No wind = no electricity; donkey on strike = no hot water. But night presents a 360 degree sight of nearly all the universe's stars; the earthy whiff of sheep droppings; the haunting chorus of baa-ing; and the kiss of champagne-crisp air. Hwoaargh!!
Melinda

Watching the sun set then sleeping and then watching it rise the next morning from an open grass hut on the beach of the Red Sea outside Sharm-el-Sheikh.
Mark

Shanghai. A crazy taxi ride on a trip to the French supermarket with a driver who could not understand a word of English and got us hopelessly lost. Laughing our way back to happiness and finding sanity again when a passer-by who was a University student and understood our plight came to our rescue! Unforgettable.
Carrol

Relaxing on Camps Bay beach to the sound of the waves and the ice-cream sellers crying "Lolly to make you jolly!"
Chris

As if taking a car from Venice to Rome was not daunting enough we drove into the City of Rome without a proper map. On our only map Rome was a big red dot. At a traffic light entering Rome we asked(hand signals!) directions from a guy on a vespa and he let us follow him to our destination in Rome. We LOVE Italy!!
Jolandi

Having spotted a massive rock island in the middle of Lake Malawi we decided to canoe there to explore. However halfway there we looked back onto the shore longingly as we started sinking. We managed to save camera’s keys and ourselves and swim to the island.
Pavla

Stocked up a yacht in Darwin (Australia) sailed through the Indian Ocean to the Chagos Archipelago which has no living souls on it and enjoyed natural mother nature on an atoll to ourselves living off coconut and fish. best experience ever. besides winning a trip to england ;)
Jerome

My husband and I were travelling through Rome and decided to go down one of the lesser known lanes off the colosseum. And we discovered a little coffee shop that served the cheapest but most divine Gelato ice-cream. We stayed for about two hours just enjoying.
Michelle

My best friend and were a little tired of the mundane routines. So we decided to drive up to my holiday house for 2 days (1hr out of Cape Town) after the 2nd day we decided we wanted more and ended up driving up the west coast for another 3wks only stopping in places we didn't know. Was the best holiday of my life we met so many new people and saw so many small but truly special treasures!
Robyn

Husband and I went to UK last year hired a car at Heathrow drove up east coast to Scotland and down to Cornwall the MOST AMAZING time no GPS. no pre booking. just he and I and hire car.....only problem he got food poisoning on flight over first night - middle of nowhere no map no doctor No meds - quite frightening but we survived!!!!!
Kim

My wife and I decided that spontaneous unplanned travel to off-the-beaten track places makes for true adventure so we flew to New Zealand rented a motor home and explored all the little-known places! It was thrilling trip of special moments we will remember for a lifetime!
Eddie

1989/1990 I boarded the luxury cruise liner Canberra for the world cruise flew round the world twice ended in Cape Town and got married to a local girl. After coming from a tiny English village where I worked 60 hrs per week that break was off the beaten track !
Gary

Travelling to Double Mouth between East-London and Kei Mouth where there are beautiful cliffs overlooking the sea. We decided to abseil but could not find any anchors to fasten the ropes to so we used the bull bar of our VW Combi pulled up the handbrake and enjoyed an adventurous abseil.
Brett Travelling down the Irrawaddy River in Burma towards Bagan an area of 21 square km's with over 300 Buddhist temples dotted all over. We experienced these amazing temples with a 13 year old Burmese boy who had the most unbelievable understanding of the history of the area as well as the most infectious personality an off the beaten track which will live with me for ever.
Fiona

My first night in 1992's Tokyo was spent in a park. Next morning an Israeli became my lifelong friend and an American my yearlong roommate. Lived in a condemned building earned enough for a house and departed a year later a changed person for an Australian adventure.
Illan

My husband and I went on a tour to Europe after raising seven children and never been on holiday. It was so different from our normal routine and was so "off the beaten track" so to speak. It was the highlight of our married life to be able to be alone for the first time ever.
Jenny

Seeing the Apollo Theatre just 2 blocks from where I was staying in New York. A little piece of history just hidden around the corner!
Ilhaam

A random trip round the Aegean isles. We found a market town on a small island. On a whim I purchased a ring from a local Jeweller’s. We ate dinner at a restaurant we found whilst walking along the beach at sunset and afterwards I proposed along the shoreline…
Martin

Travelling back from Europe I had to overnight in Lagos due to the plane having engine trouble.I arrived dressed in full winter gear: fur lined boots etc in the tropical heat! Spent the night sleeping in a hotels foyer and had goat meat steak for breakfast. A kind air hostess took pity on us and let us use her room/s bathroom facilities to shower -an unforgettable 24 hours!
Esme

For a list of all the lucky winners, visit http://win.iafrica.com/.