The Gimli International Film Festival has launched its 2026 raffle with a grand prize that hits close to home: a trip for two to Iceland valued at over $7,000. Tickets went on sale June 12 and will stay open through the festival, which runs July 22 to 26 in Gimli, Manitoba.
The prize package brings together flights, wheels, a boutique stay, and local experiences. It includes two roundtrip WestJet flights, a three-day car rental from Lotus Car Rental, two nights at Hotel Holt in Reykjavík, a Food Lovers Tour for two, two 72-hour Reykjavík City Cards, two tickets to FlyOver Iceland, luggage, and a gift bag with discounts from Icelandic outfitter 66°North.
Raffle tickets cost $10 for one, $25 for three, or $50 for ten. All proceeds go back into the festival’s year-round arts and outreach programs across Manitoba. This year’s Iceland trip marks the largest prize the raffle has offered, topping last year’s Explore Manitoba package valued at more than $6,000.
The Iceland connection is no accident. Gimli is at the heart of New Iceland, the settlement founded in 1875 when more than 200 Icelandic immigrants arrived on the shores of Lake Winnipeg. Today, Manitoba is home to roughly 26,000 people with Icelandic roots—the largest population of Icelanders outside of Iceland. The film festival itself grew out of the town’s annual Icelandic Festival of Manitoba, starting in 2001 as a side event and growing into Canada’s largest rural film festival.
Residents can buy raffle tickets online through the festival’s website or in person during the five-day event. The draw winner gets a shot at walking the same streets their ancestors may have left behind, while helping keep the festival’s screens lit year-round.
