The Muskoka cottage experience is one sought after by thousands of Canadians each summer. Basking in the sun, going for endless boat rides with throngs of friends and taking a dip in the lake are the attributes of a perfect summer. This is the life. And now, it’s a prize

A bikini-clad girl sits by the lake straining to lather her back in suntan lotion. Another paddles by herself, head down, sad and lonely. Yet another plays a solo game of spin the bottle in an empty cabin. The TV ad ends with: You’re needed at the cottage.

It’s all part of the marketing campaign for a contest by Axe, the body spray worn by teenage boys across the country, and the grand prize is the opportunity to live the high life — if only for a weekend — in a Muskoka cottage.

“It is more like a private resort,” says Sandra Davies, marketing director for the company.

The idea for the contest came when the marketing heads were trying to think up a contest that their target audience (young guys looking to have fun) only dreams of. There are four winners chosen, each by geographical region, and each will receive the same prize. The winners, chosen at random, each get a weekend in August with nine of their friends at the cottage locale, which is kept top secret to protect the owner’s privacy. But the cottage “dream” doesn’t end there. Each prize is worth an estimated $15,000 as the cottage is equipped with a private chef, a housekeeper, 24-hour security and, of course, a representative from Unilever, Axe’s parent company. The winner and their gang of friends will also have access to a boat with a private driver.

Although the rules complying with Canadian law say “no purchase necessary,” users of the company’s website must enter a bar code from an Axe product.

“We looked at Grand Bend, Wasaga Beach, but only briefly,” says Davies. “We decided pretty quickly on Muskoka because it really does go hand in hand with luxury cottage life.

“The area was a no-brainer because of its national reputation,” she says. “You have an artistic community coming out, and things like celebrities owning a lot of cottages up there. Muskoka must have a really good marketing team.”

Davies says it’s an area that’s synonymous with lifelong cottage memories, and that is appealing to her customers.

“We recognize that this is what guys love to do,” she says. “A cottage in Muskoka? It’s what memorable weekends are all about. We want these guys to say, ‘Hey, remember the summer of 2008 up in Muskoka?’ ”

Although the destination is technically called a cottage, Davies says it’s “not the roughing-it type at all.”

“It’s the kind where my son says, ‘Mom, I want a cottage like that one,’ and I answer ‘Mommy doesn’t have $2 million.’ ”