Stealing Christmas with the Grinch: McDonald’s x Uber Journey Takeover

Client: McDonald’s

During the most competitive advertising period of the year, McDonald's needed to cut through the festive noise and drive daily engagement with its Grinched Daily Deals, a series of app-exclusive offers designed to bring value and craveable moments to consumers throughout Christmas. The solution was Uber Advertising’s first-ever Journey Takeover in EMEA, transforming the Uber ride into a fully immersive McDonald’s festive experience. 

At the centre of the activation, Uber’s iconic in-app vehicle icon was reimagined as a McDonald’s branded car with the Grinch perched on top, playfully hitching a ride in his mission to steal Christmas. As one of Uber’s most recognisable interface assets, the icon became a powerful storytelling device, placing McDonald’s at the heart of every journey. Combined with sequential Journey Ads across dispatch, en route and arrival, the campaign created a seamless narrative from pickup to drop-off, guiding riders directly to the My McDonald’s app. 

 What made the idea truly powerful was its contextual precision. Reaching consumers during high-attention festive travel moments, already in the mindset of celebration, convenience and craving, ensured the creative resonated deeply and drove real action. The results reflected the strength of the idea. An average dwell time of 79 seconds demonstrated genuine engagement. Brand affinity increased by +30.8pp versus the control group, brand favourability rose +16.6pp, and purchase intent lifted +14.3pp. Most significantly, the campaign contributed to an 80% year-on-year increase in orders on the My McDonald's app.