Experiences: Interesting Christmas Gifts for Loved Ones

I’d rather have experiences than things. I’d rather go out to eat than have a new trinket that sits on the bookshelf gathering dust. I like creating memories more than fingering inanimate objects. As a result, I am more likely to give other people experiences as gifts — which means that I give out a lot of gift cards.

Giving a gift card, though, doesn’t mean that your gift has to be bland. In fact, you can give unique presents when you gift experiences. Here are some ideas for giving experiences this Christmas:

• Restaurants: Some of the most popular gift cards are those to restaurants. Choose a restaurant that you know the recipient has wanted to try, but hasn’t got around to, yet. Or, if the recipient is adventurous, provide a gift card to a restaurant he or she would never consider without your help.
• Lessons: There are a number of ways you can give lessons to others. Gift certificates that allow someone to take a helicopter pilot lesson, or a gift certificate to a series of cooking seminars can be appreciated. What does the recipient like doing? What would he or she like to learn? Provide a little nudge in that direction.
• Adventure: Not too far from where I live is a company that offers the chance to experience the feeling of skydiving, without skydiving. Those types of experiences can be a great deal of fun. And, of course, there are real adventure-type experiences, like actual skydiving, bungee jumping, rock climbing, and rafting.
• Entertainment: Movie tickets, theater tickets, and game tickets can also make great experience gifts. I once gave my brother and his wife a gift card to the local theater company. They could use it on any show they wished, throughout the year. It turned out to be a great date night for them. Amusement park passes, cruise gift certificates and more can also be fun entertainment-based gift certificates.

Carefully Choosing Gift Cards

Of course, you do need to be careful when giving such gifts. It’s important to find out about expiration dates, as well as terms and conditions. Some gift certificates can’t be used on certain shows, while others might be restricted to certain days of the week, or times of the year. Make sure that you understand the fine print before giving such gifts.

Also, you want to make sure you are getting the certificate or gift card from a reliable source. In most cases, if you purchase the gift from the source, there isn’t much of a problem. However, if you get a gift card from an online discount site you need to make sure you are dealing with a reputable seller. Some gift card sites guarantee the cards you buy, while others accept no responsibility, and you have to be on the lookout for scammers.

Bottom Line

Gift cards and certificates can make great gifts. You can give an experience that the recipient will enjoy and remember for a long time. Such experiences can have a greater impact than mere stuff.