Give a Memorable Experience Gift for the Holidays
For every handful of gift recipients on your list who would be thrilled to get a new tablet, smartwatch, or cookware set for the holidays, there's probably one who would love to get the gift of an experience. But coming up with a unique and appropriate idea can be a challenge, especially if you've already given that person such gifts in previous years. So in addition to giving books, movie tickets, or a subscription to the audio book purveyor Audible, for example, consider these novel ideas as well.
Learn From a Pro
There's no better way to learn a craft than from a person who practices that craft for a living. This year, you could give the gift of a multi-session online video course through MasterClass, a website that offers online courses taught by people who are truly masters at what they do.
The classes are taught by celebrities such as actor Dustin Hoffman, tennis superstar Serena Williams, television chef Gordon Ramsay, photographer Annie Liebovitz, and screenwriter Aaron Sorkin. The $90-per-course fee includes workbooks, permanent access to the lessons, and eligibility to participate in special events, such as a recent contest to co-author a book with best-selling novelist James Patterson.
Book an Adventure
An adventure to some may not be that exciting to others, so think carefully about the adventure you choose. You can go to the website IfOnly, which brokers down-to-earth experiences such as a $53-per-person tour of the gardens at the San Francisco Zoo.
Or you could opt for a loftier gift, say, a $4.8 million hot-air balloon ride over Mt. Everest (the price drops to about $2.6 million per person if two people go).
At Cloud 9 Living you could book a "Wine Tasting Sail" or buy airplane piloting lessons. At Excitations you could buy a bike tour of San Francisco or take part in a Great White Shark Dive.
Or let your recipients pick their own adventures with prepaid gift vouchers from Tinggly, which also offers lots of experiences. Recipients have two years to make reservations for experiences all over the world.
Secure Memories for the Future
Many people want to record their memories in print or electronically for future generations. You could help them out by searching for a personal historian through the Association of Personal Historians website. Or you could go to the not-for-profit StoryCorps’ free, mini-oral history recording booths in Atlanta, Chicago, and San Francisco for an experience they would surely treasure.
Experience the Great Outdoors
Camps aren't just for kids, though for many kids, heading off to camp every summer is a right of passage. But weekend warriors, warblers, and wranglers alike can revel in adult camps such as Camp Grounded, which recreates the summer camp experience in several locations nationwide. Or you could consider Adult Choral Camp at Michigan’s renowned Interlochen Center for the Arts and Arizona Cowboy College in Scottsdale, Ariz. To learn more about adult camps, go to GrownUpCamps.com.
Have Time to Oneself
For a caregiver of young kids or adults, a gift idea that will generate happiness and gratitude—and a chance to experience life with fewer obligations—is to offer your time. You could offer to cook, pick up the kids from school, or take care of an elder family member a few times per week. If you search online for “gift coupon book template,” you'll find many decorative, printable forms that you can buy or download. Then you can fill in your promises—a nice and thoughtful way to relieve your recipients from their duties for a short while.
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