Gift Experiences For Kids: Gift Guide

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Toys are fun. It’s fun to make Christmas lists full of everything we could possibly wish that Santa might bring. But if you’ve been a parent for a few years now, you probably realize that the toys get played with for about 30 minutes (if you’re lucky) before they get left on the floor and forgotten about. That’s why I think that gift experiences for kids are so great.

Besides getting the kids out of the house, the memories and lessons that come with these experiences last much longer than the slime that is now stuck to the floor and the doll that has been napping for the past 2 years.

I know my kids would probably be disappointed if they didn’t receive any toys under the tree, so I usually pick a couple of items from their wish lists (plus, Santa needs to bring something in his sleigh), but then I try to gift them some fun experiences or get them gear that will be practical for hobbies they love (sports equipment, camping gear, etc.). This way, I know that not everything they receive will collect dust and take up space for the foreseeable future.

Experiences for Kids: Learn Something New

Has your chid been asking to try something new? I know my daughter has been begging to take cooking classes and acting lessons for as long as I can remember. There are so many different experiences for kids that make excellent gifts, such as: art lessons, piano lessons, dance classes, a new sport or private lesson, culinary classes, acting lessons, horseback riding lessons, robotics classes, and the list goes on and on.

These gift experiences for kids can bring about a new passion in your child, or shed light on a skill you never knew they had. Plus this gift would give the child something to look forward to and get them out of the house when the time comes–a win win.

A One-Time Visit or Annual Passes – Zoo, Museums, Amusement Park

I live in San Diego, where there is no shortage of museum options and theme parks we can visit. My mom would gift us annual passes to various places each year when the kids were younger and we were itching to find ways to entertain them out of the house.

Zoo passes, Sea World passes, aquarium passes, the science and children’s museums–we’ve had annual passes to them all. And we’ve always gotten our money’s worth.

Even if you don’t live close enough to a theme park or museum to make annual passes worthwhile, day passes to a fun amusement park or waterpark also give your child something exciting to look forward to and make excellent gift experiences for kids.

A Sporting Event

Going to a sporting event can be expensive depending on what kind of event it is and how big your family is. My kids love the NFL, but going to a football game would be at least a $500 outing for our family of 5. If the tickets can double as Christmas presents to each of my kids, it can definitely help to justify the cost a bit.

Other sporting events that could make excellent gift experience for kids can include: a baseball game, a hockey game, a soccer game, a college sporting event, a monster truck event, a motocross event, a rodeo, or anything else that would get the kids cheering and give them an experience to look forward to.

Gift Experiences for Kids: Theater

Along the same idea as above, taking the kids to a performing arts event is another great gift experience for kids. Tickets to a movie, the theater, a concert, the ballet, Disney on Ice, an iMax experience, or anything else of the sorts can make excellent gifts.

I took my daughter to the Gilmore Girls special event which included a studio tour of Stars Hollow. That was super fun and was something she’ll remember for a long time. There are often super hero events and other special events at the various movie studios in Hollywood.

A Camping Trip

If you’ve been thinking about taking the kids camping, now could be the perfect time to get the kids the camping gear they need and then let them know you’ll be taking some fun adventures over the year to come. If you’re really looking for a fun experience, you could also looking into renting a trailer or RV to take on a fun road trip with the kids. And check out my post about fun things to do while camping.

Gift Experiences for Kids: A Fun Outing

There are so many fun outings that can make excellent gift experiences for kids. We took the kids to do a Polar Express train ride a few years ago and had the best time. The kids loved it and is something they still talk about.

Or you can buy tickets to take them ice skating, roller skating, bowling, rock climbing, or indoor skydiving. You could also plan a day that they could go play paintball, drive go karts, hit up a fun arcade, go mini golfing, go fishing, do archery, go to a trampoline park, and the list goes on and on.

Depending on where you live, you could also take them to hit the slopes or plan a ski trip getaway.

Backyard and Playroom Fun

Besides experiences, I also love giving my kids gifts that will make them have more fun in the backyard or in the playroom. Things that keep them active and busy besides video games and tablets. Check out my backyard must-haves and my backyard and beach games for more gift ideas, as well as my decorating playroom ideas.

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