The countdown to Christmas is ON and we are here to help with a few last-minute ideas!
If your kids are like mine, the Santa wish lists are never-ending. It is hard for me to keep up with the LOL dolls and the Num Noms and the Lightning McQueens, but I also know that more than these ridiculously named toys, my kids want to spend quality time with me. So, this year we’re stocking up on EXPERIENCE GIFTS!
Experience gifts can be any fun adventure – from an art or sports class to a day out or night in – for the whole family to enjoy or for your children to enjoy individually. We’ve included a few local ideas below but there are endless possibilities for fun, non-toy gifts this year. Get creative in the gifting!
Idaho Falls Experience Gifts
Encourage your kiddos to get their energy out with a pass or one-time trip to one of our favorite local, kid-oriented attractions:
Arts & Crafts:
Let them get their hands dirty, create, and explore with an art class or season pass to one of SE Idaho’s many art studios and museums:
Enjoy our amazing wildlife with your own wild things by gifting them a day feeding the string rays at our local aquarium, a pass to the zoo, or a trip to enjoy Bear World’s petting zoo (and bears, of course!):
- Idaho Falls Zoo
- Yellowstone Bear World
- East Idaho Aquarium
- National Park Pass
- Horseback riding lessons
Get your kiddos to flex their muscles at an indoor rock climbing gym!
Gift a single sport session or pass to get their bodies moving:
- Martial arts
- Dance
- Swimming
- Gymnastics
- Pound
Send them to summer camp! Or enroll them in an outdoor class like Tinkergarten or an indoor enrichment class on any number of topics, such as robotics or chess.
Grab a gift card to the Idaho Falls Arts Council and let your little ones choose from art classes, events at the Colonial Theater or Civic Auditorium, or admissions to the ARTitorium.
Gift a series of piano, guitar, or other musical instrument lessons.
Plan a special date night or family adventure:
- Dive into dessert at a favorite sweet shop. Some of our favorites include Orange Leaf, Coldstone, and Soda Tsunami – or hit up a restaurant and skip straight to the cake!
- Treat them to a movie – enjoy a new hit at one of our many theaters or grab a DVD out of the bin at Walmart and stay in!
- Head to your favorite restaurant and enjoy dinner (that you don’t have to cook!) as a family.
- Enjoy a production of a local or touring musical, ballet theatre, or other visual or performing arts events.
- Test your family’s knowledge and determination at one of our Escape Rooms!
- Take a trip to the bookstore to pick out a new read, play with the community games, or read through a few books while you sip hot cocoa.
- Take them to our local drag races, a monster truck show, or to the fair!
- Pick up a new board game and some candy and enjoy a night in.
- Pack them up for an overnight adventure to see a concert or Disney on Ice!
Gift a Coupon:
Not all experiences cost money either! Create a coupon book of awesome (and FREE!) experiences. Some of our favorite ideas include: invite a friend over for a playdate, skip chores for a day, paint your nails with mom, get breakfast in bed, camp out in the backyard, build a fort in the living room, have an afternoon tea party, eat dessert before dinner, meet for lunch at school, eat a picnic lunch at the park, stay up 30 minutes later at bedtime, stop everything and play a game, build a snowman, get one hour with just you and dad, stay in pajamas all day, and visit the library.
Experience gifts are not just for Christmas either – experiences make wonderful gifts for any holiday you celebrate, anniversaries, and birthdays!
#TeamMotherly published a list of “50 awesome experience gifts to give—instead of toys” as well. Check it out here!
