If your kids are anything like mine, they have plenty of toys laying around the house at all times. When it comes time for Christmas and birthdays, I have a hard time justifying buying more toys and stuff that they use for a short period and then will just lay around my house. A couple of years ago, we decided to start buying experience gifts for our kids. Here are some experience gift ideas for kids.

I enjoy giving experiences instead of gifts. They seem to be more fun to give and kids enjoy them just as much, if not more, than toys. Plus then we are making memories, which can last for a lifetime vs a toy that is short-lived. The other benefit to this is when you accumulate fewer things, it’s less stuff to clean up!

I have also started buying our godchildren experiences instead of gifts. Their parents seem to enjoy it as much as I do! I mean what parent doesn’t want fewer toys laying around?

Some experiences can cost a lot of money but so can gifts! And there are a lot of experiences that you can give your children for a little to no money. If you are looking for ways to save money and stick to a budget, check out this post on money saving tips for moms.

So really it’s whatever you are comfortable with spending. Do what works for you and your family. I included both cheap and not-so-cheap experience gift ideas for kids.

Don’t forget to check out this post on how to stay organized this holiday season!

*Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. I may earn a percentage (at no extra cost to you) if you make a purchase through a link that I have shared. I am an Amazon Affiliate

Experience Gift Ideas For Kids:

1. Yes Day

• This one was my husband’s idea and I was not super excited about it. I was nervous to see what the kids would pick. But they surprised me (keep reading below to find out more details). Now mind you the age of your children will greatly depend on what they pick.
• We set a money limit to this but they didn’t even come close to the dollar amount.
• When we did this for the first time, our kids were 7, 4, and 2 years. We told them to come up with 10 things they wanted to do and we would pick from that list. We made it clear that we might not be able to do all of the things, but we would try our best.
• They picked: painting, playing hide and seek (as a whole family), playing in the rain, going to a coffee shop, going swimming, going to a park, having a picnic, not taking a nap, playing playdoh, and going out to eat for supper.
• We didn’t get it all in one day, but we did get most of it in. It seriously made their whole day and I had fun as well! Most of the things they picked were free. It was so easy, innocent, and fun!
• Have fun with this one and your kids might surprise you!

2. Take your kid on a one-on-one date.

• We like to do this for birthdays.
• The birthday boy or girl gets to pick what we do (they usually pick bowling or a sporting event and going out to eat). We get a sitter for the other two and my husband and I will take the birthday kid out to do what they want for the evening.
• This is a wonderful way to make each kid feel special and get some one-on-one time with both mom and dad.

3. Zoo, museum, aquarium, etc. Pass

4. Movies or Movie Tickets to use as they want

• You can include this in a basket with popcorn, candy, and other goodies. Then they still get to open a “gift”.

5. Family hotel night or weekend

6. Sporting Event that the kids enjoy

• Professional sporting events are fun but they can get to be very expensive. Between tickets, food, and beverages, it can cost a pretty penny. If we don’t have a lot of extra money to go to a professional sporting event, we will sometimes take our kids to a local sporting event. They are much more affordable and our kids still have a ton of fun! And it’s fun to support local teams as well!

7. Swimming pass

• This has been a hit for Christmas time and winter birthdays! We did a new swimsuit, goggles, and a swimming pass for our kids one Christmas.
• It’s also a nice way for the kids to get exercise in the winter.

8. Concert tickets or tickets to see a play

• This is another idea where you can go as budget-friendly or expensive as you want! If you look around locally, you might be able to find some budget-friendly tickets. They probably won’t be well known, but they can still be good… and a fun time!

9. Take them for a fun activity day and “unplug” for the day

• This is similar to #1 but you choose what to do vs the kids choosing.
• Make sure to put your phones away and spend the day just with your kids.
• Pick ideas that the kids love to do for a day. It can be simple (cheap things) such as making cookies, crafts, pool/lake, park, making meals together, shopping, picnic, doing nails and/or makeovers, playing board games, playing games outside, making a fort, etc. Be creative and just slow down and spend time with your kids.
• You can just pick the ideas or write down several ideas, throw them in a hat, and pick out a couple of activities to complete.

10. Bowling

• This is such a fun activity for the whole family.
• We like to use it as a way to get out of the house and do something in the winter.

11. Game Day

• Put together a day of fun with different games for your kids. You can do board games and/or outside games. Have a day of fun just playing with your kids.
• We like to play Trouble, Sorry, Memory, and put puzzles together.

12. Gift cards to a variety of places-

• I did this for my godson. I put together a basket of snacks with gift cards to go out to eat, to the movies, pool passes, and his favorite store. He loved it and his parents loved it as well!
• Amazon has these great snack gift boxes already put together. Kids love snacks and they love them even more when they are paired with other goodies such as a pool pass!

13. Lessons to something your kids enjoy-

• Dance, music, sports registration, etc.

14. Mini golf

15. Subscription box

• I bought a Kiwi Co subscription for my daughter a few years ago and she loved it. She needed some guidance for most of it, but it was fun to work on this together. The boxes were educational and fun!

16. Do something outdoors

• Such as camping or fishing.
• If it’s winter, go sledding or build a snowman.
  • If you want a gift to go with it, you can get them a sled or a hat and gloves and take them out for a day of winter fun!
  • You can even make some hot chocolate after your day of fun to top it off with a sweet treat!
• It’s a great way to make some memories and have some fun!

17. Teach Your Child A New Skill

• Such as baking, cooking, sewing, or fishing.
• They can learn a new skill that could help them through their whole lives.
• You can gift them something to help them with their new skill, such as this great kids baking book or a kids fishing set, like this one.

There are many creative ways to give experience gifts instead of toy gifts. This can also be a great way to spend quality time with your child. I think we often get so busy with life that we forget to unplug and spend quality time with our kids.

These ideas can be used for your kids, for godchildren, or for other people’s kids you need to buy gifts for. I love taking the time to spend quality time with my godchildren as well. You will make memories they will cherish forever!

Do you have other experience gift ideas you have given your kids? I would love to hear them in the comments below!

Will these gift ideas not work for a child you are buying gifts for? If not, check out my post on Great Gross Motor Gift Ideas For Kids.

If you enjoyed this post, check out my post on easy snack ideas for kids.