Give your loved ones a break from the usual
Forget the biscuits... a spa day, tour or membership is better value (and much more fun)
SHOPPERS spend billions of pounds on presents every Christmas – some of them warmly received, others not.
For anyone who wants to give family and friends a British experience that represents value for money, The Mail on Sunday has come up with some alternative present ideas. Gift days out, experiences and memberships, with the added bonus they are easy to wrap (in an envelope) and can be sent in the post for the price of a first-class stamp.
CULTURE AND HISTORY
THERE are enough museum, gallery and theatre memberships available to satisfy any culture vulture.
For example, charity English Heritage offers year-long unlimited entry to more than 400 his- toric places. This includes prehistoric monument Stonehenge and the site of the 1066 Battle of Hastings. English Heritage suggests you ‘ make the past your present’ with its gift membership – priced at £54 for an individual or £96 for two. Children go free.
For theatre- goers more inter- ested in a thriller play such as Strangers On A Train – which is touring multiple venues early next year – or Disney’s Aladdin in London’s West End, Theatre Tokens could make their day on December 25.
Accepted by more than 240 venues nationwide, including the West End, you can choose how much to send via email or by posting a gift card – and the best bit is they have no expiry date.
They are operated by not-for-profit t heatre champions t he Society of London Theatre. Buy at theatretokens.com or call 020 3011 0755.
Meanwhile, the ultimate museum and gallery membership is available from the Museums Association. Prices start at £56 for students or those retired and then rise according to salary.
It includes entry to more than 900 museums and galleries countrywide – from HMS Caroline, a Royal Navy ship i n Belfast’s Titanic Quarter, to the Canterbury Roman Museum.
OUTDOORS
ADULT membership f or t he National Trust is £64.80 or joint membership is £108, giving entry to more than 500 sites of interest. These include ancient woodlands, landscaped gardens and areas of outstanding natural beauty – with free parking.
Alternatively, you could treat the wildlife enthusiast in your life to a visit to one of the UK’s wetlands, where they can see animals in their glorious natural habitat.
The Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust is a conservation charity with ten sites across the UK. Membership allows free, unlimited entry to nine of its sites. The tenth – Steart Marshlands in Somerset – is free for all to enter.
Single membership starts at £66 – but children are included in the price. Joint membership is £75. Visit wwt.org.uk or call 01453 891198 during office hours.
For a cheaper day trip, you can also buy a single admission to one of the wetlands. Tickets bought online are valid for six months. Exact prices depend on which site you are buying for but generally an adult ticket is around £10 or a family ticket between £20 and £30.
Garden lovers would no doubt appreciate the gift of a Royal Horticultural Society membership – £59 buys unlimited access for one person plus a friend. The member also gets free access to 200 ‘partner gardens’ dotted around the country.
Visit rhs.org.uk where you can also search for a garden according to location. This helps if you would prefer to buy someone a one-time entry or membership to a specific garden near where they live.
For example, The Alnwick Garden in Northumberland offers a yearround pass for an adult and up to three children for £ 25. Once you have found a nearby garden, call directly to enquire about gift tickets or memberships – and remember to ask about expiry dates.
Other outdoor options include: the Ramblers charity, with single gift membership at £35; the Woodland Trust, with adult membership at £36; and The Wildlife Trusts, which grants membership to your local Wildlife Trust but allows free entry to hundreds of nature reserves nationwide – typically starting at £36 per person.
FOOD AND DRINK
RATHER than an over-priced ham-
per of spiced biscuits and chutney, how about fresh, responsibly sourced fish delivered straight from the Cornish coast to your loved one’s front door? It can help make a mealtime more of an occasion.
Fish for Thought, based in Bodmin, Cornwall, sells vouchers in denominations of £25 upwards with free delivery.
As well as fresh fish, voucher holders can buy seafood recipe boxes and ready- to- cook dishes –such as Cornish lobster, macaroni and cheese.
The vouchers have no expiry date and can be delivered by post or email.
For beer lovers you could gift shares in craft beer-maker BrewDog’s Equity for Punks scheme. A minimum two shares can be gifted to a friend or relative for £47.50 – meaning they not only own a slice of the company but can also get a five per cent discount in its bars.
As a member they are entitled to a free standard measure of BrewDog beer on their birthday in any one of the company’s bars – 30 of which are in the UK.
The Campaign for Real Ale gift membership gives free or discounted entry to hundreds of beer festivals, big discounts on tourist days out and brewery tours.
Or if the receiver of your gift is more interested in grapes than hops, a lifetime membership to The Wine Society is £40.
Alternatively, buy an ongoing discount for dining out with the likes of Tastecard or Gourmet Society memberships, priced at £35 and £30 respectively.
Both offer two-for-one or 50 per cent discounts at a wide range of chain r est aurants as well as local, independent alternatives and pubs.
EXPERIENCES
RELAXATION and pampering is a gift many people want but few purchase for themselves – making spa days and treatments a perennial favourite when it comes to receiving presents.
Abi Wright is founder of the Spabreaks website which employs celebrity Denise Van Outen as an ambassador. She says: ‘The real benefit of giving someone a spa break is that you are allowing them to dedicate a little time to themselves – and maybe time to enjoy with you or someone else they love.’
You can buy vouchers covering a wide range of venues. There is flexibility on dates and package type, including overseas breaks. More details at spabreaks.com or call 0800 043 6600. The voucher can be sent via email or posted to the recipient in a gift box.
Wright says: ‘Buying someone an experience, particularly one you can enjoy with them, gives them me-time. That is a luxury most of us do not have enough of.’
Other trips and events you can buy for someone else i nclude Ghetto Golf in Birmingham and Liverpool – with one round of golf for one person costing £10.
It is an unusual 18-hole mini golf experience with cocktails, DJs and street food.
Or try a group challenge with Escape Live in Birmingham or Essex, with a two-person voucher costing £44, or £40 for the Coventry venue.
The game involves working in a team of at least two and up to a maximum of six.
You have 60 minutes to escape from a locked room by solving hidden clues. There are different themes available, including breaking out of a prison or helping master detective Dr Wilson identify a criminal suspect.
If you know of someone who loves a challenge there is also The Crystal Maze Live Experience – replicating the popular 1990s TV show at two venues in either London or Manchester. A voucher for one person is priced at £65 in London and £53.49 in Manchester.
A less adrenaline-fuelled experience is a gift of relaxing with audiobooks. Amazon company Audible sells gift memberships starting at £ 23.99 for three months, which allows one free audiobook a month and up to 70 per cent off other titles.
GIVE TIME NOT MONEY
‘ELFLESS Acts’ is a new campaign and website designed to encourage you to give time in a creative way this Christmas, rather than buy unwanted ‘things’.
Created by environmental charity Global Action Plan, the website guides you through three easy steps to create a present that is free or inexpensive, personal and fun.
For example, a pledge to stock your loved one’s fridge with an emergency beer on a Friday, a promise to complete a task they hate doing or an offer to take them to a sports match or theatre performance of their choosing.
Visit elflessacts.org.uk to find out more and create your gift.