Experience Gifts for Kids in Atlanta: Presents They Will Actually Remember

Every family has the same January. The living room is full of things that were very exciting on the 25th, and by the middle of February most of them are at the bottom of a toy box.

The presents children talk about years later are rarely the ones that came in a box. They are the day at the aquarium, the first time on the ice, the week they came home muddy every afternoon.

If you are buying for children this year, or you are a grandparent being asked what you would like to get them, here is the case for experiences, and the ones that work best around Atlanta.

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Why experiences land better

There are three reasons, and none of them require a parenting philosophy.

They last longer than the day itself. A toy is exciting when it is opened. An experience is exciting for weeks beforehand, then on the day, then every time it comes up afterwards. The anticipation is half the present.

They do not add to the pile. Every parent of young children already knows this one.

They are easier to get right. Guessing which toy a nine year old wants this year is a gamble. Knowing they love animals, or speed, or being outside, is not.

Annual family memberships

The best value experience gift in Atlanta, and the one grandparents are most often grateful to be pointed towards.

Zoo Atlanta, the Georgia Aquarium, Fernbank, the Children's Museum of Atlanta and the Atlanta Botanical Garden all sell annual family memberships. One present that turns into a dozen trips across the year, and it quietly solves a lot of rainy Saturdays for the parents as well.

Match it to the child. Animal obsessives get the zoo or the aquarium. Dinosaur children get Fernbank. Under sevens get the most out of the Children's Museum. The Botanical Garden membership has the bonus of covering the holiday lights the following December.

Lessons and first times

A first experience of something is a particularly good present because it comes with a story attached.

Learn to skate is the obvious winter one. The permanent indoor rinks, including Atlanta Ice House in Marietta and Center Ice Arena in Sandy Springs, run year round rather than just in December, so a block of lessons can start in January when the excitement of Christmas has worn off and something new is welcome. Ask the rink what they offer by age.

Climbing, riding and swimming lessons all work the same way. The present is not really the lessons. It is the moment six weeks later when they can do the thing they could not do before.

A planned day out

Tickets on their own are fine. Tickets with a plan are a present.

Put the whole day together: where you are going, what you are doing, where you are having lunch, and who is coming. Then give the plan. For a train-mad child, the Southern Museum in Kennesaw with the locomotive from the Great Locomotive Chase. For a speed-mad one, an afternoon of indoor karting at Andretti in Marietta. For a seasonal one, an evening at the Garden Lights or a morning snow tubing.

We keep a longer list of ideas that work across the season in our guide to winter break activities in Atlanta.

The best planned days include the giver. A day out with a grandparent is a different and better present than a voucher from a grandparent.

Camp days, from the grandparents

This one needs a slightly longer explanation, because it is a present for two people at once.

Grandparents often want to help with the school breaks and live too far away to do it in person. Metro Atlanta has two winter breaks, and the February one in particular lands in the middle of a working term with nothing seasonal attached to it. It is the week families find hardest to cover.

A few days of camp in February is a present the child gets to enjoy and the parents are quietly grateful for. It turns the grandparents into the people who gave them the muddy week outside, rather than the people who gave them another thing to find space for.

If that appeals, our winter break camp runs during both winter closures, and the case for why winter is a genuinely good season to be outdoors in Georgia is in our piece on the best season for outdoor camp. Get in touch and we will talk you through gifting a session.

How to wrap something you cannot hold

The real weakness of an experience gift is the moment of opening it. An envelope on Christmas morning, next to a sibling unwrapping something large, can feel thin to a six year old.

The fix is to give them something to hold that points at the experience.

A small related object. A cuddly penguin for the aquarium. A toy train for the Southern Museum. A pair of skating gloves for the lessons. A water bottle and a torch for camp.

A printed ticket or plan they can keep. Make it look like a real ticket with the date on it. Children like pinning it to the wall and counting down.

A countdown. For anything more than a few weeks away, a paper chain with one link per week turns the waiting into part of the present.

A note for grandparents

If you are the one being asked what to buy, it is worth asking the parents one direct question before you decide: what would actually help?

Sometimes the answer is a toy, and that is fine. Quite often the answer is a membership they would never buy themselves, or a few days of cover in a week they are dreading. Parents are frequently reluctant to suggest the second one, because it can feel like asking for a favour rather than a present. It is very often the most appreciated thing under the tree.

Something they will talk about

The toys will be forgotten, and that is fine, it is what toys are for. But most adults can remember a day out from when they were seven far more clearly than anything they unwrapped that year.

If you would like to talk about gifting camp days for the February break, drop us a note at Hey@JoshPowellCamp.com or call (678) 369-0780. We pick up the phone.

Frequently Asked Questions

• What is a good experience gift for a five year old?

  Short, sensory and close to home. At five, a whole day out can be too long, so a membership to somewhere they can visit for a couple of hours at a time, such as the Children's Museum of Atlanta or the zoo, usually works better than a single big trip. Pair it with a small toy connected to the place so there is something to open on the day.

• Are experience gifts better than toys?

  Not always, and they do not have to replace them entirely. Many families settle on one main toy and one experience, which gives the child something to open and play with on the day and something to look forward to afterwards. Experiences tend to win on memory and on clutter. Toys tend to win on the moment of unwrapping.

• How do I give an experience gift to a grandchild who lives far away?

  Book something local to them and give the plan, or pay for something the parents would otherwise have to fund, such as a membership, lessons or days of camp during a school break. Ask the parents first so it fits their calendar. A short video call on the day of the experience, or photos afterwards, closes the loop and gives you a share in it.

• When should I book an experience gift for Christmas?

  Buy before Christmas, but schedule after it where possible. Memberships and lessons can start in January, which spreads the excitement out and gives children something to look forward to once the holidays are over. For anything tied to December itself, such as the light displays, book several weeks ahead because the popular slots go early.

• What are good experience gifts for kids aged 8 to 10?

  Something with a skill or a challenge in it. By eight, most children want to get better at something rather than just see it, so a block of lessons, such as learn to skate at one of the year-round indoor rinks, or climbing or riding lessons, tends to land better than a single visit. Speed and independence also go down well: an afternoon of indoor karting, or a day out they help plan themselves. Check age and height requirements before booking anything with rides or karts, since those vary by venue.