
When it comes to finding gifts for the adventurous, traditional trinkets fall short. That’s why we compiled gift ideas that’ll help you find the perfect experience for anyone—even the loved one for whom opening presents is just a delay to the rest of the day’s activities. Adventure doesn’t always come cheap, though, considering it takes a sherpa and $10,000 to climb Mount Everest. Not all of us have K2 money lying around, so you can pull off most of the items on our budget gift guide for under $100.

Sometimes going out for another dinner can be a real drag. Nobody wants to admit it, but the whole time you’re both just kind of thinking, “Why aren’t we making glass doodads or learning to create a culinary masterpiece together?” We’ve got you covered. Glassblowing classes at Green Devil Glass Studio or cooking classes at the world-renowned Le Cordon Bleu help couples bust out of the restaurant rut and rekindle that old flame—in this case over an actual open flame.
Gift Ideas for Thrill-Seekers
There’s nothing more mind-numbingly boring to your average thrill-seeker than having to unwrap a gift. Untying a bow is no way to get their adrenaline pumping. Instead, give them the gift of flight with hang-gliding lessons from Fly Texas or let them channel their inner Kit Cloudkicker with lessons from Third Coast Kite Surfing. And if you just can’t decide, blend the best of both worlds with Flyboarding, which basically entails strapping into a water-powered jetpack and careening all over the place. Austin Lake Fun is just one vendor of the ultra-modern water sport. (Be sure to have your giftee read through our beginner’s guide to the sport first!)
What tiny person wouldn’t jump at the chance to sleep with sharks? The Austin Aquarium lets folks pack up their sleeping bags and spend the night, getting a behind-the-scenes look at feeding routines and the nighttime habits of octopi and sharks. In the morning, kids get to feed the birds and enjoy a tank-side breakfast.
Older kids might enjoy learning how to mix and sample beats during one of Dub Academy’s DJ classes. For more cerebral tweens, outsmarting the adult escape-room designers at Maze Rooms can be a real confidence-boosting challenge.
Gift Ideas for Parents
If there’s one thing parents love, it’s a three-way tie between spending time with their kids, unabashedly begging for grandkids, and tearing up the asphalt in a Lamborghini LP560. At Xtreme Xperience, the folks will lose their bongos as they either white-knuckle it from the passenger seat of a high-octane speedster or take the wheel themselves.
If your parents are the type to enjoy a more relaxing adventure, they might like taking in the natural beauty of the San Marcos Springs aboard an adorably quaint glass-bottom boat launched from The Meadows Center. And folks who would just as soon forget the Alamo as mess with Texas will love the Frontier Times Museum, a celebration of frontier and cowboy culture.
The foodie in your life may turn up their cultured nose at your garden-variety wine tasting. But how about a small-batch, handmade moonshine tasting? Crystal Creek Moonshine infuses their spirits with everything from poblano peppers to serrano cucumber. And best of all, a portion of the profits go toward helping underserved communities get access to clean drinking water.
