How to Give the Gift of Adventure

 

Giving someone the gift of travel, helping them check off an incredible bucket-list experience, means presenting something more long-lasting than the latest iPhone or trendy footwear. What you’re really giving is memories to last a lifetime. In recent years, we are seeing more value placed on experiences over material possessions, with more people taking big trips than ever before. Gifting travel or travel perks fits nicely in this mindset, but with a gift so potentially emotional and hard to return, it’s important to really know your recipient well and do your research.

 

Once you’ve decided that someone in your life will benefit from the gift of travel, here’s how to do it well:

 

 

Get input from the giftee.

 

It’s best to start by gathering some intel from your gift recipient – either with their knowledge or by asking a third party. Maybe they’ve already told you about an upcoming trip and you want to gift them an activity or service to make it more special. If you really want to gift a whole trip, then we recommend letting the recipient be a part of the travel plans (for one, it’s fun to dream up a trip!) – then work with a travel specialist who knows your budget and can help make sure both sides are on the same page – with no hurt feelings.

 

 

 

Consult a travel specialist about your budget.

 

Tying into the point above, a travel specialist can be very beneficial in planning a trip when there’s more than one voice involved. When you aim to set a budget for your gift, a travel specialist has plenty of experience crafting a trip that meets your vision and stays within budget. They can also tell you if your target for a budget is in tune with the idea you have. Travel specialists can steer you to the right dates for your trip and the best places to stay and know some tricks to help the budget where necessary. Not to mention making sure the transportation and sightseeing fit into the right places for the smoothest trip possible! Having a travel professional in the picture also takes the pressure off you to personally collect all the small details required when putting together a travel plan.

 

 

At CTCAdventures, we organize all the details, as well as provide you with a Custom Travel Plan you can share with the giftee. One idea is to contact us for an initial itinerary and quote that matches your budget, which you can present as a gift. Then, we can work with the gift recipient to further customize the trip according to their specific preferences, all the while sticking to the budget you’ve set.

 

 

 

 

 

Gift unforgettable experiences.

 

Gifting a once-in-a-lifetime experience is a sure way to have a gift-giving win this holiday season. This is where knowing your loved ones really comes into play, since an unforgettable experience doesn’t look the same for everyone. At the same time, gifting a fun and “local” activity can uncover a new passion your recipient didn’t even know was there. Examples of exceptional trip add-ons could include: a cooking lesson, concert or theatre tickets, day trip on a yacht, luxury spa or hamam package, unique day excursions, jeep adventure tour, guided hiking trek, food tasting tour or photography walk with an expert. If you book a special experience to start off or wrap up someone’s trip, it’s even more likely to add a special moment to their vacation that will always be remembered.

 

 

 

 

Use reward points toward someone else's flight.

 

If you’re not already, you may want to sign up for a loyalty program with an airline or credit card company. Most often, credit card points can be converted to airline miles and then transferred to someone within the same loyalty program. One way to avoid potential reward transfer fees is to simply book your intended giftee’s travel arrangements for them. First, you can let them know that you’re going to cover their flight – perhaps with a festive handmade card. Then, once they’ve decided their travel plans, you can book their travel through your credit card’s reward redemption program and pay with your accumulated rewards.

 

What better gift-giving scenario could there be than handing your loved ones flight tickets for the trip of a lifetime, then leaving it to us to customize a trip they’ll love?!