Staff-picks September 3 2021

8 Gift Ideas for Older Parents

8 Gift Ideas for Older Parents

As an adult, thinking up gift ideas for older parents can prove to be much more difficult than years ago when we were all kids and a messy crayon-filled card and an enthusiastic hug could suffice.

If you've stumbled across this blog, you are probably stuck wondering what to get for elderly parents who have everything they could ever need?

Why not gift Mum and Dad something outside of the box this year with an extraordinary experience gift from Gifting Owl. With so many experiences in life left unexplored, there are tons of unique gifts for parents available online that elderly parents are bound to love and enjoy.

No matter your parents age or ability, there is a plethora of suitable new family experiences awaiting Mum and Dad just a few mere clicks away online.

What better way to show your appreciation than sending your dad on a wine tour or taking mum on an exotic cruise around the world?

For those not sure where or how to start, keep reading - this blog post will provide some great gift ideas that your parents might just love! Get your elderly parents a gift that reminds them that it's never too late in life to try their hand at something they’ve never done before!

Here at Gifting Owl we believe the best gift ideas are thoughtful experience gifts that can be shared with your family and loved ones. Save yourself some ‘parent gift’ search time and aspire to create exciting memories this year with an online gift from our site.

Below is a helpful list of suggestions for parents bound to save you from your creative rut with gift ideas older parents will love for the rest of their life. We've even included many gift ideas that may just be perfect for the grandparents in the family or other older parents and loved ones.

1. Cultural Tours

People of all ages love cultural tours and they are some of our favourite gift ideas for older parents and grandparents in the family.

In addition to being fascinating in their own right, they are a wonderful gift for parents that introduces new information about the world that your parents may not have been exposed to before.

If your parents love travelling and experiencing different cultures then they might love the opportunity to travel vicariously through someone else's eyes by going on a cultural tour of their favourite destination with the aid of an enthusiastic local.

Fortunately, Gifting Owl boasts an abundance of dynamic cultural gifts for parents, from an incredible Pamagirri Aboriginal experience gift in Australia’s Rainforestation Nature Park to a European History Tour of Czech Republic’s fascinating capital city, Prague.

The online gift of a cultural tour is a great way to make family experiences more personal and adventurous, and there is one for every type of older parent out there.

Cultural experiences could also be very thoughtful gifts for older parents who have everything, because they can be custom made specifically to the interests that your parents love.

2. Vineyard Tours

If your parents are wine lovers, then they just might also love the gift idea of going on a vineyard tour. With Gifting Owl offering many fun wine experience gifts for parents online, spanning from France to New Zealand, many self-proclaimed wine connoisseur parents will be simply spoilt for choice. The hard part will be finding the very best gift ideas out of the lot!

It's not too difficult to imagine your older parents in a beautiful vineyard setting, with rows of grape vines as far as the eye can see, enjoying some of the finest wine on earth.

These locations prove to be cool gift ideas for parents often providing extraordinary relaxing environments, complete with custom made tasting rooms, cool outdoor seating and stunning scenery that parents will love.

Here your parents will love the guided tour of rows of grape vines by an expert who will explain all about what goes into making different types of wine - from vintage year selection and the fermentation process to oak ageing techniques.

For parents who are just too far away from any wine regions, Gifting Owl also boasts many delightful wine tasting gifts for parents who have everything at some exquisite venues that make for the best gift ideas to share with elderly friends and family - especially if the grandparents love wine just as much as their kids!

3. Brewery Tours

Alternatively if you’re buying for the zythophile, or rather, someone for a deep love for beer, in your life, a brewery tour is definitely the perfect gift.

A fun visit to a local brewery is a great way for Dad to witness the whole process of the making of his favourite drink as he samples some delicious craft brews!

With fantastic locations such as Munich, Dallas, Melbourne and Amsterdam all proving to be loyal devotees to the art of brewing, even a wine mum can't turn down these lovely opportunities to enjoy a cold one with dad. 

4. Hot Air Ballooning

What gift is more memorable than the gift of flight? It's a fun experience gift that will excite older parents, no matter what they love to do. Hot air ballooning allows older parents to sit back and relax as they soar through the sky to new heights, never before seen.

Mum and Dad will love the views from up above as well as the fantastic family photos acting as another present!

This gift is one that can be enjoyed by parents of any age or fitness level, as long as your parents don’t have a crippling fear of heights!

This rare blend of relaxation and thrill is also the best gift idea for the rest of the family and other elderly parents to tag along! 

5. Spa Day

Having a spa day is a smart way for parents to relax, unwind and rejuvenate. Here your parents will be able to take their mind off of any stresses they may have at the house or at work and instead focus on themselves for an hour or two.

As busy parents, this is the ideal place to spend some much needed time with yourself.

These are luxurious gifts for parents who have everything and come in many different forms to ensure that there is an gift out there for every type of parent - think; massages, mud baths, steam rooms, saunas and more!

A spa gift will present parents (especially mum) with an opportunity for relaxation in an environment that has been custom designed specifically for them by the experts.

Remind mum and dad of the importance of relaxation and rest with some of these truly therapeutic treatments that many parents need for their body, soul and mind. 

These could also be the best gift ideas for older grandparents in need of some serious R&R.

6. Whale Watching

There's nothing quite like witnessing these magnificent creatures from the safety of a boat. Whale watching gifts for older parents are simply mesmerising for parents who have never seen one up close before - no wifi needed!

When your parents have been on this planet for a few decades, the experiences that mum and dad have had can often start to seem a bit routine. Get your parents out of the house and gift them a completely new family experience that will stay in their memory forever.

Whale watching gifts for older parents present an exciting opportunity for parents and the rest of the family to see these magnificent smart mammals in their natural habitat and a chance to learn more about marine life from those who know it best.

Gifting Owl offers a large range of these marvellous whale watching gifts for parents in Australia as well as other cool destinations including France, Portugal, Iceland and the USA. 

7. Cooking Classes

For parents of a certain age, cooking classes may seem like an unusual gift to give. However, they can be just as fun, if not more, for older people as well!

Cooking gifts offer parents the opportunity to learn new skills and experiences while being in a fun environment; it's about more than just learning how to cook (although there is that too!).

A gift like this allows parents to step away from their usual routine for a second to spice things up (no pun intended!).

It may also put the fun back into cooking after so many years of it - as mum or dad may come away with some top secret tips that they'll love and the kids can now cook smart for the family!

Despite being one of the more out of the box gift ideas for parents who already have everything, it's one of the best gifts for those parents and grandparents who already love every time they cook in their house.

And of course the gift of a cooking class obviously includes your older parents devouring their lovely culinary creations with all the clean up work left for someone else to do for once! Pretty cool!

8. Hiking

If your mum or dad are outdoor enthusiasts, or simply up for the challenge, consider the gift idea of a wonderful scenic hike.

Hikes can be as difficult or easy as you want them to be, so don't worry if your older parents are not up for anything too difficult but still looking for a bit of an outdoorsy gift for parents.

The gift of a day out hiking offers your parents the chance to get outside and experience nature in their own way. Take mum and dad away from their usual week at the house and place your elderly parents in a new environment sprawling with picturesque flora and fauna.

Depending on the ability of your grandparents, things like hiking also makes for a thoughtful gift idea for a group of loved ones, family and other parents.

What's more? If they really love it, it's definitely one of the best gifts for them, as your older parents would be able to revisit over and over again. Hiking offers your elderly parents the gift of seeing new things and (hopefully) making some fun memories and awesome photos in the process! 

Good Luck!

At the end of the day we all want to show just how much we appreciate our elderly parents who already have everything with a gift idea that they will truly love.

If you are trying to find the best gifts for your family, consider thoughtful gift ideas for older parents that differ from what your mum and dad are used to doing yet a gift idea that any parent would still love to do.

Not all gifts need to come in a box as these experience gifts often help older parents and even elderly grandparents feel reinvigorated and rejuvenated while providing some much-needed quality time together as a family.

It's always a gift to yourself every time you can give your parents a new experience that they will love.

Even if your elderly parents are now grandparents, there are still a plethora of exciting gift ideas for parents and fantastic locations that can make for a perfect gift and could get them (and the kids!) out of the house.

We hope our list of custom gift ideas for older parents has helped inspire you to treat your parents with a lovely family gift that will live on in their memory forever.

Many of these great gift ideas could also apply to older grandparents so you can gift all the older people in your family and other elderly loved ones with the perfect gift.

With so many gifts available online with zero delivery waiting time, you have no excuses not to treat mum, dad and the grandparents to a great gift that any parent could truly appreciate as a memory for the rest of their life!

Happy Gifting!

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