Today’s best gift ideas often focus on experiences over things. From travel adventures to craft kits, experiences can be gifts that help counter materialism, create lasting memories, and eliminate unnecessary clutter. For a foodie, there are many different experience gift options that will show your love and delight the recipient with your thoughtfulness.

Home Brewing

A delicious adventure in chemistry, home brewing kits are a great gift for beer connoisseurs who are picky about their brews or who enjoy trying new things. Learning to homebrew is a challenging and interesting process that could become a long-lasting hobby. With many different kits available for all kinds of brews and different skill levels, you will surely find something that your foodie will love.

Artisan Bread Kit

If you have a food lover who also likes trying new things, experimenting in the kitchen, and creating delightful masterpieces, consider buying an artisan bread kit. You can get kits complete with recipes and how-to guides, proofing bowls, tools, and even special flours. These kits are usually made with high-quality materials and are designed to last for years. The best part? You might get to help taste-test the results!

Dinner Sail

There’s nothing like a romantic dinner with that special someone. Candlelight, a fancy setting, and live music set the mood. Even better than an ordinary romantic dinner is that same experience served on a dinner cruise. Whether you choose a sunset sailing cruise along the coast, a dolphin sighting trip on the ocean, or a paddleboat trip down a river, your favorite foodie will love every minute of this experience.

Mushroom Log

A mushroom log is a gift that keeps on giving. Gourmet mushrooms are a healthy and flavorful treat for any foodie, but they can be expensive and hard to find in some areas. Problem solved: a mushroom log. These logs come pre-inoculated with mushroom spores. You can either get a small log that is ready to go or plugs that can be inserted into a log they already have. Either option is a good option, and both have advantages and disadvantages. Many of these logs take a while to begin fruiting but once they do, they can produce mushrooms for several years.

Food Subscription

Any foodie would enjoy a food-based subscription box. There’s nothing more fun than receiving a surprise package each month! The subscription services can range from gourmet products like cheese samplers to culture or theme-based boxes. You can get a subscription that sends you a variety of foods from a new country each month for a travel-based experience, or a different dessert baking kit each month. You can even get popcorn, chocolate, or coffee-focused boxes. There is a subscription box for everyone!

Pastry Baking Class

If your food-loving person is especially fond of desserts, a pastry baking class might be a fun experienced-based gift for them. As an added bonus, you might be asked to help sample the products of their new knowledge! Pastry baking classes can vary from a one-time pie baking class at your local bakery to a semester-long session from a community college that comes with a certificate at the end of the experience. No matter whether you choose a basic class or advanced french pastry lessons, your foodie will have a great time and come away with a wealth of delicious baking knowledge.

Food-Based Escape Room

Escape rooms have become a favorite activity for groups of friends to do together. These theme-based puzzle rooms involve using logic, problem-solving, and other skills to find clues, put them together, and escape from a room. Dinner-based escape rooms are similar, but you and your friends also eat a delicious meal that goes along with the theme. It’s a great gift for any foodie or adventurous group of friends!

Farm or Vinyard Tour

Agritourism is an industry focused on combining travel with agriculture and increasing people’s knowledge and understanding of their food, where it comes from, and what it takes to produce it. With a farm tour, you can gift your foodie with an experience like no other. On a tour, you are likely to visit various areas of a farm, see how food is produced, and help with certain aspects of the production. Then you will be given samples or sit down to a farm-focused meal, depending on the tour you have booked. Some tours visit several farms in one day. You can find tours focusing on a variety of products from cheeses to wine to apple products, and anything else you can imagine.

Sip and Paint Class

Sip and paint classes are fun sessions that bring family and friends together to paint a fun (and easy!) picture together while sipping good wine and sampling appetizers or desserts. No artistic experience is needed, and everyone walks away with a new painting, new knowledge, and that great feeling of having let go and had fun. Creative expression is encouraged, and the tutorials are simple enough that everyone is successful. Make sure you book a class that includes drinks and appetizers for a complete evening event!

City Food Tour

A food tour of a city can be a delightful experience for anyone, but it’s especially appealing to a food lover. A city tour allows the recipient to taste the best of the city’s culinary options while exploring more of the area, learning about the history and culture of the town, and enjoying time with friends or family. Whether it’s a tour of your foodie’s own city, part of a vacation destination, or a nearby city that is new to them, a city food tour is sure to open their mind to new culinary possibilities in the area.