For parents, grandparents, friends, and family members looking to give meaningful gifts this holiday season, we’ve put together a list of 10+ local experience gifts that go beyond the usual toys and trinkets.

Whether you’re purchasing a gift card or booking an entire experience, these ideas make it easy to surprise your loved ones with something fun, thoughtful, and unforgettable. From creative classes to hands-on adventures, these gifts are designed to create lasting memories instead of add to the clutter.

Experience gifts are a win-win:
✔️ You support small, local businesses
✔️ Your loved ones enjoy quality time and new adventures
✔️ No batteries, no assembly, no mess

So if you’re ready to give memories instead of more stuff, dive into our guide for quick links and inspiration for all ages. Trust us — these are the gifts people will talk about long after the wrapping paper is gone. 😊

Gift the best art classes in Summerville for kids of all ages including baby sensory and parent & me classes! Classes include a variety of art skills, music, dance, and play. A structured way to bond with your toddler and cultivate their creativity and social skills, with someone else doing the prep and clean up!

For older kids who love art, PAC offers a variety of classes like pottery, painting with wool, clay working, and many more throughout the year.

Buy sessions of roasting marshmallows with goats, goat yoga, snuggle sessions, and more for your animal loving kids. The farm has a tortoise, goats, highland cows, dogs, cats, chicken, bunnies, and more.

Nailed It DIY Studio is a creative workshop in Summerville where guests can build and customize their own wood and home décor projects. With guided instruction and a variety of design options, it’s a fun, hands-on experience for people of all skill levels looking to create unique, personalized pieces.

Pepper Jack Pottery is a paint-your-own-pottery studio that is very welcoming for kids and teens. They have over 300 pieces of pottery to choose from with many special kid’s events and classes monthly.

Charleston Fossil Adventures offers guided fossil-hunting tours around the Charleston area, where participants can discover shark teeth, whale bones, and other ancient treasures. Led by professional paleontologists, these hands-on excursions are ideal for fossil enthusiasts of all ages who want to explore the region’s rich prehistoric past.

High Points Kayaking provides guided kayaking tours through the scenic waterways of the Lowcountry, offering an up-close view of local wildlife and coastal landscapes and also offers shark teeth hunting excursions. Their are tours suitable for all age and experience levels.

Gift a day of fun to your kids with options for bowling, arcade games, laser tag, bumper cars, escape rooms and more at Summerville’s own Stars and Strikes.

Bee City Zoo in Cottageville, SC, is a family-friendly zoo and honeybee farm where visitors can interact with a variety of animals. A zoo visit has many opportunities to interact with and feed monkeys, lemurs, kangaroos, birds, alpacas, giraffes, and many more. Over the holidays they have an amazing festival of lights in the evenings.

Oh My! Creative is a new party store/crafting studio in Nexton. They have a variety of fun and unique crafting classes each month like themed holiday crafts, story times with crafts, sewing, open crafting sessions, and more.

Others options that parents love in the CHS area include gift cards to Top Golf, Urban Air, Adrenaline Monkey, SC Aquarium, Door Dash, or the movies. Click each name to purchase gift cards to those local locations.