Lift the Gift by Giving Experiences this Season also
Experiences with friends and family are another option for gift giving this holiday season
ONE OF the best parts of the holiday season is watching friends and family open presents you know they’ll love. In that moment, all the stress of running out to stores and searching for the perfect gift melts away into pure holiday cheer for both the gift giver and receiver.
It’s a lovely tradition filled with thoughtfulness and cheer, but after buying gifts year after year it can be hard to find something new or useful to give. This struggle gave rise to a new type of present — gifting “experiences.” Providing the opportunity with tickets or a gift card to try something new or taking the financial burden off an adored hobby can be a thoughtful gift.
The good news is, the wide variety of experiences offered in and around Ocean City allow for endless present possibilities, making it easy to find one that best fits the interests of your loved one.
Tickets or gift cards to a local cinema are perfect experiences for the movie fanatics in your life. With frigid winter temperatures and rainy spring days ahead, indoor-only activities become popular entertainment options, making the movie theater a perfect destination. With exciting new films in varied genres for all ages, there are plenty of viewing options regardless of individual tastes. A gift card from Town Square Entertainment is a great option for this, as it can be used not just at Moorlyn Square Theater in Ocean City but also at four other locations along the shore, including in nearby Stone Harbor and Rio Grande. Make it a date or girls night out by adding a gift card to a local restaurant for a little extra flair.
Add an element of hometown flavor with a live performance. As an early Christmas present, consider tickets to the Greater Ocean City Theatre Company performance of Anastasia Youth Edition on December 14 or 15, featuring students in third to eighth grade. Nearby Atlantic City also offers a plethora of performances from comedy to concerts and beyond, including 2025 stops by the Harlem Globetrotters, Martin Lawrence and Atlantic City Ballet’s Cinderella.
For truly impactful gift experiences, consider an animal “adoption” from the nearby Cape May County Zoo. With a donate-what-you-want admission policy, this zoo relies heavily on monetary gifts to support its animals, operations and staff. These adoption kits come with an official adoption certificate, a photo and fact sheet of your animal, and for an upgrade fee you can even add a plush animal. Potential adoptees include Mork the Otter, Bataar the Snow Leopard, Capychino the Capybara, Lex the lion, Beau the Giraffe, Gracie the Zebra, Cocoa the Toucan, Nugget the Bison or the newly arrived Aurora the Red Panda. While these animals won’t exactly be coming through the door, rest assured your gift will have a big impact on the care and conservation of some of the world’s most interesting animals.
To really knock it out of the park, pair these gifts with the experiences of meeting these animals at the zoo! While many of the adoptees can only be seen through a regular park visit, the zoo offers giraffe and capybara — alongside tortoise and camel — encounters, allowing visitors to get up close and personal with animals. The zoo also offers private guided tours for up to eight people. Explore the zoo before opening hours, with knowledgeable zoo staff ready and eager to teach you all about the zoo’s various species — perfect for those who love to learn!
These ideas are only the tip of the iceberg, as Ocean City offers so many more wonderful possibilities. Give them time to relax and recover with a membership to one of Ocean City’s many yoga studios like the Ocean City Aquatic and Fitness Center and Local Fitness and Gym. Let them run wild and explore the stores along downtown Asbury Avenue with a shopping spree. Feel free to get creative with it. After all, gift exchanges should be fun!
In the end, the best gift you can give to those around you is kindness. The holiday season can be stressful and some folks have more cheer than others; you never know what someone is going through. Treating loved ones, neighbors and even strangers with compassion and patience is not only completely free, but can also bring some much needed goodwill and warmth into this cold season.
The experiences of volunteering
If you’re one of those people for whom giving is the ultimate gift, consider allowing yourself the experience of helping others by volunteering with or donating to organizations aimed at supporting your local communities.
The Ocean City Ecumenical Council’s Clothes Closet and Food Cupboard work to help clothe and feed Ocean City residents in need, and they can always use your donations of non-perishable food and new or lightly worn, clean clothing.
Connect with the Cape May County Toys for Tots chapter (cape-may-nj.toysfortots.org) to learn more about opportunities to volunteer, or drop off an unwrapped toy at one of several locations around Ocean City, such as the Ocean City Free Public Library and American Legion Post 524.
You can also support the arts and volunteer as an usher or stage crew member with the Greater Ocean City Theatre Company, or make a donation to the Ocean City Arts Center or Fine Arts League. Help furry friends at the Humane Society of Ocean City, Mew to You downtown or Beacon Animal Rescue in Upper Township.