17 Top Experience Gifts in NYC for 2025

Looking for the perfect experience gift in NYC? The Big Apple is a city brimming with diverse activities, curiosities and opportunities for adventure. Amongst it all, there's an experience gift that will fit your loved one like a glove. We're here to help you find it.

New York changes by the week, which is part of the fun. For a sense of the city’s nonstop calendar, the official NYC Parks events page regularly lists concerts, community gatherings and seasonal festivals across all five boroughs. It's a handy reminder of all that can be gained from time well spent, rather than more stuff.

For those of you wondering what to buy someone who lives in New York City, we’ve rounded up a few favorite experience gifts in NYC that will offer something new to even the most seasoned New Yorkers. Strap in as we explore experiences they will never forget. 

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• Foodie Experience Gifts in NYC
• Creative Experience Gifts in NYC
• Unique Experience Gifts in NYC
• Luxury Experience Gifts in NYC
• Best Experience Gifts in NYC for Him
• Best Experience Gifts in NYC for Her

Foodie Experience Gifts in NYC

1. Cooking Classes

One of the best experience gifts in NYC for foodies is to enroll the giftee in a cooking class. Led by professional chefs, cooking classes in NYC are an excellent gift for the experienced chef or kitchen novice alike, offering a chance to learn everything from handmade pasta-making to sushi rolling. If they're new to the city, book them into a pizza-making class where they can learn to cook a NYC slice to perfection. If you're unsure which class they'll want to take, consider getting them foodie gift cards so that they can make a choice. This

2. Brewery and Distillery Tours

Winery and brewery tours throughout the city are a chance to taste new beverages and rediscover old favorites. Whether they're idea of a fun afternoon is sampling local whiskey cocktails or learning about brewing, many distilleries and breweries in NYC offer educational and social events with plenty of tasters to go around.

The century-old brick setting at Kings County Distillery adds a heritage feel to this cool experience gift in NYC. Or, for the more beer-focused, book them in for an afternoon at Brooklyn Brewery.

3. Neighborhood Food Tour

New York is a city of distinctive boroughs, each with their own flavor and culinary favorites available at neighborhood eateries. It can be hard to get a handle on the sprawling geography of tasty options, but this fun experience gift in NYC makes it easy. Foods of NY Tours covers the classics — bagels, top restaurants in Little Italy, old-school counters — so the recipient gets a reliable short list that they'll come back to time and time again.

Creative Experience Gifts in NYC

4. Artistic Workshops

New York City can be a hectic place to live or visit. Art classes in NYC are a calm and cool experience gift in NYC, akin to an oasis. Your lucky giftee will explore their own creative impulses and learn valuable new skills. Abstract painting ideas, how to draw for beginners, even pottery for beginners, workshops are available to meet the full range of their curiosity.

Explore the full range of options, including photography lessons, candle-making classes and pottery workshops and book something to start the ball rolling. It'll be the start of a creative hobby that will flourish in the relentless creative surroundings of NYC. Classes make great gifts for artists and educational gifts for crafters.

5. Paint and Sips

A slightly more casual take on an art class, paint and sips in NYC combine the same creative experience with the social boost of cocktails and wine. They'll get a little tipsy and meet you people, all while working on their very own masterpiece. These experiences to gift in NYC are great for group outings and for a fun date idea in NYC.

If you’re unsure which paint and sip would appeal to your giftee, try an experience gift card, which allows you to choose from a variety of experiences, including paint and sips and traditional art classes.

6. Dance Classes

Dance classes are a great way to learn new steps and move your body. Whether they have a fascination with ballet, jazz, ballroom or hip hop dancing, dance classes in NYC are a great experience gift in NYC.

They'll learn from professional dancers who will take them through the choreographic process and teach them the steps until they're ready to put on a show. Dance classes are one of the experiences in NYC for beginners or more seasoned dancers alike.

Unique Experience Gifts in NYC

7. Ghost Tours

For the more adventurous, ghost and haunted history tours make a unique experience gift in NYC. History is easier to remember when a guide points to the exact doorway and tells you why it matters. Boroughs of the Dead mixes folklore with verified stories for a truly haunting adventure. Exploring the city through its more supernatural hotspots brings new life to the bustling city streets that even the most seasoned New Yorker will appreciate.

8. Escape Room or Murder Mysteries

Escape rooms and murder mysteries put their problem-solving skills to the test. They're fun, active experience gifts in NYC that challenge them to work with others to solve puzzles, games and mysterious plotlines. Mission Escape Games NYC keeps rooms tight and engaging, which makes this a solid pick for friend groups that want something active without a long time commitment.

The best escape rooms in NYC are great at any time of the year, but they're especially fun indoor activities in NYC in the winter months for getting out of the cold.

9. Museum Membership or Passes

New York is home to some of the most exciting museums and cultural institutions in the world, all of which offer daily passes or memberships that grant access to some of the most important cultures in the Western world. Whether your recipient loves art, natural history or architecture,  gift passes or membership to places like The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the American Museum of Natural History or The Skyscraper Museum.

For a budget-friendly alternative gift experience in NYC, you can also arrange a visit to one of many NYC art galleries, many of which have free admission. And speaking of admission, if the giftee is a digital nomad visiting New York, you could consider getting them a hot desk at one of these coworking spaces in NYC.

Luxury Experience Gifts in NYC

10. The Gift of Flight

New York is beautiful from the ground, but it really starts to take shape from the sky. Whether it's flying lessons for small aircraft, helicopter tours or hot air balloon rides, you can give a bird's eye view of the city in all its glory, an unforgettable experience in NYC to gift anyone you love. 

11. Adventures on Water

An outing on the water is a perfect luxury experience gift in NYC for both residents and visitors. Book them into an architectural tour or a dinner cruise at sunset around Manhattan. You can also charter yachts and smaller boat rentals to explore the region. A dinner cruise is a special treat for any important birthday dinner in NYC. 

Best Experience Gifts in NYC for Him

12. Sports Tickets

NYC is home to The Mecca, so this list wouldn't be complete without including a trip to Madison Square Garden. Score genuine tickets to a Knicks game on Ticketmaster’s Knicks page. If they're not a basketball fan, don't sweat it. With the Giants and Rangers in town, there is no shortage of gift experiences in NYC for sports fanatics.

13. Adventure Activities

For the most adventurous giftees, try sending them off for exciting and pulse-racing activities like hang gliding, parasailing, ziplining or bungee jumping, all of which are available in the city and environs. Adrenaline-rushing events make a great experience gift in NYC for him.

14. Personal Style Consultation

While many men are not quite sure where to start when it comes to developing a personal style, scheduling a consultation at their favorite department store may be a great way to kickstart a life of fashion. Bloomingdale’s 59th Street Personal Stylists leave no stone unturned, building outfits that match real life as well as those special moments

Best Experience Gifts in NYC for Her

15. Spa Day

Everyone loves a spa day, particularly during hectic times like the holidays. AIRE Ancient Baths New York stacks contrast therapy in one address — salt float, warm pools, cold plunges, as well as optional deep-tissue add-ons. This is a relaxing experience to gift in NYC that goes far beyond candle-making and DIY bath bombs. Spa days also make a great NYC birthday experience or a staycation in NYC idea.

16. Afternoon Tea

While the British love to claim the rights to the best high teas, New York does a good job of stoking the rivalry, with a number of exquisite eateries in the city offering high tea services. The Palm Court at The Plaza nails the ceremony while still leaving room for fun. It's an experience in NYC to gift for major milestones and visiting grandparents alike. 

17. Mystical Readings

Whether you believe in charting the stars, fortune-telling or other varieties of mystical engagement or not, this is a fun experience gift in New York that offers a new perspective. Namaste Bookshop near Union Square offers tarot, astrology, and Reiki with practitioners who focus more on reflection than theater. It’s a good fit for grads, career shifters, or anyone who enjoys a new lens on familiar questions.

Whether you are gifting an experience to a NYC resident or looking for the perfect welcome or goodbye gift for visitors, NYC has a wealth of great educational, cultural, and leisure experiences to choose from. Some of the best New York gifts are ones that can be shared with the recipient for a memorable experience.

For even more fun activities in NYC for adults, check out other experiences happening on Classpop!