The Holiday season is full of merriment, craziness, a little stress, and hopefully some well-deserved relaxation. As you sift through Amazon, Etsy, and other retailers to snag great gifts, we want to help! This list provides the perfect gift inspiration for friends and family that are socially distant, by choice or circumstance.
Explore our carefully curated list of some of the very best virtual gifts you can give this year. From music and books to alcohol and makeup, these goodies are sure to keep everyone safe and happy this holiday season.
1. National Parks Annual Pass
The nature lover in your life will thank you (likely with photos and great stories) if you give them the gift of an annual pass to all the National Parks. The America the Beautiful National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass grants access to 2,000+ sites across the country. Passes cover the entrance, standard amenity fees, and day-use fees for the driver and all passengers (up to 4 adults). Children under 15 are free! Consider it the nudge your friend or family member needs to explore the great outdoors!
Learn more: National Parks Pass
2. Monthly Beer Subscription: Craft Beer Club
This is an excellent choice for the beer aficionado in your life, who will receive a dozen 12 oz. beers every month. The Craft Beer of the month club experience means that the Craft Beer Club team seeks out exceptional craft beers from around the country and delivers them to your gift-getters door. Plus, you can decide to ship them monthly, bi-monthly, or quarterly — and the $44.75 sticker price includes shipping all of the contiguous United States!
Learn more here: Craft Beer Club
3. Streaming Service: Disney+/Netflix/Hulu
Unless you’ve literally been living under a rock or off the grid, you’re aware of Disney’s year-old streaming service. Disney+ is one of the cheapest streaming services out there at just $6.99/month ($69.99/year). Though their new programming is still ramping up, it’s hard to say no to the Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic combination (plus, The Mandalorian). Meanwhile, Netflix and Hulu are streaming service mainstays, with plans that start at $8.99 and $5.99, respectively. Hulu delivers flexibility with bundling (Hulu, Disney+, ESPN for $12.99), while Netflix arguably has a greater collection of beloved television shows. You’ll have to decide what your loved one craves most!
Learn and buy:
Disney+
Netflix
Hulu
4. Winc.com Wine Delivery
One of my favorite things about Winc is their attention to detail. The Palate Profile™ is 6 questions to help them assess your unique tastes, which allows Winc to send wines that fit. Plus, the wine-o in your life rates each vino to get better recommendations. All the wine types are represented too, including Viognier, Grenache, and Riesling; plus wines from California, France, Spain, and Argentina, among others. For $59.95 per month, the wine lover of your choosing will receive 4 wines at their door! They also offer 2-month and 3-month subscriptions, or you can choose a gift card amount that works for you.
Learn more here: Winc.com
5. Cameo Celebrity Shout-Out
Although Cameo has been around since 2016, the celebrity video-sharing application soared in popularity in 2020 thanks to Covid-19. According to Arthur Leopold (Chief Business Officer at Cameo), the app has seen a rise in interest from March-July of this year to the tune of 500,000 videos out of the 1.2 million total. The app debuted in 2017, allowing celebrities of all walks of life to record personalized videos for birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, and other special occasions. From bonafide actors and musicians to comedians, athletes, and even reality TV stars — there are known names to appeal to every age group and interest.
Create your special gift: Cameo
6. Drizly
The good news with Drizly is that this beer, wine, and liquor delivery service is making waves by offering (typically) over 2,000 products from any given store. You can even send soda, mixers, non-alcoholic drinks, and snacks (subject to state law). Perhaps the best part is that your order can be delivered in under 60 minutes! The only drawback? You can’t purchase a gift card at this time, although Drizly states they are working on changing that. If you’re having trouble deciding what to send, they have guides and recommendations for beer, wine, champagne & sparkling, and more (Drizly).
7. Allure Beauty Box
Beauty may be in the eyes of the beholder, but it’s also in this box, delivered monthly to the door of someone special! Each box includes 6+ Allure-approved makeup and skincare picks, hand-selected by Allure editors. Shipping is free in the contiguous U.S., plus there are members-only discounts and events available. Purchase 3 months for $69, 6 months for $130, or 1 year for $250.
Learn more: Allure Beauty Box
8. Spotify Gift Card
The late Catalan cellist Pablo Casals once said “Music is the divine way to tell beautiful, poetic things to the heart.” This holiday season you can bring joy to the joyless, comfort to the downtrodden, and calm to the anxiety-ridden individuals in your life with the gift of a Spotify premium account. At just $9.99 per month, it’s an affordable way to gift millions of songs and podcasts. A premium account delivers ad-free music that can be downloaded, with unlimited skips! An important note: giving a Spotify Premium account is possible with a gift card from a leading electronic or retail store (but only Premium Individual plans).
Learn more here: Spotify
9. Audible Gift Card
Audiobooks have come a long way since their infant stages in the 1930s. Audible is Amazon’s audiobook subscription service, providing access to over 470,000 audiobook titles (and counting!). The Gold monthly membership at Audible is the most popular option at $14.95 per month. Perhaps you’re wondering what to do if the bibliophile on your list is a traditionalist; maybe they wrinkle their nose at the idea of consuming a book with their ears. Never fear: the 30-day trial affords them the chance to experience Audible without financial obligation!
One more thing: consider giving the gift of a singular book. Non-members can receive an audiobook, and decide if Audible is a good fit.
Learn more: Audible
10. Blue Apron Meal Kit Delivery
There’s something special about cooking a warm meal for yourself and others, but the hassles of menu planning and shopping are not the business. Thankfully, just about any podcast lover can tell you all about Blue Apron, which ships fresh ingredients and recipes to help chefs cook culinary masterpieces regularly! Two recipes (which produce 2 servings each) are available for $47.95 or spend $59.94 on 3 recipes and they throw the shipping in free. There are also 4-serving, and vegetarian options available, and your food guru giftee can change the menu every week as they see fit.
Buy here: Blue Apron
Contributor, designer & admin for JohnHart Gazette.
