There are just two shopping days left before Christmas. While most of us have already finished our holiday shopping, some people have been putting off shopping until the very last minute. Typically the people we shop for last fall into one of two categories, we don’t know what to buy them or we really don’t like them. While I can’t help you latter, I will do what I can to help you find a last minute gift for the hard to buy for cruiser.
Cruisers are odd people (for the most part), which lead to “normal” people not knowing what to buy us. The truth is most people who don’t understand us make things to complicated. In my experience, cruisers are very easy to shop for; all you have to do is get something cruise related. For those that have no idea what I mean and are too lazy to use google I have compiled a short list. While this list is fairly basic, I only wanted to include things that can be obtained on short notice.
Gifts that are directly related to cruising – These can be ordered online through the cruise lines, airlines or a travel agent. You can print out a symbolic representation of the gift to be stuffed into a fancy envelope with a funny story. If done right, no one will know you did it two days before Christmas:
- Airline gift certificates
- Cruise gift certificates
- Drink coupons for their favorite cruise line
- Bon Voyage Gifts
Reading about cruising – You can find these next items almost anywhere. In fact, some online retailers are even still offering next day shipping in time for Christmas Eve:
- Travel guide books
- Magazine subscriptions
Easy to find but useful gifts – All of these should be available at the mall or even the local Wal-Mart. They should all be relatively inexpensive and readily available even at this late date:
- Shaving kit
- Cosmetic bag
- Packing organizers
- Neck pillow
- Eye shades
- Travel clock
- Sewing kit
- Cloth jewelry bag
Help them to remember their next cruise – After awhile cruises tend to blend together. These ideas are gifts that keep on giving, by helping your cruiser remember which cruise was which:
- Digital camera
- 35mm camera
- Camera supplies
- Disposable underwater camera for snorkeling
- Leather travel journal
Gifts that show your thoughtfulness – The last group of gifts are very useful but I always forget to purchase them. If any of my friends decided to buy any of these for me it would seem like they really put a lot of thought into it and genuinely took an interest in my hobby:
- Binoculars
- Flask
- Money Belt
- Currency converter
- Multi-time zone watch
As you can see from the list, none of these presents are unusual or hard to find. So the next time you need to buy a cruiser a gift don’t be intimidated, we aren’t hard to please. The reality is if you want to make a cruiser happy, buy them something they can use on a cruise, or if you really love them buy them a cruise (just kidding but not really).
