So you want to Learn to Fly?
Dreams where you are flying can be magical, but you can learn to fly a real plane when you sign up for a flying experience. If watching the landscape pass below you while you experience your first helicopter flight appeals to you, you may like to sign up for a special flight experience. An experience for two, including a romantic picnic lunch with champagne, can be a wonderful way to celebrate an anniversary or another significant occasion with your spouse or partner.

Try Flying Acrobatics for Some Daredevil Fun

Stunt flying is not for the faint of heart, but if you are something of a daredevil you may love a lesson in flying acrobatics – an experience that will provide you with your fix of adrenalin. An experience operated by qualified and experienced pilots will be safe, and a lesson which includes extensive pre-flight preparation can be enjoyed with less anxiety, if you are a first-time stunt performer. You can also book an acrobatic flying experience for a loved one; anyone who has a love for airplanes and/or extreme experiences is likely to love this gift.

For a Rare Treat, Fly a Vintage Tiger Moth Biplane

You can go on an ordinary domestic flight any day, but a rare experience such as a flight on a vintage Tiger Moth biplane will be an airborne adventure to remember. If you are something of a history buff and fancy yourself something of a flying ace put your prowess to the test. You can whiz around and even enjoy demonstrations of acrobatic flying stunts such as loop-the-loop and barrel rolls. For flight training with a difference, fly a biplane that would meet the approval of the Red Baron himself.

Helicopter Tours Offer a Different View of the Landscape

You may have travelled around extensively via land, but helicopter tours can provide you with an altogether different, exciting view of familiar landscapes. A helicopter flight may be a little noisy, but that is half the excitement – hearing the propeller’s blades turn powerfully, lifting you high over a picturesque scene. A helicopter flying lesson is a great gift for that friend who likes to take charge and experience new things, and a lesson which includes an opportunity to take the controls will provide a memorable experience that is also a great conversation starter.

Microlight Flying – the closest thing to Autonomous Flight

Since microlights are small and light, as their name suggests, they provide you with the closest thing to the sensation of being weightless; the next best thing to the fantastical idea of swimming breaststroke through the air. The speed of flight depends on your wishes, so you can whizz through the air or slow your pace down to a gentle glide, taking in the sights and the rush of having a boundless aerial view. You can book flight training for yourself, or can give a microlight experience to a friend who would love to learn to fly.

Hi Stacey. I’m looking for a gift for my brotherwho has recently moved to the UK. He’s really quite into bungee jumping but I can’t seem to find any bungee jumping locations or schools here in London. Do you know of any? Or know of anyone who might? I really need some input here! Look forward to hearing back from you,

Bailey

Dear Bailey,

I, like you, have an adrenaline-hungry brother who is always keen to try out crazy things like bungee jumping! So, luckily, I have an answer to your question! Now it’s just a matter of your budget and your brother’s preferred bungee experience. Here are a few of my brother’s favourite locations (he was oh-so happy to rattle off lists when I got him on the phone, so I’ve tried to narrow them down a bit by activity type):

1.  The 160ft Bungee. This is the ’standard’ bungee experience, and is easily accesible within London.

2. The 160ft forwards and backwards bungee. This is a variation on the standard bungee experience … your brother will get to jump forwards and backwards off of the highest heights! I can’t imagine jumping backwards!!! But, that being said, my brother says it’s quite an adventure!

3. The crazy indoor bungee experience. The name says it all! it’s a thrill-a-minute, non-stop crazy bungee jump that takes place inside an enormous warehouse. Expect flashing laser lights, dry ice smoke and a range of other special effects! This is on my brother’s to-do list and is not for the faint-hearted!

I hope this helps you!

Do let me know how it all goes,

x Stacey

HI Stacey,

I’m looking for a gift for my brother’s 18th birthday. He’s quite a socialite and likes partying all night!! I read your blog every week and you always have quite good ideas… hope to hear from you soon.

Ben

Dear Ben,

Thank you, that’s very kind of you. I do try!

If your brother loves a good party then why not get him something that he can put to good use when he’s out and about? I’m thinking… a Cocktail Masterclass! He’ll get to learn all about the ‘mechanics of mixology’ as he stirs, shakes and blends his way into cocktail-making history! This one is ideal for the party animal or cocktail lover because it will equip them with an invaluable skill that they can use at dinner parties, house parties and even at a barbeque. Besides, everyone loves a great cocktail It’s a great way to welcome him into his coming of age as well!

Spice up the cocktail masterclass with a hint of fun when you combine it with an introduction to flair bartending! Your brother will be flairing like a pro before the day is done, and he can combine that with his skills he learned at the cocktails masterclass to provide his mates (and his brother!) with some deliciously tasty treats. Mmm.

I hope that helps Ben,

Do let me know if there is anything else that I can do to help!

x Stacey

Yes I agree, our health is of the utmost importance! And it’s good that you mention this at Easter too – everyone is going to be tripping over each other to find the perfect Easter eggs when they could be treating each other with healthy activities that are fun too! There are loads of fun Easter activities that you could enjoy like Sphereing or Zorbing, and there are some healthy food options as well. Here are some of my favourite classes that you might share with a loved one for the perfect Easter gift that is pro healthy living:

Keith Burke’s MARKET FRESH cookery course is a fabulous introduction to healthy eating. You are guided around one of London’s finest fresh produce market to purchase lovely fresh ingredients before heading on to Keith Burke’s (Michelin Star Chef!) kitchen to learn how to prepare them. This is a great cooking course for couples – - I hear that it is heaps of fun!

Another cooking course you might consider is the quick and easy “cook, eat and run” course which is taking the nation by storm. This incredibly popular course is ideal for those of you who don’t have much time to spend enjoying the culinary arts but would like to give it a go anyway… you learn quick and easy recipes that you can cook up in half an hour, and then you sit down with your classmates and enjoy your cooked meal together afterwards. The recipes are delicious and the class has a very friendly atmosphere. Have a quick look at this video to see what I mean:

And finally, my personal favourite is the THAI COOKERY course, also hosted by Keith Burke. If you love Thai food (and I DO!) then you’ll love this course! Keith is friendly and encouraging, the kitchen facilities are superb and the people are all so nice! I had a brilliant time there, I can’t wait to go back! And best of all my new Thai Green Curry recipe is a hit at all of our dinner parties! This is a must do this Easter.

Good luck with finding the perfect Easter Gift, and I hope that you manage to achieve those six-pack abs you mentioned!

x Stacey

Treat your brother to a fabulous outdoor adventure this Easter and give him a day he’ll never forget! My brother is not the biggest fan of sweet treats so I’ve been trying to come up with a good way to spoil him with something fab that he’ll really enjoy. To give you an example of what I mean: last month I actually discovered the Easter eggs I bought him from last year hiding at the back of his grocery cupboard! I wasn’t particularly impressed with that!

I wanted to get him something fun that we could enjoy together … something  that’s fun and exciting, and also which retains a sense of the ‘Easter’ spirit and gives him a chance to take part in the family festivities! So I think what’s on the cards here is something like Air Sphereing for Two. It’s exactly the kind of thing that he’d be into! I must say, I’ve always been intrigued by the concept of sphereing, or ‘zorbing’ as some people call it. Basically you jump inside an enormous inflatable sphere and then roll around. Air sphereing, by comparison, is when you hold on for dear life as the sphere is flown inside an enormous wind tunnel! It sounds like it’s going to be heaps of fun!

The most important thing to remember is that Easter is about family time together where you celebrate how lucky you are to have awesome people (like my brother!) so close to you. Spoil them with a special treat that is just the kind of thing they’ll enjoy … and a little bit of chocolate never hurt anyone either!

I’m looking for an anniversary gift for my brother. He has been married for six years! They are both speed freaks so I want to get them something like a track day that they can both take part in or something like that.

Reggie.

Dear Reggie,

First of all, congratulations are in order for your brother and his wife! Well done to them. Second of all, let’s get down to the gifting! The best part!

I have a couple of great ideas that might pique your interest…

First of all, they might enjoy a fun game of supersized Extreme Dodgems. These are no ordinary dodgems! They’re 1300cc extreme versions of the miniature ones we used to race when we were little! These things are super speedy and they pack a punch as well! If they’re speed freaks and adrenaline seekers then they’ll really enjoy this one!

If you’re more interested in ‘traditional’ sized cars then perhaps you can treat them to a drift thrill experience where they’ll be racing around a track at top speeds trying to achieve the longest, meanest and most intense drifts possible! This is what it means to take part in extreme driving that seriously tests the limits of the vehicle.

And finally, another extremely popular driving day is the loose gravel rally thrill where they’ll be able to put ‘metal to the pedal’ and test both themselves and their assigned vehicles as they race around a purpose-built track and experience a moment in the shoes of rally greats like Sebastien Loeb.

I hope that helps to inspire you with some great gift ideas!

x Stacey

Dear Stacey, you recommended a Lamborghini Driving Day to someone the other day. It looked really good. However, I spoke to a friend of mine in Edinburgh and he said that he’s done something similar and it was really boring – the track was nothing more than a drag strip and the driving time was limited to only a few minutes. What should I do? I need to find a gift for my brother asap and I don’t want it to be a dud!

Ben.

Dear Ben,

It can be very frustrating when you buy something and expect one thing, but then end up receiving another. That’s why a lot of people are afraid to buy things online nowadays – you never know what you’re going to get! My recommendation to you is this: watch the video before you buy it!

What I mean is, I post videos here so that you can actually see the experiences that I’m talking about. It’s no good me telling you how amazing it is to drive a Lamborghini – you have to see it for yourself.

Here is a video of the particular Lamborghini driving experience I recommended:

See how fun and exciting it all looks? And that’s exactly what you’re going to get on the big day. It’s good to know that your brother will be able to drive a genuine Lamborghini Gallardo around a real track, not a half-baked drag strip. You were right when you said that this looks amazing!

So the point is, make sure you know what you’re buying before you actually pay for it. Check out the pictures, read the descriptions and the key info, and if possible, watch the video! It will make all the difference to your peace of mind and your brother’s big day.

I hope that your brother has an amazing day in his dream car!

x Stacey

Finding the right gift idea for your brother doesn’t have to be a chore. I always know what to get my brother for his birthday because he’s a bit of an adrenaline junkie and that makes it quite a lot easier to find new thrilling experiences for him to try. But that doesn’t help those of you who have brothers who aren’t particularly sporty or who aren’t interested in extreme adrenaline activities?

I set out in search of these answers in an effort to answer some e-mails I’ve been receiving on the same topic and I came up with some good ideas! Hurrah! Thankfully I have some colleagues here in the office who offered me some valuable insights!

First up are archery lessons. These are great fun for everyone – girls, boys, young and old. Your brother will love learning all about this ancient sport that tests your strength, your agility and your marksmanship. Have a look at how thrilling it all looks in this video:

I can’t imagine I’d be any good at it but I’d be willing to give it a go! I think it’s amazing that it’s such an involved sport with specialist equipment and techniques.

Another exciting birthday gift idea is the opportunity to DJ at the Ministry of Sound DJ Academy. This really is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for those who are interested in the music industry. Your lucky brother will have a chance to be taught by some of the biggest names in the DJ business, and he’ll get to try his hand at the state-of-the-art decks in their top club.

Finally, there no experience quite like the high-flying fun you get in a hot air balloon, so treat your brother to a flying day he’ll never forget! Let your brother take to the skies over some of the most beautiful landscapes in the UK and he’ll love every minute. This is a MUST for everyone and I can tell you – it’ll be a hit! I’ve done this and I speak from experience when I say that it is amazing!

If you’re looking for a fabulous driving day for the special guy (or girl!) in your life then I’ve got some good news for you! One of my good friends was treated a fabulous gift for his recent birthday and he had the rare opportunity to drive a Lamborghini Gallardo around a race track. Now it sounded like it was an amazing day, but I think I have something even more exciting to tell you.

… now anyone can drive one of their dream cars around a real race track at a very reasonable rate! He came across the best deal and was nice enough to share it with me so I could share it with you. I can only imagine what kind of gift-doors this special bit of information is going to be opening in the near future! Treat friends to a Ferrari challenge and lads to a Lamborghini day, give your aunt the keys to an Audi R8 or go the Full Monty with a tank driving phenomenon! I’m just so excited, I can’t wait to show you what I’ve found!

First of all, let’s have a look at Sean’s Lamborghini that he won’t stop talking about. He keeps saying that it’s something you’ve got to experience for yourself and that no words can describe it. Not very helpful, is he? Have a look at this video to see for yourself what it must be like to drive this dream car:

Looks pretty good doesn’t it? I love cars that bend neatly at the back like that, looks very supercar-ish.

Okay, they also offer a range of other super cars so you can pick out your particular dream vehicle and have a go. I must say, I’ve always been captivated by the styling of the Porsche Carrera 911 so I was quite excited to see that they have this one there as well. And what a good deal!

I could get used to driving one of those! Makes a big change from my Verso I love that there are videos to watch, it makes it so much easier to see what’s actually going on.

There’s also a Ferrari 360 on offer for Ferrari fans. I was recently dragged to the popular Ferrari Shop in London and I must admit, there’s something very appealing about the tell-tale red paint (which is even branded as Ferrari red!) and the very sleek contours.

That looks really exciting! I’m glad to see that other girls like cars too… Mind you, I’m more about what it looks like on the outside than on the inside. I wouldn’t know a carburettor if it fell on my foot!

Then there’s the Aston Martin DB9 which is the car most famous for being James Bond’s first choice. Okay, it’s probably more famous for something else but that’s why I know about it! I am a self-confessed Ian Fleming fan.

Look at it go:

Wow! I love the way they highlighted the red in that video, very neat – it makes it quite distinctive from the Ferrari red, don’t you think?

Let’s not forget the Audi R8 which is a very popular choice for ‘big kids’ and businessmen. It has won hundreds of awards and when I went to ask my colleague why it is that he chose to drive one of these to work every day, he answered simply: ‘It was Playboy’s Car of the Year’. Goodness!

Finally, the last ’single’ car driving experience that you can choose takes place in a Ford RS. You see a lot of these on the road – they’re unmissable with their distinctive orange, green or white paint jobs and their cheeky styling. But I have it on good authority that they’re a whole lot of fun on the race track as well! Sean got taken out for a ‘practice lap’ in one of these before they let him loose in the Lamborghini, and he said it was quite a beastly car.

Look at it zip around! Now if you thought that you’d been given a world of choice here, think again. There’s more where that came from! The clever people behind these fun driving days came up with something for the die-hard drivers out there.

That’s right, I’m talking about versus days. That’s when you take two of the biggest names in race driving and put them head-to-head to see which one handles better, which one is faster, and which one you like better. For example, you might compare the Ferrari with the Lamborghini.

Now that’s going to be a driving day worth doing! What a treat for big car fans. And you know what else could be fun? What about if you put a Aston Martin against Ferrari? Can you imagine James Bond going up against the legendary Jody Shekter or Kimi Raikkonen!

Look at that! You can really let your imagination run wild when you’re coming up with fun versus days!

If you’re looking for a car that has a bit more ‘raw power’ than these muscle machines we’ve already been discussing then you’ll probably appreciate the next item on our line-up: the Aston Martin Vs the Nissan GTR! The GTR is hailed as the Sports Car of the Year, the Motor Trend Car of the Year, Supercar of the Year, Automobile of the Year… etc. I don’t think I need to keep telling you, just watch this video and you’ll understand:

Wow! Did you hear that – a top speed of 195mph! That does seem to put up a bit of tough competition for the Aston Martin. Which one do you think will do better?

Not to be outdone by it’s rivals, the Ferrari makes a come-back to our line-up with a stunning versus day in the form of the Ferrari Vs Audi R8 challenge.

I can’t imagine which one would win – they’re both such super rides! I guess that’s why they let you drive both of them around the track … so you can see for yourself!

And finally, I’ve got a little ‘kicker’ surprise for you. I saved the best for last! If you’re looking for the ultimate driving day for a car enthusiast then you simply have to treat them to a fantastic ‘Full Monty Tank Day’! This one is a winner in my books, and it pulls out all the stops as one of the best gifts I’ve come across:

This is quite a comprehensive video which details everything the lucky guy (or girl) will get to do on the day. I must say, I’m sure every little boy dreams of driving a tank over a real car! Wow.

So there you have it folks. Thanks to Sean for telling us about these great deals! I hope that you all manage to use these as gift inspiration and gift ideas for birthdays, anniversaries, special occasions and important events.

My brother is a sporty kinda guy. He loves to try everything out at least once which makes buying gifts for him quite difficult – every year I have to search through catalogues and ideas to find something new that he hasn’t tried before! He loves getting presents from me because I always make an effort to find him something awesome. Or as he says, ‘legend’.

Last year I bought him a jet-ski experience which he loved so much that I have to rewatch the video every time I go and visit him and he’s even taken up jet-ski lessons … so how do you top that? If you’re in a similar situation then you might benefit from my findings; I managed to pin down three great things that I’m sure he hasn’t tried yet!

The first thing I found was an indoor bungee jump experience. It is supposed to be very similar to a regular bungee jump in theory, except you toss yourself off a platform inside a giant warehouse while swirling lights, dry ice and giant video screens surround you on the way down. I’d imagine it’s a little like jumping down Alice’s rabbit hole!

The second thing I found was six-week archery course. This is quite an unusual sport but it has a surprisingly large following. The course will teach him two styles of archery techniques (they call them ‘bare bow’ and ’sighted’ styles) and he’ll be trained in precision shooting. I know he gets a rush from being number one, so he’ll love being able to hit the bull’s eye with every shot!

And the last thing I found was eclipse sphereing. There’s an advert on telly that describes this best: have you seen the one when people get into giant inflatable fruit and roll down a hill? That’s exactly what this is – only you get into a giant inflatable sphere and roll down the hill. It looks like a lot of fun! The reason why it’s called ‘eclipse’ sphereing is because this particular type is for the more extreme adrenaline junkies [you also get normal sphereing in a transparent ball, and aqua sphereing in a water-ball]. Basically you get into a sphere that is completely dark on the inside, then you get rolled down the hill and completely disoriented. This isn’t my kind of thing but I’m sure my brother will absolutely love it!

I know I’ve hit onto three awesome gift ideas here, so which one should I give him? I think the best thing to do would be to give him all three … not at once, of course! I’ll give him one for his birthday, one for Christmas, and the last one can be saved up for next year!