Ideas for a 50th birthday present…….

So in the not too distant future I shall reach half a century……

My wife & daughter have been asking me what I want since Christmas and I have no idea….

I keep saying to them I have pretty much everything I could want (except for that nice new sparkly Lamborghini……..), but they’re adamant they want to gete something.

Budget of around £300-£400.

Only thing I could think of was Hope brakes, but that hasn’t gone down too well 😄

I already have (far too many) watches, don’t do jewellery – I already have a wedding ring & St Christopher.

Any ideas other than a truck load of socks & pants……

1. Coke

2. Hookers

Porcelain poppy.

A four day cycling trip on your own

A blacksmithing day of hammering and twisting red-hot metal  into useful things.

I don’t know any 50 year for whom the gift of time is not the most appropriate. Time on your own or with friends without your loved ones doing the thing you like doing without them the most that you usually don’t get enough of. Or time with loved ones  doing something  that makes lifetime memories. If you want to monetise that it can be money towards an event – DIY or organised to do a thing to spend that time. Or an object that allows you to do a thing.

I got a packraft to do a thing I like on my own with. Mrs C got a weekend away with me (yes -ve) to swim the Gulf of Corryvreckan that was on her bucket list.

I’m taking my wife away for a few days – Girona, somewhere we have not been before. We both ride.

If you like seeing wildlife while out on the bike, a quality pair of binoculars are perfect to fit in a pack or handlebar bag. I really enjoy having mine.

Are you much of a foodie? some fancy kitchen knives and a nice end grain choping board,  or pans or something?

A webber BBQ?

Or for family time, you could research some interesting restaurants and have some nice meals out?

Contributions to a city break. Prague was the best thing I did for my 50th.

My (now) wife for my 40th got me a day foraging course with a cookery lesson part of it. Great day out in the Peak District and I still pick some of the things I learned now 10 years later.

Power Kite

Paid uplift day at the venue of your choice. Would also include a nice lunch and a few beers after.

My normal birthday request to the wife is a full days riding by myself. Pure bliss, especially if in the middle of the week. Maybe I’m just an antisocial git though.

Experiences    .. My wifes been asking me for years what I want for birthdays and xmas. Im lucky I really dont covert anything and Ive I need something I just end up buying it myself.      For my wifes 50th we just buggered off to Seville for 72 hours , never been and it was somnething differnt .   If you want some Hope brakes just buy them and go and do something differnt for your birthday.    Or   as she got me this year a Faulty Towers meal experience ..  if you like  you will love it

I’d get some Hope XCR brakes, and let me know if there any good 👍🤣

4 hundred quid would go a long way toward a good party/knees up/do somewhere with all your family and mates.

Don’t waste it on ‘stuff’.

I went to Amsterdam. I’d recommend an activity or trip along similar lines.

https://www.trackdays.co.uk/driving-experience/lamborghini/

I just typed a reply and tried to add this as a link, but the link button was not available on my phone.

Any way; other companies/venues are available. Find one that suits, take the family to watch and have a pub lunch on the way home. Lamborghini + family time sounds good to me.

Bit outside of the budget but a pair of tricker’s shoes. You’ll still be wearing them when you leave the house feet first.

The most memorable thing I got for my 50th was a hot air balloon trip. The day out gliding was cool too but weather conditions weren’t great.

50 this year.
Going over to Paris for the Olympics rugby 7s

Turbo trainer ,  something with long term usefulness – wahoo kickr smart trainer.  Also lots of good second hand ones around.

Only thing I could think of was Hope brakes, but that hasn’t gone down too well 😄

Whose birthday is it?

My view on significant gifts is to aim for something with longevity at a budget a bit beyond comfort level; the premium version of something.  For my 50th i got a pair of top level binoculars.

Ooni pizza oven. Not something I thought I wanted or needed, but was my surprise 50th present. Glad I’ve got it, used most weekends.

What’s wrong with the Hope brakes idea? I mean, if that’s what you want, then why not?

Something I’ll have to think about soon too, under a year away… Not sure how it’s happened, other than every day I’ve got a day older and it’s all mounted up over the years 🤯

there are a lot of good suggestions above. Just make sure that your wife/family receptive to hints. Mine aren’t. I got an air compressor for my 50th despite all the hints for things I wanted. It’s still in the box.

If they (wife and child) hadn’t been so excited I’d have returned it. If you want a compressor, let me know.

1. Coke

2. Hookers

the budget was £3-400. if this was his 21st that budget may have worked.

A puppy.

Revolver, good bottle of single malt, crystal glass tumbler.

A blacksmithing day of hammering and twisting red-hot metal  into useful things.

Perfect – how hard can it be to make your own Hope brakes?

Another for time away/experience.  We spent a weekend in London of eating and theatre for my 50th.

I’d say go for doing something different that you would love to do, but don’t necessarily feel you could justify normally…

I had a day out in the hills flying birds of prey for my 50th… which was just amazing… the birds are just absolutely awesome.

And I recently got my wife a pottery throwing day.

Some kind of music device? Speakers, amp, turntable etc, whatever your preference. I got speakers that I listed to every day.

My wife is going up in a glider for her birthday experience.

Something you’ve often coveted, but which is too extravagant to splash out on for yourself?

I turned 60 last week. Family and friends clubbed together to buy me a nice espresso machine.  It’s something I’d quite fancied for a few years, but was a bit of an indulgence/extravagance.  Whenever I considered getting myself one, there was always something more pressing to spend the cash on.  So it was a lovely gift, something I’ll use every day, which without their thoughtfulness and generosity I wouldn’t be able to enjoy.

Posh foodie night away with your wife

Some nice ideas here – if it was me, for that sort of budget I’d like something like a pizza oven, BBQ or coffee machine.

Definitely value experiences over objects, despite how shiny and desirable Hope brakes are.

If I had a £3-400 budget I’d take everyone hot air ballooning. Great shared memories and a relatively exciting event.

It was mine last year, and I went to the Alps for a couple of weeks. Best thing I could have done, and it included quite a tough four-day ride of the Tour of Mont Blanc to make it extra-memorable.

So I’d agree with the holiday suggestions.

I went to Amsterdam. I’d recommend an activity or trip along similar lines.

C&H was among the first responses, yeah.

Thanks all, some great ideas – I’ll have a think.

I like the idea of a shared experience.

We got my Dad a glider flight for his 50th, he was a bit perturbed when the pilot gave him a parachute, and when he asked what to do with it he said “just sit on it”…..

I’m reaching the same milestone soon. Wife keeps asking what I want to do. The truth is, I’m not fussed and honestly don’t want to a thing just for the sake of it. After nearly 20 years together you’d think she understood this by now. In fairness, her and the boy are going away with her friends for a week to the lake district, leaving me at home with the cats. It’s the kind of birthday present I wish I got every year!