15 Long Distance Relationship Gift Ideas and Tips.
Its the season of giving! And some gifts can be more challenging than others. Particularly if your significant other (or family or friend) lives far away.
After spending almost 12 months in a long-distance relationship myself, gift giving has had to get creative.
Chances are that even if you’re spending Christmas with your loved ones, there are other occasions where you might need this list. Perhaps you need a long distance gift idea for Valentine’s Day, birthdays, anniversaries, or just because they’ve had a bad day.
We live in a world now, where almost everything is available online. So being in different countries is no excuse. But it doesn’t always have to be technical or a big ticket item. Sometimes the thought and personal touch that really counts.
Today I’m sharing some of the best long distance relationship gifts.
I decided to compile a list of long-distance gift ideas and tips. Some are grand gestures, some are a small but perfect way of saying I’m thinking of you.
And maybe overtime this blog will grow, I don’t want to give away all my ideas before I do them!
Long Distance Relationship Gift Tips
Buying At The Airport.
So this isn’t a gift itself, but a very useful tip. If you’re like me, and travel hand luggage only, you’re restricted with what gift you can take through airport security (particularly liquids). So work around that by buying gifts like perfume and alcohol in the airport on your way to meet each other. Anything you purchase after security isn’t restricted for taking on the plane.
Amazon Prime Everything.
We’ve used Amazon Prime a LOT this year. For £7.99 a month, you can get next day delivery in many countries. This is a great way to impulse-buy a small gift, after you have a conversation about something.
You get the same impact as if you just picked up on your way home from work the next day. Plus it’s a great way to put a smile on your partners face.
(For example, Last weekend we had a conversation about taking Vitamin D. And on Monday at work I received just that in a package. Sometimes it’s the thoughtful and in the moment things that are more valuable than the grand romantic gestures.)
Long Distance Relationship Gift Ideas
Magazine subscription
If you both love travelling together, I can’t recommend a Lonely Planet magazine subscription enough. I love giving gifts that last beyond the day you receive them. And a magazine subscription means your partner gets regular gift each month, even when you’re not there.
Book Club Membership
Similar to the magazine subscription, this is a gift that lasts all year. If you and your partner love reading, there are even partners book clubs. For these, both of you will be sent the same book. This means you can enjoy it while you are part, and have a shared interest to talk about when you catch up. (I mean, I assume you have shared interests already, but you know what I mean!)
I didn’t buy a “partners” book club, however I can totally recommend Rarebirds book club for a monthly dose of strong female leads and brilliant female authors.
Flower Delivery
It may be slightly cliche, but this year I have absolutely loved receiving flowers. Perhaps for a special occasion, but even better when they’re just spontaneous. Flowers are a wonderful way to tell your long-distance partner you’re thinking of them. Websites like Interflora can help with arranging delivery from a local florist, even when you’re not in the same country.
Letters To Read
Depending on the set up of your long distance relationship, time zones and communication restrictions might mean that you can’t always talk to each other.
Regardless of how easy it is to pick up the phone, letters or notes for the other person to read when you’re not available means that you can be there for them even when you’re not.
Fill a jar with reasons that you love them, or write letters for them to read at certain times of the year. Get creative with it and make it personal to you and your relationship.
A Memory Box
Long distance relationships mean that you cherish the time that you have together every time. For me it also means doing more with the time that we do have to make the most of it.
That’s why a memory box is a great way to capture those things that you’ve done together. And later you can reminisce when you’re feeling sad and missing each other.
Ticket stubs, photos, postcards and anything else from your adventures are small tokens that will make you smile whenever you open the lid.
If you’re a creative person, making the memory box into a memory book, or scrapbook can also be a great way to document your time together too.
Plane tickets
The best long distance relationship gift is spending time together. Living apart probably means that you will be travelling to see each other whenever you can. This can get expensive. So a great idea is to use your gift budget for another trip together.
Whether this is to one of your home locations, or to a central meeting point for you both to get away. There is no physical gift better than getting to spend more time together.
Food deliveries
The perfect gift for when your partner has had a long day at work and doesn’t want to cook dinner. Or you just want to surprise them.
There are so many online websites know that can help you send food to your partner, regardless of where you are. Deliveroo, Uber eats, Just Eat and Food Panda to name a few (depending what country you’re in!). My favourite delivery of the year has got to be the 12 Krispy Kreme doughnuts that arrived on my doorstep at 10 pm after I’d complained that I was a little hungry.
Something That Smells Like You
Scent is such a powerful sense, and it can trigger so many happy memories of another person, even when they are not there. If you wear a specific perfume, spritz this onto something and gift it to your partner so they can feel closer to you. If you’re not a perfume wearing kind of person, even one of your T-shirts will smell like you will be a thoughtful gift.
A Substitute Hug
For me, the worst thing about a long distant relationship is not being able to get a hug when you need one most. Whilst have nothing will ever property replace your partner (concerning if it does, haha!). Having something that fills the gap a little bit can always help. For me, it was a gigantic fluffy jumper, that I call my giant hug. Cheesy I know, but having something comforting, when you feel sad is very soothing.
A Game You Can Play Together
We live in the age of technology. There are so many games that you can play together from miles apart. Depending on your budget, this might be buying a games console, like the Xbox 360 with internet connection and multiplayer functionality. Or, if you’re lower budget, or even for free, there are apps that you can download to your phone and play together too. Find a game you both love, that you can play against each other no matter where you are in the world. When we are together we are scrabble geeks, and so Words With Friends is our favourite.
An iPad
Okay, this is an expensive gift. But, if you have the budget for it, an iPad or laptop is a powerful way of staying in touch. You can FaceTime, use Zoom, make each other videos to share when one of you is off-line, and just generally stay connected. Most of what an iPad or laptop does can be done on your phone. But for me I find an iPad or laptop to be better. You can join a video call, lay it on the kitchen counter and have the other person online with you while you go about your daily tasks.
A Momento or Charm
A momento or charm to remind you of a special place or moment together, is a beautiful long distance gift to cherish. If you have a shared special place, Etsy is full of unique ways to capture this. For example, a bracelet or keyring with coordinates on it. Or, anything that is special to you both that is small enough to put inside a wallet or purse, and carry with you.
El Camino Bracelet
El Camino bracelets are a wonderful gift for long distance relationships, or really anyone that you know who loves travel. They are a great way to remember your adventures together. And track the wonderful places you’ve been as a result of your distance. The bracelet is a simple rope, with beads for each city, country or continent that you visit. The more adventures you take in your relationship, the more beads you can buy.
And if you both have one, it’s a great shared gift for you to get each other on an special occasion.
And there you have it! My list of long distance relationship gift ideas for Christmas, Valentines Day, Birthdays or any old “I miss you day”.
For more gift ideas check my post “Travel Gifts They Actually Want”.
