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Forty deserves better than a card and a candle. The range runs from hands-on cooking classes and wine tastings through to trike tours, clay target shooting and island sailing, so there is a genuine choice rather than one obvious option.
Forty comes with a real appetite for something well done, and the range leans into that: cooking classes with a working chef, wine and whiskey tastings, and days out running from a trike tour through vineyards to a full day of sailing. You're only 40 once, after all.
In Centennial Park, Clay Target Shooting with Live Ammo runs for 90 minutes at Cecil Park and is a popular option for a milestone that wants a bit of adrenaline in it. Join Olympic shooter and gold medallist Suzy Balogh's team for this one. For something at a table instead, the American Smoking BBQ Cooking Class is taught by a qualified chef and includes a wine tasting. Out in wine country, the Hunter Valley Trike Tour covers three wine regions in 60 minutes aboard a custom-built trike. Something a little different.
Melbourne leans faster. V8 Drive and Front Seat Passenger Laps put eight laps behind the wheel and is a strong choice for the same reason. The Learn to Fly Trial Introductory Flight hands over the controls of a light aircraft with an instructor beside you. Slower options sit alongside them: the American Whiskey Masterclass runs 90 minutes for those wanting to learn more about the sensational stories behind American whiskey, and the Hands On Italian Cooking Class in the Yarra Valley is pitched at beginners keen to master authentic Italian cooking.
The Whitsundays Tall Ship Sunset Sail pours from a bar on deck during the golden hour. Further north, the Cape Tribulation, Daintree and Mossman Gorge Guided Tour takes a full day out of Mossman Gorge Centre, covering spectacular rainforest that most Sydney or Melbourne trips never reach.
At 40, most people have already bought the things they wanted. What is harder to get around to is a proper day off: a cooking class with someone else doing the washing up, a sail through the Whitsundays, an afternoon that does not fold back into the usual week. A RedBalloon gift voucher leaves the choice with them. It also removes the guesswork of picking between a class, a tasting or a trip out of the city, so the region, the format and the date become theirs to decide.
Something with a bit of adrenaline in it. Clay target shooting at Cecil Park is a popular option for a 40th, and eight laps in a V8 is a strong choice if the birthday person wants speed rather than a table. Cooking classes and tastings work well for a group, but the pattern at 40 leans towards doing something you would not book for yourself on an ordinary weekend.
Buy them something they would never book for themselves. At 40, most people can buy the objects they want, which is why an hour at the controls of a light aircraft lands where another bottle of wine does not: an hour with the controls of a light aircraft is not a thing anyone arranges on a normal Tuesday. A gift voucher works when you would rather not guess the format at all.
Plenty of the range has no alcohol attached. The Ghosts, Murder and Mystery Tour covers two hours of Melbourne after dark for those paranormal enthusiasts in your life. For a full day out, the full day through the Daintree runs out of Mossman Gorge Centre through rainforest most trips never reach. Cooking classes vary: some include a tasting, and some do not, so check the inclusions.
Cooking classes need the most notice, because kitchens plan for exact numbers and many ask for 72 hours minimum. Cruises and tours are more forgiving. If the birthday itself is the booking date rather than the gift date, allow a fortnight, since weekend slots on the popular formats go first.
A voucher avoids the problem entirely, since the recipient picks the date themselves rather than being handed one. If you have booked a specific session, rescheduling terms are set by the operator and listed on the product page, so check them before booking a fixed date for someone whose diary you do not control.
For a recipient who wants the driving, shooting or trike side of this list built around them, gifts for him run a wider spread of the same kind of experience, and gifts for her cover the cooking, wine and coastal end. If the milestone is further along, 50th birthday gifts picks up from here, and date night ideas is worth a look when the gift is really for two.