Experience gift vouchers turn quiet days into booked ones. This guide shows how hotels, spas, and restaurants can package and sell experiences in advance - creating steady, prepaid revenue and more loyal guests.
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Quick Answer: What Are Experience Gift Vouchers?
Experience gift vouchers let hotels, spas, and restaurants sell memorable experiences in advance packages like dinners, spa days, or weekend stays that are prepaid and redeemed later. They bring in revenue before the guest arrives, help fill quieter days, and often lead to higher on-site spending when redeemed.
See how Enjovia helps hotels turn experiences into prepaid revenue
The Midweek Lull Problem
It’s mid-week and the restaurant is quiet. A few rooms are still empty, and the spa team has gaps on the schedule. Payroll is fixed, energy costs keep running, and there’s no way to fill the space last-minute without discounting.
Now picture the same day, but prepaid. The dining room is busy with voucher guests. Spa appointments are already booked, paid for weeks ago. No flash sales, no OTA commissions- just steady, predictable revenue sitting in your account before the doors even open.
Experience gift vouchers can turn a quiet day into a busy, profitable one.
That’s the difference experience gift vouchers make. They turn empty days into full ones and keep cash flow moving through the quieter months.
In our last post, How the Experience Economy Is Shaping Hospitality, we looked at how guest expectations are changing. This guide shows what to do with that shift - how to package and sell those experiences before guests even arrive.
Why Experience Gift Vouchers Matter in the Experience Economy
Most hotels and spas know the cycle. Summer is busy, then everything slows, but the bills keep coming. OTA fees chip away at margins, and discounts become the fallback just to keep things moving.
Experience gift vouchers help break that pattern. They bring in cash before the guest arrives, fill quieter days without cutting prices, and keep the full value of the sale in your hands.
How experience gift vouchers create revenue and loyalty at every stage.
Picture a city spa in January. It’s usually quiet, but with a Weekday Wellness Pass sold as a gift, those midweek appointments are already booked and paid for.
The Celtic Manor showed how well this works. By offering simple, well-timed experiences that were easy to buy and easy to redeem, they generated more than £2.5 million in voucher sales and turned slow periods into prepaid revenue.
Across the industry, voucher guests spend about sixty to seventy percent more when they redeem. That extra spend, and the new guests vouchers bring in, can make a real difference over the year.
Experience vouchers aren’t just for the holidays anymore. They’re a dependable part of how experience-led hospitality earns steady income all year.
Celtic Manor generated £2.5 million in gift voucher sales by making experiences part of their growth strategy.
Across hospitality, operators who treat experience vouchers as part of their main sales strategy are seeing measurable gains. Rooms fill earlier, cash flow evens out, and marketing reach extends through every gifted experience.
Resorts, spas, and restaurants that package experiences well report steady year-round sales, not just holiday spikes. Voucher guests consistently spend more when redeeming (often sixty to seventy percent above the value of their gift) and many visit again on their own.
Industry reports from the Gift Card and Voucher Association confirm that experience-based gifting continues to grow faster than retail. It’s proof that guests now value memorable moments over material gifts, and that the businesses offering them are turning that preference into real revenue.
How Hotels, Spas, and Golf Clubs Use Experience Vouchers
Experience gift vouchers work best when they feel like products in their own right, not side offers. The strongest results come from packages that are simple, well-timed, and clearly named so buyers know exactly what they’re giving.
Hotels
Many hotels use seasonal vouchers to secure early revenue. A Spring Escape with one night, afternoon tea, and a late checkout can turn slow early-year dates into prepaid bookings. Guests enjoy the sense of occasion, and the property gains guaranteed income before the stay.
Spas
Spas often use vouchers to bring in locals during quiet times. A Rest and Restore Retreat that includes treatments, thermal suite access, and a light lunch fills midweek gaps without discounting. It also introduces new guests who often return for full-price treatments later.
Golf Clubs and Restaurants
A Nine and Dine package (a round of golf followed by a clubhouse meal) works well as a corporate gift or group offer. Restaurants can do the same with tasting menus or seasonal dining experiences that make easy, thoughtful gifts.
Each example looks different, but the result is the same. Experience vouchers bring in cash before the guest arrives, attract new customers, and usually lead to extra spending when redeemed. Over time, they help operators smooth demand, lift average spend, and keep teams busy all year.
Designing the Voucher Experience Guests Actually Want
A good voucher should feel like the beginning of the experience, not a receipt. The way it’s named, presented, and redeemed shapes how both the giver and the guest feel about it.
The Name
The name is the first impression, so it should make people imagine the moment they’re buying. Something like Winter Hideaway for Two feels warm and personal. One Night Stay with Dinner sounds like a transaction. Small details like this make a big difference in how a voucher sells.
The Presentation
People notice how a gift looks and feels. A well-designed digital or printed voucher feels more considered and shareable. Many guests post them online, giving your brand organic reach before the experience even begins.
The Pricing
Pricing should reflect gifting, not discounting. Round figures look confident and easy to give — £250 feels like a gift; £249 looks like a deal. The goal is to make buying simple and emotional, not technical.
The Booking and Redemption
The process needs to be quick and flexible. Guests expect to redeem online without extra steps or restrictions. When booking is easy, redemption rates rise, and the overall experience feels effortless. That simplicity often leads to repeat visits and higher on-site spending.
Selling Experience Gift Vouchers Beyond the Booking Page
It’s easy for vouchers to end up buried in a website footer. The problem is, if guests can’t see them, they won’t buy them.
The example below shows a simple way to fix that - by putting an experience voucher banner right on the homepage, where every visitor will see it.
Example of how hotels can feature experience vouchers on their homepage banner, instead of hiding them in the footer.
Once vouchers are visible, sales tend to follow. Add them to your homepage, mention them in email newsletters, and include them in spa menus, restaurant brochures, and in-room materials.
Staff can also make a big difference. When a guest checks out after a great stay, that’s the moment to say, “Would you like to give this experience as a gift?”
Short videos work well too - a chef plating a dessert, a therapist setting up a treatment room, a glass of champagne being poured. Simple moments like these tell the story quickly and remind people what they could give.
Looking Ahead: From Experience to Revenue
The experience economy isn’t slowing down. It continues to shape how guests decide where to stay, relax, and spend their time. People are choosing places that make them feel something, not just somewhere to stay or eat.
For hotels, spas, restaurants, and golf clubs, experience gift vouchers turn that demand into reliable income. They bring in revenue before the guest arrives, attract new visitors without discounts, and create moments people talk about long after they leave.
The operators who succeed are the ones who don’t wait for bookings. They package experiences as vouchers, sell them all year, and let those prepaid sales smooth demand through every season.
If your experiences are worth talking about, they’re worth selling. And if you’re ready to build a voucher strategy that delivers steady, prepaid growth, Enjovia can help you get there.
FAQ: Experience Gift Vouchers in Hospitality
Why do experience gift vouchers work so well?
They bring money in early and get new guests through the door. Most people who come in with a voucher spend a bit extra, and many come back again on their own. It’s one of the simplest ways to turn a gift into loyalty.
Is the experience gift market still growing?
Yes, and not just by a little. Reports from the Gift Card and Voucher Association show that experience gifts keep rising year after year, while retail cards are slowing down. People prefer to give time and memories instead of things.
What kind of vouchers sell best?
The ones that are easy to picture and simple to buy. A name like Winter Hideaway for Two or Chef’s Table Experience works better than anything that sounds like a package deal.
Are digital vouchers more popular now?
They are. Guests like how quick and easy they are to send. Some still prefer a printed version, so offering both keeps everyone happy.
When’s the best time to promote experience vouchers?
You’ll see the biggest lift around Christmas, Valentine’s Day, and Mother’s and Father’s Day. But there’s also real value in quieter local months when people are looking for a reason to treat someone.
Further Reading
If you want to keep learning about how hotels are turning experiences into steady income, take a look at:
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