Valentine's Day gift ideas they will actually use

Start with how he spends a free Saturday, not with what is in the shop windows. The ideas below are sorted by interest, and they swap easily between him and her.

The one who would rather do something than unwrap something. An Adrenaline gift card starts at $25 and lets him choose the kind of thrill he has been talking about for years. If you want to go a step further, the BridgeClimb Sydney gift card at $150 is a climb you could do together on a warm February evening, with the harbour lit up below.

The film lover. A Hoyts Lux gift card starts at $20 and is meant for a premium night at the movies. It suits the partner who reads every review before a big release and still wants to see it on the big screen.

If you are stuck on what to get your boyfriend for Valentine's, the plainest answer is often the right one. Pick the thing he talks about but never books, and let the card take care of the booking. That also settles what to get a guy on Valentine's Day when he insists he does not want anything. He probably does, he just has not said it out loud yet.
 

Again, think about how she switches off rather than what a Valentine's Day ad says she should want. These ideas work just as well for him.

The one who loves something fresh on the table. An LVLY gift card starts at $60 and lets her choose her own flowers from LVLY. You skip the guessing about colours, and she skips the bunch grabbed from the servo on the way home.

The one who needs a proper day off. An Endota Spa gift card starts at $10 and is spent in store at Endota spas. It turns a free afternoon into an actual break, away from the phone and the washing.

The one who never stops. For someone who will not leave the house for a treatment, the Blys In-Home Massage gift card starts at $10. It is booked online, and the massage happens at home, so there is no drive and no parking to sort out.

Last minute Valentine's Day gifts for her do not have to look last minute. Each of these cards goes out by email within minutes, with your own message on it, so a card ordered at lunch can still be the first thing she opens that evening. You choose at checkout whether the email comes to you or goes straight to her.

Valentine's Day here falls in late summer. The evenings are long, it is still warm at nine o'clock, and a table outside is easy to find. That makes a shared plan a natural gift.

A Restaurant Choice gift card starts at $10 and lets the two of you choose where to eat, whether that is the local Thai place or somewhere you would normally save for a birthday. Book a table on the terrace, order the dessert you would usually skip and leave the phones in your bags.

For something bigger, the Hotelgiftcard starts at $20 and goes towards a night away. Picture a weekend up the coast, or a quiet stay in the Hunter Valley with nothing on the schedule. Instead of another thing for the shelf, you are giving the two of you time.

Still wondering what for Valentine's Day when you both prefer doing over owning? These shared ideas are a good place to start, and they suit valentines day gifts in Australia because the weather is on your side. For more ideas along these lines, our guide to gift cards for couples covers gifts the two of you can enjoy at any time of year.

It is 13 February, the shops are closing and the florist has a queue out the door. This is where valentines day gift cards earn their place. Pick a card, choose an amount, write a short message on the product page and pay. The email arrives within minutes, either in your own inbox or straight in theirs.

If chocolate is the tradition in your house, a Koko Black Chocolate gift card starts at $20 and lets them choose their own box. When you honestly are not sure what they would pick, the Choice Gift Card lets them choose from 300+ brands, from dinner to a new book.

It still counts as thoughtful, as long as the message is yours.