Gifts for snowboarders rarely fail on budget. They fail because board, bindings and jacket all depend on size, shape and taste you can't judge from the outside. The safe shortcut runs through the board he already owns: his old one. These snowboarder gift ideas start with the board gathering dust in the basement and end with the avalanche course we don't even sell.
Last updated: 22 September 2026
What makes a good gift for a snowboarder?
One that fits his sport without you having to get size, flex or style right: an experience on the mountain, a contribution to a lift pass or a course – or something for the part of the day that starts after the last run. It gets most personal when the gift connects to his own board, for example the retired one in the basement.
💡 By the way: if his old board is still standing in the basement, our set of 4 ski boot shot glasses with bindings turns it into a bar – four bindings, four glasses, screws included.
Why wax, beanies and boards often miss the mark as gifts
Most gift lists for snowboarders recommend kit, and that is exactly where the risk lies. Boarders have a brand, a shape, a flex and a binding setup they have worked out over years – all things you would have to guess in the shop. A jacket in the wrong length or a board with the wrong flex ends up being exchanged, at best.
Even the small things are trickier than they look. Wax comes for different snow temperatures, and anyone who waxes his own board has his own kind. Beanies and neck gaiters are a question of style. An action cam he either already has, or he deliberately doesn't want one.
What you don't have to guess: his old board. He has known it for years, there are stories attached to it, and with a few ski boot shot glasses with bindings it gets a second job. Then there are gifts where size plays no role at all: time on the mountain, a course, a contribution to the lift pass.
Snowboarder gift ideas at a glance
The strongest board connection comes from the Shotboard and the board on the wall, both made from his own board. The other ideas start on the mountain or with the crew he rides with.
| Idea | Budget band | For whom |
|---|---|---|
| Wax service at a board shop | under €20 | anyone who doesn't wax his own board |
| Hang the old board on the wall | under €20 | anyone who has retired a favourite board |
| Shotboard made from the old snowboard | €20–60 | anyone with a retired board who likes having people round |
| Ski boot shot glass with binding to wear round the neck | €20–60 | anyone without an old board who loves a chalet evening |
| Shotski for the mixed crew | €60–120 | anyone who rides with skiers |
| Freeride or avalanche course | €120+ | anyone who wants to head off-piste |
| Contribution to a lift pass or season pass | any amount | everyone, especially those who ride a lot |
Five ideas with a board connection
None of these five ideas requires you to know anything about snowboard kit.
1. The Shotboard made from the old board
Four bindings with ski boot glasses, screwed onto the board he no longer rides. Afterwards the board hangs on the wall as a bar or lies on the table when guests come round. Exactly how it works and what to watch out for is in the next section.
2. The glass with binding to wear round the neck
No old board in the house? The bindings also work on their own: lanyard through the eyelet, glass into the binding, and the chalet evening has its uniform. The lanyard belongs in the chalet – not on the slopes, not on the lift and certainly not in the snow park. Real glass and a fall don't go together.
3. The Shotski for the mixed crew
If boarders and skiers ride together in his group, one piece for everyone at the table is the better gift. More on that further down, in the section on the mixed crew.
4. Money towards a lift pass or season pass
Lift passes are among the biggest costs of a winter sports day. A contribution towards one is a gift that is almost certain to get used. So that it doesn't look like an envelope, it's worth wrapping it with a mountain theme; ideas for that are in our guide to money gifts for skiers.
5. The board on the wall
Some boards are too good for the basement: his first own board, the one from the season in Canada, the one covered in stickers from every resort. Two wall hooks from the DIY store and it hangs in the hallway. Combined with idea 1, it becomes more than decoration.
The Shotboard: turning an old snowboard into a chalet bar
A Shotboard made from an old snowboard is a retired board he no longer rides, with bindings and ski boot shot glasses screwed onto it. It is a gift that only works for this one person, because it is made from his own gear. By the way, the term “snowboard shot board” or “shot board” in shops often means a flat wooden board in the shape of a ski; here we are talking about a real snowboard.
Only a retired board
This only works with a board that is no longer ridden. Each binding is held firmly in the board by two screws, so you don't touch his current board. If in doubt, casually ask beforehand which board is “just standing around anyway” – or give the set and let him decide which board he sacrifices.
Where the bindings go
The bindings go on the flat part of the board, between or next to the old inserts, but never on one of the metal inserts and not on the upturned nose or tail. Without pre-drilling, the topsheet splits around the screw, so pre-drill here too – but shallower than on a ski: a snowboard is only about one centimetre thick in the middle. Put tape on the drill bit as a depth mark at about five millimetres, and after screwing check whether anything is pushing through on the base underneath. The screws in the set are roughly as long as the board is thick; if the tip comes through, use shorter ones from the DIY store. Drill diameter, wall plugs and spacing for the wall are in the shot ski bindings guide; the drilling depth there applies to skis. Hang it so that nobody sits underneath.
Three or four glasses?
A snowboard is wider and heavier than a ski. Hardly any group can lift four full glasses on it cleanly together. As a wall bar or table bar that doesn't matter. If you want to toast with the board, screw on three bindings, use a short board or simply hang the fourth glass round your neck – the lanyard is included.
And yes: that is a ski boot in a ski binding on a snowboard. Anyone who has spent years mocking skiers from the lift can take it. Usually that is exactly the moment he laughs.
If you want to do more than fit out the board and build it yourself step by step, the instructions are in our guide on how to build your own Shotski. More ideas for retired boards are collected in the article what to do with old skis; many of them work with a board too.
Gifts for snowboarders by budget
Under €20 you give a service instead of a product, from €20 his old board becomes a bar, from €120 you give time on the mountain.
- Under €20: a wax service at a board shop, wall hooks for the old board, a printed piste map of his favourite resort. Nothing from us in this band.
- €20–60: the glass set with bindings, for the Shotboard or to wear round the neck.
- €60–120: the Shotski for the whole group.
- €120+: a freeride or avalanche course, a day with a mountain guide, a contribution to the season pass. We don't sell any of that, but these are often the gifts people remember longest.
Which boarder gets what?
The freerider gets the Shotboard, the beginner the course, the park rat rather decoration – and the female snowboarder gets her first board back.
The freerider
He rides where there is no piste and has three boards in the basement, one of which he will never ride again. That is exactly the one that gets four bindings with ski boot glasses and from now on hangs above the coat rack. The second gift for him is an avalanche course, if he hasn't done one yet.
The female snowboarder
If she still has her first board, that's the starting point: up on the wall with it, next to it a photo of her first day on the board – or four bindings on it, which come in five colours. If you would rather give an experience, snowboard gifts for her don't have to be clothing: mountain schools and freeride providers run their own women's freeride camps, some explicitly for female snowboarders too.
The park rat
Rails, kickers, every session filmed. For him the Shotboard is more living-room decoration than chalet bar. The glass stays at home; the park is for kickers.
The seasonaire
Anyone working in a resort over the winter has little space and a lot of time on the mountain. A contribution to the season pass or something small that fits in any staff accommodation suits him better than a big piece.
The board beginner
If he has just started, the course is the best gift: the first days decide whether he sticks with it. The Shotboard comes once the first board has been retired.
When the crew is mixed: gifts for snowboarders and skiers at the same table
In most groups of friends, not everyone rides the same thing. For a group in which two board and two ski, there is one piece that makes the question irrelevant: the SwigSki3000®. Yes, it is a ski. But it doesn't belong to whoever unwraps it – it belongs to everyone at the table.
The Shotski consists of four wooden modules, each with a binding and a shot glass. If a module breaks, you only replace that one; slotted together, the four modules make exactly one metre. If the crew grows, extension modules can be added – we recommend up to eight places. For bigger groups, two skis or two rounds are the better solution. What that looks like in practice is in our guide to the Shotski, the classic shot ski.
Two arrived on skis, two on boards, one ski on the chalet table: in the photo afterwards, nobody can tell who came down on what.
The switching-sides round
This way both camps get their turn at the first toast:
- The boarders count down for the skiers, then the other way round.
- Whoever was last on a board gives the next command.
- Everyone pours what they like. Elderflower cordial counts just as much as anything else, and there is no clock.
Anyone who wants the first gondola the next morning toasts with elderflower cordial – recipes are in our non-alcoholic shots. And for the skiers in the same group there are separate ideas in our guide to gifts for skiers.
For which occasion?
The ideas here work all year round. Depending on the occasion, the focus shifts:
- Birthday: the Shotboard, because it is a gift with a story.
- Start of the season: a contribution to the lift pass or the wax service, so the board is ready.
- Farewell (moving house, end of season, new job): the board on the wall, signed by the whole crew.
- Christmas: ideas specifically for December are in our guide to Christmas gifts for snowboarders.
If you end up with a voucher after all, you don't have to hand it over in an envelope – ten wrapping ideas are in our guide on how to wrap a gift voucher creatively.
Gifts for snowboarders without alcohol
A board gift doesn't need alcohol. The Shotboard on the wall is a piece with a board connection even when empty, and cold apple juice fits in the glasses just as well as herbal tea. If you want to skip glasses altogether, stick with the experience ideas: a course, a lift pass, a day with a mountain guide. And the board on the wall needs nothing apart from two hooks.
Frequently asked questions
What do you give a snowboarder whose kit is already complete?
Something you can't buy: his own old board with a new job. With four bindings and ski boot shot glasses, it becomes a bar for the wall or the table. Alternatively, an experience such as a freeride or avalanche course.
Can you turn an old snowboard into a gift?
Yes. A retired board can be hung on the wall or converted into a Shotboard with bindings and shot glasses. Among old snowboard ideas, the important thing is: only use a board that is no longer ridden, and pre-drill – but shallower than on a ski, because a board is much thinner.
What is a good gift for a snowboarder under €20?
A wax service at a board shop, wall hooks for the old board or a printed piste map of his favourite resort. Our gifts only start above that.
Can a snowboarder be given something with a ski motif?
Yes, if the joke is intentional: a ski boot glass on his old snowboard is self-irony, a jacket from a ski brand is not. Everything that happens after the last run is neutral anyway.
What do you get a female snowboarder?
Rather something connected to her own board, or an experience, than clothing whose cut you don't know – for example her first board as wall art or as a Shotboard, or a women's freeride camp.
Are there gifts for snowboarders without alcohol?
Yes. The old board on the wall, a course, a contribution to the lift pass or the glasses filled with juice or tea. Alcohol isn't a requirement.