Give the gift of tickets

By June Wulff, Globe Staff

Before you buy that sweater or necklace or those cozy socks and pajamas, consider a gift of tickets. So says ArtsBoston, which just released the results of a survey of more than 2,200 Bay Staters and found that gifts of concert, ballet, theater, and other performing-arts tickets are favorites to both give and receive.

“We were surprised, yet pleased, to learn that 85 percent of those surveyed felt so strongly about incorporating a live performance into their holidays,” according to Catherine Peterson, executive director of ArtsBoston. Admittedly the organization has a stake in its survey that’s difficult to ignore, but it’s still hard to argue with the larger point. The gift of experience is memorable.

To make it easy and affordable to buy those tickets, the Mayor’s Holiday Special campaign offers discounts to performances plus dining, hotel, parking deals, and more. The program runs through January 1 and is a collaboration between ArtsBoston, Boston Mayor Tom Menino, the Mayor’s Office of Arts, Tourism & Special Events, and the Greater Boston Convention & Visitors Bureau. Hopefully the mayor is well enough this season to get out and enjoy at least one performance.

So what’s it gonna be? Trinkets? Or tickets?