Birthday Freebies and Discounts

Enjoy Birthday Freebies & Discounts

En español |  You’re eligible for plenty of freebies and other birthday deals on your special day, all of which make turning another year older that much less painful. Check out these birthday perks.

Beauty Products

Women and men who join the Sephora Beauty Insider club receive free deluxe-sized samples. Women get samples of mascara and lipstick, while men receive an energizing cleanser. Aveda’s birthday program offers a gift valued at $20. Members of CVS Extra Care Beauty Club receive $3 to spend in the store for their birthday.

Golf

You can tee off at more than 100 golf courses around the country that offer a free round on your birthday, usually when you register to join the course’s eClub at no charge. The Greenskeeper.org website has a directory of participating courses in nine states. It’s also worth Googling “free birthday golf” and the name of your state to find more specials.

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Meal Deals

Many local restaurants and national chains offer some kind of free food, such as an entrée, appetizer or dessert. Some even provide an entire meal on the house. The key to most of these deals is to be a member of the restaurant’s customer loyalty club before your birthday so it can email you the offer. Some  freebies include: Benihana’s $30 gift certificate, Ruby Tuesday’s free burger and Ponderosa Steakhouse’s complimentary steak dinner.

Professional Photographs

Sign up for the Olan Mills Birthday Club and you can get a coupon for $25 off a portrait purchase (no minimum amount) and 40 percent off additional prints. Be sure to register well in advance of your child’s birthday.

Ice Cream

It wouldn’t be a birthday without ice cream. Enjoy a free scoop at Baskin Robbins and Ben & Jerry’s, and (depending on seasonal offers) a complimentary small cup of yogurt or a $3 coupon at TCBY. Just be sure to sign up for their email clubs in advance.

Birthday Treats for Fido, Too

Your four-legged furry friends — or other pets — can score special savings and other treats on their birthdays if you sign them up for Petco’s Birthday Club.

Jewelry

Sign up for email updates from Helzberg Diamonds, and you can receive a free piece of pearl jewelry on your birthday. Earrings, bracelets and necklaces have been given away in the past.  Tampa-based Simple Graces Jewelry gives a pair of crystal earrings and a $10 gift card to birthday girls. If you’re not in the Tampa area, you’ll need to pay for postage.

Free Beer?

OK, so maybe that’s too good to be true. But I’ve found that if you go out for a celebratory drink on your birthday, it never hurts to casually mention the occasion to the bartender — who might comp you a beer or cocktail. For a sure thing, get a free root beer float on your birthday at A&W restaurants when you join their Mug Club.

Kid’s Stuff

Sign up your children for the Barnes & Noble Kids Club and they can receive a free cupcake on their birthday. The Children’s Place Birthday Club provides a treat to members during their birth month, and Geoffrey’s Birthday Club at Toys “R” Us presents a birthday boy or girl with a card, phone call and gift as well as an in-store announcement and celebration. Your children can also get a personalized birthday phone call from their favorite Nick Jr. TV character.

Hotels

Kimpton Hotels offers a 20 percent discount off daily rates during your birthday month (Thursday to Sunday only, and other restrictions apply), plus some free champagne, dessert and other perks. Even if a hotel doesn’t offer a deal on special occasions, simply letting the concierge or registration staff know that you’re celebrating might get you a room upgrade or other extras.

Free Birthday Greetings

You can send free e-cards from 123Greetings.com or MyFunCards.com. American Greetings’ free iPad app allows children to draw, make collages and create unique cards — and then have them professionally printed at no charge. From BirthdayTimes.com, you can send a free customized newspaper front page with actual historic events that happened on that date.

Lottery Tickets, Lingerie and Hardware

Now that’s some combination, but it’s true. Missouri residents can get a free Draw Game ticket on their birthday by being a member of the My Lottery Players Club. Angel Card Members at Victoria’s Secret receive a gift valued at $10 on birthdays. Members of Ace Hardware Rewards and the Kmart Birthday Club can celebrate with a $5 coupon.

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