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Looking for the perfect holiday gift for that traveler in your life? Buying for travelers can be a hard task. What do you get for someone that is always on the go? In my experience, most travelers like to pack light and we like to only take those things that are useful or will make our trip easier.
So, skip the money belt this year and buy your modern nomad something they will actually love and use. Here is a list of the best travel gifts for wanderlust travelers, no matter what your budget.
Contents
Under $25
Portable Luggage Scale
One of the things I hate the most is the uncertainty of whether my luggage is going to be overweight when I get to the airport or not. With the Tarris Portable Luggage Scale, you no longer have to worry. You can easily weigh your bag before you go to the airport. It is lightweight and easy to back in your bag (now you can know if you have the weight to pack that extra souvenir on your way home).
Toiletry Bottle
Having reusable toiletry bottles is a great way to cut back on all the waist that comes from the travel sized toiletries and it allows you use your favorites that you already have at home. Oursunshine squeezable silicone bottles are great for travel. They are reusable, carry-on size, and, because they are made of silicone, they fold up small when you are finished.
Travel Adapter
There are few things worse than arriving in a new country just to find out that you cannot charge your electronics because the adapters are different. This travel adapter is great for anyone traveling for either work or leisure. It covers every country in the world, allows for US 3-prong plugs, and has USB plugs. It is also lightweight and durable, so it will be with you for a long time.
Quick Dry Towel
Even if you are staying at a hotel, a microfiber quick dry towel is a great addition for travel. Regular towels are heavy, bulky, and take forever to dry. Quickdry towels come in many different colors and sizes. They can be used after swimming, as a place to lay out on the beach, or even to wipe down gear after a rainstorm.
Tech Organizer
If you are like me, you have a lot of electronics that you use while traveling. From computers to cameras, they all have peripherals, cords, and chargers that go along with them. A tech organizer is a great gift to help keep all your gadgets in one place. The organizer has pockets and slots for all of your cords, batteries, and mouse so you can find the accessories you need quickly and no longer have to chase cords in your pack.
Passport Holder
If you travel internationally a lot, your passport is going to get pretty beat-up. A passport holder is a great gift for any avid traveler to help protect that vital item. Not only does it help to protect your passport, many of them also have slots to store your credit cards, extra money, sim cards, and boarding passes. Many of them also have RFID blocking, giving you that extra layer of security when traveling through busy airports.
TravelBooks
Travel books are a great way to get inspired to travel. They can transport you to faraway places you have never been or allow you to delve deeper into a place you have already visited. You know someone who loves to travel or is just an avid reader, then a travel book is a great gift for them. There are so many great books out there, it is hard to go wrong.
Moleskine Notebook
Using a Moleskine Notebook is a great way to journal about your adventures while you travel. There is just something about pen and paper that is satisfying; plus, you have something to look back on after your travels. These notebooks are also great for jotting down quick notes, addresses, phone numbers, and ideas.
Under $100
Scratch Off Map
Gone are the days of putting a pin in a map to mark where you’ve been. Now there’s something better. Scratch off maps are a fun way to track all of the places that you have been and plan for your future travels. These world maps allow you to show off where you have been by scratching off each country as you visit, revealing the colored map beneath. They come in a number of different sizes and colors to choose from.
LifeStraw Water Bottle
I always carry a reusable water bottle on my travels. It helps cut back on waste products and saves a ton of money on buying water while traveling. The LifeStraw Water Bottle is a great option because it has a built-in filter to help you stay healthy. The LifeStraw cleans up 99.9% of waterborne parasites, bacteria, and sediment from the water, so you won’t have to worry about drinking tap water while traveling.
Power Bank
Today, we all use smartphones, and there is nothing more frustrating than when they die. While traveling, if our phones or cameras die, it can be a horrible experience. This is why every traveler needs a power bank. I personally use the Anker PowerCore 20,100 and, for me, it’s a must have. It allows me to charge up to two things at a time and I can easily get 7 phone charges out of a single battery charge. I never leave home without it and use it for my phone, camera batteries, and drone.
Travel Pillow
A good travel pillow is a perfect gift to help on those long-haul flights and airport naps. There are many travel neck pillows on the market, but I personally love the Eagle Creek Travel Pillow. This classic neck pillow can also fold in on itself to create a square camping pillow. This 2-1 travel pillow also has a strap to easily clip it to you carry-on.
Packing Cubes
Packing Cubes are great for anyone; from the intrepid nomad to the weekend vacationer. These cubes help you stay organized while traveling. The Veken Travel Cubes come in a variety of sizes, allowing you to separate types of items; big and small. It also comes with a designated laundry bag to keep your dirty clothes separate.
Gerber Tool
The Gerber Tool is a travel essential for any type of adventure. A good set of tools is always handy when you are traveling, because you never know what might happen. Whether you need a knife to cut some rope, pliers to help fix a zipper, or a bottle opener to enjoy a cold craft beer at the end of the day, a multi-use tool is an indispensable piece of gear to have on your travels.
Headlamp
A headlamp is an absolutely essential piece of travel gear for any traveler. For those staying in a hostel, a headlamp allows you to go through your stuff at night without disturbing others. They are also useful for hiking, setting up camp in the dark, and for emergencies. The Petzl Headlamp is durable, has multiple brightness settings, and has a red light for reading/stargazing.
Hammock
Let’s be honest, a hammock is a great item to have, even if you only travel to your backyard. The Kootek Hammock is lightweight, durable, packs up small, and comes with hanging straps. It’s the perfect gift for all travelers! String up after a long hike or while relaxing on the beach and enjoy the views from the tranquility of a hammock.
Steripen
The Steripen is a great option for minimizing plastic bottle waist and for saving money while traveling. Just fill your reusable bottle with water and let the pen do its work. The Steripen purifies 1-litre bottle of water in 90 seconds using UV light. I used a Steripen throughout my travels across Southeast Asia and it was great.
Over $100
Amazon Kindle
Reading is a great activity and it’s an amazing way to pass the time on long-haul flights or bus rides, but carrying all of those books around just isn’t an option for a traveler. The Amazon Kindle Paperwhite is a great way to take all of the books you love with very little space and weight. The Paperwhite doesn’t have the glare of a normal tablet and the page looks more like actual paper. It can also hold thousands of books and is splash-proof.
Drone
Drones have become very popular these days, especially for documenting travel. Although not inexpensive, drones make a great gift for the traveler on your list. They can record and share their travels like never before. There are many drone companies out there, but the one that still stands at the top is DJI. The DJI Mini 2 is a great drone for travel. It is lightweight and folds down small for easy storage.
GoPro
Cameras are a great way to document your travels and there is no camera more versatile than a GoPro. They are durable, compact, waterproof, and you can use them to photograph or videograph any of your adventures. Whether you are walking the streets of a new city or on an epic adventure, a GoPro is a perfect fit. If the newest GoPro 10 is too pricey, look into the GoPro 9, 8, or 7 (they are also great and a lot cheaper).
Noise Canceling Headphones
Think screeching kid on a plane or insanely load music on a bus. We have all been there and wished we could make it stop. That’s where the Bose QuietComfort 35 noise-canceling headphones come in to play. Noise canceling headphones block out background noise so you can read, work, or sleep without being disturbed. Bose headphones are an undisputed heavyweight when it comes to making your listen experience the best it can be.
Backpack
The traveling nomad on your shopping list has most likely ditched the suitcase for a backpack long ago. They are easy to transport, durable, and allow for easy access. Having a reliable, well-made backpack is essential for any traveler. There are many great options out there to choose from, but a great all-around option is the Gregory Paragon 58 Backpack. Having top, bottom, and side loading access, it makes finding things in your bag super easy. It also has a built-in rain-fly and is hydration compatible.
Camera
Every traveler needs a camera to document their experience. There are a lot of options out there, from small point-and-shoot to big DSLRs (even phones are great for photography), so it can be hard to choose the right camera. I decided to split the difference with a Panasonic Lumix. All of the perks of a DSLR with the ease of not having to carry so many lenses. It has been a great camera! Lightweight, durable, great zoom, and takes some great shots.
Do you have any suggestions for fun travel gifts that we should add for next year? Let us know by leaving them in the comments!
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portable scales, swiss knives and chargers are very important and definitely are a nice addition to any household especially for people who love traveling. nice list indeed!. Lyosha
ReplyDeleteThank you. I am glad it was helpful.
DeleteGreat ideas, these definitely will be good for travlers as it makes their life much better. I will gift my friend one of these. I like the first one which help to know the weight. I hate when I'm not sure if it will overwheight too haha.
ReplyDeleteYes! My bags being over weight is always my greatest fear when I am traveling.
DeleteVery good collection. I have some of the more practical stuff already. I couldn't live - and travel - without packing cubes. What I need - and at the same time despise - is a luggage scale. Most of the time, I simply don't want to know ;-)
ReplyDeleteYea, I traveled for years without the luggage scale and every time I went to the airport I was afraid that my bag was going to be over. So it was great once I had one.
DeleteI have a similar travel adapter, I love it! I really need to get a passport holder.
ReplyDeleteIt is a great travel adapter.
DeleteGreat ideas... I have so many of these items and definitely can vouch for their usefulness (especially the packing cubes, the tech organizer, the headlights, the powerbank....) and I was thinking of getting a new camera so will check out the Lumix
ReplyDeleteThank you! They are all very useful items.
DeleteI backpack a lot so having a sturdy camera that also takes amazing pictures is a necessity for me. The Lumix cameras are fixed lens (superzoom) cameras, so you only have the one lens but it is sturdier. But the camera still has a lot of the ability of a DSLR so it's a great camera for travel.