Oh, what a wonderful time, it’s Christmas again! That’s two things to be excited about: 1. Buying thoughtful unique gifts for your loved ones and 2. It’s my bdaaaaaaay (on Christmas Eve, but still, y’all should be excited).
But for real now, buying a gift could be a hard mission, no matter if we’re talking about birthdays or holidays. What if they don’t like it, already have or it’s not exactly what they wanted? No worries, I am here to save you! Here is a travel gift guide that has all different types of gift options for any type of traveller: from the backpacker to the digital nomad or the boujee one, I’ve got you all covered!
So, shall we start?
Table of Contents
Gifts for backpackers
*Wait just one more second – some of the links in this post are affiliates. This means that if you decide to buy anything I’ll earn a small commission on it, but that’s at no extra cost to you. So just think about it as a way to support me in creating these travel guides while doing some Christmas shopping. We good? Good, let’s go!
If you or the person you’re thinking to offer a gift to is absolutely head over heels in love with adventure, backpacking and living life on the edge, then these are the perfect gifts for them!
Camera gear backpack – $135
This camera is perfect for anyone who’s backpacking with all their travel camera gear and wants to keep it organised! Brevite has backpacks in different colours, I have one in red and it’s absolutely gorgeous. It fits perfectly my vlogging camera, main camera (a Nikon D3100) and GoPro.
Travel diary with a lock – $9
We all know that the reason most people don’t keep a travel diary is that they’re afraid someone might read their thoughts. I bought this diary for myself and I can guarantee it increased my writing process! You just need to remember the lock combination.
Packing cubes – $24
No better way to keep your backpack organised than packing cubes!
Toiletries organiser – $25
There’s nothing worst than having some of your toiletries spilling all over your bag. This one is perfect because you can hang it in the bathroom and see everything that you need.
Portable water bottle – $30
Most countries have tap water that is safe to drink. Here’s a post that talks about countries in which is safe to drink tap water. Regardless, a cute hydro flask is the perfect gift choice for any traveller (and for the environment)!
Neck pillow – $13
Because who doesn’t need to feel comfortable when on a flight or a long bus ride?
Hostel locker lock – $6
Backpackers travel in hostels and when doing that, they absolutely need to protect their valuables by locking them. I chose this lock in particular because most lockers need a thicker lock to stay close.
Kindle – $155
I kid you not, I almost cried when someone gifted me a kindle for my birthday. It is the best alternative to keep up with reading while travelling! If you want to make it extra, pre-download some books that you know they might like.
Worldpackers membership – $39
If you know that your friend wants to get more out of their comfort zone or travel more for cheap in 2023, then get them a volunteering abroad membership. I have tried Worldpackers in Barcelona and Athens and for me, it’s been a very cool experience. I got to meet lots of other travellers and get free accommodation + food in exchange for 2-4 hours of work a day.
Safety keychain – $16
Unfortunately, it’s a dangerous world out there, so having a way of defending yourself should be a must. This is a very thoughtful gift idea for girls travelling solo.
Ryanair gift card – $25
Most backpackers travel with either WizzAir or Ryanair, so getting them a digital gift card is an awesome idea! You can personalize the card and choose how much to put in it (starting at $25). Each gift card can be used for multiple bookings until the total amount is fully redeemed. Sounds super cool to me!
Gifts for the beauty guru traveller
Do you know those girls who can be travelling for days in the nastiest busses and hostels and still look like taken out of a fashion magazine? Here are the perfect gifts for them!
Jewellery organiser – $15
Changing your jewellery when travelling is the easiest way to elevate your look when not having enough clothes option! This organiser keeps your jewellery untangled and, bonus points, it is cute!
Satin pillow case – $10
This gift is perfect for any girl that wants to protect her hair when travelling. Satin pillowcases have proven to prevent hair damage. Plus, it’s better to bring your own pillowcase when staying in hostels. For a personal touch, you could personalise it! Here’s my favourite store to do that (only in Bucharest).
Phone ring light – $22
This one comes in handy to get that perfect selfie!
Microfiber towel – $10
I could have included the microfiber towel in the backpackers’ section, but if you get a girl, as a gift, the body AND the hair towel, you’re doing her a great service. The explanation is the same as the satin pillowcase – avoiding hair damage caused by normal towels.
Gifts for the digital nomad
These gifts are for the people who decided that an office job is not for them and embarked on a journey to see the world while working from their laptops. I am people so here are my favourite ride-or-die objects that I have or that I would absolutely love to have:
A tripod – $15
I couldn’t travel without my tripod! As digital nomads, we mostly travel solo and that is why a tripod comes in handy.
Apple Lightning to SD Card Reader – $29
This makes it so much easier to transfer photos directly from my camera to my iPhone!
Seagate HDD – $65
As digital nomads, we have lots of important documents and travel memories to carry with us – an external hard drive is all we need! And even if they already have one, there’s never enough.
Portable charger – $17
It’s very important to have a good quality power bank because they tend to…explode. Also, having to constantly charge them is annoying.
Universal travel adaptors – $23
I can’t stress enough the importance of this!! I have bought so many overpriced adaptors when reaching a country with a different outlet.
1 year of Surfshark VPN – $78
Apart from being able to watch Netflix shows from anywhere, having a VPN is good for protecting your personal data when surfing on the internet from a public wifi network. You can either get your friend a monthly subscription for $13, or the yearly one!
Apple Air tags – $29
From someone that had her camera stolen in Greece – trust me, get this one. If you get a pack of 4, you can get a discount and keep some for yourself and gift the others to your friend!
1 year of Canva PRO membership – $120
Canva is the most useful tool when it comes to elevating your business with cool designs. Buying your digital nomad friend a yearly membership would make their day!
Gifts for boujee travellers
Okay, these gifts are on the pricier side, but if you love them (or yourself) dearly, you’ll splurge!
Wooden travel map – 10% off with my code roxa10
I shall also tell you the story of this wooden map. It is hand-crafted by a family-owned company based in Ukraine. Despite their production facilities in Irpin, Bucha and Borodyanka being destroyed by the Russian occupation, they didn’t give up and continued to create these beautiful maps for people. Although they are on the pricier side, I definitely think anyone would love to receive such a gift. Bonus, putting it on the wall is such a cool and bonding activity to do together.
Drone – $449 – $1599
You gotta love that person a lot to get them a drone, especially if they are passionate about videography. A drone just gets the most cinematic shots ever and makes amazing travel memories!
Dyson cord-free hair straightener – $500
Actually, any cord-free hair straightener would do the job to avoid the international outlets problem.
GetYourGuide gift card
I am adding the GetYourGuide option here because you can decide the value of the gift. GetYourGuide has so many incredible experiences all around the world – from hot air balloon rides to safari or museum tickets, you cannot go wrong with this! The Harry Potter tour I did was so interesting and it made my whole trip to Edinburgh.
Hope you found this travel gift guide useful and that it has helped you to pick a gift for your friend, family, significant other or, why not, for yourself. Please remember that the holiday season is not for you to stress, but to reflect on the year that passed and spend time with your loved ones because this is the best gift you can offer – your time and love. Happy holidays ✨
