It’s that time of year again – Christmas gifts!
I don’t know about you, but my Christmas tree is already up and my gift lists are ready. I’ve even bought a couple of Christmas presents and am ready to snag a few Black Friday deals.
I wanted to get this travel gift guide to you for 2021 in case you also are doing some early Christmas shopping.
For this year’s Christmas gift guide for travelers, we wanted to keep it simple. I don’t know about you, but I feel so overwhelmed with EVERYTHING lately. Endless to do lists, guides, and best of lists that include 523 options (OK a little exaggeration) But, what kind of brain can process all that stuff?
So, the inclusions for this year include a few products that we love and have made our travels easy – they are mostly our cool finds for this past year. (You can see a more general list for all-the-time travel gifts and necessities here (yep, it’s a longer one with 55 suggestions!)
I’ve also included a few travel experiences on the list, as I’m guessing the travel lover in your life, prefers moments and memories over possessions.
I’ve chosen gifts that will suit different travel styles, budgets, and interests. Be sure to share some of your favorites in the comments, and share these with a friend.
Powersheets Goal Planner (Cultivate What Matters)
I have spent years using various planners for my business and daily life. I’ve seen some really bad ones and some pretty good ones. The Powersheets Goal Planner from Cultivate What Matters is my new favorite.
Firstly, all life planning needs a little color – this is your vibrant life you are creating, let your planner help speak that. I also love how
I could never quite figure out how to get a good planner that I didn’t completely mess up with my endless daily tasks and appointments. I like how Cultivate What Matters focuses more on the overall plan, rather than crowding it with small daily stuff.
This planner starts with exercises to help you plan you overall dream plan and yearly goals, and then gives space each month to break these down into monthly priorities and goals, as well as space to record your dreams, must dos, and gratitudes.
There is no daily section in the Powersheets, which at first, I was unsure of. But now I see the power to not letting that overwhelm your big picture dreaming. Now each week I check in with my bigger plan to make sure I am on track and then I use my Microsoft to do app for the daily stuff.
I brain dump my priorities into lists and I then select from there my three daily tasks. I’m no longer dealing with my messy scratching and scratch outs and trying to keep on top of what I did and didn’t do and rewriting them every day. It’s so much more manageable. (Maybe leave all this for a review)
Cultivate What Matters also have extra templates and accessories, like a daily to do list, a homeschool planner, stickers, pouches, and notebooks. See all here.
This is a gift for the dreamers, planners, digital nomads, entrepreneurs, and those who love organization.
Global Travel & Work (easy way to work abroad)
Take it from someone who has lived and worked in five countries. There is nothing better than the gift of working abroad experiences. Global Work & Travel is my new favorite find. I just wish I had this help in my twenties when I was looking for work abroad experiences.
Working abroad was the best decision I ever made for my life and would be the ultimate gift – especially for parents to their children. The growth they will experience to prepare them for an intentional and fulfilling future is unrivalled.
Global Work & Travel is the youth travel platform that connects travelers with opportunities to work & fund their travels abroad through cultural exchange experiences like working holiday, volunteering, au pair, study abroad, teaching and internships.
This is a travel gift for the frequent traveler who loves slow, and immersive travel. (and probably for the most important people in your life (like children) as it’s a higher priced item!!)
EXCLUSIVE DEAL: Just for our readers: $100 off your trip (whatever your currency) You must use the code: YTRAVEL when booking the trip. That discount works in addition to any other special discounts or specials running.
Digital Photo Frames
Digital Frames are a fantastic gift for travel lovers, especially those who share travel memories with others
Forget postcards! This is the new way to update loved ones with your travel memories! Sure, you can do it on Facebook, but that’s so public. These digital frames bring back the intimacy of sending a special memory and message straight to your loved ones, just like a postcard used to do.
It’s so much easier than sending photos to them. With these digital frames, all you do is send your photos to their particular email, or via connected accounts on the app. The photos then automatically upload into their digital frame. So, when they wake up in the morning, they’ll see your new photo on their digital frame!
I bought a Frameo as a gift for my Mum and Dad so I can easily send them photos of the girls and the travels we have experienced with them. Skylight is another digital photo frame you can email photos to.
If you have a loved one who you do not see often enough this is the greatest gift.
Scott’s Cheap Flights Membership
Imagine that the gift your loved one received from you, gave them endless travel memories … at an affordable price.
We all know how it feels when you
A Scott’s Cheap Flights membership is the perfect gift for the travel lovers in your life. Imagine giving them access to a year’s opportunity to find super cheap flights around the world.
CBD Oil for Travel Calm
Does travel stress your loved ones out? Do you know someone who struggles to focus? Is sleep something that last happened soundly as a teenager?
CBD oil may be a helpful solution! My realtor gave some to me to try when we were buying our house. After months of highly stressful transitions, my focus was completely gone and I hadn’t really produced any work for months, so consumed I was with all the distractions.
I was so shocked at how, after taking some CBD oil, my focus immediately returned. It was like someone turned a switch on my old, highly focused self, and I could actually get stuff done again.
I’ve been taking it daily ever since. Whenever, I take any before I go to bed, I always sleep soundly that night. This CBD oil is a game changer. I’m now a reseller of Green Compass. It’s organic and produced local to North Carolina – in Johnston County near to our home!
It’s a great gift for travelers who are always dealing with the stress of constant change – both physically and mentally. It can help ease your anxiety over travel – especially flying – and help you find sleep calm in between time zones.
Find all products here including hydrate powders, insect repellants and skin care.
Columbia Winter Boots (Omni Heat)
Early this year, we bought some ski clothes from Columbia for our first ski trip! I have since fallen in love with my Columbia, waterproof, thermal winter boots.
They are so warm, comfortable, lightweight, and look great with any outfit.
On our recent trip to Bryson City, they were the only shoes I took with me. That’s never happened to me before. I can wear them on the snow (great tread) or, even hiking on a chilly day! I highly recommend this gift for the outdoor adventure lover – of any age.
You can find Columbia’s winter boots here. Their products are always changing so look for ones that are waterproof with omni heat technology!
My Omni winter boots are most similar to this one and Kalyra has these ones, which are just as fantastic (and omni heat!)
I love Columbia for their high-quality, yet affordable clothing. They are great for travel and outdoor adventures.
Unbound Merino Clothes for Men
Unbound Merino Shirt 
Unbound Merino winter hat (beanie)
Looking for a gift for that special man in your life?
There’s nothing Craig likes more than quality clothes that look and feel great when he travels. Unbound Merino has a men’s clothing line perfectly suited to travel.
Unbound Merino was created by three travel loving friends and their mission is to create high performance clothing that is versatile enough for any occasion. As the name suggests, the clothes are made from sustainably sourced, mulesing-free Merino wool.
Craig is happy to wear a piece of Australia when he travels!
What makes these clothes so great for travel is that merino wool is breathable and insulating, it dried fast, doesn’t wrinkle, long lasting and won’t smell if you don’t wash it – even for weeks!
Ladies – watch this space. Women’s clothing line coming soon.
Sassenach Whisky + Clanlands
A travel gift for those who want to conjure up highland memories with every sip.
Sassenach Whisky is the creation of Sam Heughan, star of Outlander (who I’ve developed quite the crush on this past year!)
There’s no better way to enjoy this blended scotch whisky than while reading Clanlands, the book written by Sam and Graham MacTavish (Outlander co-star) about their journey exploring Scotland for their Men in Kilts series. It takes you behind the scenes, plus shares many interesting facts about Scottish history and lore. It me giggling many times.
I also loved the Men in Kilts series released on Starz this year. It had been lusting for the glens and lochs of a Scottish road trip. Tell me you did not cry with laughter over the midges attack with Sam and Graham’s abseiling adventure.
These are gifts for the travel dreamers and seekers.
Mixtiles (Travel Memories Art Display)
Mixtiles are so great for curating your travel memories on a wall. You can easily select your photos from your phone or social channels tp be printed on various tile designs.
Mixtiles has their own patent technology for adhesive stick – it applies to the wall effortlessly, and can be taken off without damaging the walls and easily reapplied to a different position.
We have several wall displays in our home using Mixtiles. Each photo tells a special story of our travels. See more here.
Tortuga Backpacks
Tortuga are my favorite backpack luggage brand. While I typically travel with my Delsey suitcase, sometimes I will use my Tortuga Carry on Backpack, and I love it.
I have a Tortuga Laptop backpack which I have used at least 3 times a week for two years now. IT still looks brand new. I absolutely love it. It’s comfortable, durable, looks great, and allows me to manage my hectic travel blogging life of carrying way too many electronics with me wherever I go.
My laptop backpack has traveled with me on flights, our RV road trip, many other road trips, and back and forth to our co-working space in Raleigh.
Here are my reviews of the Tortuga Laptop Backpack and the Tortuga Carry On Backpack. An alternative is Standard Luggage carry on backpac, which I recently reviewed.
Tours and Attraction Passes
We always recommend experiences over things! While we have recommended a few “things” in this gift guide that make useful and valuable gifts, the travel lover in your life will always appreciate the gift of a tour or attraction pass.
That’s where they’ll make memories. Who in your life do you know going on a trip soon? What kind of experience gift could you give them?
You’ll be the one they’ll be thinking of when they snap their selfie at the top of the Empire State Building as it was your ticket gift that got them up there!
You can look for individual tour experiences on our preferred sites Viator.com or GetYourGuide.com
If you’re worried about choosing the wrong experience, Get Your Guide has gift cards.
And if you want to go one level better for your Christmas gift, consider a Sightseeing Pass for the destination your loved one is traveling to. These are my favorite discount travel cards for saving on multiple attractions in a destination.
We have used them in New York, San Francisco, New Orleans, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles and saved so much money. Plus, they have fun local experiences included and discounts on food and shopping. They also have a sightseeing pass for the USA if you plan on visiting multiple destinations within a specific time period.
While, the Sightseeing Pass is my favorite City Pass is another option and covers some cities the Sightseeing Pass does not.
Lonely Planet Guides
While I now use a lot of travel blogs for my travel ideas and planning, Lonely Planet is still at the top of my list for inspiration.
A Lonely Planet Guide is always on our Christmas gift list – and birthdays. Nothing gets us excited more than having one of those travel bibles in our hand during our dreaming phase. We started traveling the world before the days of blogs, so a Lonely Planet guide is always synonymous with adventure, dream seeking, and memory making.
Even if I never look inside it, just seeing the cover on my bookshelf makes me feel like I’m living life well.
