Gifts for Travellers - Our Recommendations
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Gifts for Someone who Loves Travelling
Holiday seasons come and go. For sure, everyone is busy wondering what gifts to give people dear to them. Is your friend or loved one a travelholic? It would be great to give something memorable and travel-related gift items.
Finding a good gift is easier when you know the receiver well. You may have a friend who travels a lot and buying a travel-related gift is a logical choice. A good gift doesn't necessarily mean to be an expensive one e.g. a flight ticket, cruise or hotel voucher but small and regularly used items may be even better. The cheapest gifts for a traveller cost only a few euros. Surely, depending on your budget, you may opt to give even something more valuable. In this guide, we made you a list of gift ideas for a traveller with options ranging from affordable gift items to expensive ones.
Gifts for a Traveller under 20 Euros
A good gift doesn't necessarily mean to be a pricey one. As the line goes, it is the thought that matters. Oftentimes, the best travel gifts are simple things that make travelling smoother.
Travel Book
As we have experienced, travelling is not always as possible as we wished so. The reason may be a pandemic, strict work schedule or travelling is just too expensive. When you are fortunate about enough budget and time to travel, the next thing to consider is to find out interesting destination ideas. A travel book is an easy and reliable way to learn about new destinations before the actual travel.
Don´t just buy the first travel book you see in a local bookstore. Think about the traveller's preferences. Which destinations and cultures does the giftee like the most? Is your friend/loved one an adventurer or nature lover? Give yourself 30 minutes to choose a good book.
Luggage Scale
Every traveller needs a luggage scale. Nowadays, airlines have strict weight limits so by being aware of the exact weight of your luggage, you can avoid extravagant extra fees. Additionally, you can maximize the use of the free luggage allowance to bring souvenirs back home.
A good luggage scale is small, reliable and long-lasting. Choose a scale that fits into a pocket. Don't forget to buy a few spare batteries.
Reusable Water Bottle
You must be aware of how expensive a bottle of water can be at an airport or when buying it onboard a plane. Rehydration is important during flights and while staying outdoors during a journey. Why not bring reusable bottles with you while travelling and fill them free of charge at the airport? For example, our home base, Helsinki Airport has free water-filling taps.
A good water bottle is also a good gift idea for a traveller. Choose a water bottle that has at least 0.5 litres capacity, is made out of strong material but is still lightweight. A nice design that reflects the personality of the receiver and the spill-proof feature are important things to consider when buying a water bottle. Using a reusable water bottle promotes responsible tourism by minimizing plastic waste.
Smoke Detector
Safety regulations vary between countries. In an unfortunate case, you may end up sleeping in a hotel that has not taken seriously its responsibilities e.g. faulty fire alarms. In the case of a fire, escaping can be challenging. You will increase your chances of surviving by acting fast. Having a portable smoke detector gives you many extra seconds to act.
A good smoke detector is using an optical system to detect smoke and is thus sensitive. It is also small in size, light and works with regular batteries. It is important to place the alarm on a high level in the hotel room. A smart traveller considers safety first. We recommend you have one and also give another to your loved one.
Compression Stockings
Travelling a few hours by plane is not risky. However, when the duration of the flight increases, the risk of getting blood clots increases dramatically. Prolonged seated posture, immobility and compression of the leg veins may result in serious health complications. We encourage travellers to drink plenty of fluids during the flight minimizing their intake of alcohol and caffeine-containing products. Some leg exercises, for example moving around the cabin, are essential.
Our advice is to wear compression stockings. It has been proven by researchers that wearing compression stockings, especially during long flights may help reduce the risk of blood clot formation in the legs, a condition called Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT). Please note that compression stockings are contraindicated to some health conditions so consulting your doctor is highly recommended.
Good compression stockings are tight and they keep the original shape long. Know the size of the traveller to be able to find the right-sized stockings. Don´t forget the design and colour. No one wants to wear ugly stockings.
Gifts under 50 Euros
Packing Cubes
Packing all essential things into a small suitcase causes easily a mess. Packing cubes keep things organised. You can separate different clothes into separate cubes with zip locks. Clothes and other belongings stay separated and clean.
Good packing cubes have strong quality zippers and they come in different sizes. It is better to buy too many cubes than too few of them. Buy at least 10 cubes. Bright variating colours help a traveller to find the right items fast.
Bluetooh Speaker
In the earlier days, travellers were restricted to the hotel's poor radios and a few local TV channels. Nowadays, it is simple to stream music online and watch any TV channel on the internet. Unfortunately, the sound quality of mobile devices is often poor but a portable Bluetooth speaker can solve this problem.
A good Bluetooth speaker has at least 10 hours of lasting chargeable batteries so it can be used also outside and operating costs stay low. Travellers prefer smaller and lighter speakers so it is important to pay attention to the speaker's weight. Every single gram of luggage allowance is precious to every traveller.
Power Bank
No one should travel without a power bank. A mobile phone, watch or tablet can run out of power at an important moment. It's important to take note that when onboard older aeroplanes, there are no USB sockets. And so, the necessity of having a backup battery comes in. Quite often, the USB sockets also provide only a little charging power.
A good backup battery has at least 10 000 mAh capacity but no more than 15 000 mAh because airliners do not allow lithium batteries onboard with more 100Wh energy. The power bank should have at least two USB outputs to be able to charge many devices simultaneously. A solar panel for self-charging is recommended and a small size is important. Buy only good brand power banks because bad batteries pose a fire hazard. Again, always consider safety first!
Never put a backup battery to airplane's hold!
Multiport Charger
You may have stayed in a hotel room where there were only a single or two free power sockets. But you had four devices to charge. The easiest solution is to have a charger with at least 4 outputs. This problem recurs also in good quality hotels.
A good multi-charger has at least three 2A outputs or better. It has also different plugs for different standards, like European, UK and US standards. Having your devices get charged simultaneously saves much of your time.
Gifts under 100 Euros
A regular traveller would highly appreciate gift items that would increase the comfort of travelling. If you are looking for more valuable gifts, we have a few nice ideas.
Noise Cancelling Headphones
Noise-cancelling headphones are a must in an aeroplane. They don't just reduce the noise of the plane but they will make using in-flight entertainment much more pleasant. The sound quality is a lot better than with the aeroplane's poor headphones.
Good noise-cancelling headphones can be recharged with a USB charger. There is a charging cable included in the package and the headphones have a Bluetooth connection. For aeroplane use, they much include an adapter to be connected to the aeroplane's sound systems. Aeroplanes use typically different connectors than home electronics.
Tablet Computer
Accessing the internet during a long trip is vital. You may need to find information about tours, bus schedules or streaming the news in your language. A computer is too heavy to carry but a mobile phone's screen is too small. A tablet is a perfect compromise.
A travel tablet does not need to be the best in the market. It is enough to buy a light Android tablet that has a metal cover. Surely, it gets dropped now and then when you are hectically travelling from one place to another. When the tablet is not too expensive, taking it with you to a beach is less risky. Even though many people love iPads, they may be too expensive for trips.
Gifts under 500 Euros
The most expensive gifts may cost 500 euros. To buy this expensive gift, you need to know the receiver well.
Mobile Phone Gimbal
A gimbal is an essential tool for anyone filming videos with a mobile phone. The gimbal keeps the mobile phone stable while walking so the video won't be shaky. The video material will look more professional.
A good gimbal has 3 axes, no less! Different-sized mobile phones must fit into it. Remote control and motorised movement are nice extra features that also increase the price. A gimbal without good software on the mobile is useless so make sure the product has an app suitable to your phone.
Action Camera
For adventurous travellers, an action camera is much preferred when documenting memorable travel moments over a mobile phone's camera. An action camera is waterproof and easy to carry. It is a perfect gift to someone who loves outdoor activities - scuba diving, surfing, swimming, cycling, hiking, etc.
GoPro is the best action camera brand. DJI's Osmo is another good and a little cheaper option. Buy at least a 4K camera that has a good stabilization system. Remember to buy a good-quality memory card for it to ensure uninterrupted video quality. A good memory card has UHS 3 Class definition (U3).
We are using GoPro Hero 9 and DJI Osmo Action. Both are of excellent quality.
Drone
Nature lovers may shoot great videos with a drone. That is a way to get a new perspective on the environment. Modern drones are easy to fly and they produce great quality.
A good drone for travellers is lightweight and can easily be packed into small luggage. It has a long enough range (> 500m) and it must be reliable. The drone must have at least a 12M camera with a 3-axis gimbal. Readout review of DJI Mini 2 that we are using ourselves. According to our experiences, drones are reliable but cameras are often the weakest point. Pay attention to the video and photo quality.
Best Gifts for a Traveller
It is impossible to define what is the best gift for a traveller. Instead, if you wish to impress the receiver, we recommend finding a unique gift. On many occasions, the ideas we wrote above are just enough.
A gift that you have made yourself is always impressive. It can be an edited travel video, a self-designed calendar or a painting. It is up to your talents what you can create yourself. Even though a self-made gift is not expensive, it requires time from you.
Don't give travellers anything that is not easy to carry and does not make travelling easier.
Bottom Line
The price tag of the gift does not define its value to the receiver. Buy a gift that you can afford. Even simple things make the gift receiver happy if you have selected the gift carefully. However, buying travel gift cards is not recommended because they are often tied to a single company. That will restrict the receiver's choice. It is better to buy something simple that makes travelling more pleasant or something that gives good ideas for the next trip.
What do you think of our list of gift ideas for a traveller? Do you have anything to add to our list? Comment below!
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