Surprisingly Useful Travel Gifts: 16+ Practical Gift Ideas for Travelers

After years of long-term travel to 20+ countries, there are certain items we’ve found to be surprisingly useful. If you’re looking for gift ideas for someone going traveling, we think a present from this list of useful travel gifts will be much appreciated.

I’ve noticed that a lot of gift guides for travelers are full of gimmicky stuff. They might be fun and cute, but who knows if they’ll actually get used.

That’s why in this post, each gift idea is something we regularly pack on our own trips. They may not all be universal travel essentials. But they’re some of the best gear and travel accessories that we personally find useful and recommend.

Updated: November 2024. Originally published: 2021.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. That means if you make a purchase through one of our links, we may get a small commission at no additional cost to you. 

Super Useful Travel Gifts

These are our recommendations of useful travel gifts for men and women who like to travel.

Nomatic Wallet: Gift under $20 for travelers

After Jedd started using the Nomatic wallet on our travels, I had to buy one for my brother-in-law for Christmas.

Actually, I think Nomatic has a lot of really cool travel products (like their travel pack and planner). 

The wallet’s novel design allows you to carry multiple cards as well as cash in a slim holder. Just pull on the tab and you cards slide out for easy access.

It fits in your front pocket without bulging – a perfect gift for traveling light.

Available in black, gray, red, and mint. 

Check out the Nomatic wallet here >

Packing Cubes: Gift under $50 for travelers

It wasn’t long into our nomadic life that we invested in a couple sets of packing cubes. These are life savers for us. We don’t go on a trip without them anymore.

Not only do they keep clothes from becoming a disorganized mess in your luggage, they can also double as “drawers” when you’re staying somewhere with limited storage. This happens to us pretty often.

Just slide the cubes, packed with your clothes, under a bed or stack them on a table, and voila – you have an instant armoire!

Our cubes are mostly by Eagle Creek from REI. We like to use a variety of sizes, which you can get when buying a set.

Browse all packing cubes at REI >

Toiletry Bag: Practical Gift for Any Traveler

Pretty much every traveler needs a toiletry bag, even if it’s just a Ziplock. Why not give a top quality toiletry bag that’s both useful and stylish?

I was gifted my toiletry bag (also known as a dopp kit) a loong time ago, and I still use it every single day.

I especially love that I can hang the bag anywhere. Or I can detach the self-contained bottom pouch if I need to pack light. The material is durable, like a rain coat, so it’s easy to wipe down and keep clean.

Browse all travel toiletry bags at REI >

Kindle Paperwhite: Gift for Travelers and Study Abroad Students

Jedd had the foresight to gift me a Kindle when we were in the Peace Corps. I wouldn’t have bought it for myself, but now I can’t imagine my life – especially traveling – without it!

If you’re shopping for someone who loves to read and travel, the Kindle is a winner. It will save lots of space in their luggage.

Amazon makes different versions of their e-reader and we’ve found the Paperwhite is the best for our needs.

Its display and readability is amazing; and it doesn’t have extra, unnecessary features that the high-end model has. Though in a bind, you can use it to browse websites. We suggest spending a little extra for ad-free.

Check out the Kindle Paperwhite on Amazon >

Unconventional Budget Accommodations Book

Notice the shameless plug for our book in that Kindle picture above? It’s true, Michelle wrote a book about the money saving strategies we use to have more meaningful trips on a budget.

And it would make a great gift, too!

The book’s called Unconventional Budget Accommodations: Creative Ways to Save Money on Transformational Travel. 

Update: Our budget travel book was updated in 2021. It’s available for Kindle (use on any smartphone or other device with the Kindle app) and paperback. The original edition is available on audiobook.

Check out the Unconventional Budget Accommodations book on Amazon >

Down Jacket: All Weather Travel Gift

This photo hits two birds with one stone (jacket and runner’s belt)!

First, we both carry highly compressible down jackets on every trip. Even if we’re headed to a warm climate, we still bring them for the plane ride.

It packs up so small and light, there’s no harm in bringing it as a back up in case the temperatures drop or we need a makeshift pillow!

Check out REI’s top-rated compressible down jacket for men > and women here >

Runner’s Belt: Smart Gift for Travel

This has become one of the best travel accessories we’ve found for international travel. The Flip Belt is designed for runners, but we use it as an alternative to those awkward hidden travel belts or waist packs.

It’s comfortable and a great way to hide keys, money, cards, and even small phones.

Check out the FlipBelt at REI >

REI Gift Card: Flexible Gift You Can Email

A gift card for REI can be an incredibly useful travel gift. If the person wants special outdoor gear that’s a bit expensive, you can contribute a set amount with a gift card.

And it’s flexible, in case they need to pick out a specific style and size for themselves.

When our family and friends ask what to give us for Christmas, often we’ll request an REI gift card.

Purchase REI gift cards and e-cards here >

Fun Travel Gifts

Push Pin Wall Map: Home Decor for Travelers

If you’re looking for something a bit more inspiring that travel gear, a world map is both a decorative and practical gift.

We use our push pin wall map to keep track of the places we’ve been. 

There is a wide selection of artistic maps on Etsy. Sturdy canvas ones like ours are best for using push pins, and you’ll also find some made out of wood. Other poster-style maps let you scratch off the countries and States you’ve visited.

We chose a five panel map for our bedroom wall so it would fill up more space but is easier to ship than a giant single piece. The sizes, styles, and colors are endless on Etsy.

Check out wall maps on Etsy here >

Chicca’s Cooking Club Gift Certificates

Live online cooking classes make great experiential gifts for travelers. It’s a way to literally bring home the smells and tastes of a foreign country.

Cooking alongside a local cook in another destination revives the excitement of cross-cultural exchange.

Chicca, a charismatic host, teaches seasonal dishes from her Italian heritage live via Zoom from her home kitchen in Tuscany.

P.S. We are proud co-founders of the Club but no longer admins of her classes.

Gifting a membership to Chicca’s Cooking Club gives the recipient a whole season of live cooking classes. You can print or email the gift certificate.

Learn more and purchase Cooking Club gifts here >

Small + Practical Travel Gifts

Field Notebooks: Stocking stuffers for travelers

Pocket-sized field notebooks are another easy, useful gift for someone going traveling. We use them all the time to take notes for future blog posts, record words we learn in a new language, sketch out itineraries, or track expenses.

You can find these field notebooks in bookstores, gift shops, and – of course – Amazon.

Browse field notebooks on Amazon >

Clothes Line: Stocking stuffer gift under $15 for travelers

I honestly can’t remember how we ended up with this little clothes line and pouch, but it has come in handy so many times!

It’s actually a double cord with sliding beads that help secure your clothing without bulky clothes pins.

You can tie it from tree to tree while camping or hang it up in the corner of a guest room in Europe.

Laundry is always an issue when you’re traveling on longer trips and many places don’t have drying machines readily available. This little pack takes up almost no space, so it’s especially practical for backpackers.

Check out the Sea to Summit Lite Clothes Line at REI >

Travel Towel: Practical Travel Gift

You might be surprised how practical a travel towel can be.

For most long-term or minimalist travelers, a normal bath or beach towel would take up too much packing space. But this synthetic fiber towel folds up smaller than a t-shirt and it dries faster, too.

Not only can a travel towel save you if your Airbnb doesn’t provide towels, it’s useful in other ways, too.

It can double as a picnic blanket, a makeshift cushion for stadium seating, or a temporary cover over valuables you have to keep in the backseat of a car.

Those are just examples. The point is, the thing is multi-purpose!

Check out the Multi Towel Lite in three different sizes at REI >

Power Adapter: Practical Gift for World Travelers

This may seem boring when you’re thinking of what to buy someone going traveling, but it such a useful gift for international travel!

This adapter by Bestek is another item we take everywhere. 

With the wall adapters, you can plug into outlets around the world.

It also converts voltage, which is important if you need to charge up devices in foreign countries.

Since we travel as a pair with laptops, phones, and more, we especially like that you can charge up to 7 devices simultaneously, including via USB.

Check out the Bestek International Power Adapter on Amazon >

Battery Pack: Practical Gift for Electronics Users

Sometimes your ability to charge devices while traveling is limited. This is especially true on road trips and long flights. That’s why we invested in a really good power bank.

This one from Anker can recharge a smartphone four times. Then just plug it in overnight to power it back up.

We have found this to be really useful if we’re using our phones to watch movies on long, overseas flights. Also, when taking road trips in unfamiliar places, we use Google Maps with our phones’ GPS to navigate. This can drain the phone battery quickly, so the power bank is necessary to keep the phone alive!

You can see our phone cord plugged into our first power bank in the photo above during our New Zealand campervan trip. We now have a similar Anker charger but with USB-C port.

Check out the Anker Portable Charger or Get it on Amazon >

See also: Digital Nomad Tech Gear Essentials for more in depth reviews of electronics for travel.

Travel Clothing

A nice combo of need + want, travel clothing gifts are both practical and fun. If you don’t have a sense of the recipient’s style and sizing, consider gifting clothing items with a gift receipt attached, in case they need to exchange it.

You might also like these posts:

– Long Term Travel Essentials: Clothing Recommendations
– Packing Hacks of Frequent Travelers
– 12 Items We Take With Us on Every Trip