It’s time to kick off our annual holiday gift guide series, and we’re starting with my favorite one – gift ideas for someone who travels a lot! I love to start the season with gift ideas for people who like to travel because not only is it great for gifts, but it’s also helpful in case YOU’RE traveling this holiday season.
This post has some of my favorite items for travel!
For a long period, I traveled on average 12x per year for at least 10 years 👀, so I became a packing whiz! Most of the items below are my favorite items that have endured years of heavy travel and make traveling and packing more convenient and efficient. I also included a few of my husband’s favorites as well as other items that look like good options (but that I might not personally own). While I don’t travel nearly as much anymore, thanks to having a different job now and 3 kids, I am still so glad for these products anytime we do travel!
- Packing Cubes – Game changers! We’ve gifted these many times, and EVERYONE reports how life-changing they are after they finally use them. Keeps your whole suitcase organized and makes traveling less stressful. Can throw these in the washing machine! This brand is also AMAZING. I’ve used the SAME SET for OVER 15 years with heavy travel, and they are still going strong!
- Toiletry Bag – Not the prettiest, but I owned this for 12 years (!!!) with LOTS of use, and it totally held up until just this past year. 12 colors, 3 sizes available. I own Medium. If you’re looking for one that stands on its own, try this toiletry organizer instead.
- Lululemon Belt Bag – Makes a GREAT gift from young to old! (Think: that teen niece who’s so hard to shop for.) Also great to be hands-free for travel. The Crossbody Shoulder Bag is a sporty bag that’s great for casual outfits and is a bit bigger than most slings.
- Selfie Stand w/ Remote – My friend brought this out to take a group pic, and I instantly bought my own. Really lightweight but gets pretty tall. The remote is super helpful and very easy to use! And under $23 with 84,000+ reviews and 4.6 stars!
- Nickel & Suede Lightweight Leather Earrings – SO lightweight and comfy to wear all day. I barely feel them, so they allow me to still feel decently put together while traveling without slowing me down! So many styles, beautifully made, super great quality. Shop some of my favorites HERE. (If you shop through either of those links, you could receive $5 off your order at checkout. The code is only good for a limited-number of uses. First come first serve!)
- Clothing Steamer – Portable steamer ensures you look your best even while living out of a suitcase.
- Mother Lode Luggage – Our favorite luggage when traveling with kids. Top half is soft shell, bottom half is hard cased with adjustable organization compartments.
- Mother Lode Weekender Backpack – Carry-on volume backpack allows you to travel handsfree. Great reviews! Benson had one of these until we had kids and needed bigger bags. Slightly smaller version HERE.
- GoToobs – BEST travel tubes. Don’t leak, easy to clean.
- Waterproof Phone Pouch – Another great gift for the traveler! Keeps phone protected and with you to capture great moments during water activities.
- Portable Phone Charger – So practical, and anyone who is on-the-go constantly has been grateful we gifted them one of these.
- Hair Ties – Hair ties? YES. Traveling requires lots of movement, especially with 3 kids, so a hair tie that keeps things out of your face is essential. The hair ties I’ve been using for nearly a couple of years. These are pricey BUT they keep your hair in place! Even my smooth, sleek hair that falls out of other hair ties.
- 2-Port FAST Car Charger for iPhones and iPads – We use this, and it has 2 ports and charges *quickly.* 4,600+ awesome reviews. My mom got one after using ours and it was a huge game changer. (It was painfully slow trying to charge directly from her car otherwise!)
- Car Seat Gap Filler – Not an impressive-looking gift, but SO useful! Never worry about your phone or anything else falling through the cracks on the side of your front seats. This thing stops them all!
- Daily Travel Backpack – Nearly 90,000 reviews and 4.7 stars! Water-resistant laptop backpack that people LOVE for travel and daily use.
- Everyday Backpack – Lightweight, water-resistant, and quite a lot of pockets! (Including a cushioned laptop compartment and an anti-theft zippered pocket that rests against your back), sleek and attractive design, and it’s UNDER $30!!
- Stanley IceFlow Tumbler with Straw – This fits into a cup holder(!!) and has a flip straw. I like that you can fold down the straw and keep it in your bag.
- Tile Mate Bluetooth Tracker – Use it to find your keys, bag, or even phone. 4.5 stars with 27,600+ ratings.
- Inflatable Foot Rest – Fills the gaps on planes so you can rest your feet – or so kids can lay out and sleep!!! Deflate them to travel compactly.
- Travel Pillow w/ Face Hole – Looks so funny, but lots of people like it! Allows you to sleep face down without as much strain on your neck. Inflatable, so it deflates to become very compact.
- Slim Pocket Wallet – Cut the bulk and travel lighter. My husband doesn’t own this exact one, but something similar. He prefers to travel as lightly as possible. 1,990+ great reviews. I own THIS one, which is really affordable. I’ve had it for 2 years, and it looks brand new.
- Kindle Oasis – Appreciated by any avid reader because you don’t have to lug around a ton of books while traveling.
For 150+ more tried & true favorite gift ideas, head over to The PMT Holiday Gift Guide!
The PMT Holiday Gift Guide is LIVE! Head over to get 150+ tried & true favorite gift ideas all in one place.
New items will be added in the Fresh Finds section through out the holiday season, too, so you can come back to it over and over for new ideas!
See some of our very favorite products for women, men, kids, families, home goods, beauty and accessories, and more. Head to the PMT Holiday Gift Guide!
