14 Useful Christmas Gifts For Travellers That They'll Actually Use

Last Updated on 3rd July 2024

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By the time Christmas rolls around this year, I will have been away from my family for exactly 8 months. It’s going to be remarkably strange not being home for Christmas (we will be in Singapore !) and it’ll feel weird not giving and receiving Christmas gifts.

Of course, Christmas isn’t all about presents, but it is a huge part of the celebrations and as a traveller, I’ve been incredibly lucky enough to receive some awesome travel-related gifts over the last couple of years.

However, I’m also very well aware that travellers can be tricky to buy for; we don’t actually really need that much stuff, so it can be hard to find the right balance between purchasing good gifts and purchasing gifts that the traveller actually wants.

If there’s a few travellers in your family and you’re not really sure what to buy them, I’ve put together a mammoth gift guide of the most useful Christmas gifts for travellers that they’ll actually want (and use!).

Stocking fillers

Stocking fillers are quite often used as exactly that; fillers.

A lot of the time, you’ll just panic-buy any old gift and shove it in the person’s stocking as a last-minute thought.

However, I’ve compiled a list of the very best stocking fillers for travellers that they’ll genuinely want, need and love!

Packing cubes

Packing cubes are without a doubt one of the best Christmas presents I received last year. While at first I was convinced that I’d never use them, they’ve honestly been life-changing when it comes to travelling full time this year.

I use the Vercord 7 set packing cubes and I honestly couldn’t travel without them now! They come in a range of 13 different colours, with a funky leopard print design and they’re unbelievably spacious and make packing an absolute delight!

Eye mask – useful Christmas gifts for travellers

If the traveller in your life stays in hostels and travels via plane and public transport a lot then an eye mask is an excellent stocking filler gift.

A super soft and comfortable eye mask makes the world of difference when travelling, especially while flying and sleeping on long journeys. Personally, it helps me to sleep much better when I can block out the light.

Portable charger

A portable charger is a must-have for every traveller.

You don’t have to splash out on an incredibly expensive one; we just have an Iceworks portable charger which is incredibly reasonably priced and the battery power lasts ages (we actually managed to use this to charge our phones and camera for three full days at a time when we were in the campervan!).

Earplugs – useful Christmas gifts for travellers

Similarly to an eye mask, earplugs are a small and trivial, yet incredibly thoughtful stocking filler for travellers.

They’re a great companion to have while travelling, especially when staying in hostels and busy guesthouses, as well as while trying to get some sleep on planes.

We bought a pack of 20 from Amazon before we left the UK and I’ve slept with them in pretty much every night since!

Travel pillow

Not everyone feels the need for a travel pillow so before you purchase this Christmas gift, I would suggest checking with the recipient as to whether they’d actually use it.

There are so many different shapes and sizes when it comes to travel pillows but my personal favourite is the J Pillow. It’s comfortable, lightweight and it easily folds down into a little bag that can then be attached to a backpack.

Filtered water bottle – useful Christmas gifts for travellers

A filtered water bottle is a great stocking filler gift, especially if the traveller will be spending a lot of time in Asia, where the ability to drink tap water is pretty much non-existent.

This is actually something that I’ve struggled with quite a lot while travelling; having to drink bottled water constantly. Not only is it terrible for the environment, but it also means that you’re constantly spending money just to drink clean water!

A filtered water bottle would come in incredibly handy while travelling in Southeast Asia and you can pick some up from Amazon for a relatively affordable price.

Universal travel adapter

This is another Christmas gift for travellers that will go a long way.

We have the Hyleton Worldwide Travel Adapter that comes with 4 USB slots, 1 UK plug socket, as well as all the adapters that you’ll ever need. It’s a definite stocking filler-must in my opinion!

Mid-range Christmas gifts for travellers

Depending on your Christmas budget, you might have a different idea as to what is classed as “mid-range” but I’ve included the below gifts in this section as I think you can get some pretty decent bargains on all these gifts!

Travel insurance subscription

Travel insurance is without a doubt one of the most important things a traveller needs whenever they go on a trip.

Of course, you desperately hope that they’ll never, ever use it, but it’s a great addition to have anyway, just in case!

SafetyWing offer unbelievably affordable travel insurance policies starting at around $36 for 4 weeks, depending on the type of policy you need.

World Nomads also offer excellent travel insurance, particularly for backpackers.

It’s not really something that a traveller would enjoy purchasing for themselves so a travel insurance policy for the length of time that they plan on travelling for is a great Christmas gift in my opinion!

A hotel stay

When we still lived in the UK, particularly over the last year or two, there were very few physical gifts that I wanted for my birthday or Christmas.

Instead, I asked my friends and family to chip in for a nice hotel stay somewhere in the UK as I felt that I would appreciate an experience like that more, rather than something materialistic that I would likely never use.

Some of my favourite places in the UK that I’ve been gifted by family and friends include Redworth Hall Hotel, The Scotsman Hotel and The Lowry Hotel.

Of course, if your traveller is going to be away for Christmas this year, then you could always pay for their accommodation over the holidays as their Christmas gift!

New backpack – useful Christmas gifts for travellers

A new backpack is another thing that’s essential for travellers, but yet something that they wouldn’t necessarily want to buy for themselves.

As long as you have some idea of the type of backpack they’d want for their travels, then you could be the hero of the holidays and purchase it as their Christmas gift.

Matt and I have been using the Osprey Fairview Women’s 70L and Osprey Farpoint Men’s 70L backpacks since we left the UK in April 2019 and I can honestly say it’s one of my favourite items I’ve ever received.

These backpacks are absolutely fantastic; they hold so much stuff, they’re relatively comfortable to carry and they’re made from such durable materials. I really can’t recommend one of these enough for travellers in the position of looking for a new backpack.

Amazon Kindle

As I’m quite old-fashioned when it comes to reading (in that I enjoy having a physical book in my hand!), I’ve actually struggled somewhat while travelling with not being able to read as much as I’d like.

An Amazon Kindle would prove to be a great addition to my packing list for travelling around the world and I’d dare say that the traveller in your life would also love to find this gift under the tree at Christmas too!

It’s a pretty lightweight gift and it shouldn’t take up too much room in their backpack so I think it makes for the perfect Christmas gift for a traveller.

Luxury Christmas gifts for travellers

If you really love the traveller in your life, or you just really want to treat them to something special this Christmas, then you can find the best luxury gifts for travellers below.

Plane Tickets

Plane tickets are without a doubt one of the best and useful Christmas gifts for travellers.

You don’t have to spend hundreds and thousands of pounds jetting them off around the world; there are so many affordable flights within Europe and Asia.

For example, Skyscanner offer return flights to places such as Copenhagen, Prague and Milan for just £20 from the UK!

Gifts like this will go such a long way for travelling fanatics.

Gift Experience

A gift experience (similarly to a hotel stay) is one of my absolute favourite things to receive at Christmas.

Websites such as Get Your Guide, BuyAGift and Virgin Experience Days all offer excellent gift experiences for people of all ages.

A gift experience could be anything from a hot air balloon ride in Cappadocia, a river cruise in Prague or a trip up the Eiffel Tower. These are without a doubt my favourite kind of gift to receive and I’m 100% confident that the traveller in your life would love it too!

Camera/drone/GoPro

This kind of Christmas gift is without a doubt the most expensive on this list but I wanted to include it anyway.

If you’re a really really big fan of the traveller then you could consider purchasing a new camera, drone or GoPro as their Christmas gift.

You’ll definitely be able to pick up a bargain over Black Friday weekend and Cyber Monday on Amazon!

I have the Nikon D3500 camera and it’s served me incredibly well over the last 8 months of travelling so far.

Matt also has the GoPro Hero 7 Black and we’ve used it so much while travelling – check out some of his travel GoPro videos on his Instagram!

This kind of Christmas gift is naturally very expensive and I’m sure the traveller in your life would never expect to receive something like this, but if you can pick up a bargain in the sales before Christmas, you’ll definitely be their favourite person this year!

I hope you’ve found this Christmas gift guide useful and you’ve now got some inspiration for Christmas gifts for the traveller in your life!