If you’re travel obsessed like we are, or if someone on your Christmas list is, this holiday gift guide for you.
Are we the only ones who get a tingly feeling when we organize our day bags? Scream a little when we find the perfect packing cubes to match our luggage? Eye carry-ons in the same way (some) middle-aged men do Ferraris? (“How does she handle? Look at those curves! I bet I could get a lot of mileage out of those premium Hinomoto wheels.”)
The anticipation of your next big trip can be a rush itself—and having the right gear at the ready means loved ones can fit in any last-minute getaways to Paris or Portugal the second they hear the words “seat sale.” To wit, here are 10 Christmas gift ideas for the enthusiastic jet-setters in your lives.
1. Infinity Travel Pillow, $49.99
Window, aisle or even the middle seat, this twist-it-into-position top-seller bends to whatever shape you need to get in those crucial Zs. Bonus: You can wrap it around your head to serve as an eye mask, or around your ears and it will sub in for noise-cancelling headphones.
2. The Frequent Flyer Cocktail Kit, $100
Since W+P’s well-packaged tipple kits came on the scene, has air travel ever been the same? This Frequent Flyer set includes a portable mix-it-yourself Champagne Cocktail, Moscow Mule, Gin & Tonic, Bloody Mary and an Old Fashioned to keep you in high spirits even on those long hauls and red-eyes.
3. Marble Packing Cubes, $58
Finally, someone with a design background has tackled the utilitarian packing cube. Subtle mesh sections built into the shells mean you can still see where you’ve stashed your high-waisted floral onesie, and that high-end look of gold marble is going to turn packing into a pure joy.
4. The Carry-On with Pocket, $275
Did our favourite indestructible smart luggage just get even smarter? Away’s trendy green polycarbonate case comes with its signature ejectable battery (so you can recharge on the fly and Instagram story to your heart’s content) and now it has an easy-access pocket for stashing travel docs and laptops mid-trip. Defs a candidate for Best Christmas Gifts of 2018.
5. Perfect Hair Day Dry Shampoo Mini, $13
The have-a-good-hair-day-even-on-vacation-when-you-have-to-use-the-hotel-blow-dryer staple that’s travel sized and Jennifer ‘Queen of Hair’ Aniston-approved—’nuff said.
6. Constellation Baggu, $10
Do you Baggu? If not, now is the time to jump on the Baggu wagon. These lightweight nylon reusable bags come in every pattern and colour under the sun (seen here in Black Constellation) and they’re the perfect emergency bag for carrying fruit from a farmers’ market you wandered into or extra shoes you splurged on that just won’t fit into your carry-on. And when not in use, they fold up into a pocket with ease (unlike any paper map, ever).
7. São Paulo Travel Kit, $75
Giving Aesop products is a lot like giving out puppies. It doesn’t matter which one people get, they’ll love and cherish every last day they spend together. The brand’s travel-sized set for city slickers comes with its classic rosemary leaf and cedarwood bark shampoo, conditioner, bath cleanser etc., but also parsley seed cleanser, toner and serum. Perhaps the most thoughtful addition is the toothpaste. No more late-night runs to the foreign drug store—we’re set.
8. JOBY GripTight One Magnetic Mobile Gorillapod, $59.99
An absolute photo- and video-capturing necessity, this adjustable (and magnetic) spider claw can grip to street poles better than any capuchin, and can bend into a tripod stand for any manner of Europe’s fantastically slanted sidewalks and tables.
9. Day Off Tumbler, $33.40
The chic, Japanese-designed Kinto travel tumbler is the only to-go beverage container you’ll ever need. It is vacuum insulated to retain temperature and the cap is actually structurally engineered to stop ice cubes and hot drinks from coming out too fast (no more unsightly spills and inconvenient burns for you, compadre).
10. Flytographer Gift Card, $350 (or is it… Priceless???)
Looking for the ultimate gift this holiday season? For hero husbands who always jar and remove intruding house spiders before you get a chance to freak out, or for the mom who is always there for you (with a napkin, a smile, a shoulder to cry on), gifting a Flytographer shoot is an experience the important people in your life will never forget; exploring the city with a local Flytographer who can take them to the off-the-beaten-track spots, show them a whole new side of this place they call home, and help them capture those memories so they can relive them for years to come. That’s a gift your loved ones are sure to remember forever.
