What are you buying the travellers in your family this Holiday Season?
The choices can overwhelm the unwary shopper, so to help you I’ve created this short list of five great gift ideas to make any traveller happy this year.
Rick Steves Convertible Carry-on Bag. A sturdy soft suitcase that converts into a great backpack to easily hump your bag from the train station to your hotel. It fits neatly into the overhead storage of most airliners, and its lightweight lets you cram in a few more luxury items for the trip. There are a number of compartments to separate your dainties, security pouch to store documents and with their holiday special you receive a set of packing cubes for free. There are back-to-basics and wheeled models to satisfy everyone’s one bag dreams.- Archos WiFi 605 Portable Video. Pack light, it is my travel creed but I always needed a laptop to hold the hundreds of photos I take on a trip. It pulled double duty to check email or watch a video but mostly it is 4lbs extra to carry everywhere. The Archos 605WiFi handles all those tasks and light enough to fit in your day bag. (I reviewed the 604Wifi earlier this year.)
- Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM Zoom Lens. For Canon dSLR owners, there is probably no better travel lens than the Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM Zoom. It meets all my criteria for a good travel lens but is at the high end of the price spectrum but well worth the expense if you can afford it.
- A Cook’s Tour, Anthony Bourdain. Anthony Bourdain’s first travel book (and Food Network TV series) ignited a strong desire in myself to go beyond the normal travel experience and try find the heart of each destination. Tony’s hyperbolic prose brings his experiences to life and he also provides some behind the scenes commentary on television work.
An Airline Ticket to Somewhere. What better gift for a traveller than travel, check out the current specials and pick a destination that they may not pick for themselves and buy a ticket (or two). Unexpected trips are often the best, so surprise someone this year.