Looking for good souvenir ideas? There is no shortage of items sold to materialistic tourists who want to bring something special home to share with their friends & family. Bringing home great souvenirs, whether for your own enjoyment or as a gift for someone, is a way to capture the magic of a trip. A little thought goes a long way here, folks!
I will be the first to admit that I am totally guilty of having bought the tacky trinkets that get hawked by street vendors and touristy gift shops. They seemed like easy (and most importantly, cheap) souvenirs to bring home. After being on the receiving side of similarly cheap gifts though, I know see how quickly those trinkets lose their charm.
Let me explain.
I once bought a small metal Burj al Arab, the “seven-star” hotel built on one of Dubai’s man-made islands, after touring it on a trip to the United Arab Emirates. This figurine sits on my work desk to this day because it is special to me; the UAE was my first passport stamp ever so it symbolizes my first experience in another country. When I gifted a similar item upon my return home, it wasn’t received with the enthusiasm that I was hoping for.
For the receiver, that metal figurine has no meaning. They never went there or saw the hotel in person. They have no memories to associate with the metal statue. When somebody walks by and asks about the figurine, the receiver has no exciting story to tell about the first time they gazed up through the atrium or the time they snuck onto a nearby beach. Instead, the receiver has no response other than “oh, I didn’t actually go there”. What’s the fun in that?
It’s time we put an end to bad souvenirs.
How do I find good souvenir ideas on my travels?
I try to live by a single rule when I am on the hunt for souvenirs: don’t go out of your way. By that I mean that the most authentic souvenirs are found at places that you are organically visiting on your itinerary instead of a gift shop for tourists. Choose the coffee beans from the quaint cafe you stopped at near your hostel instead of picking up something from the duty-free store. Snag a bottle opener from that awesome brewery for your beer-loving friend instead of a generic fridge magnet at the airport. Whatever you choose, just make sure the gift is intentional & has meaning. Sometimes, the story that accompanies a gift is just as important as the gift itself. Here are some of my favorite souvenir ideas to help you step up your game.
Souvenir ideas involving food
If you want to bring your travel experience home with you, look no further than the kitchen. Food is often your first taste of a new culture (pun fully intended), so bringing back something food-related allows you to replicate your favorite dishes from the comfort of home.
Spices
Remember that first taste of Jamaican jerk chicken? How about that awesome dry rub on the fall-off-the-bone ribs you had in Memphis? Grab some spice mixes and bring them back to your favorite home chefs to allow them to try their hand at recreating those amazing meals.
Sauces
Same concept here (just make sure you are choosing bottles that can be legally carried in your luggage!). I love trying new hot sauces from around the world, so sharing treasures like Marie Sharp’s Belizean Heat or ajis from South America with friendsat home is always a treat.
Sweets
Do you (or someone you love) have a major sweet tooth? Give these confectionary connoisseurs something to remember by bringing home local candy & sweets. Hawaii’s chocolate covered macadamia nuts, Japan’s matcha green tea Kit Kat bars, and Istanbul’s lokum (aka Turkish delights) are all favorites that will win over even the most discerning candy expert.
Recipes
What better way to capture the spirit of a trip than to take home a bonafide recipe? I had the opportunity to participate in an amazing cooking lesson in a Havana house during my trip to Cuba, and the tricks I learned while making the family’s chicken rice recipe have given me the confidence to replicate their dish at home.
Souvenir ideas worth raising a glass to
I don’t know about you, but I enjoy drinking exciting beverages just as much as new food when I travel. Thankfully, bringing home a taste of your travels is just as easy!
Locally roasted coffee beans
This is by far my favorite gift to bring back to my coffee-obsessed family. It may be the nature of our industry, but my unscientific research concludes that 95% of avgeeks love coffee too. I am always on the hunt for the best coffee roasters & cafes when I travel, so grabbing a bag of freshly roasted coffee from a small business is a great way to support the local coffee scene.
Wine
While not every destination boasts an impressive wine scene, the ones that do are definitely worth bringing something home from. Some of my favorite non-rev trips have included winery hopping in Chile or enjoying tastings at urban tasting rooms. Huge wineries pump out huge quantities of popular labels found at grocery stores across the country, so keep an eye out for limited releases and small batches to find the perfect bottle for your friends & family.
Beer
It’s no secret that breweries are at the top of my itinerary when exploring a new city, and getting limited-run releases directly from the source makes it that much better. While glass bottles & growlers don’t always travel well, the increasingly popular crowler vessel and the move towards more canned craft brews means less worrying about fragile beer in your checked luggage.
Spirits
My new favorite thing to bring home from a trip is a bottle of locally produced liquor. Adding bottles of Cuban rum and Chilean pisco to my home bar allow me to relive my vacations through cocktails. Gifting someone an otherwise unprocurable bottle of liquor from halfway across the world will surely be a special gift.
Souvenir ideas for local art
While some people love collecting items that take up space on a shelf (looking at you, shot glass collectors), I find that the added clutter isn’t always appreciated. After all, how many neon-colored shot glasses does one really need? Instead, try these souvenir ideas to replace those gifts with art that can be hung up or framed.
Postcards
An oldie but a goodie. Postcards have been the go-to souvenir for over a century because they are inexpensive and are already decorated with iconic pictures. If you do want to send postcards, please do it the right way. Don’t be the guy who just brings back blank postcards because they had funny pictures; actually write out a thoughtful note on the back and mail it from wherever you are in the world. There is something about a handwritten note on a postmarked postcard that just screams authenticity.
Posters & Paintings
When I’m looking for work from local artists, I gravitate towards posters & paintings. They don’t weigh much & are easy to carry home with a little care. When browsing the markets, keep an eye out for artists selling their own work. Being able to chat with the person who created your souvenir will make your story that much richer.
Personal Photographs
My favorite gifts are ones that I helped create myself. I now carry a mirrorless Sony a6000 camera to capture interesting architecture, unique landscapes, and personal portraits when I travel. However, that tiny camera on your cell phone is capable of taking stunning pictures that can be blown up & framed. Some of my favorite pictures that I have ever captured were snapped by a run-of-the-mill Android phone (bring on the hate, Apple users). A little photo editing with phone apps like Snapseed or Adobe’s free Photoshop Express are all you need to transform your unedited shots into something that can proudly frame as a souvenir.
Collectible souvenir ideas
Little knick-knacks are easy to procure and carry home in your luggage. The rule here should be that you should bring home something unique to your trip. Don’t be fooled by the mass-produced plastics items that got re-badged with different country/city names & sold to unsuspecting tourists around the world. Keep an eye out the next time you step foot in an airport gift shop. Chances are, half the stuff will be no different than the next gift shop you step into. Search for items that have meaning. Here are some collectible souvenir ideas that I have come across in my travels.
Coins & Currency
When I was a kid, my parents showed me a box of foreign currency that they had collected from friends & family. Neither of my parents had passports growing up, but this small collection of foreign coins & bills inspired me to learn more about the world at a young age. To make these presentable as a gift, a quick vinegar wash is normally all you need to restore coins to a shiny state. Plus, this has to be the most cost-effective gift on the entire list!
Stickers & Patches
These can be tricky. Some travelers love to slap stickers and patches all over their laptops, backpacks, and other personal gear to showcase all of the places they have visited. Those people are not looking for you to bring home a souvenir to add to their collection; if they haven’t been, they may not feel that they are entitled to proudly display it.
On the other hand, there are patches/stickers that you can pick up that may not violate this rule. If you have a friend who loves Ballast Point beer but has never been to San Diego, a sticker from one of their taprooms would be a great gift.
