2018 Christmas Gift Guide: For Travel Lovers

I’m driving home for Christmas, Oh I can’t wait to see those faces Our final Gift Guide for 2018 has to be one related to travel. Travel is what we do; it’s what fuels our family’s lifelong memories. We have been fortunate to have visited some incredible places during 2018, and met some amazing people. We have travelled by car, train, ship and plane. Along the way we’ve gathered items and gadgets that make our journeys easier. So, with this last Gift Guide, we’d like to show you some items that we simply wouldn’t want to travel without. Enjoy x

Gift 1: Snuggle Sacs for Adults up to 6’5″

Our love of Snuggle Sacs goes back 10 years, to when Millie-Mae was a toddler. We bought a pink polka dot Snuggle Sac for her to use under her car seat when travelling in the car. She’s now 12 and 5’7″ tall, and this summer we added an adult-length Snuggle Sac to our collection. The adult size is suitable for up to 6’5″ individuals, so she can carry on growing if she wants to! They mainly use them (Toby has a teen-sized one too) when staying in our caravan, or if we’re driving through the night/sleeping in the car. Each Snuggle Sac has it’s own bag to protect it, and to make them easier to transport. We really love these!  

RRP: £60.00

Link to purchase: AdultSnuggleSacs

Gift 2: My Travel Journal from Find Me A Gift

When I travel, I am lucky enough to have the PackThePJs blog to write about our experiences. Millie-Mae is at the age when she wants to remember memories in her own way. She sketches a lot, and keeps tickets for scrapbooking. So this ‘My Travel Journal’, by SuckUK, is perfect for her. This is where she’ll document all our travels from now on, no doubt in a highly creative way. I can’t wait to see how she writes up our next few trips! The My Travel Journal is available from Find Me A Gift. 

RRP: £19.99 (now £14.99)

Link to purchase: MyTravelJournal

Gift 3: AquaPac Waterproof Phone Case

I have an iPhone 8 Plus. It’s the best mobile I’ve ever had, and I love the photos it takes. Many times I’ve commented that I wish I could take photos underwater with it. But until recently I hadn’t come across a product that I would trust to keep my phone dry. And then I was introduced to the AquaPac waterproof case. There’s even room inside the pouch for a strong mobile phone case. What I love about this item is that it is virtually weightless. The phone is highly secure, and 100% waterproof; there’s a window through which you can take photos (and it impacts very little on image quality). You can talk and hear through it, and the touchscreen works though it. Oh, and a bright strap so you can hang it around your neck.

RRP: £29.99

Link to purchase: AquaPacWaterproofPhoneCase

Gift 4: Travel Roll-Up Backgammon Set by Jaques of London

When we travel, we always pack a range of travel games – for the actual journey as well as for our destination. Cards and tiles-based games usually appeal to the children, but they are just starting to get into ‘traditional’ games – including backgammon. This travel, roll-up set is a lovely gift for the budding backgammon player. It’s a great game to learn and play, especially when travelling. This set has a roll-up leather board with decorative stitching and full size counters. Backgammon sets from Jaques of London are of the highest quality and completely handmade. It takes up barely any space in a bag, and provides hours of entertainment.

RRP: £37.99 (currently down to £17.99)

Link to purchase: JaquesTravelBackgammonSet

Gift 5: Hydro Flask Range

PackThePJs has championed Hydro Flasks for a few years now – ever since we were first introduced to the brand. What you see in the image above are items that we’ve regularly used on roadtrips and when camping – yet they still look ‘as new. Hydro Flask items have lots of important innovations, but for us the fact that they wear so well is the main thing. The tumblers have been dropped, the large flask has rolled out the car boot a few times … yet it still looks in perfect condition. I don’t use the word ‘unbreakable’ often, but these items are showing themselves to be! They keep cold items icy cold, and warm items lovely and hot. All round brilliant products x

RRP: £35.95 (food flask) / £21.51 (True Pint tumbler) / £29.52 (Wine Tumbler) / £33.49 (Wine Bottle)

Link to purchase: FoodFlask / TruePint / WineTumbler / WineBottle

Gift 6: Atlas of Adventures Wonders of the World

Author: Ben Handicott. Illustrated by Lucy Letherland.

We like our travels to be educational as well as fun. To that end we own a lot of books, aimed at the children, teaching them a little about the places we visit. This 96-page large format book is a great educational tool. Within the pages there’s a mine of facts on geography and the wonders of the world. Travel around the world to scale the Eiffel Tower, trek the Great Wall of China, and raft through the Yosemite Valley. Showcasing the globe’s most impressive landscapes, iconic buildings and evocative antiquities from both the modern and ancient worlds, this is the most wonderful Atlas Adventure yet!

RRP: £20.00

Link to purchase: AtlasOfAdventuresoftheWorld

Gift 7: Quandra QX515 SLX Belt Bag from PPE Work Solutions

We travel a lot with our two dogs. This means, when out and about, we need a ‘hands free’ backpack to carry our belongings in, so we can hold a dog lead in each hand. However, when all you want is your purse/wallet, phone and sunglasses, a daysack is too big. So we have belt bags. We’ve recently retired our old one and have upgraded to this Quadra QX515 SLX 5 Litre Performance Waistpack from PPE Work Solutions. It was really good value first of all, as well as being lightweight and water repellent. It has two water bottle holders and two zipped compartments. The back is padded and covered in breathable material. You can even change the colour of zip pulls to customise it. We’re looking forward to trying this out over our Christmas travels.

RRP: £13.29

Link to purchase: QuadraQX515BeltBag

Gift 8: LifeStraw Water Bottle with 2-Stage Filter

We never leave the house without a water bottle or two. This LifeStraw bottle is a very special drinks bottle. With a two-stage filter, the water bottle is ideal for travelling. It protects against bacteria, parasites and microplastics, chlorine and organic chemical matter such as pesticides and herbicides. It also improves water taste. The long-lasting microbiological filter provides 5 years of safe water. The bottle is laboratory tested, durable and BPA free. It’s the ultimate travel companion – fill up your bottle anywhere. LifeStraw has been used and tested all over the globe.

RRP: £55.25

Link to purchase: LifeStraw

Gift 9: AnySharp Smart Scissors

When we go camping, keeping our packing to a minimum is key. That’s why these Smart Scissors from AnySharp are so good. They are an ergonomic single pair of scissors that does so many different things. Around the house (or caravan in our case) they have general purpose use; they can cut through anything from paper to tough materials like blister packs, credit cards, carpet, tough boxes – even chicken bones. There’s even a bottle opener! 

RRP: £9.99

Link to purchase: SmartScissors

Gift 10: Zippo Hand Warmer

The Zippo Hand Warmer is the ideal piece of equipment when out and about on a cold winter’s day. There’s nothing worse when taking a walk on a crisp cold day than that creeping cold feeling in your hands. By using the handwarmer you can keep your hands warm and toasty. Equally useful with spectating at a football or rugby match. There’s no need to have cold hands again! You fill the warmer with lighter fluid using their easy fill container, light the top (it is flameless and odourless) and this gives 6-hours of gentle heat, to keep you from freezing. A great gift for a travel lover, dog walker, or soccer mom/dad!

RRP: £21.95

Link to purchase: ZippoHandWarmer

We hope you like our choices? Do you have any items you always take travelling? We’d love to hear about them. I need to mention that a couple of the items above were gifted to PackThePJs in exchange for our opinion … some of them a long, long time ago (though we only include things we really like!)

End note: Would you like your products included in our future Gift Guides? Please add us to your mailing list tracey@packthepjs.com and huw@packthepjs.com x