Gifts for people who like to travel can be tough because we generally don’t like acquiring “stuff” that ties us to any one particular place. Here are some suggestions for celebrating Valentine’s Day or any special event, if your loved one loves to travel!
1. Pursue your bucket list at home.
Sometimes we wait to do bucket list items that realistically could easily also be done at home. For example, have a surfing lesson or do some other type of adventure sport or activity like paragliding. It’s easy to end up just saving all your money for travel and doing nothing exciting at home.
You won’t catch me wanting to bungee jump but paragliding seems extremely exciting and I’d love to do it. Make sure you’re aware of what your loved one is interested in and what they’re not.
2. A travel themed candlelight dinner or breakfast.
If your loved one is obsessed with a particular country, then set up a romantic dinner for two or breakfast in bed with that country as a theme. Make sure you get a flag of some kind (e.g., those little cocktail flags on toothpicks or a giant fabric one). To set the mood, think about music, maybe a movie from that country, and clothing. If you’re unconfident with cooking, you could do something like a French themed picnic. Don’t be afraid to be a dork e.g., wear a beret. To cut costs, borrow items or try the $1 store.
3. Book a Mystery Break
Look online for a mystery trip option. You’ll get a number of destinations to choose from. Then You pick how many nights to be a way for and they’ll fly you to a mystery destination. With some mystery tour operators you can even pick a one day option that doesn’t involve staying overnight (This seems like a super exciting first date to me!).
4. Do a touristy activity in your home town.
People ask me for travel tips for my home town and I’m absolutely hopeless because I’m barely done any of the tourist activities available at home. There are actually a couple of good and appealing ones. Cut cuts by looking for deals on group booking sites. Pick something romantic!
5. Display an interest in your loved one’s travel obsession.
If you usually leave all the travel dreaming and planning to your loved one, then a romantic Valentine’s night could involve something like planning your bucket lists and some dream trips together, where you actually get involved in the process rather than sitting back and leaving it to them. The best thing about this option is that it can be free. I’d be thrilled if my significant other came home with a world map and a bunch of Lonely Planets from the library.
6. A travel themed key ring.
This is a good gift for someone who doesn’t like a lot of excess stuff but does like to be reminded of their travels. I have an Eiffel Tower key ring I got as a gift. You could even label it “key to my heart” or something equally romantic.