Let’s face it: photo albums are boring and no one cares about generic travel souvenirs anymore. Want to do something different with all your travel paraphernalia but have no inspiration? Here’s some inspiration.
Check out these quirky travel memories ideas to get your creative juices flowing!
So you just came from a trip with hundreds of photos and videos on your phone. Some of them you’ve even uploaded in Facebook and Instagram. Others will end up in a boring photo album you’ll hardly see again.
Let’s be real – you’ll never have the time or patience to go through all of them again.
Don’t even get me started on the items and souvenirs that will suffer a long and slow death in a cabinet in your living room.
What to do then? Here are some of the best crafty ideas to make your travel memories more vivid and enduring!
1Start a Scrapbook
Trust me. Even the most mundane things you might collect during your trip – train tickets, receipts, bank notes – will become utterly fascinating a few months afterward.
After a few months, you’ll probably won’t forget the name of the amazing dish you had or the whereabouts of that cool bar. This is why a good ol’ scrapbook is always a good idea!
I started travel scrapbooking recently. I dedicate each page on this journal to a different destination and fill it with mementos I kept of the place. Just selecting, arranging and gluing these around feels like a school art project.
If I’m feeling ambitious, I write small notes or doodles next to each piece to make sure it tickles more than just my only visual memory.
2Build a Memory List
This is one of my favorites. It’s cute but super simple at the time. Create a shopping list of the things you think are more memorable on your trip. Keep it on your phone or in a notebook.
You could be adding anything from the view of the top of the Eiffel Tower to the cat with a black spot on the right eye that lived on your hostel in Bangkok. When you read them again after your trip, it’s a rollercoaster of emotions. Try not to tear up.
If you’re traveling with someone else this is even more fun: you can take turns adding items to the list!
3Get These Minimal Travel Posters
You may not have the creative skills to craft something wall-hanging-worthy on your own. And that’s fine. There are people who can fill your home with memories in a neat, clean and minimal way.
One of my favorites are these minimal travel posters from cities around the world. If you’re a fan of minimal art and home design like me, this would fit right in!
4Create a Video
Even if you aren’t the type who takes regular photos of everyday moments with your phone, you’ll probably will when you’re abroad. Everything is new.
In this digital era, it’s easy to get overwhelmed with the huge stash of photos and videos we take home after a trip.
A great workaround is to condense your travel media files into a single video. With only a couple of minutes long, it’s effective and much more dynamic!
Before you say you don’t have the skills to do a video, there are many tools that you can use without you necessarily be an editing wizard. Heck, Google Photos even does them automagically.
5Destination Boxes
One of the simplest but more interesting ideas I’ve come across: making a travel memory box for each destination you visit.
Just fill small boxes – if possible wooden ones for a better end-effect – with anything interesting you could bring from each destination. tickets, receipts, souvenirs, postcards, and other detritus. Write the name of the destination on the outside. And voilà, you made yourself a travel time capsule!
Not only these are pretty, but they will keep all your travel mementos organized. And it will look great in your living room!
6Get Your Favourite Travel Moment Painted
There are many options to frame your photos and hang them on the wall – I particularly like CanvasPop.
A more interesting and unique approach is to have your favorite travel moment painted! Do like Missy who documented years of travel painting on her Moleskine. An amazing set of visual memories!
7Bring Your Social Media Photos to Life
If you’re a social media junkie like me, chances are you’ll probably have TONS of photos uploaded in social media, especially on Instagram. So why not put it to more creative use?
Using your Instagram photos, Social Print Studio creates a variety of physical frames, photo strips, and posters, including these adorable tiny books. FoxPrint allows you to create magnets as well.
Personally, I use a Polaroid Zip to print out my photos instantly. They come out in small mini-squares that I then use to ornament my fridge or add to my scrapbook.
8Send Postcards To Yourself
Postcards never get out of style, it’s one of the most powerful and meaningful travel objects. Sending out them to family and friends is cute, but they probably mean more to you anyway who was actually there.
So try sending postcards to your home address instead!
Avoid the generic touristy ones and go for others able to evoke what you felt about a particular place or painting in the museum. When you get back home, you’ll have the mailbox full of your favorite travel memories!
9Collect Something
If you take one particular object from each place you visit, you’ll soon end up with an enviable collection from all around the world.
I collect magnets and postcards. Boring I know. I have a friend who collects shot glasses and other race medals (she runs 10K). But the best part is that you can collect virtually anything. Here are some suggestions:
- Coins
- Rocks/Pebbles
- Bracelets
- Maps
- Mugs
- Patches
- Food – chocolates, salt, spices, etc
- … and so much more!
10Put Your Wanderlust On The Wall
This is as simple as choosing a wall back home and turn it into your personal wanderlust worship place.
Go big and dramatic with a collage of travel photographs, snapshots, and other mementos and create a memorable wanderlust gallery!
11Unlock The Power of Senses
How many times have a specific song remembered you of a destination? Or a scent? Sounds and scents have the power to unlock profound memories of the past.
One of the simplest things you can do is keep a playlist of each of your trips. Use Shazam to easily identify the artist and name of the song, whether it’s playing during your tuk-tuk ride in India or in the largest club in Las Vegas.
12Blog it!
I had to squeeze this one in! Blogging is a great way to not only preserve travel memories but also share them.
In my case, I feel it also helps to organize my thoughts and moments and truly remember my travels. In a way, it’s like I’m traveling again.
There are some cons to this – there is a lot of work involved in blogging if you want to take it seriously – but definitely worth a try!
How about you?
Which items do you usually keep from your trips? What to do you with them to make your travel memories last longer?Leave your comments below, can’t wait to get to know your ideas!
Love all the info. Where did you buy the scrapbook in the image for ‘Start a Scrapbook?’
Just bought it from a local paper store, nothing fancy!
Another thing you can add to the list: put a picture of your favorite vacation memory as a background for your phone’s Home Screen.
Good one! Although in my case it doesn’t last forever – I keep changing my wallpaper every few weeks or so.
Great list. Thank you! While on my trip, I often send myself an email daily to remember specific things. (otherwise, all days and things seem to run together 🙂 )
We travel with my sister & her hubby, so every evening we meet for drinks and journal about all the things we did. And, once in Malaysia, they have wire-art they hang on their buildings throughout the city. At the local tourist bureau, they give away brochures with all of the art listed, so every day we found at least 3 pieces of art, took pics and checked the art as “found” off the map – a treasure hunt!
I think these are great I just got an idea I will put sand from the beach in a container and but a souvenir from a shop than you for these ideas, I would rate this ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Great ideas to make memories last. My personal favourite is to buy a present for my Christmas tree and every year when dressing the tree my thoughts go to all the places I purchased each of the ornament.
That’s a great one, perfect timing to do a throwback of the year too.
Can u suggest any other idea to store boarding passes other than a scrapbook
Frame them somehow? Take pictures?
where did you get those wooden destination boxes? Love your idea
It’s a DIY project, you just need some wooden boxes, paint and a stencil.
I believe its a Martha stewart project. google it
With everything being done from mobile apps, more and more people are going with the Blog it! option.
Sadly yes but physical items are also important and feel more authentic.
Awesome ideas. I already do a few of these. One that I’ve recently started doing and is similar to your last idea – reviewing some of the places visited on tripadvisor. Great list again. Thanks.
Thank you! It’s satisfying and encouraging to realize “wow, you’ve done a lot!” as our list of places grow!
These are great ideas! Especially the destination boxes! Very clever!
Those are my favorites! 😀
Thank you for these tips!!!
you are very welcome! 🙂
Like you said people fill up a closet with things that will never see again.
So … I decided to only buy things that I can use every day and they bring memories of every place.
Ihave 2 costers from Turkey, 4 tea spoons (with the name) from Spain, umbrella from China, my teapot from Tibet, my sleepers from Sweden…and so on. I also make 4 individual tablecloth out of the best pictures of esch trip. Thst’s it. I hope helps somebody. Lee
I love that mindset, love the idea of individual tablecloths with pictures, it sure makes a great topic of conversation at dinner! Thanks for sharing Lee!
How about videos? Nowadays I take a lot of videos, not only photos. I LOVE having them edited into a clip, which is a modern version of a photo album, easy to store in cloud and share with the world. Love the whole editing process, although it’s probably not for everyone… For those who are too busy, I’d recommend using WeEDIT.com – these guys are affordable and awesome.
Videos are my suggestion #3! 🙂
Thanks for the tip.
Yeah blog it! 🙂 I use journi, have you tried it? A nice photo app to automatically keeping track of your travels.
Never tried, thanks for the suggestion.
However I don’t accept links on comments, had to remove your second reply.
Why not take a Photography Workshop-Tour that will lead you through the hidden jewels of the city while you learn or improve your Photo skills with the help of a Photographer? 🙂
Good tip!
More than that.Memories make me want to go back again.
I never thought about the memory list – but that’s a really cute idea!
So simple yet so powerful!
I totally agree with creating videos to capture all the best travel memories. I used to do that, but then you get lazy on the road and switch to take pictures on your photo :P. I guess every backpacker knows it.
I agree it’s very time-consuming and most times you just want to “take it in” instead of seeing the reality through a screen. But the end result is really worth it!
Editing does require a lot of effort… but the process is so fan and creative. Or you could use online services like WeEdit.com
Awesome ideas! Woooo I’m so excited to create my own. I love no 4 and of course blogging 🙂
Glad you enjoyed the post. It’s time to create some memories!
I love this post. Is wonderful!!! Thanks..
Time to put your hands to work!