Are you a travellers’ Santa?

There is rum and cookies and silver stars and Christmas trees. While we ask you to keep the Christmas festivities going as usual, you might want to change the stockings’ matter this year! For travellers aren’t not going to be “Christmas kind of happy” with just a bottle of rum or a hand knitted jersey.

 

This breed, which lives out of suitcases, eagerly scours for gifts that are handy and serve as their best pals on the road. So, while you can jog your brains with the usual hullabaloo, we make the task of choosing gifts for travellers easier. From portable hammocks and the coolest backpacks that are easily available online, there are some more sought after ones as well. 

 

With this, you will have an answer to our question – Are you a travellers’ Santa? 

 

Here’s ixigo’s pick for some really Santastic gifts for travellers –

 

WORLD’S SMALLEST WASHING MACHINE

If your traveller friends have been cribbing about spending some hundreds of rupees on getting the laundry done at the hotel, get them a wash bag. Most of these just need a litre of water, some detergent and, of course, dirty clothes. Three minutes and you’ll have freshly laundered clothes. Best gift for backpackers and budget travellers. 

 

Cost – $64.95 plus (you can make the payment via paypal)

 

You can order it at – http://thescrubba.com/products/scrubba-wash-bag-2013-usd

 

ONE OF THE MOST EFFECTIVE PORTABLE WATER PURIFIERS

They are going to love this one. SteriPEN Ultra makes for one of the most sought after gifts for travellers, with its added benefit of eco-friendly travel. While it lets the nomads purify water on the go, they also end up buying less of bottled waters and thus reducing litter. Plus, they eventually end up saving money.

 

Cost – $99.95 plus

 

You can order it at – http://www.steripen.com/ultra/

 

WORLD’S MOST IMPRESSIVE ON THE GO CAMERA

Imagine recording 1080p HD videos and 8 MP photographs, with the camera perched right on your nose. Yes, this is exactly what Pivothead Wearable Imaging device can do. It also facilitates Mirco SD card, Blue tooth support, wifi connectivity, GPS tracking and more. Now, imagine gifting this dream come true device to your traveller friend. Happy Christmas, isn’t it?

 

Cost – $399 and up

 

You can order it at – http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/pivothead-smart

 

THE BIBLE FOR BUDGET TRAVELLERS

Not every Christmas gift needs to be expensive. Especially when it comes to a book that’s very aptly titled as “How to Travel the World on $50 A Day”. Penned by Matt Kepnes, famously known as Nomadic Matt, it has travellers swooning over its realistic, implementable solutions for budget travel.

 

Cost – $9.49 plus

 

You can order it right here – http://www.amazon.com/How-Travel-World-50-Day/dp/0399159673/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1386609374&sr=1-1&keywords=How+to+Travel+the+World+on+%2450+a+Day%3A+Travel+Cheaper%2C+Longer%2C+Smarter

 

 ONE OF THE MOST LOVED CAMERAS BY TRAVELLERS

There is probably nothing that a traveller loves more than travelling. But think harder and you might come up with their second most sincere love – a camera. And if you so much as mention a camera for travellers, all the votes go to GoPro HERO3+ Edition. Waterproof till upto 131’/40m and with 30 frames per second, it’s undeniably the best to come from the GoPro stables.

 

Cost – $399 plus

 

You can order it at http://gopro.com/cameras/hd-hero3-black-edition

 

THE MOST COMFORTABLE SETTINGS FOR A TRAVELLER

For the travellers who aren’t always lucky to have a shoulder to sleep on while on the roads, this one from Squidgy is a blessing. A huge number of favourable reviews from travellers made sure it got its place in this list of gifts for travellers.

 

Cost – $19.95 plus

 

You can order it att http://www.jetsettr.com.au/shop/pillows/view-all-travel-pillows/typo-boston-travel-pillow-world/

 

LOVED FOR MAKING TRAVELLERS GO ALL SMILES

One of the most dreaded subjects of every traveller’s life is a dirty toothbrush. However plush your stay might be, there’s always a chance of getting bacteria on your toothbrush. Thus, some Einstein of sorts invented this carry case, which sanitises the toothbrush kept inside. All that it needs is two AA batteries. Impressive right? 

 

Cost – $29.95 plus

 

You can order it at Amazon or http://www.violight.com/Personal_Travel_p/vio200.htm

 

THE GREAT LOVE, AFTER CARAVANS OF COURSE

While I really wanted to write caravan here, I have no wish to make you good people turned Santas to turn bankrupt. Thus, I stopped at tents. Gift a 8 by 6 tent, preferably by Wildcraft, to the stargazers around you. This is sure to spread some real warmth on Christmas.

 

Cost – INR 7700 plus

 

You can order it at http://www.wildcraft.in/Products/Wildcraft-Shop-Gear–Apparel-Equipment/Wildcraft/Three-Season-87/pid-1810053.aspx

 

WITH THESE, YOU REALLY WON’T STOP THE MUSIC

While I have been swooning over BOSE portable speakers from quite long, I might as well go for JBL Flip for the sheer difference in price. While quality is still praiseworthy for a portable speaker, these also score high with their sturdiness. 

 

Cost – INR 5500 plus

 

You can order these at JBL official stores, Flipkart or any other online shopping portal. 

 

While I’ll now sign off at that musical note, do write back to tell us how you found your Santa experience. Spread the cheer, start the celebrations now. 

 

And yes, happy travelling. 

 

PS – All the products or brands mentioned here are picked by the usability and user reviews. None of these is direct/indirect promotion. 

 

About the Author

 

Shikha Gautam loves to play with steering wheels, roads, words, flute and guitar among other things. Not necessarily in that order! You can contact her on twitter @ShikhaGautam