I know there are a lot of you collectors out there but I’m curious about what you guys actually collect when travelling?
This is one of those things where at least for me, early on in my travels, I decided to stick to one or two things that I knew I could universally find find in each town, city, or country. Everyone has their one thing. What is yours?
What’s the one thing you buy in each city or country you visit?
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What to collect when travelling
Travelling is such a fleeting moment and you have to cherish every experience that you have. That’s why we take photos, snap selfies, record videos, and share on social media.
Things that you collect while travelling is unquestionably inspiring and nostalgic.
Another great way to remember all of your adventures is to start a collection that you can add with every new place that you visit. The Travel Channel and HuffPost has a bunch of ideas to get you started but here are 3 main things that I collect when travelling.
Magnets
For me it all started with magnets and as you can see my magnet collection has grown quite a bit. I can no longer fit them all on one side of the fridge so I’ve started to assimilate the other side of the fridge as well.
These are fun to collect because they’re typically pretty easy to find and sometimes you can find really unique ones out there.
Postcards
As with magnets, I started a trend of sending postcards to parents, friends, and myself.
I have a whole box of these collected and over the years I’ve tried to do something creative with these by combining it with maps and on magnet walls as well.
Postcards are something I started when I first started backpacking Europe but as I learned early on, they take a considerable amount of effort and dedication.
Here’s why:
- It’s a pain in the butt to find stamps sometimes.
- Same goes for finding a place to drop off the postcards although its usually a lot easier.
- I’m always crunched for time to write them and I’ll usually just scribble something quick before I’m off to the next city.
- It’s stressful to try to consistently buy postcards and stamps in every city and deciding who gets which ones.
That said, because it’s been such a tradition I’ve continued to do this.
It’s not something that I do to brag about our travels but more of a personal touch that tells family and friends that we think of them when we’re on the road.
In a digital world, tactile souvenirs that come from snail mail is pretty cool still right?
Patches
To make things a little more interesting, I’ve recently started to collect country patches as well.
Hear me out. I was struggling with the pressure of finding things in each city so settling on something country-based more sense. Also, patches are things that you can easily find online if you missed one and the truth is, the patches you find sold country to country are all pretty generic.
Out of everything, this one has been the most rewarding. Over time, I’ve been able to see this collection grow as we’ve been going to more awesome places. Since this is placed on something that I actually travel with, you can see the fruits of your labour so-to-speak.
The only time I couldn’t find a patch of a country was in Palau but I was easily able to find one here.
Frequently asked questions
What are other items you can collect when travelling?
Other ideas for what to collect include wine bottle cork, bottle caps, bracelets, books, t-shirts, maps, pins, coins, stamps, bills, and handmade ornaments.
Should I collect things at a city or country level?
Depending on how thorough you want to be, it really depends on how rapid you want your collection to grow and each carries pros and cons. At a city level, you will have to find a new collection piece frequently whereas at a country level, you won’t have to do it as often.
Are stamps really that difficult to find for postcards?
Normally they’re not hard to find but there are a bunch of things I’ve learned over the years. 1) Sometimes places that sell stamps don’t sell them individually so you’ll have to buy a large pack. 2) Stamps aren’t cheap when sending internationally. 3) If you procrastinate, you’ll often struggle to find it on the day you’re actually looking for them. 4) Finding a mailbox can also be an adventure.
What is the easiest thing you can collect?
Currency is always the easiest because you will definitely need it when you travel and you always end up with leftovers. Just decide early on whether you want to collect coins or bills so you can be consistent.
What is the coolest thing to collect while on the road?
Art in the form of wall art or unique standing figures are impressive and always make great statement pieces at home or conversation starters.
What are free things you can collect while travelling
Here are a couple of ideas: hotel key cards, shells and sand from beaches, match boxes, rocks, pamphlets, bottle caps, wine cork, tickets, and maps.
What do you have to be careful with when deciding what to collect
Weight, cost, ease of transportation, flight restrictions, and how easy it is to find in every destination you go. You want to be broad enough that it’s available everywhere.
What’s a good way to display your collection?
At home, display your collection on a shelf, as a collage, in a frame, pinned to a cork board, sewed to an object (i.e. backpack or bag), or as a magnet on a metal surface.
How about you?
So how about you? What do you collect? I’d love to hear from you! Do you collect magnets, pins, patches, flags, dolls, or spoons? Leave your comments below!
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Our go-to is Booking.com because they have the best inventory of properties including hotels and B&Bs plus they have their Genius tier discounts. Expedia is also worth using especially with their One Key rewards program which is basically like cash. The exception is Asia where Agoda always has the best prices. Always do a quick check on TripAdvisor as well.
Tours and Activities
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Hello, I used to collect magnets and shot glasses but the cupboard is getting crowded with the glasses.
I now collect stickers, patches and Christmas ornaments.
It’s fun to hang the ornaments and rekindle whom I traveled with and the adventures we had.
But I’m thinking of collecting magnets again and create a wall magnetic board collage instead of placing on the fridge.
I also buy coffee mugs for my Mom but we like pottery kind with engraved or etched designs.
Love this!
On my end, I’ve really transitioned to upping our sticker game. We’ve since invested in an antique suitcase which now stores our boardgames and we’re trying to fill it up with stickers!
Thanks for sharing your collection with us :)
Stickers of museums that you stick on your clothes, we stick them on our camper fridge.
That’s a great idea! Do you have a favourite museum in your collection?
For me it’s magnets which have taken over our fridge freezer. 😅 They’re a great souvenir as their small / light weight so perfect for popping in hand luggage.
LOL I can totally relate. For me it’s gotten to the point where I’m running out of space. Also, all new fridges seem to not be magnetic on the front so there’s that issue as well. That said, a great little souvenir to pick up in every new place you go to I agree!
I collect shot glasses from each country. I try to get something cool/decorative and small from each big trip. (like sand from atacama desert, lighter from amsterdam, maori mask from NZ..)
I get patches too, but don’t know what to do with them… I’m saving them for when i have an idea. (any thoughts? other then sewing on backpack)
my stepmom collects postcards too, so i always buy for her, but don’t post them haha just give it to her in person, saves the stress a bit.
I also have a travel scrapbook, when i come back i try to fill a couple pages per place i went, it’s pretty cool.. wish i did travel journal, but i don’t have the discipline to write.
For the patches, what I’ve been doing is sewing it to a bag that I use for travel. I have a giant one that I use for my 40-60L backpacks so I got ways to go before I fill that out with country flags.
I had the same trouble! I ended up putting my patches on cushions.
If traveling in general, I always pick up a Christmas ornament (or something that can be used as a Christmas ornament) and usually some sort of artwork, whether a $5 piece from a street artist or something from a local gallery.
Now, for our camping trips, I do something slightly different. We have a travel trailer and our goal is to go to every state park in our home state of Texas. So at each park, I get a park patch and put it in a binder along with the park map. I also grab some sort of magnet from the park store and stick it on the fridge in the camper. I’ve recently started getting pins from each state park and am putting them on a baseball cap I leave in the camper (because camping=gross hair=need for a hat). :)
How many Christmas ornaments are you up to now? Must be a very international tree :) Also yes to the national park plan there. Love it!!
A keyring for every country!
We’re collecting Christmas ornaments!!!
Oh yes I remember Pam! Do you find it hard finding Christmas ornaments everywhere you go? Is it every city or country?
I’m not Pam, but i collect Chrismas decorations too. Some are specifically designed as Christmas decorations while others are just things that hang and can be adapted (keyrings or other dangly things).
How big’s your collection so far??
I collect magnets and t-shirts from Hard Rock Cafe and Hotel around the World! I also collect plates and ordinary fridge magnets!
Magnets for me as well! My friend does shot glasses from Hard Rock Cafe/Hotel so I kind of know how it goes. I’ve had to pick up a few shot glasses along the way for him.
I collect owls from all over the world, I have a couple cool cut out ones from Japan, a wooden one from Cuba, a bright pink one from New York. I am trying to find something cool that I can put in a book though, my owls are taking up a ton of room now haha
That has got to be one of the coolest collections for a traveller! Thanks for sharing Courtney :)
I collect magnets, my three children collect key chains, the other one is pins and my youngest is snow globes…. It,s awesome
You guys must have quite the collection of things! Love it!
I love shot glasses so whenever I travel or a friend of mines does we collect shot glasses. She just left Vegas and now Virginia.
Oh that’s a fun one! I have a friend that collects Hard Rock cafe shot glasses. I even bought him a bunch on my travels. Are there specific kinds that you look for?
I love collecting mugs!
How many mugs do you have in your collection Paige?
I just collect memories and photographs, because when you’re backpacking you don’t want to have to carry too much weight around. But that doesn’t mean I haven’t collected the odd random souvenir as I’ve travelled – including one or two t-shirts and a ticket stub or two.
What do you typically do with those random knick knacks that you pick up along the way. Do you put them in a box somewhere?
I collect jewelry when I travel! I always loved the idea of collecting patches, saving tickets, etc. but I’m never diligent about it. I always pick up something I can WEAR during a trip – earrings, a bracelet, statement necklace, a pashmina; something that will remind me of that place every time I put it on. Good conversation pieces!
Definitely great conversation pieces! Always brings back fond memories as well when you wear them right?
I collect shot glasses, maybe not the most practical thing to be collecting as they might easily break. I found the patches quit cool, think I’m gonna start pinning patches onto my backpack! :)
Patches are great because you can have them with you as you travel and is a great way to show off how well travelled you are ;)
I don’t collect anything for myself, but I used to buy thimbles for my grandmother (she just died a month ago). I was sending a postcard to my brother and sister too and they keep them all together, now I print one of my pictures and send it as a postcard, i think it’s more personal and unique :)
That’s an awesome idea! I wish I had more time to do thoughtful things like that.
One thing I’ve done recently with my postcards is make a collage of them and sandwich them between two acrylic panes to create an awesome piece of artwork in the house too!
I collect a book (about anything) and put the postcard inside so i know where its from when i read it later
Hey Brittany, that’s an awesome idea! Do you ever run into a problem of having too many books to bring back if it’s a long trip?
I collect keychains. But I’m very particular about them. It has to be something that represents the country or city. For example, I got a lobster keychain from Boston; a bowl of noodles keychain from Hong Kong; and a Vietnamese woman keychain from Vietnam. I just love that moment when I see the keychain and think, “yes, this is the one!”.
coffee cups.
I have a bunch of friends that do the coffee cup thing. Starbucks in particular for you or any?
Definitely postcards. My downstairs loo is covered with them!
I quite often buy packs of cards too, so whenever I use them, it reminds me of the trip.
I love the idea of patches – but I think I would just worry that I’d lose the bag, and then all the patches would be gone too.
Thanks for your comments Katie!
What do you do with the postcards downstairs? Do you have them on a wall in a collage?
Yes! Gives guests something to look at when they’re in the bathroom :-P
We have a fun way of collecting stuff. We allocate $5 and it is a competition to buy the tackiest souvenir that we can find. Intense rivalry exists and it is a good way to explore a place. We have a huge collection of $5 crap in our pool downstairs – we and our friends love it.
That sounds like a pretty awesome idea actually…and hilarious!
You usually do this with a group of friends you’re travelling with or with friends on separate trips?
I collect magnets, too! =D
Awesome. Thanks Tim!
I have no idea why or how it started, but I collect kitschy or unique mugs from every place I go. I have one with ridiculous dancing leprechauns from Ireland, a beautiful traditional ceramic one from Japan, and a vintage memorial mug from Popeye’s hometown, for instance. It’s kind of odd, but I guess it’s at least somewhat unique! Only downside, not the easiest to transport around… :)
I like to collect ticket stubs, receipts and fold out maps.
How big is the collection now?
I have a bag full!
I use to collect patches when I was little. My mom covered a whole coat with all of my patches. Now I collect ingredients to make recipes I loved on our travels once we’ve left there.
Ingredients! I love that :) Is there any specific type of recipes you go after?
For me I collect things out of the ordinary. Just some examples, I cut a wooden spoon out of bamboo while I was in the Amazon. A complete conch I found in the Atlantic Ocean. Piece of volcano fiberglass climbing Teide Volcano, bullet casing from the Cinque Terre (locals were hunting wild boar. Mainly just stuff I pick up along the way then place in my Converse shoe box!
These random things remind of a certain event that took place. Memories start to flood back and the wanderlust hits again, haha.
Hey Eugene! Thanks for your comments.
That’s awesome that you’ve been able to make those random finds everywhere you’ve been.