Travel
The Holly Jolly Hustle
Seattle mag’s last-minute holiday travel gift guide
By Natalie Compagno and Greg Freitas December 21, 2024
The holidays sped in on a supersonic sleigh this year! It’s not too late to find an out-of-this-world gift for those who love to wander this earth. Whether you’re shopping for Christmas, Hanukkah, Sagittarians, or yourself — these gifts will fuel wanderlust, inspire adventure, and make traveling more enjoyable.
Hydrating Facial
Airplane travel plus cold weather plus multiple time zones equal dehydrated skin. Savvy travelers book a hydrating facial right before or after their trips to keep skin radiant and fresh. Gift a Holiday Hydration Boost at HeyDay, then add some of its travel-sized products for a stocking stuffer. For a truly transformative experience, book the Radiance Pampering Facial at Essential Radiance, and feel the jet lag slowly melt away.
Culinary World Tour
Travel through your taste buds — give the gift of exotic recipes. The Memory of Taste: Vietnamese American Recipes from Phú Quoc, Oakland, and the Spaces Between, from Top Chef alum Tu David Phu, tantalizes with immersive travel photography as well as rich flavors. Belly Full by Lesley Enston sails through the Caribbean islands with personal snapshots, historical notes, and delicious treats. Ideal for gluten-free and or plant-based foodies.
Long live the King! Cooking and the Crown: Royal Recipes from Queen Victoria to King Charles III by Tom Parker Bowles, award-winning food writer, restaurant critic, and son of Queen Camilla, is a jovial romp through royal tastes. Even if these recipes are never attempted this side of the pond, the photos and anecdotes entertain and amuse. Support local indie bookstores by picking up gifts at Book Larder, Phinney Books, or Third Place Books.
Stylish Toiletry Cases
Keep your travel products and makeup organized and accessible — Truffle’s clutches, cases, jetsets, and train cases are chic and useful. The petite travel packing kits every traveler wants but never buys for themselves. Its slogan says it all: “Holiday travel — made effortless.”
Thirsty?
Hydaway Hydration Travel Pack from REI quenches rugged adventurers’ thirst while looking fashionable at the same time. The bottles collapse into a small round zipper case to save space.
Point. Snap. Share.
Polaroid cameras are the best way to make friends while traveling. Gift the Instax Square SQ 40 to take selfies in selfie mode or grab that night shot with auto exposure. Then do the Outkast and “Shake it like a Polaroid picture,” and give the memento to your new bestie.
Let the Games Begin
A little friendly competition enlivens beach days, plane rides, and sunset porch hangs. Travel and games go hand in hand, and portable backgammon sets make welcome additions to any carry-on. This handmade leather version from VIDA VIDA comes with good travel karma, too, as the designers met on a beach in Fiji.
Reef Safe Sunscreen and Beauty Products
Give tinted SPF moisturizer, aluminum-free deodorant, and more at Handmade in CA. When swimming in our fragile oceans it’s important to keep makeup, sunscreen, and beauty products free of toxic chemicals to keep fish and coral safe and happy. The owner and product creator just happens to be a world traveler herself, so she takes special care when creating her concoctions.
The Ocean at Home
A beautiful coffee table book that also makes a difference, Stories for the Seas swims with stories and photographs from the aquatic world. Curated from global surf photographers, environmental activists, artists, swimmers, and seafarers, 100% of book profits go to nonprofit organizations dedicated to preserving the planet’s oceans.
Space Age Support
It looks more like a space suit than a travel pillow, but the rave reviews will make jetsetters don the Pluto Pod with joy. Neck support, light and noise reduction, easy transport, and years of research make this travel sleep aid a must-have for those endless red eye flights standing between you and the sun-kissed white sand beaches of your holiday dreams.
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