As we approach the end of the year, many of us get reflective thinking about the adventures and travels we’ve had. Looking back on weekends spent relaxing in a cabin in the woods or backpacking through southeast Asia or basking on a beach in Hawaii, the winter doldrums can hit hard. Because being back home for the holidays — waking up to a car covered in frost, going to work meetings, sitting inside and watching Netflix — makes those days where the sun was beating down on your face and the night felt endless, feel very far away.
That stuck feeling can wear on both you and your relationship. But before you start snapping at each other and funneling all your travel money into a 401k, convinced that life is behind you, AND YOU MIGHT AS WELL BREAK UP BECAUSE HOW DID YOU BECOME YOUR PARENTS??, you might want to take a breath and remember, you’ve had amazing adventures all year. And there are more to come.
Which is why we highly recommend you give the lady in your life a present or two that will serve as a reminder of your favorite explorations. These gifts will put a smile on her face and bring you both back to your favorite days on the road.
A food or drink item from one of her favorite trips.
The smells and tastes of a trip often linger in a way that causes just a whiff of a spice to bring you right back to where you were when you last smelled it — all the happy feelings you had bubbling at the surface. So why not get her a gift that will reawaken those traveling senses. Like coffee that reminds her of early mornings in Costa Rica, or Big Sky beer from Montana that will remind her of a week camping under the stars, or a bottle of Prosecco from a winery you toured in Northeastern Italy. Pick a food or drink that’s from (or reminiscent of) one of your favorite adventures together and then eat it together, talking about all those charming, funny details you’ve forgotten.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BpyaPMOl6lv/
A Vintage National Park Poster
Vintage National Park posters make for pretty awesome wall hangings, but they’re especially cool if you pick one that represents one of your favorite road trips or camping excursions. It’s art that feels personal to both of you and every time you walk past it, you’ll get a little more inspired to rent a van and get back on the road. There are a lot of parks on your list to still see!
For more NPS designs with more of a retro-artsy feel, check these posters from the Fifty-Nine Parks project.
A matching coordinates tattoo of the place where you met.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Boro_04n6PL/
If you want a more permanent gift that expresses your love, why not get a tattoo that shows the exact spot you fell in love. The nice thing about a coordinates tattoo (other than how cool it looks) is that it’s a subtle nod to your love, rather than a statement that someone owns you (I mean, I like branding my partners as much as the next lady but I do so secretly and as part of an elaborate cult ritual). Plus, if the worst happens and things don’t work out, coordinates are much easier to explain away. “Oh those? They’re the latitude and longitude of my favorite beach in Bali” Rather than, “Oh that? I just, I guess, love the name Maggie. Just a great name. So anyway….”
https://www.instagram.com/p/BbyVPVFlqvJ/
A map with push pins in it of all the places you’ve been together
We love a map (especially if it’s vintage looking) framed in any house, and if you’ve traveled a lot together, it’s fun to get one of these and put push pins in all the places you’ve been — adding more as you check more places off the bucket list.
For a look that doesn’t feel like an elementary school classroom map, go for one with subtle colors and then use push pins that are all the same unified color (black or gold looks nice). It’s nice to be able to visually see how many adventures you’ve had all in the same place, right in your living room.
Pillows from her favorite hotel bed
https://www.instagram.com/p/BWrKvz3BLD5/
Sleeping in a great hotel bed is one of our favorite things. And if there was a particularly great hotel this year that felt like sleeping on a cloud, you can call them up and ask the brand of pillows they use! It’s a great way to bring just a little of that “lounging in a hotel bed all day” vibe to your day to day lives.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BqGo4F_HKbu/
Custom coasters depicting your adventures
These ceramic, polaroid coasters can be customized with pictures of your favorite adventures. It’s a personal, sentimental gift that’s also practical. You always need more coasters for parties. And while picture gifts can sometimes be too cheesy, these functional coasters are just subtle enough that they won’t feel too ridiculous. They’re just the right amount of nostalgia.*
*To make it even less cheesy don’t go with pics of your faces, use nature shots that you took instead.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BRjzXuwDhFN/
Tickets for the next adventure
https://www.instagram.com/p/BqURZPxBOqP/
Or you can always surprise her with tickets to the next big trip — giving you both something to look forward to. You’ve got a lot more memories to make and corners of the globe to traverse, together. Why not go big and push through to the future.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BrNpK0zhdqV/
