21 Useful Stocking Stuffers for Travelers
Are you struggling to come up with great stocking stuffer ideas for someone who loves to travel? Don’t sweat it, I’ve got you covered.
I am a constant traveler — For the last couple of years, I have taken 1-3 trips a month, so I know a thing or two about what travelers really want and will use. Plus, stuffing stockings might be my favorite part of Christmas.
There’s just something so satisfying about finding inexpensive, small gifts that you know your favorite person will absolutely love. A well-stuffed stocking is basically a big “I love you.”
So if you need some ideas on the best stocking stuffers for travelers, look no further. I’ve put together 21 ideas that are not only affordable, but also genuinely useful for someone who loves to travel. After all, why get a bunch of useless junk just to fill a stocking?
Read on to find my ideas, all of which are linked for your ease of purchase.
Don’t forget to pin this post for later.
As always, this post may contain affiliate links, which means at no additional cost to you, shopping from them may generate small commissions to support the operations of this blog.
Whenever possible, I recommend buying books at local bookshops or through Bookshop.org, because shopping there puts the profits right into the hands of indie bookstores all over the country.
Travel shopping bag
It’s becoming increasingly common around the world to charge for shopping bags. One thing I always bring on my trips is a compact shopping bag that I can stuff in my day bag. It saves me money and saves the planet. This is a fun stocking stuffer idea for a traveler, and you can find so many cute prints, too.
Gear ties
Gear ties are just plain useful, and they’re fun stocking stuffers for travelers. Gear ties are reusable, bendy, and multi-purpose, and they come in a range of sizes. I own several sizes personally.
These small gear ties are perfect for keeping cords together in your luggage or purse. The larger gear ties are handy for keeping multiple bags or suitcases together and any number of other uses.
Plus, these travel stocking stuffers are easy on the wallet, with a pack usually costing less than $5.
Chapstick holder keychains
I absolutley hate that dry lip feeling when I’m traveling, especially if I’m leaving a humid climate for a drier one. I’m a person who always has to have chapstick nearby, but I don’t want the, melting in my pockets. I love using these cute chapstick holder keychains, because I always have chapstick at the ready.
I think these make great stocking stuffers for travelers — cute, compact, useful, and cheap (like $5-7 for a multipack)! That’s a win-win-win-win in my book.
Related: My list of the best gifts for travel lovers under $50 can give you some additional ideas for your traveler’s stocking!
Hotel door alarm
You really can’t be too careful, and more and more people are opting not to trust their hotel’s built-in locks. Hotel door alarms are inexpensive and easily portable, making them great travel stocking stuffers.
The idea is simple: it’s a door wedge, to keep someone from bypassing the hotel door lock, and it also has a built-in sound alarm, so you are alerted if someone is attempting to force entry. Plus, the loud noise it makes is likely to scare off any attempted entrants.
These stocking stuffers are particularly great for solo female travelers, though anyone can get some peace of mind from it! These cost from $5-15.
Ultra-Portable phone tripod
These ultra-portable phone tripods make awesome stocking stuffers for travelers. That’s especially true if your favorite traveler frequently travels solo (so they don’t have anyone around to snap their photo at each location). There are lots of different versions of these phone tripods, but I love that they are lightweight (so I even take mine on hikes) and versatile — have them stand up or wrap them around a tree or pole.
Even if they already happen to have one, these things are like keys — always getting misplaced. It’s not a bad idea to keep one in your purse, one in your backpacking pack, one in your luggage. You get the idea.
These travel stocking stuffers average from $10-18, but keep an eye out for sales!
Universal power adaptor
If your loved one frequently travels internationally, here’s another item you can’t have enough of: travel power adaptors. Small, useful, and inexpensive, they make great stocking stuffers for travelers. Universal travel adaptors usually cost between $10-20 depending on the bells and whistles, including some with voltage converters as well.
Massage Therapy Ball Set
This one might seem like an odd choice for a gift for travelers, but hear me out. Traveling long distances, whether by car, train, or airplane, is hard on the muscles, especially the back. My favorite tool for releasing that back tension also happens to be supremely compact and affordable (about $12 for a set).
Sitting for a long time in planes, trains, and cars, can make the muscles sore and tight. These physical therapy massage balls feel amazing. Put them on the ground and roll over them, stopping at pressure points, and letting gravity help release those sore muscles. I love this idea for stocking stuffers for travelers, or for anyone, honestly.
Leak Locks
Nothing spoils a trip like arriving in your destination only to find out that that super expensive facial serum you couldn’t leave home without has leaked all over everything in your luggage. This is one of my favorite stocking stuffer ideas for travelers: Leak Locks.
These are basically stretchy, silicone skins that stretch over toiletries of any size or shape and prevent those pesky luggage leaks. This might just end up being your loved one’s favorite stocking stuffer!
These are inexpensive stocking stuffers, with multipacks sold for $8-12.
Body wipes / makeup remover wipes
A savvy traveler always has some kind of wet wipes handy, from disinfectant wipes to facial wipes. Small packs of makeup remover wipes or just Wet Ones will make perfect travel stocking stuffers.
Luggage Stickers
Vinyl stickers are a cute, practical way to not only decorate luggage, but also to identify it! When all baggage looks pretty much the same, adding some personalized stickers to it can make it easier to identify than just a luggage tag.
I even remember seeing someone post in a Facebook group that they identified their lost luggage when the airpline posted a picture of a set of luggage, and they spotted their stickers. That makes these cheap and cheerful travel stocking stuffers.
You can go for travel-themed stickers, like vintage travel postmark stickers, or show how much you know your loved one and find stickers based on one of their other interests or hobbies. A pack of 50 stickers usually only costs between $5-10.
Related: If your loved one is also an avid reader like me, check out my list of stocking stuffer ideas for book lovers.
LifeStraw
LifeStraws are one of the best stocking stuffers for travelers. They protect against e.coli and salmonella, giardia, microplastics, and more. These compact straws are so handy to have when traveling to countries with unsafe drinking water, to help dodge travel tummy.
LifeStraws usually cost between $15-20 but sometimes go on sale (like on Black Friday) for $10.
AirTag to prevent lost luggage
Here’s one of my favorite travel hacks, and it’s becoming more and more popular: put an AirTag in your checked luggage. If your luggage happens to get lost, you can track down exactly where it is. This can save you so much time when you’re talking to airlines staff who are clueless as to what happened to your bags.
So, this is another travel item you really can’t have enough of, making it one of the best stocking stuffers for travelers. They cost around $25 for a single AirTag, or get a multi-pack and divide them amongst several travelers’ stockings.
Wet bags/ laundry bags
Travel laundry bags can be another fun travel stocking stuffer. I hate mixing dirty and clean clothes in my suitcase throughout a trip, so this is an easy way to keep them separate. Find your traveling loved one a travel laundry bag in a cute pattern they’ll love. They typically cost only $8-15 dollars.
Face sheet masks
Travel can wreak havoc on your skin. I remember getting back from an adventure trip in Norway and thinking, what wouldn’t I give for a sheet face mask right now? There’s something about travel that just makes the skin long for a little extra love and moisture.
Sheet face masks make great stocking stuffers for travelers, because they don’t take up much room (in the stocking or the luggage!), they’re useful, and they’re a little bit of luxury. You can get multipacks of these for anywhere from $6-30, depending on how luxurious and how many.
Tip: If your traveling loved one has sensitive skin, look for face masks with no perfume added!
Retro Gamer
This is the most expensive travel stocking stuffer on this list, but it also might be the most fun. Retro handheld gamers are all the rage right now. Despite all the new technology that’s out, there’s something appealing about the simplicity of the video games we grew up with.
Retro gamers come pre-loaded with all the old school games, like Pacman, Kirby’s Magic Mirror, Sonic the Hedgehog, and the OG Zelda games. They are light and compact and are great travel entertainment for long flights or car rides. They run anywhere from $25-100.
Travel first aid kit
It’s always wise to have some basic first aid supplies when traveling, and they should always be replenished. Why not buy a compact travel first aid kit as one of your travel stocking stuffers? There are so many varieties, and the usually cost $1 on the low end up to $13 if you’re going for the trendy and cute Welly first aid kits.
Travel-sized wrinkle-release spray
Here’s another useful stocking stuffer idea: wrinkle release spray that’s small enough to be taken on a carry-on! Wrinkled clothes while traveling is pretty much inevitable, but it doesn’t hurt to have some wrinkle release spray handy to help minimize them to look your best.
This is a cheap, thoughtful stocking stuffer to add to your favorite traveler’s stocking this year.
Travel-sized hand cream
Travel-sized hand cream is almost a foolproof travel stocking stuffer. They fit easily into purses and carry-ons and help keep away the skin dryness that seems to be an inevitable part of traveling. Just make sure whatever hand cream you find meets flight regulations: under 100 mL or 3.4 oz.
You can find travel hand cream sets for anywhere between $3-25.
Compression socks
Compression socks may not be sexy, but they have their uses, which makes them very practical stocking stuffers for travelers. Blood clots after long haul flights can be dangerous health risks, especially for travelers with certain pre-existing conditions. Plus, flying for a long period of time can cause uncomfortable swelling in the feet, ankles, and legs.
Wearing compression socks while flying can help protect against both of these issues, so when looking for the best stocking stuffers for travelers, consider throwing in a pair of compression socks! They don’t have to be hideous, either. They have all kinds of cute designs now for compression socks.
Blister prevention tape
When you’re a hiker, or traveling to a city where you walk a lot, blisters happen. And they can make a trip miserable. One of my travel hacks is to come prepared with KT tape’s blister prevention patches and apply them to any spots I’m prone to blisters.
Why not throw in a pack of these handy things in that stocking? A pack costs between $8-10.
AirFly Audio Jack
These days nobody uses corded headphones any more. But airplanes have yet to adapt to today’s Bluetooth world, still requiring plug-in headphones to watch in-flight entertainment. The AirFly plugs into the audio jack of the flight screen to make it compatible with your loved one’s bluetooth headphones.
This is a pricier stocking stuffer, running about $35, but it’s undeniably useful.
Hopefully this list has helped inspire you to find practical and thoughtful stocking stuffers for travelers. Happy holidays!
And don’t forget to pin this post so you can come back next time you need some gift ideas!
