Adventure • 05/07/2023
What Are Travel Diaries? Learn 5 Benefits and Discover the Best Journals
Revivalist is a reader-supported endeavor and our posts may contain affiliate links. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.
When you’re traveling around the world, you’re experiencing many tiny details that add up to a grand adventure. Pictures will capture some of your joy, but pictures can’t describe your trips like a journal entry. Read this guide to learn about travel diaries and find one that matches your personality.
What Are Travel Diaries?
Anyone can start a travel diary. As long as you’re having adventures, you’ll have a use for your journal. Each entry captures the sensory memories of your time away from home. People describe the tastes of their favorite meals, the heat on their afternoon hikes and how well they slept on their hotel’s mattress.
Your travel diary will be a detailed log of each vacation. It’s a source of inspiration, daydreaming and expert planning for your next adventure.
5 Benefits of Journaling Your Adventures
Check out the primary benefits of using a travel diary while you’re away from home. You could experience these joys even with short entries, so don’t worry about needing to be a professional writer to start a journal.
1. You’ll Save More Memories
It’s fun to flip through photo albums and remember where you’ve been. It’s easy to lose the visual memories of your past without pictures, but other memories are at stake with each passing day. Research shows there are three types of core memories:
- Iconic memories: visual memories consisting of quick, limited images
- Echoic memories: auditory memories triggered or enhanced by saved sounds
- Haptic memories: touch-based memories involving the sense of feeling things
Recording specific details like the music playing while you were dancing in Italy or the soft lining of your fleece ski jacket in the Alps could make your memories more present. While you’re reading through your entries, you’ll recall more information.
2. You’ll Stimulate Your Creativity
If you’ve been missing your creative flow, journaling can restart it. You’ll get all of your thoughts on paper without the pressure of perfectionism. The freedom will retrain your brain so it’s easier to access free-flowing creativity and get back to the hobbies you love.
This is an especially helpful benefit for anyone who travels with the purpose of being more creative. If you’ll set up an easel on a seaside balcony for your next painting or attend an international writing conference, kickstarting your creativity with continual travel journaling could make your trips more rewarding.
3. You’ll Relieve Travel Stress
Even the most passionate adventurers can deal with the occasional travel stress. You might deal with delays on your flight out of town or lose your way while navigating a new city. Write about your stressors in your travel diary to release them. You’ll feel more at peace when you put down your pen and return to enjoying every moment of your trip.
4. You’ll Hone Your Writing Skills
Anyone who loves writing knows that you only become better at it with practice. Although journaling might be different than the creative writing you’re used to, it flexes the same muscles. Record your stream of consciousness to practice listening to your inner voice. When you return to more creative pursuits, you’ll notice that it’s easier to engage with your imagination.
5. You’ll Plan Future Trips More Effectively
Writing about the good and bad parts of a vacation makes you think about it more analytically. When planning your next trip, you can reflect on your travel diary to remember what you did and didn’t enjoy last time.
It’s a much better way to plan a vacation than by guessing at recreating things you liked. You’ll create better vacations because you’ll remember what to avoid, what you love and what you haven’t experienced yet.
Best Travel Diaries for Beginners
Get started with your travel diary by checking out these options. They’re popular with beginners and anyone who’s been journaling for a while. See which styles and interior layouts strike your interests. Some even have prompts that might help you get started.
Clever Fox Travel Diary
You’ll have everything you need to get started with a travel diary if you try the latest model from Clever Fox. It contains a map for planning your flight routes, monthly calendars and space for your travel bucket lists. Don’t forget to use the budgeting section to avoid overspending on entertainment and souvenirs.
Promptly Travel Journal
The sleek travel journal from Promptly is the perfect accessory for any travel influencer. It comes in three gorgeous colors and fits in purses, backpacks and carry-on bags. Have fun answering the various prompts to make meaningful entries and pasting pictures on the dedicated photo album pages.
Duncan & Stone Paper Co. Adventure Diary
People also love the travel diary from Duncan & Stone Co. for its compact, beautiful design. Each page asks you about your trip like a friend would over coffee. Save every detail within the linen covers and you’ll get in touch with your inner travel writer.
Victoria’s Journals Leather Travel Diary
The colorful, intricate design of Victoria’s Journals makes them a staple for any traveler. Flip the gold-lined pages and record your adventures with any pen or pencil. The high-quality paper won’t let any ink bleed through. Use the blank, lined pages to save your memories, paste your pictures and sketch your adventures.
Compendium’s Guided Travel Journal
Adventurers on a budget can start their travel diary experience with the Compendium guided journal. It has sectioned prompts for quick entries and reflection points related to the date, time and location of each experience. You’ll approach traveling with a new perspective thanks to the creative prompts waiting for you on each page.
Consider Trying a Travel Diary
Travel diaries are useful tools for people who want to combine their adventures with continual self-growth. You’ll enjoy the benefits by picking a journal that matches your needs and bringing it on every future trip. Don’t forget a comfortable writing instrument. You’ll want to save every detail of the incredible experiences that await you.
Subscribe to Our Weekly Newsletter
We would love to connect deeper with you!
