How To Buy The Best Souvenirs You Won’t Regret

I’m sure I’m not the only one who travels somewhere and wants to bring back everything they see. Due to circumstances out of my control (like luggage space and weight capacities, budget…etc. ), I can’t do that. So, the pressure is on to find the best travel souvenirs and something I won’t later regret buying.

I’ve done my fair share of travelling and souvenir shopping included, so let’s just say I know a bit about what makes a good souvenir. Here’s my suggestions to follow when looking for the best souvenirs, and I’ll even some unique souvenir ideas!

Psst! This blog post contains affiliate links in it which sends me a bit of extra money if you use them… at no extra cost to you!

What Are Travel Souvenirs You’ll Regret?

So what makes a lousy souvenir that we end up regret buying? I’ll admit, I wasn’t always the best souvenir shopper that I am today. There were many times when I came back from vacation regretting what I had just bought. Ot maybe I regret it a few days, a week or even years later.

Over the years I realized that there’s one main issue with the travel souvenirs that I end up regretting – their usability. I used to buy a cute trinket at the local souvenir shop, bring it back home, put it on my desk, dresser or bookshelf… and then what?

It became a glorified dust collector. And the problem is it’s my only souvenir from that trip – I can’t possibly just get rid of it! Can I? The problem is, there were a lot of these…

So What Makes A Good Souvenir?

To avoid travel souvenirs you’ll later regret here are some tips I follow when on my quest for buying the best souvenirs. It requires a bit of research beforehand, but I trust me, it’s worth it.

1. Do Some Research Before You Leave

Every country or city is known for something. Whether that’s a specific food, drink, or even a tangible item – there’s always something.

So, it’s your job to do your research before you leave to find out what it is they’re known for. Then think, or research, what you can do with it. It will give you a more targeted direction for souvenir shopping while away, and something to specifically ask for.

For example, when I went to Belgium, I knew that they’re big on beer. Knowing that, I researched what I could do with beer related items. And of course, you can do A LOT with the bottle caps.

So every time I ordered a beer, which was often, I asked the bartender to bring back the bottle cap. I saved these throughout my trip and made bottle cap magnets when I got back. It was a low cost and was very significant to the place I visited. The only cost was the beer that I was ordering either way and the magnets.

Another unique souvenir ideas is from my trip to London and Ireland. Everyone knows England is all about tea, but so is Ireland (Ireland actually drinks more tea per capita than England!).

So I wanted to buy some Irish and English tea blends when I was there. Instead of simply buying some teabags that I would end up finishing and having nothing to show from my trip there, I bought tea tins from each country. When I finished the tea, I repurposed the tea tins as mini planters.

But it doesn’t have to be something related to food or drinks. For example, Portugal’s known for their hand made tiles (it’s very noticeable when you walk around there). So a great souvenir idea is to find a local artist painting a tile to bring back and frame.

2. Is The Travel Souvenir Useful?

If it’s not a consumable or art, think about the usability of your souvenir. The best souvenirs are the ones that you actually use back home.

I hate to tell you, but there’s some homework for you to do before you go. On top of thinking about what the country’s known for, think about what you need.

For every souvenir that you’re interested in, think to yourself “how can I use this back home?”. And the best way to overcome buying dust collectors is to think about what you need beforehand.

It can be something you need like a new purse or even a kitchen item. But it can also be expanding a collection of yours. For me, I have a small obsession with teacups. I’m always on the lookout to expand my mismatched tea set.

Or if you end up buying a piece of art, think about where you’re going to put it. Do you even have room for it?

3. What Makes A Good Souvenir? Avoid Overpaying

There’s no bigger regret than when you feel like you overpaid for something. I have a few steps that I go through to avoid this when buying travel souvenirs…

Set A Budget For Yourself

I cannot stress setting a budget for yourself enough! If you stay within your budget then how can you ever feel like you’ve overpaid…right!?

I like turning setting a budget into a game for myself. Before I look at the price tag, I ask myself, how much am I willing to spend on this?

I set a realistic budget for how much I think it should be worth. So if I say I want to spend $20 and it’s $30, I put it down. This works because if I’m unsure about buying something, this is always the final deciding factor. And by setting these limits for myself I never end up regretting a purchase.

Check Online To See If You Can Find It Anywhere Else (For Less!)

Even with setting a budget, check online before you buy any travel souvenirs. It’s incredible what you can find online these days. The reason for this step is three-fold:

The main reason is to know that I’m not overpaying. Most of the time, you’ll be able to find it for cheaper online (but remember to factor in cost of shipping!).

But, if you can find it online, this means there’s no rush to buy it now and travel back with it. You can order it when you get back, saving you space, and removing any possibility of making an impulse decision (that you might later regret!). Taking your time now means less regret later.

4. Always Buy Local For Unique Souvenir Ideas

I love buying locally on vacation. This can be anything from paintings, hand beaded jewellery, to knitted hats and gloves. Not only do you know that you can’t get your souvenir online – or anywhere else for that matter, but it also supports locals.

My favourite local product is artwork. It’s a great way to remember where I was, expand my art gallery wall, and discover new artistic styles.

Another neat bonus when buying local is that most of the time you actually meet the artist. Sometimes you can to speak to them in person, and maybe find out their inspiration for the piece.

5. Does It Make you Happy?

This is the most important question of all – does this travel souvenir make you happy?

If it’ll make you happy when you look at it or use it, then that’s all that really counts. Even if it’s not useful in your daily life, and it’s just a piece for your desk or bookcase. If you think it’ll make you happy when you look at it, and it’ll take you back to your trip, then it’s worth it. Buy it!

6. Always Think About Transportability

Unfortunately, at the end of the day, we have to go home at some point. And this is where our final question comes into play – is it easily transportable. There’s no worse feeling than buying something you love only to have it break during transport.

So before committing to anything, it’s important to think about how you’re going to bring it back. If it’s a drawing or painting, is it on card stock or already framed? Will it fit in your suitcase? Will it break during transit?

These are all important questions that you have to ask yourself before buying it.

Also don’t be afraid to ask the sales rep. They might have a travelling case for it or will pack it up in a certain way if they know that you’re taking it on a plane.

What About Consumable Travel Souvenirs?

A lot of people like bringing back food or alcohol from a trip. Don’t get me wrong, there’s something nice about bringing back a specific delicacy to enjoy at home. But some go too far saying that these are the best souvenirs.

The reason people give for why consumables are the best travel souvenirs are because you can’t really ever regret buying it – it’ll only last for so long (meaning zero clutter).  

What they don’t seem to realize though is that a consumable is exactly that, a consumable! It’ll only last for a fixed period of time and then you’ll have nothing to show for your trip. I’m someone who would never want to finish it.  

There are also customs issues with food and drinks to think about. It’s sometimes tricky to know what you can bring back into your home country. There are also liquid limitations if you’re travelling in a carry-on. If you want to bring a bottle of wine back you’ll have to either buy it at the airport, check your bag, or find a small-taster version. 

I’ll admit food is a good add on to your best travel souvenirs. It gives you a little taste of vacation at home. It’s also a great gift to bring back to share with friends and family to enjoy, and taste some of what you had while away.

The Perfect Gift Souvenirs Ideas

It’s very common when you go on vacation to bring back a bunch of goodies for our family and friends. But how do you not waste your money and find something they’ll actually appreciate? You can follow pretty much the same rules as above for the best souvenirs.

The only difference is that I set a much stricter budget for gifts than I have for souvenirs for myself. I set a communal budget for everyone’s gift. This way I spend roughly the same amount for everyone, and I won’t break the bank. 

In this case, a good gift is always tasters of food or alcohol. It gives them a chance to taste something they’ve never had before. Just don’t waste your money on keychains or magnets – no one actually wants or needs these. They’ll probably just get tossed into their junk drawer to be thrown out at a later date.

The only exception is if you know they collect these items. For example, whenever I go anywhere I buy my sister a snow globe. She has a pretty big collection of them at home from places all around the world.

Quick Links – My Amazon Travel Favourites

More Souvenir Shopping Tips

• 10 Best Souvenirs In Prince Edward Island You Have To Buy
• Souvenir Shopping in Provence The South Of France: What To Buy
• Souvenir Shopping in Scotland: What To Buy?
• Souvenir Shopping in Barcelona: What To Buy?
• The Best DIY Souvenir From Belgium: Bottle Cap Magnets
• 10 Special Québec City Souvenirs To Bring Home

More Travel Tips

• How To Plan The Ultimate Vacation
• How To Get The Best Price Booking Direct Flights
• How To Buy A Suitcase
• How To Pack Your Suitcase

Last update on 2024-04-28 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API