When you make a beautiful journey, everything comes your way and you have the most beautiful experiences. You go on an adventure, meet people and experience special moments. You want to cherish these moments and not forget them. With a travel journal you can capture these moments in a creative and personal way so that you can always look back. Have you booked a weekend break, city trip or longer trip? Read on to discover what you can do with a travel journal.
The power of paper
Imagine: You have planned your trip down to the last detail. Directions to places you want to visit, lists of good restaurants or recommendations from friends are stored on your phone. You arrive at your destination and the unlikely happens, your phone has no internet connection, is empty or even worse… lost. In a world where we are always online and all information is available on your phone, we sometimes forget the power of paper. In this case, a travel journal offers a solution. If you write down in advance which villages, beaches, museums, nature reserves or cities you want to visit, you will always be well prepared. During the trip you can make notes on your directions, travel tips that you collect and write down recommendations from locals. Keep your travel journal in your bag and you'll always have your travel plan at hand without WiFi.
Collecting souvenirs
During your trip, collect photos, stickers, stamps, train tickets, postcards, the receipt of that nice coffee shop or entrance tickets to museums. Unique packaging of biscuits, bonbons or tea. Anything that catches your attention or that you have a certain memory of. Nothing is to crazy.
The best way to capture a memory is of course with a photo. Nowadays we are used to taking pictures with a smartphone, but this does have a disadvantage. If you can take an infinite number of photos, you will be less challenged to take a beautiful photo with, for example, a special composition. With a portable smartphone printer or pocket printer you can print photos from your smartphone directly wherever you are. When you keep a travel journal, it is of course ideal to process photos in it at the moment. Unlike a Polaroid camera, it is also nice that you still have the original photo digitally so that you can share it on Instagram, for example. You can use these photos in a fun way in your travel journal by, for example, making a collage.
Enjoy the moment
Going on holiday can sometimes cause a lot of stress due to arranging, traveling and busyness. With some holidays you have a lot of things planned and you want to do as much as possible in the days you have to spend. Sometimes it's hard to be in the now and you forget to enjoy the moment. A travel diary forces you to observe, listen, smell and taste. This way you can create a valuable page in your journal to record this moment.
A travel journal is also perfect as a space for self-reflection. Write or illustrate about your feelings, personal growth, and any life insights you gain from your travels. Keeping a journal can be a therapeutic way to process your experiences and emotions and write or paint it all down. Take a moment each day to write down what you are thankful for during your journey.
Make lists of things you have discovered. For example, write down what new music, restaurants, fashion or cafes you discovered during your vacation. Write down which books you discovered or read.
Which booklet is suitable for a perfect travel journal?
This is where the anticipation begins, picking out a travel diary. Start your search online. Get inspired through Pinterest, Youtube, Instagram and blogs. See how other creatives keep their journals and which notebook or sketchbook they have chosen.
You can buy special ready-made travel journals. These often include a world map, information on all embassies, important phone numbers, currencies and time differences. These often also have a designed grid in which you can work.
You can also choose to use a blank notebook, sketchbook or other travel journal as a travel diary. Here you can let go of even more creativity and fill it in completely according to your wishes. Consider, for example, the Travel Journal by Hahnemühle, a sturdy booklet with 140 grams of paper and 62 pages. Prefer a ring binder? Hahnemühle Sketch Diary has collected both lined and blank pages in a ring binder. This booklet is specially designed to be used as a diary or travel diary and has an envelope in the back. Or go for a notebook or sketchbook from Pith . A small but sturdy booklet that fits easily in your bag and also has a lay-flat binding. Looking for a small format bendable booklet? Then you can consider aPocket Journal from Karst Stone Paper.
Another recommendation is Tinne+Mia's notebook. This folder contains 3 notebooks that are held together by means of a special binding and button. The booklets contain a blank, dotted and lined layout and have an envelope in the back to store all your little finds. Thanks to the knot, everything stays in place and you can collect a lot of items in a safe way.
A canvas for your creativity
If you like to draw, sketch or paint, use your travel journal as a canvas to unleash your creativity. Use different mediums such as watercolor, gouache, charcoal, fineliners, pencils, markers or pastels and create illustrations of landscapes, buildings, food, animals, people or other elements that inspire you during your journey.
Less creative or less time?
Keep it simple, don't push it. After all, you are on vacation. Take pictures, save fun trinkets you find in cafes, libraries or museums and stick them in your travel diary. Write some nice notes or anecdotes and you will soon have a beautiful journal!
Full, now what?
Sit back and relax! Enjoy your (1st?) travel journal! After returning home, you can open it whenever you want and enjoy all your experiences one more time. Share it with your family or friends or keep it for yourself. Make a special corner for it in your bookcase, where you can keep all your travel reports. You can also use it as an example for your next travel diary.
