Holiday Gift Guide for Teachers Who Love to Travel

Teachers give so much all year long, and the ones who love to explore deserve gifts that spark curiosity, inspire adventure, and make every journey smoother. We wish we could deliver them fair pay, guilt-free personal days, and a free trip around the world, but this list of gift ideas and our discounted teacher travel programs will have to do for now. We hope you find a wonderful gift for the travel-loving teacher in your life!

Photo Credit: Teresa H.

The Gift of Travel

We’ll start off with the gift everyone wants, the gift of travel! By gifting a GEEO Program Deposit, you can help a friend, family member, or colleague secure a spot on one of our discounted teacher travel programs.

It’s a gift that goes far beyond the holiday season. A GEEO trip gives teachers lifelong stories, classroom inspiration, and a deeper connection with the world. Best of all, this deposit will never expire so your favorite teacher can choose to travel whenever they want with GEEO.

Give a $350 GEEO Program Deposit to Someone You Love!

Gifts Under $25 That Make Travel Easier

You certainly don’t need to shell out to get something your favorite travel-loving teacher will love this holiday season. There are loads of low-cost gifts that you can find, and we’re here to help you narrow them down.

• A universal power adapter so your friends will feel at ease wherever they go: $13.99 on Amazon
• Of course, on some of our adventures, there’s no power to be found, so in that case a solar powered power bank can come in handy: $23.98 on Amazon
• Luggage tags, so they’ll always be able to keep track of these increasingly similar looking bags: $5.09 for a set of 8 on Amazon

Books That Inspire Wanderlust

Travel begins long before someone boards a plane. A well-chosen book can spark curiosity and shape the way a teacher sees a destination. And on top of that, books encourage teachers to absorb new ideas, bring deeper context into their travels, and share what they learn with their students back home.

A few of our favorites include:

• Travel as a Political Act by Rick Steves: A thoughtful look at the role travel plays in building understanding, empathy, and global citizenship: $10.80 on Amazon
• Looptail: How One Company Changed the World by Reinventing Business by Bruce Poon Tip: This inside story of building an international adventure tourism company: $12.45 on Amazon
• Leaving Microsoft to Change the World: An Entrepreneur’s Odyssey to Educate the World’s Children by John Wood: How a trip to the Himalayas changed the world for good: $11.67 on Amazon
• CommunityShip: Lessons from the Universe and the Business of Everyone by Bruce Poon Tip: Lessons and stories from G Adventure’s founder on business and life: Pre-Order for $31.50 on Amazon

Any of the books on our reading list! We put a lot of time into curating the best possible reading lists for all of our trips, so check them out.

A Kindle for Those Who Like to Save Space

When it’s time to hit the sky and head out somewhere exotic, there’s not always space for those good-ole paperbacks. Luckily in our modern world, we’ve got a solution. If your favorite teacher is a reader, consider grabbing them a Kindle to load up all their favorite books so they can read wherever they go.

$79 on Amazon

A Scratch-Off Travel Map for the Classroom

A scratch-off travel map is perfect for any teacher who likes to keep track of their adventures. Each time they return from a trip, they can reveal a new country or region and watch their map gradually transform into a mosaic of color.

It also serves as a great visual for a classroom. Students love seeing where their teacher has traveled, and the map can launch discussions about languages, landmarks, wildlife, and global traditions. It is a simple gift that adds personality to any home or workspace.

$24.63 on Amazon

Noise-Cancelling Headphones for Those Noisy Flights

Long flights are a challenge, especially when jumping between continents. But they get a whole lot easier when you can drown out the noise and settle in. Queue up some noise cancelling head phones and flying’s never been so easy.

We’re big fans of Bose QuietComfort: $199 on Amazon

But honestly, the tech in noise-canceling headphones has come a long way in the past few years and there are now countless excellent options out there.

Travelpro Platinum Elite Softside

A New Travel Bag or Suitcase to Bring Anywhere

Some people prefer a roller, others a backpack, others enjoy something tiny. There’s really no wrong answer (unless you get that special teacher a roller when they wanted a backpack).

Popular options include:

• Travelpro Platinum Elite-Softside: This is the go-to for GEEO’s Executive Director Jesse, and top-rated by Wirecutter and Outdoor GearLab.
• Farpoint 65 Wheeled Travel Pack: If you are looking for a larger rolling suitcase that can also be carried as a backpack, this is a good option. Please note it is too large for overhead bins. 
• REI backpacks: If you prefer backpacks, REI has great budget options for durable travel packs in many different sizes.
• Osprey Sojourn Porter 46L: Outdoor Gearlab rated this pack as the best carry-on backpack for travel.

We’ve got a lot of favorites when it comes to bags; head over to our gear guide to check out all of them.

A Travel Camera to Share Adventures With the Class

In our digital age, we’re able to take more photos and videos than ever before, but something interesting has happened along the way. More often than not, those time capsules of global adventure seem to disappear into the ether. And this has sparked a fun new phenomenon: the return of the physical photo!

These do take up a little bit of space in a bag, but they’re a whole lot of fun. Our favorite is the Fujifilm Instax Mini.

$167.95 on Amazon

Something Special to Reminisce About a GEEO Adventure

If your teacher has traveled with GEEO before or is planning on traveling with us soon, check out all the GEEO gear in our Threadless shop. We’ve got clothing, stationery, stickers, mugs, and more so your traveling teacher can share their love of adventuring wherever they go!

You can see our staff’s gear recommendations here. If your teacher is already registered for a trip, find their trip page and scroll to the bottom for a packing list specific to their destination.

GEEO utilizes Amazon Associates, Threadless, and REI for the above-suggested gifts. If you purchase something through one of the links above, you’re supporting us as a nonprofit and helping more teachers travel through GEEO!