Traveling for the holidays this Christmas season? What about gifts? Do you pack them? Do you ship them? Do you purchase them when you arrive at your destination?
In this blog post, Ideas on how to shop for Christmas gifts when traveling, I will cover some ideas so you can decide what works best for you.
First Things First
Over the years we have traveled quite a few times for Christmas. We all know that Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year and we don’t want to be stressed out about everything that comes with holiday travel.
Here are three practical ideas on how you can shop for Christmas gifts when traveling that won’t leave you stressed out. I will share my favorite of the three later in the blog post.
First things first, make a gift list. You may need to pick up a few things before you leave home and also when you arrive at your holiday destination. It’s always a good idea to make sure you are prepared to purchase a great gift and a thoughtful gift for everyone on your list. You don’t want to leave anyone out! Here are a few great ideas when shopping for the perfect Christmas gift when traveling.
Three Practical Ideas
- Online.
- If you want plenty of time to enjoy this magical time of year, do your online shopping early and ship it to a friend or relatives house. That way, when you arrive at your desitnation, all you have to do is go to the store and pick up gift wrap and tissue paper.
- Online shopping is also a great option if you are purchasing fragile gifts. The company you are ordering from will probably do a better job packing it than you can transporting it.
- Shop Locally Before You Leave.
- Check extra luggage that is designated for gifts. This is especially helpful for food items. If food items are not under 3 oz, you cannot put them in your carry-on bag and get through airport security.
- If you are driving, purchasing ahead of time and transporting the gifts may be the way to go. That way, you have everything pre-wrapped and with you.
- Shop After you Arrive.
- If you want to pack light, do your Christmas shopping when you arrive at your destination. This may mean purchasing gifts like an experience, a gift certificate, or gift cards for a last minute gift. Depending on your final destination and what stores you have access to, this could be a nice option.
Things To Remember
Always check an extra bag on your way back home. Consider that you will most likely be receiving Christmas presents and will need to get them home. This especially applies to families with little travelers (aka children). It will be a good thing that you remembered to do this in advance so you can save some money on a checked bag.
For international travelers, sometimes quality time at the destination is the Christmas gift. Some clever ways to sneak in a small thoughtful gift is to purchase a souvenir to remember your time there, or purchase an experience to participate in while you are on your Christmas vacation.
Make a note for the next time you travel over the holidays . What worked well? What didn’t? What would you do differently?
My Favorite Way
From my experience, my personal favorite way to shop when traveling for the holidays is a mix of all three of these ideas. For the most part, I like to shop online in advance and ship it to my destination. I also like to pack a few local gifts I purchased from home in my checked luggage if I am wanting to give something unique.
On occasion, we have picked up something fun at the airport as gifts for some of the kids in the family. There is also a few times when we did pick up a gift certificate or gift card when we arrived at our destination if we were participating in a friends and family gift exchange. I don’t think there is one best way, but when we do travel, I evaluate early on what is the best route to go for that year.
Remember, the reason we give gifts is because God gave us the best gift we could ever receive over 2000 years ago. We give gifts to each other in remembrance of God’s gift to us, Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world.
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