10 Beautiful Ways to Document Your Travels

If only the adventures could live on forever, right?! Well, we’re here to say in many ways they can. If you take the intentional time to document your travels, they can very well be right at your fingertips, ready to reminisce on over and over.

Now, we aren’t about two things here at Wayfaren…

1. We don’t like things that are complicated
2. We don’t like things that are ugly (sorry not sorry)

So we’ve rounded up the very best (simple AND beautiful) ways to document your travels. That way, those life-changing memories don’t just die where you left them. They can actually live on forever and ever, ready to be remembered and cherished for years to come. There are a million ways to document your travels, but we’re pretty confident this list has the most straight-forward and thoughtfully designed ideas you can find.

Use a Push Pin Travel Map

This is one of our favorite ways to track our travels and dream up where we want to go to next. We have ours displayed in our living room, at the heart of our home. Our girls love coming home from a trip to pin the new country or city we just checked off our list.

They make the best conversations starters too when friends come over! Although, most of the ones on the market tend to be pretty tacky or cheap looking, this map surpasses them all. Beautiful enough to be hung in your living room and handmade so it is built to last.

Document your Travels with a One-of-a-Kind Poster

We LOVE these Still Novel Posters for bucket list trips. Not only are they gorgeously designed, but we love that they get those travel memories onto your walls for all to see. I want to purchase one of their Travel Prints for our epic Italy trip and hang it in the playroom. Such a unique option to document those most cherished vacations.

Document your Travels with a Instax Camera + Instant Photo Printer

We just purchased one of these for our upcoming trips to Cabo and it was such a small thing, that was just such a fun addition to our trip. To be able to have these instant pocket-sized moments from our trips just brings me an odd amount of joy. We LOVE this little cutie below, but if you want a little more budget friendly option this is your best bet here!

If you don’t have an Instax camera, we can’t recommend this little mini smartphone printer enough. Warning, you will be obsessed with suddenly printing off ALL your photos. We love this option for actually getting photos off your phone and into your hands quickly and so very simply.

Create an Ever Rotating Travel Photo Ledge

We love the idea of having all your photos from your latest adventures displayed front and center in your home. Hang some designated photo ledges in your home that rotate with photos from your latest vacation. Make a point to cull through, favorite, edit, and order the photos all from your phone on that flight or drive home. You know you’ll thank yourself later 🙂 (Those white border framed photos really give a finished look to the display- see the best value option for those here!)

Bring Along a Simple Travel Journal

To journal or not to journal? Although, I am not naturally a journalling type of person, I never ever regret documenting my travels in writing. It is so fun and sweet to pull those journals out of the closet years later and be able to relive a trip I forgot about. A must if you are serious about documenting your travels. Less is more when it comes to journals, see this simple yet beautiful one here!

Use a Beautiful Keepsake Box to Store All Those Travel Mementos

Get those travel photos off your phone and all those little mementos and trinkets organized in a special place. A travel keepsake actually worthy of all those life-changing adventures…because SWOON. These keepsake boxes are so tasteful and can be passed down for years to come. There is a classic size for shorter trips and a large size for those bigger adventures.

Create an Old School Photo Album with Polaroid Photos

Take all those polaroid and Instax photos and create a simple little photo album. We love these ones that you can personalize for each trip. And call us crazy, but we actually love the old-school feel of the album with actual pictures taped in. Just something special about having all those tangible photos from your most special adventures in your hands.

Compile All Your Photos in a Simple Photo Book

Nothing revolutionary here, but just a reminder to take 30 minutes to actually make this happen. Finding ways to document your travels doesn’t have to be complicated. Favorite all your most special photos from your last trip. Dump all the images into the ChatBooks app. Choose your book style and title and BOOM, you just created a way to hold onto those travel memories even ten years from now. Chatbooks has so many timeless design choices now that make documenting your travels beautifully easier than ever before (and starting at $10, this option can’t be beat!).

If you really want a special keepsake, we recommend the Artifact Uprising Travel Photo Books (a true treasure)- get $20 off your first purchase on those here!

Create a Timeless Shadow Box

Ok, ok hear me out…because I know, shadow boxes can get cheesy really quickly. But let me tell you, I’ve never seen shadow boxes more beautiful than these ones at West Elm. Thoughtfully placed travel mementos and this drool worthy piece on your bookshelf, and you’re sure to have everyone asking questions. What a stunning conversation piece to have displayed in your home! This is such a unique find and one we definitely want to add to our documented travels arsenal.

Track your Destinations with a Scratch Off Map

Documenting your travels and dreaming up those next adventures is never as fun as it is on a scratch off map. Similar to the Push Pin Map, but at a lower price point if you don’t want to totally splurge on a keepsake. This is something we love to get our girls involved in, as again they just totally delight in how many places we’ve gone and where we will travel to next! I will be honest and say it was pretty hard for me to find one that I would frame and put in my home…BUT this was the clear winner of the bunch!

Finding ways to document your travels doesn’t have to be overwhelming and also can be beautiful believe it or not. Here’s to holding onto those life-changing memories for a lifetime!