Whether you like the freedom to write and draw, scrapbooking, or guided prompts, here are the best travel journals and notebooks to choose from…
They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but sometimes, words help preserve memories even better.
Seeing where you’ve been and what you’ve seen is one thing. But knowing how it made you feel and how it made you think is another thing.
That’s where travel journals and travel notebooks come into play. A photo album lets us see through your eyes, but a journal or notebook lets us see so much more than that.
If you want to catalog your experiences and emotions and the impacts your travels have on you, here are the best travel journals and notebooks for you.
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6 Best Travel Journals & Notebooks
Some people like blank notebooks while others like guided journals. So, this list has a variety of styles and options to choose from. Whatever your taste, I think you’ll find a good fit for you on this list.
Simplicity at Its Best: Deziliao Hardcover Notebook
If you’re looking for a very simple and affordable notebook to write about your journeys, then this hardcover notebook is for you.
It’s a good size that can easily slip into your backpack, purse, or traveling case. What I like perhaps best is you can use one notebook per trip or summer or per year, depending on how much you write. Then, get another for the next adventure!
It includes 72 sheets, 144 pages, 100 gsm ivory paper, 1 pen loop, 1 bookmark ribbon, 1 inner pocket, and an elastic closure band.
If you’re worried about it being too simple, you can select from its 17 fun color designs.
For the Adventurous Artist: MALEDEN Refillable Spiral Notebook
This one makes me think of a captain’s log on a pirate ship. The embossed artificial leather cover is soft but strong and has leather strings to keep it closed.
Since it comes with blank, unlined pages, this journal is ideal for people who like to sketch, write freely, or use it more as a scrapbook.
Perhaps its best feature is its spiral binding. You can easily remove pages at the end of a trip and bind them into their own notebook. Then, refill the pages for the next adventure.
You can replace the paper with any A6 refills. So, if you don’t like blank pages or want to include lined pages, too, you can.
They also offer other cover design options, like this more feminine version.
Minimally Guided Tour: Page-A-Day Artisan Travel Journal
The page-a-day journal is ideal for people who want to write about their experiences efficiently and concisely.
As the product description puts it: “A page per day is just enough space to take note of memorable places you've visited and explored, but brief enough for you to have more time to experience those places, rather than spending time writing about them.”
The cover is a soft vegan “leather” with a nice embossed design. It comes with 176 writing pages, a ribbon bookmark, elastic closure, and a back cover pocket.
Each page has a section to notate the date, location, and weather conditions.
The paper is a nice archival color and has subtle dotted lines. The dotted lines are a nice compromise between lined paper and blank pages for people who want to write and draw.
For the Diehard Camper: Clever Fox Camping Journal
This is a great option for RVers and campers who like to track their experiences at different campgrounds and destinations. It also comes in handy for planning.
This journal is designed to store both practical info and memories, which is nice for planning and enjoying the trip from start to finish.
It includes lots of guided prompts and templates, like a campsite log, meal planner, grocery list, and packing checklist. But, it also leaves room for notes and memories.
The ribbon bookmark, pen loop, elastic cover band, and expandable back pocket are nice features, too.
It’s designed to give you plenty of space for 12 trips with 8 pages per trip. Each trip has its own set of logs, templates, and journaling space.
For the Kid Adventurer: Ultimate Travel Journal for Kids
If you want your kids to remember your family-fun adventure and make the most of it, this journal is for them.
When traveling with kids, you’re always worried about combating their boredom on the long drives or screen-free nights. This journal is the perfect solution.
It comes with tons of games and activities as well as guided travel writing prompts. It encourages them to try new things and meet new people.
I personally like its “Mad Libs” approach with its writing prompts, where the kids fill in the blanks rather than have to write entire paragraphs. I’m sure kids appreciate that while on vacation away from school.
Do you remember Mad Libs, by the way? They still make them and some especially for road trips! You can get Mad Libs on the Road or Vacation Fun Mad Libs and more.
For the Junk Journaling Scrapbooker: MOLNESO Junk Journal Supplies
If you like what I would respectfully call a “messier” or “free” approach to journaling, then you should check out these travel scrapbook supplies.
Mind you, this is not a journal or notebook in itself. Rather, it’s a companion supply of scrapbook supplies to go along with any of the best travel journals that you might choose.
Although, if you’re a junk journaler, then you probably prefer to use a notebook you have on hand or pick one up while traveling anyway. In that case, this is a good little scrapbook kit to bring along with you.
It comes with scrapbook paper, stickers, and other fun scraps to add character to your travel journal.
What Kind of Journaler are You?
Are you a minimalist? An artist? Scrapbooker? Which would you choose from this list of best travel journals? Let us know how you catalog your memories in the comments below.
And if you're looking to create more memories worth writing about…
New ebook from Mike and Jennifer Wendland – the Natchez Trace
The Natchez Trace Parkway will capture your imagination, soothe your jangled travel nerves, open your mind and inspire you with the history that unfolded along its 444 miles.
Each of the 7 Days of the ebook has:
- Suggested Mileposts to explore
- Places to Eat in each area of the 7 sections
- Campground descriptions and links
- Links to all the special places and information
- Links to videos that show more in detail
- and a lot of highlighted information for each section
PLEASE NOTE: This is NOT a printed, hard copy guide.
Whether you want to follow the footsteps of explorers, discover natural beauty, or visit historic sites, the Trace has something to grab your attention and leave you eager to see what’s at the next milepost.
You can see why this is one of our favorite US routes to explore. We’ve traveled it a half dozen times!
Mike and Jennifer Wendland's Yellowstone Travel Guide
At the top of every RVers bucket list, it is a place so majestic, so wild, and so big that it calls us to return, to explore, to get to know the diversity of its land and animals over and over again.
Everywhere you look are waterfalls, fast-moving rivers, geysers, sheer rock faces, towering lodgepole pines, all framed by mountains under the bright blue cloudless sky.
It’s spectacular for those who love the wilderness and getting up close and personal with it. Enjoy Yellowstone for RV travel.
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