Newshub Travel's 2021 Christmas gift guide

Newshub Travel's 2021 Christmas gift guide

While New Zealand's international borders aren't open yet, domestic travel is kicking off and people are starting to dream of what 2022 may bring in terms of travel and adventure.

For travel lovers, there's plenty of great potential gifts available this Christmas, from the inspirational, to the more practical. 

If you still have a presents to buy this year, here are some ideas for any keen traveller in your life.

More socks?

Newshub Travel's 2021 Christmas gift guide
Photo credit: Jetstar

These socks come with a bit of a twist. Much like how a plain gift on the Generation Game turned into an exotic holiday, these are actually travel vouchers.

These Jetsocks only cost $15, but hold a voucher value of $50 for any Jetstar service.

It's a gift that keeps on giving, even for the person doing the gifting. You get to watch the person's face as their disappointment about some random pair of orange socks turns into excitement about a travel voucher.

Capture the action

Newshub Travel's 2021 Christmas gift guide
Photo credit: GoPro

The GoPro brand is now so well established it's often associated with any sort of action video. The company has just released its HERO10 model which records in 5.3K video (who even knew that was a thing?).

This model comes with increased low-light performance and advanced video stabalisation. It's also connected to the cloud so your footage is all ready to go when you are done conquering the world.

The new HERO10 Black starts at around $700 in New Zealand. If you want to spend a little less, there's also plenty of GoPro accessories from camera mounts to tripods and 'selfie stick-like' mono-pods.

The company also recently released a waterproof backpack with enough space for a laptop and a pair of running shoes if you're planning a wild weekend in the bush. 

The Travel Book

Newshub Travel's 2021 Christmas gift guide
Photo credit: Lonely Planet

If anything is going to get you inspired to travel in 2022, it's this book. With 680 images of various destinations around the world, it's likely to see your destination wishlist expand with just about every page.

It's also a great one to have on the coffee table, serving as a great conversation starter.

Lonely Planet says the secret to the book is "that it's a snapshot of our kaleidoscopic world rather than a yawn-inducing encyclopedia". Its publisher's aim was to grab attention by using bold photography hoping to put them right into each destination.

Global sales of The Travel Book are now in excess of one million and hopefully each and every one of those readers is able to get on a plane and begin rediscovering the world once again in 2022.

The Travel Book has an RRP of $60.

Pillow talk

Newshub Travel's 2021 Christmas gift guide
Photo credit: Ecosa

Before the COVID-19 pandemic a trend was emerging amongst frequent travellers around pillows.

Given the importance of a good night's sleep - along with paranoia about hotel beds - more and more people were taking their own pillows with them. Pillow manufacturers have even started making pillows specifically for this market.

An example is the Ecosa memory foam pillow, which is packaged in a way which makes it very travel friendly. It's said to be able to compress to less than 25 percent of its full size.

It is both firm and flexible, meaning it easily rolls up into a carry bag that would slide into a carry-on suitcase or hang off your backpack. It's also naturally antibacterial and retails for around $150.

Road trip memories

Newshub Travel's 2021 Christmas gift guide
Photo credit: Next Base

Dashcams are not only good for capturing some good summer holiday memory shots, but are increasingly becoming more about safety and security.

The new Nextbase 622GW Dash Cam is the world's first dash cam that provides Emergency SOS. 

This feature alerts emergency services to your location in the event of an accident. 

It also does other cool but less lifesaving things, like recording 4K video and allowing footage to be viewed in super slow motion.

The dash cam uses a system called what3words. This provides your exact location to within 3m without the need for a data connection, something that is likely to become more and more common on New Zealand's roads.

As well as Alexia built in, the camera has night vision, loop recording, a G-force sensor and starts as soon as your car does.

The Nextbase 622GW Dash Cam goes for around $600.

What gift suggestions do you have for fellow travel lovers? Let us know in the Newshub Travel Facebook group.