Want to create a travel journal for your trip but keep coming up blank when you sit down to write?
Travel journals are one of the best ways to preserve your trip for when your memory fails you. But knowing what to write in a travel journal to make it interesting and fun, not only while you’re writing it, but also to read at a later date, can be tricky.
Don’t worry, because we have got you covered. Today, we’re bringing you travel journal prompts for before, during, and after your trip to help you to prepare, soak in the moment, and reflect on your adventures.
Not only are travel journals great for preserving memories but they have a whole host of other benefits that you might not have thought of, which will make creating a travel journal top of your list of things to do.
Benefits Of Journaling For Travelers
There are endless benefits to journaling while traveling, and we think everyone should keep a journal.
When you’re 80 years old and sitting on your rocking chair, reading your old travel journals and laughing about the antics you got up to in your younger years, you’ll be grateful you documented those moments.
Journaling Gets You Organized
You might not have thought to use your travel journal before you set off on your trip, but journaling is an excellent way of keeping everything in one place and can help you in different ways.
For example, you can use a travel journal to create a packing list, write a pre-trip to-do list, set a savings target and budget, and keep track of your flight and accommodation details.
Journaling Enables You To Express Your Emotions
If you’re traveling solo, you might not have someone to express your thoughts to. Use your travel journal to write about your day as you would speak to a friend.
You can write about challenges you faced, scary moments, funny conversations, and how your day was overall.
This isn’t just for solo travelers. If you’re traveling with someone, be it friends or a partner, and don’t feel comfortable with sharing your emotions, these travel journal prompts will help you to brain dump onto paper.
Journaling challenges you to dig deeper, and you can use it to ask yourself questions that others probably wouldn’t ask, such as how the trip is changing you, or whether the place you’re in is making you feel inspired.
While you can just write down the events that happened on that particular day, the best travel journals capture emotions too.
Journaling Captures Memories
The biggest benefit of travel journals is that they are a fantastic reminder of your trip for you to look back on.
There are often small things from trips we forget, whether that’s how a place smells, or a person that we met along the way, and travel journals help to reignite those memories, which is why we’re going to give you loads of travel journaling ideas.
Journaling Helps You To Live In The Moment
That doesn’t sound quite right, does it?! Seeing as journaling requires you to take a moment out of your day to write, you’d think it would have the opposite effect, but actually, that’s not the case at all.
Journaling helps you to remain present as it encourages you to take in everything surrounding you. We all get so caught up in our own heads at times that even if we’re in paradise, we might be thinking about our next destination, how much money we’ve spent, what we’re gonna do when we get home, etc.
This means that you can be in the perfect destination and not really BE THERE, enjoying it for what it is.
That’s where journaling steps in, and gently pushes you back to the present, with questions that make you think about what you can smell, hear, see, and taste, to remind you that life is happening right now.
Which Travel Journals Are Best?
Here, we’ve listed some of the best travel journals, with and without prompts.
Travel Journals With Prompts
Recommended pick: Travel Journal By Duncan & Stone
We think this is the best travel journal with prompts. First of all, the journal itself is beautiful with a linen-bound hardcover and gold lettering, and secondly, the prompts are thought-provoking, such as “tips for future travelers in this location“. On top of that, there is a pocket for you to put any mementos you’ve collected, such as event stubs, bus tickets, photos, etc.
Some other great travel journals with prompts include:
Travel Journals Without Prompts
Recommended pick: Page-A-Day Artisan Travel Journal
This travel journal comes without prompts. Isn’t that just a notebook, we hear you ask? This one is a little different from a notebook in that each day has its own page, and each page asks you to write the date and your location, as well as the weather.
It also has a vegan leather ‘travel journal’ cover. This would be a good option to use with our travel journal prompts as there’s plenty of room to write.
Here are a couple of other options for travel journals without prompts:
Best Journal Prompts For Travel
If you haven’t bought a travel journal with prompts, don’t worry, we have a whole list of travel writing prompts and travel journal questions.
These traveling prompts will leave you feeling inspired and able to fill up your travel journal in no time, leaving you with plenty of memories to look back on in years to come.
Travel Prompts For Before Your Trip
- Write your packing list
- Write down your important information, such as flight times, check-in info, etc.
- Write down your emergency contact information
- What is your travel budget?
- Which attractions are must-sees?
- What is your travel itinerary?
- What is something you always forget to take on trips?
- What are you most looking forward to?
- Why have you chosen to visit that particular destination?
- Is there anything you feel nervous about?
Travel Prompts For During Your Trip
- What are your first impressions?
- Does the place you’re in have a particular smell?
- What languages can you hear being spoken?
- What is your room like?
- How did you feel when you first arrived?
- What are your plans for the day?
- Which attractions do you want to see and why?
- Who did you meet today?
- Did any attractions disappoint you?
- What were your expectations of the place versus reality?
- What are 5 things you can see around you right now?
- What has excited you today?
- Is there anything you’re missing from home?
- What was a funny moment you experienced today?
- What is the worst thing that happened today?
- What is happening around you right now?
- Which memories from your trip do you think will stick with you?
- Has this trip changed you a little?
- Are there any events happening?
- Are the locals happy?
- What did you eat today?
- Have you learned anything about yourself while on this trip?
- Did you try anything new today?
- What are some interesting facts about your location?
- Did you learn any new words or phrases today?
- How could your trip be improved?
- What music did you listen to today?
- What did you spend money on today?
Travel Prompts For After Your Trip
- What was your favorite moment of the trip?
- How much did your trip cost in total?
- Where do you want to travel to next?
- Would you visit that destination again?
- Is there anything you would have done differently on your trip?
- How did the destination differ from your expectations?
- Is there anything you wish you’d known before visiting?
- Which songs remind you of your trip?
- What do you wish you’d packed?
- Is there anything you didn’t get to do but wish you did?
- Where does this trip rank on your list of travel experiences?
- Who was the most interesting person you met?
Final Thoughts On Travel Writing Prompts
We hope you use these travel journal prompts as inspiration for your own travel journal and can create a journal that’s brimming with memories.
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