Holiday Travel Gift List

If you're like me, probably 98% of your current emails have the words "Black Friday" in the title and you're just about done with life. I'm already over Christmas and it's not even Thanksgiving yet. Make shopping easier on yourself and sleep in tomorrow with these fun travel items for everyone on your gift list.

I don't know about you, but I've got a lot of people to buy for and not a lot of cash, so I've been looking for items in all price ranges that will suit just about everybody who likes to travel. 

Budget (under $40)

Phone Loops

I'll be receiving some of these fairly soon and doing a proper review (and possibly a giveaway), but these loops make it easier for you to hang onto your mobile and less likely to drop it, because you can use it as a way to hold your phone in your hand or carry it around your wrist. It's a fun way to stop shoving it in your back pocket and still have it available when you need it (and not just floating around in your bag). You can buy them for everyone on your list at this low, low price of $4.99. Get free shipping for the next 3 days, 15% off for 3 or more and 20% off if you buy 12 or more. 

Comfy pants
Headed somewhere warm? One Tribe Apparel's Aladdin pants are the perfect addition to a carry-on bag, and take up very little space inside, which means you have room for other necessities. Trust me when I say that your gift recipient will adore these lightweight pants. Plus, they are so affordable at $27! You can view my review of them here.

Pokemon Go Plus
Got a gamer on your list? Make those vacation steps count. You hook your Plus up to your phone via bluetooth, then catch Pokemon on the go, hit up PokeStops, walk your buddy and hatch eggs. These go through periods where you can get them everywhere and then nowhere, so if you have someone who would enjoy this, better get it now. Eric and I both have one, so we can catch new Pokemons everywhere we go! (Please don't judge us. We are fun.) Unlimited fun for $35. 

Stretch Strap
I don't know why walking so much makes you tense, but sometimes you just need to stretch out after (and before) all that exercise you're getting going from one landmark to the next. Luckily, you can get a stretch strap that works for everyone in your travel party and allows your muscles all that pull they need without having to hit the hotel gym. This little strap is just $15.95, on Prime, and packs into almost no space at all.

Collapsible food containers

Got a traveler who does a lot of road tripping, or just likes to bring their own snackies with them on the plane? I do this and usually bring a hard storage container for all my homemade goodies. Not only are these sweet to take on the plane, train, and in the car, but they are fantastic for work lunches and more. When empty, collapse them and they take up much less space, so you have room for souvenirs. I like the set above, which is $29.99, but I have something similar to this set that is only $20. 

Moderate ($40-99)

Lug Propeller Gym Bag

Lug has some excellent products, which are multipurpose and great to look at as well. This bag is technically a gym bag, with a zip front that holds your yoga mat, but I love it as a carry-on bag. It fits under the seat, has room for everything you need, and I use that zipper compartment to either hold my jacket that I don't want to wear, or put my travel docs in it and zip it closed. Boom! When not traveling, you can use it as a traditional gym bag or even a diaper bag. Purchase from Amazon starting at $72.99, choosing your favorite color/pattern.

Travel flats
Oka-b has some of the best travel shoes you can ask for, especially if you're looking for stylish, packable and comfy kicks. The ballet flats are lovely and go with just about everything and the price is pretty sweet too. They average $46 a pair, plus they have flip flops, wedges and sandals. If they get grungy, you can wash them in the dishwasher or scrub them with regular dish soap too! And when you order through this weekend, get 15% or more off!

Help save the National Parks
Our National Parks, landmarks and monuments are not guaranteed. Buy your lover of the outdoors some sweet NP swag and let them know that your gift is going to support the Coalition to Protect America's National Parks, so they can visit them for many trips to come. The awesome clothing is around $30-40, but you can also find other goods that are cheaper to fit into your budget.

Splurge ($99 and over)

Excellent new shades for my next adventures from @visionworks_eyewear. Can't wait to bring you a review! Also, look for them on my gift list! . . #travelgifts #holidaygifts #travelgiftlist #jetsetter #jetset #ilovetravel #tourist #tourism #tblogger #tbloggers #travelblog #travel #travelblogger #travelgirl #travelgram #instatravel #traveler #traveller #budgettravel #budgettraveler #budgettraveller

A post shared by Shereen Travels Cheap (@srayle) on Nov 15, 2017 at 5:08pm PST

Sunglasses from Visionworks

I always have 2-4 pair of sunglasses at home at any time. I love to show off my style through my shades. Visionworks partners with designer brands, like Guess, to bring you the best in stylish sunglasses. They aren't cheap, but think of how awesome these fantastic sunnies are going to look in vacation pics! Actually, you can find a pair for around $90, and right now they are all on sale. The ones I'll be reviewing for you retail for $180.

AAA
For the road tripper on your list, give them the gift of security. Whether they need a tow, a jump, or a tire change, AAA is always there for you...er them. We have it, and though I've not used it for much, it's always nice to know it's there as insurance, especially when roadtripping alone and driving through pretty desolate areas. There are several different memberships you can buy, but any of them will be appreciated. Sign up here.

For more ideas on what to buy for the traveler on your holiday list, check out my Dads & Grads list and my Mother's Day list. 

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links.

The Pre-Black Friday Holiday Sale!

In order to take advantage of the cash back, just create your Swagbucks account when prompted (it takes less than 30 seconds) and then you're all set! Your cash back comes in the form of SB points, which you can redeem for gift cards to places like Amazon, Target, Walmart, Starbucks, or get PayPal cash! 

As a special bonus, if you sign up through me you get a 300 SB ($3) bonus when you earn your first 300 SB before December 1st! This site's a great way to extend your shopping budget, especially around the holidays!

As a pre-Black Friday warm up, Swagbucks is offering big cash back for shopping online at several of your favorite retailers right now! Just go to this page to see all of the deals available and get the jump on your holiday shopping.

Use your Swagbucks towards gift cards to buy more holiday goodies or to save more on your next vacation. It's what I do!

Save Money By Cooking In Your Hotel Room

It's no secret that I'm a big advocate of vacation rentals, because having a kitchen can totally help you stretch your budget. But what if you don't have a kitchen, because you can only get a hotel room? Well, if you have a microwave, coffee maker and mini-fridge, you can still make actual food. You just have to be a bit more creative.

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Obviously, you can survive on microwaveable meals, but they can be packed with fat and sodium, so with a little ingenuity, you can make easy, healthy, and (mostly) fresh meals with minimal appliances.

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Breakfast

Oatmeal: Not only can you make packet oatmeal in the microwave with just water, but you can make regular oatmeal in the coffee maker as well. Do as you would on the stove top. 

Cereal: This is pretty much the easiest breakfast ever.

Peanut butter and jelly: A good pb&j sandwich can be really filling and you can switch it up by adding sliced bananas instead of jelly and/or honey. Delicious!

Omelette: If you like a good hearty breakfast, then you can use a zip top bag to make an omelette in your microwave. You can add all your veggies and other ingredients, pop it in the microwave and zap for 2 1/2 minutes. Use Ziploc Zip 'n Steam bags for this. If you can't find them, you can make an omelette in a mug:

• whisk eggs plus salt & pepper in your mug
• microwave for 1 minute
• add toppings and stir a bit
• microwave for 1-2 minutes (done when all your liquid is gone and eggs are fluffy)
• eat out of the mug or serve on a plate

Soft-boiled eggs: Add your eggs to the coffee carafe, brew (without coffee, obvs) so hot water drips over your eggs. Let them sit for several minutes and then they're ready to eat!

Bacon: You can make bacon in your microwave, as long as you have a real plate and some paper towels. Hit up a local dollar store for a plate and towels (and bacon, if you're lucky). Lay out two paper towels, one on top of each other, on the plate, place your bacon on them without overlapping, cover with two more layers of paper towels and microwave for 5 minutes.

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Lunch

Grilled sandwiches: Whether you're looking to make a grilled cheese or something a bit more substantial, make sure to get some foil when you buy your ingredients at the store, put together your sandwich, butter both sides, wrap in foil, and then iron away with the iron that comes in your room. You can also do quesadillas this way. 

Macaroni and cheese: Use the microwave to cook your pasta, then drain and add your milk, butter and cheese packet. Of course, you could buy those little just-add-water cups, but they are twice as expensive and are only good for one person (if that).

If boxed mac and cheese sounds horrible to you, you can actually make your own from scratch as well. TheKitchn has this easy recipe that you can do in your microwave using your favorite shredded cheese and noodles.

Wrap sandwich: You can purchase pre-grilled chicken, then add hummus, lettuce and feta to a pita, or caesar salad dressing and parmesan for a salad wrap. You can heat up the chicken in your microwave if you want a warm wrap.

Salad: This is pretty easy and only requires a fridge. Buy all the ingredients and put it together when you're ready. You can make it even easier buy buying a bag of ready to eat salad that includes all the ingredients in the bag. Get some rotisserie chicken and add as topping.

Hot dogs: If you don't have a microwave, but you do have a coffee maker, you can have hot dogs, in about half an hour. Fill your carafe with 6-8 cups worth of water, add your frozen hot dogs to the carafe and turn the machine on. They will slowly cook in around 30 minutes.

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Dinner

Pasta: You can actually make pasta in your microwave, if you have a container large enough to cover it with water. Most pasta can be cooked in 8-10 minutes on high. Here's a handy website. I do this at home, too, because I'm not patient enough to wait for a whole pot of water to boil on the stove. You can heat up a jar of really flavorful sauce in the microwave as well, or you can heat it up in your coffee maker, so both are ready at the same time, but you may want to use the carafe to drain your noodles.

Rice: Use your coffee maker to cook rice as you would on  your stove top, then add something like Indian food pouches they sell at Trader Joe's and similar food sections in your typical grocery store. Purchase steam in the bag veggies to add. If you're into a vegetarian meal, mix in beans, a can of diced tomatoes, and some steamed corn. You can also do quinoa instead of rice. You'll add the rice to the carafe, put the amount of water for the amount of rice you're cooking in the top and hit brew. Then keep it warming until all your liquid is gone. If this freaks you out, there are those quick packs of microwaveable rice.

Baked potatoes: I love a good baked potato. You can bake them in the microwave with a bit of olive oil or butter. Prick them with a fork or knife, drizzle a little oil or slather some butter on the outside, cover with a paper towel and cook on high for around 8 minutes. Once done, you can top with anything you like. I enjoy baked sweet potatoes with chili, but also regular potatoes with ham and cheese, traditional toppings, or fajita toppings, which you can sometimes buy already cooked in the refrigerated section of the grocery store.

Mashed potatoes: Knorr and other brands make a just-add-water mashed potato pack that come in different flavors and are easily made in the microwave. If you want fresh mashed potatoes, cook your potatoes like baked above, but for a bit longer, then mash with a fork with milk, butter, and salt & pepper.

Shrimp: Use a high quality zip top bag to cook your thawed (peeled) shrimp in the microwave. Add them to the bag with a bit of water or sauce and then cook for 3-5 minutes and use them over rice, pasta, or make your own easy shrimp tacos.

With a bit of smarts and a trip to the store, you can totally make a complete meal in your room for any time of the day. Don't forget about bringing back leftovers and repurposing them as new meals too, like meat and veggies that you can throw on top of potatoes or rice. 

If you bring some of your favorite spices from home (you can use empty Tic Tac containers), your meals will be even more flavorful. Just don't forget to get out and actually eat at some restaurants for a taste of your destination too. 

What's the best thing you've ever made in your hotel room?