Souvenirs - do you buy a certain item each place you go?

[2specialkidsforme]

Hi Everyone,

 

We have started to travel more now that our children are a little bigger. I was curious what if any souvenir you buy whenver you vacation as a tradition. Since our first "big" trip with the kids was a cruise - we decided to buy the cruise ship ornament and on the bottom I used a sharpie to write the dates, ports, etc. We are going on another ship in Feb and then a different ship in November and my daughter said today we have to remember to get our ornaments.:)

 

I am trying to plan my first trip to Europe and if I do the cruise I am planning I will be in Italy, France and Spain. I want to buy something that I will enjoy and want to buy something similar in each country. So - do you have any ideas to share?

 

TIA

[Ashland]

Refrigerator magnets..our fridge looks like a travel map..and enjoy them everyday..While ornaments are nice..you can only display them once a year.

[SadieN]

DDtheolder buys shot glasses, DDtheYounger gets keychains.

I have a collection of small masks. I also like to look for odd small kitchen utensils/gadgets and potholders. Also have a small collection of cheap, plastic famous buildings. Got the Collesseum for a euro.

 

Funniest thing I have is an apron from Rome, female gladiator. My body never looked so good.:D

 

Besides 'tourist things' look for things made in country. We have ceramic plates/bowls from various countries.

Friend has an entire wall of plates (that they use for serving) from their travels.

[soccerref]

I buy something that will hang on the Christmas tree and then label it with destination and date when I get home. The object can be anything....often a key ring or small ornament but other times it might be a real Christmas decoration. These are small, light and relatively cheap. The only downside is that it takes us ages to decorate the tree as we keep remembering the wonderful places we have visited over the years.

[euro cruiser]

Tea towels and jigsaw puzzles.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Only at new ports -- a Christmas item for our one special tree.

[Tomecruise]

We go with small plates as they can be displayed all year. You can usually find ones that are hand painted vs the standard souvenir, or something similar from a local artist.

[deladypilot]

We usually pick up a Christmas Ornament at each location, something made in the area. As for things I like to display all the time, it always has to be something made by a local artist or at least in that location.

[Donder1]

We have long since abandoned buying souvenirs and tacky t shirts and other junk. We do try to purchase one very special item, like 18 ct. gold hoops from Florence, Delft candlesticks from Aruba, small handmade mask from Venice for the Christmas tree. It really makes wandering in the various ports fun to find that one meaningful treasure.

[Bonnie J.]

We don't buy any any more but I usd to buy small dolls from each port. I'd write the name of the port we got them from on the doll, usually under the skirt. We've been to just about every port now so have a bunch. They sit on a shelf on our screen porch.

I used to bring different coins back from ports to give to my middle school students. These were inexpensive souvenirs for them and took up no room in my suitcase.

[paul929207]

Frig magnets

[Allis154]

We also do Christmas ornaments, but we also have a cabinet that holds special things from our travels. Something that reminds us of the places we visited. Such as Alaska-totem pole, Aruba-delft bowl, etc.

[narrow56]

I used to collect shot glasses. Then I realized that they quickly take up a lot of room so I've stopped that collection. I also collect a post card from each trip and put them in a photo album. I try to collect a Hard Rock Cafe pin everywhere I go that I can easily find a restaurant. Our newest collection is Christmas ornaments! It's so fun to take them out at Christmas and remember our trips.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Besides the Christmas ornaments we used to pick up something special in the ports -- like a totem pole from Alaska or the Matryoshka nesting dolls from Russia, etc.

Now we don't do that any more as we just don't the room to place all these items.

[sherilyn70]

I find souvenier to be a waste of money and space. I do however by things in port that are local and unique if I see something that catches my eye. But these are things that will find a place into my normal house decor (such as wooden carved vases and my hanging monkeys).

[Andee]

Refrigerator magnets

Tiles to hang on the soffit in our kitchen

We've also bought:

art from local artists

things the area is know for, such as spices in Grenada, glass in Venice, olive oil soap in Greece, amber in the Baltic, ceramic serving piece on the Amalfi Coast

[FTLcruisers]

I buy something that will hang on the Christmas tree and then label it with destination and date when I get home. The object can be anything....often a key ring or small ornament but other times it might be a real Christmas decoration. These are small, light and relatively cheap. The only downside is that it takes us ages to decorate the tree as we keep remembering the wonderful places we have visited over the years.

 

We do the same thing - this year our tree was almost entirely these types of ornaments. I keep a list (since we repeat destinations and I can't always remember what we have) and we now have 99!

 

Marianne

[spunkyhungry]

I don't buy a particular item. I always try to get a souveneir I can use, not something that just sits on the shelf as decoration. I like to get clothing, jewelry, hats, magnets, mugs, etc. I only get 1 or 2 things.

[Talisker92]

We buy refrigerator magnets. I told my wife when the front of the fridge is covered we will stop traveling.

I also buy little special things for my 6 foot curio cabinet. We bought a tiny chalet in Switzerland, a small mate cup in Argentina, a filigree caravel in Portugal, etc.

We gave up on t-shirts and shot glasses, etc,

[lady_cruiser]

Deck of cards even though we won't use them. They are kept in their shrink wrapping and we have them in a display box. We will sometime buy an extra deck or two to save just in case we need to buy a gag gift (usually we set a $5 limit on these gifts) for a person who loves to play cards.

[Maryandi]

We mostly buy several things here & there and also send postcards to the grandchildren. Take some photos .

 

I was buying pashminas and tablecloths but now have too many.:p

 

Something unique to the area - if it's small enough I'll buy it.

 

Interesting to see what others buy, Thanks.

[lissa42886]

i get a shot glass everywhere. i have a good collection going. i also like magnets.i have my own side of the frig w all mine. my friend likes to get christmas ornaments. and i also try to get a bottle of island exclusive alcohol as well. something we CANT buy at home. and save the bottle once we drink it.

[lissa42886]

I find souvenier to be a waste of money and space. I do however by things in port that are local and unique if I see something that catches my eye. But these are things that will find a place into my normal house decor (such as wooden carved vases and my hanging monkeys).

 

hanging monkeys??? LOL

[babs135]

Fridge magnets - small but bring back big memories.

[dawnmariex]

Hello!

 

I buy a sterling silver pendant in each port. They are relatively inexpensive and I am reminded every time I wear them of where I have been.

 

I also buy a postcard and other small items that can be included in a scrapbook (bookmarks, small flat leather keychains, artistic prints, flat woven bracelets and flags have all been included in my scrapbooks).

 

I will buy local alcohol if I am not flying and I actually like it. Sheradin's and guavaberry liqueur are recent purchases. Sangria from Puerto Rico was fantastic!