35 Unique Travel Journal Prompts That Are Worth Reading

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A travel journal is a great way how to keep travel memories alive. Here you’ll find many travel journal prompts for the times when you run out of inspiration on what to write in your journal.

And the best part of travel journaling?

You can do it even without actually going on a trip!

Now that the travel is more restricted and kind of paused in some places, it’s especially useful to keep dreaming about the upcoming trips. The expectation of travel and preparation for it sometimes is as exciting as the trip itself. You can write about an actual upcoming trip in the future or daydream about the perfect trip that you’ll take one day.

How to write a travel journal?

A travel journal is a place where you can document and keep safe your memories from your trips or your dreams about the upcoming trips. There is no strict format for how you should write a travel journal, but there are some things that you should keep in mind.

Travel journal can be created in many mediums

You can use whichever way you want to express your thoughts. It doesn’t have to be just words.

You can draw, make a collage, add a map with markings, glue in some photos of things from the place that you visited.

A travel journal is your creation. Fill it however you like.

Travel journal content is what you want it to be

There are no strict rules as to what has to be the content of a travel journal.

You can keep it formal and each day of the trip answer three predetermined prompts. Or you can write whatever comes to your mind. The main thing is that you should enjoy adding content and not force it.

Travel journal can be created in a notebook or online

You can write your travel journal in a simple notebook. Or you can invest in a leather-covered notebook for which you can change the paper each time you go on a new trip. Or you can document your travels online with some pictures and texts straight from your phone.

Choose whichever format suits your lifestyle best.

As for myself, I enjoy writing by hand. But I know that I will be lazy to pack a separate notebook for the travel. That’s why I keep my notes on my phone, as it is always with me no matter where I go. And it is always safely backed up in cloud so it can’t get lost or destroyed.

Travel journal prompts

Below you’ll find many ideas for travel journal writings. These are divided based on where you are in your journey – expecting it, on it, or already successfully returned home.

Remember, you don’t have to write about all of these. Just choose some topics that spark interest in you and go! Travel journaling should be fun, and not something that you have to force yourself to do.

Before the trip

1. If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?
2. Packing list for your next trip
3. If you could take anyone with you on your next journey, who would you take and why?
4. What are you planning to experience on the trip?
5. Are you worried about anything in the upcoming trip?
6. Which interesting facts have you discovered about the destination?

During the trip

1. Each day’s top 3 moments
2. What was the worst thing that happened today?
3. What are you learning about yourself through travel?
4. Did you try something new today?
5. What are you discovering about your friends while traveling together?
6. What did you eat today?
7. Have you had any problems while traveling? What could be done to solve these?
8. Were you afraid of something today? Did anything push you out of your comfort zone? How did you overcome this fear and what did you do as a result?
9. Did you learn any new words today?
10. Write a review of the place where you are staying at
11. What are you missing from home?
12. What would you do if you would get an extra day on this trip?
13. What music are you listening to?

After the trip

1. How do you see home differently after your trip?
2. Did you make any local friends? Describe these interactions in detail
3. Which was the most beautiful or exciting place that you visited on your trip?
4. Did you get lost at some point during the trip? Describe how you solved this situation
5. Did you miss any things from home during your trip? Did you use all of the things that you had packed?
6. How has the most recent trip changed you?
7. What are your first memories of travel?
8. Would you visit the destination again? If so, what would you change in your itinerary?
9. What have you learned from your travels? Write a story of how you learned it and an example of where you use it
10. What would you suggest your past self keep in mind about the upcoming trip?
11. Did you learn something from the locals during the trip? Did you use their advice?
12. Which part of the trip did you enjoy the most?
13. What souvenirs did you bring back home?
14. What souvenirs have you received from others? Which were your favorite and why?
15. What makes the place where you have traveled similar or different from home?
16. Where do you want to go next and why?

How to start a travel journal online

There can be physical travel journals that you take with you on the road, and there are different apps and other tools online that you can use to document your travels.

If writing on paper is not for you, then you might consider an electronic format for keeping those travel memories safe.

One of the most popular ways to share your travel moments is Instagram. There you can snap a picture from your trip, add a description and share it with your friends.

If you want something a bit more private, there is Polarsteps app which allows you to plan, track and relive your trips in a smart and beautiful way.

And my favorite way of documenting travel is writing a travel blog. It’s public like Instagram, but I can choose the form of how I write things and don’t have to worry that the platform has all my created content and can just go away one day.

And the best part of a writing travel blog?

It can earn you money and potentially pay for your next trip.

So what are you waiting for? Start writing about your travels in a journal or online and save those valuable memories now!

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