The stress. The anxiety. The constant back and forth of “Will they like this?” and “Should I get this for them?”
Finding gift ideas for digital nomads is not always the easiest.
It can get old quickly…especially for the digital nomad in your life who you have no idea where they are, what they’re doing, and what they even want or need in their life.
Luckily, this gift guide will give you 25 gift ideas for digital nomads to take the stress out of the shopping and put the fun and excitement of giving right back in its place!
1. Gift Ideas for Digital Nomads: Give an Experience or an Activity
You know what they’ve been saying all over Instagram these days…
Oh, you don’t?
“Experiences>>>>Things” is EVERYWHERE! And for good reason.
One of the best things that you can gift to a digital nomad is an experience or an activity. Think about it: They’re a digital nomad for a reason. This means they probably love working remotely anywhere that they can so that they can experience everything that they want when they want.
So if you choose to gift an experience or an activity, you know that they are going to love it! There’s no fear here that they’ll repackage the gift and return it right where you got it from. Not only that, but you know that Grandma won’t be gifting the same thing you did. (And if she did, she’s a pretty cool grandma).
Here are a few examples of experiences that you could gift a loved one (or a digital nomad friend) in your life for their birthday or the holiday season!
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Overnight Volcano Acatenango Hiking Adventure (Antigua, Guatemala)
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Guided Tuscany Day Trip from Florence, Italy (Florence, Italy)
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Culebra Island Snorkel with Turtles Adventure (Puerto Rico)
- Discover Scuba Diving (Cozumel, Mexico)
The great news about gifting an experience is that you also don’t have to hope that they’ll buy a flight, book a hotel, and make their way half way around the world to be able to actually do the activity you gift them. If you know that most of the time they spend their days in a specific state or city, then you can gift them a local experience as well!
Let’s say that they live in New York City most of the year when they aren’t traveling the world. Here are a few ideas that you could gift to them:
- Let them see their own city from a new perspective with a New York City Helicopter Tour
- Give them a piece of the past with a Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island Tour
- Give the gift of food and drinks with a NYC Chinatown and Little Italy Food Tour
The options with gifting experiences and activities are truly endless.
Have you heard them talking about how a goal of theirs is to get scuba dive certified? There’s a gift for that. Have they mentioned wanting to travel to Italy but they’re just not sure when? Giving them a gift once they do get there is a gift within itself.
Not only are they sure to love the gift they give, these are also the most fun gifts to shop for!
Search more gift ideas for digital nomads in your life on GetYourGuide or Viator!
2. Priority Pass Lounge Access for Nomads
If you know that your digital nomad friend or loved one likes to rough it at airports (meaning they sit at the gate for hours until the flight is ready – especially when connecting), then you may want to consider gifting them Priority Pass Lounge Access.
This is the perfect gift because you are gifting something they will use, and can use, in so many different countries around the world as they travel from one to another.
Priority Pass benefits include:
- Enjoying a comfortable space to relax before a long flight. You can sit in comfy chairs, walk around and stretch out, and grab pre-flight snacks and drinks. (And yes, this does include free alcohol for most lounges!). Sign me up!!
- Free Wifi and charging areas
- Over 800+ offers worldwide including dining, retail, and spa discounts (it’s more than just a lounge!)
3. Packing Cubes
Have you ever been traveling and can’t find something you know you packed? You may not be organized enough, then!
That’s where packing cubes can come in. These help to organize everything that is being packed for a trip – from clothes to bathing suits to workout clothes and shoes. Everything has its own home so that it is easy to find and organized. It also frees up space because everything is more condensed so that you can fit more in your bag! This is especially important for digital nomads who may be traveling for months at a time in various climates.
4. Carry On Bag
Whether the digital nomad in your life likes to have a roller or a backpack to travel the world with, getting either one isn’t going to be a problem. Why? Because eventually, they’ll use both – whether it’s their main bag or not.
If you’re looking for a rolling carry-on bag, brands like Away, American Tourister, and Monos Travel are all great options.
5. Vessi Waterproof Sneakers
If none of these gift ideas for digital nomads are speaking to you, this one will.
You may not think that there is anything worse than wet feet. But there is: wet shoes.
If you’re traveling and your shoes get wet, often times, there is no way to dry those shoes off overnight. And then you find yourself putting your feet back into the wet shoes and now you have both – wet feet and wet shoes.
With Vessi’s waterproof sneakers, this isn’t an issue. They’re lightweight, compact, versatile, and waterproof! They’re the perfect travel shoe and gift for the digital nomad in your life.
6. Travel Journal
Traveling and exploring the world? Absolutely. Travel and exploring without documenting it to look back on? Huge no-no.
Gifting a travel journal is a great thing to add to your list of items for a digital nomad. It’s a great gift if you’re on a budget as well.
7. Travel-inspired Books
You can’t go wrong with gifting travel-inspired books as one of your gift ideas for digital nomads. Just make sure you don’t give them too many since they can’t carry them everywhere with them!
Here are some books to think about gifting that are both inspirational and motivational for a digital nomad (and even more so for a digital nomad that doubles as an entrepreneur):
- The Comfort Crisis by Michael Easter
- The 4-Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferris
- Atomic Habits by James Clear
- You Are a Badass by Jen Sincero
- Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer
8. AirPods Pro
Being a digital nomad means that you are working from coffee shops, coworking spaces, hostel coliving spaces, restaurants, trains, planes, and many other random places. This means it can get quite loud with a lot going on around you.
That’s why gifting noise-cancelling headphones like Apple AirPods Pro are the perfect gift to give. Although they aren’t a budget item
9. Reusable Water Bottle
A reusable water bottle is a no-brainer. You can’t travel around and explore the world working from anywhere without a reusable water bottle.
If someone did that and bought a water bottle a day, that would be almost $80 (or more) spent on water bottles. Imagine the savings by buying just one reusable one!
AND if you buy a ZOKU water bottle with this link, you can get 10% off of your purchase. Not only that, but you can feel good about purchasing this gift because a tree is planted for every bottle purchased!
Now that’s the perfect digital nomad gift.
10. Travel Backpack
If you feel that you don’t want to gift a carry-on suitcase, a travel backpack is always a great option. You truly can’t have too many of these because options for different trips are always great.
This backpack by Nordace is the perfect travel backpack. It has so many different pockets, can slide over a luggage handle, and even has a chest strap to even out the weight while you travel.
11. Amazon Kindle
Although there is something so special about holding a physical book in your hands, this isn’t always a possibility as gift ideas for digital nomads. If they’re quick readers, carrying 2-3 books with them on their travels takes up valuable space for other necessary items.
That’s where getting them an Amazon Kindle can come into play! It’s perfectly sized, compact, lightweight, and has endless options for books.
You can even consider gifting an Amazon Kindle Unlimited subscription to them.
12. External Hard Drive
A digital nomad can’t possibly travel everywhere and not have an external hard drive. This is crucial to keeping all files safe since they work on the go and there is always the possibility of losing something or leaving it behind. You also just never know if your computer will crash and delete important items.
Not only is this important for the work that they are doing, but it can also be a great way to backup photos from all of their adventures.
An external hard drive is a budget gift item for digital nomads that will mean so much to them. They can easily add it to their travel essentials.
13. Portable Phone Charger
When you’re on the go, a portable phone charger like Anker’s is a must. It can be used in a coffee shop if they’re further from a plug, on transportation, while hiking in a cool destination, and everywhere else!
The Anker phone charger has enough battery to charge a phone over 6x, so you don’t have to worry about it being used once and then losing all power.
14. Subscription to Headspace
Traveling full-time as a digital nomad can be quite exhausting. Even though it is a lifestyle worth living for many, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t come with its own anxieties and stresses.
A subscription to Headspace is $69.99/year and goes a long way with meditation exercises, breathing exercises, sleep sounds, and more.
15. Camera
This is one of those gift ideas for digital nomads that isn’t for everyone. But if you’re feeling extra giving and really love this digital nomad that you’re looking for gift ideas for, a camera is the way to go.
While not all digital nomads are photographers and content creators, there is still something to be said about documenting travels, adventures, and the entire journey of being a digital nomad.
If they have a bit of expertise in the photography realm already, a Sony a7iv is a great option for a great camera without spending everything.
If you want to start them off with a more beginner camera and they’re more into vlogging their travels, try out a Sony ZV-1F.
16. Drone
On the trend of reallllyyy loving the person and gifting them an awesome gift, a drone is up next.
This is because one of the newest fads for digital nomads is becoming a pilot…a drone pilot. Having a drone while traveling around the world can be a super fun thing to capture destinations from above.
The DJI Air 2s is a great starter drone.
17. RideShare Gift Cards
Whether the digital nomad that you’re shopping for is home or abroad living up to their title of being a ‘digital nomad,’ RideShare gift cards can always come in handy.
Of course, there is always the option for local transportation. But sometimes (like if it’s late, a travel day, they’re in a pinch, or they just feel like it), utilizing a RideShare program can be the first choice.
Gifting a RideShare gift card is a great option – and you get to choose the budget!
18. Universal Adaptor
Digital nomads often travel from one country to the next, and this means that they’re probably traveling to countries that have different outlets. Making sure they have a universal adaptor in their bag (specifically their electronics organizer case) will ensure they don’t have to go out and get one once they arrive!
This can save them a ton of hassle.
19. Versatile and Lightweight Jacket
One of my favorite jackets that I’ve had for the last year is the Patagonia Nano Puffer jacket. It comes in so many colors and is the most versatile jacket I’ve ever had.
You can scrunch it down into such a small space (perfect for a digital nomad) and it keeps you warm in even 40-degree weather!
It may be one of my favorite items on this list.
20. Portable Speaker
There’s always the option to play music off of your phone and computer. But every once in a while it can be nice to play it a little louder if you’re outside on your own, in a private hostel or Airbnb, or even on a picnic on the beach somewhere halfway across the world.
Not to mention – portable speakers are nice to keep for when digital nomads aren’t traveling and spend some time at home. Getting one that can be used outdoors and is waterproof is a great idea as well.
25. Money
Okay, okay. Before you say anything and judge me for putting this on the list, take a step back and think about what you would want if you were roaming around and traveling the world.
The one thing that can truly keep that going is money.
Although you may not think it’s the best or most meaningful (and it may not be the most meaningful), it is helpful! And that’s what matters when you are giving a gift to a digital nomad! You may even want to consider writing out ideas for them to use it for! This can make it more meaningful to them.
Hopefully you can find some inspiration within these gift ideas for digital nomads that something speaks to you! Whatever you do end up giving, they will be sure to love it!
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