Choosing travel gifts for your overseas hosts

The latest query for my Ask Rolf column at World Hum comes from Sean in Seattle, who asks:

In your book, you mention leaving room in your pack to bring gifts for people you meet along the way, such as home-stay hosts and others. What types of gifts do you recommend that are space-friendly, practical and yet meaningful?

The best kind of gifts for potential hosts and new friends on the road, I tell Sean, should reflect your own home and background. Naturally, people in distant lands will be curious about where you come from, so small tokens of your state or hometown (or even your neighborhood) make great presents.

For an elaboration on what kinds of gifts to give, as well as some thoughts on the ethics of overseas gift-giving, check out the full reply in my latest column, here.

Posted by | Comments (2)  | January 9, 2006
Category: Vagabonding Advice


2 Responses to “Choosing travel gifts for your overseas hosts”

  1. Heidi Pender Says:

    Hey Rolf–we went to GF together. It’s good to catch up with you via internet every once in awhile. And since I’m leaving this week for a two week trip to India and Nepal, it was good to get your input on gifts. Thanks.

  2. Monica Says:

    My best friend gave me a really cool map of Munich which came with a special code to access an online database at https://www.alacartemaps.com so I can devise my own travel itineraries and send e-postcards – amazing. They are new and cover about 10 cities so far.