The New Souvenir: How Craftsmanship Is Changing the Way We Travel

From Paris ateliers and custom-made clothing in India to Turkish rugs, Peruvian textiles and mezcal in Oaxaca, travelers are going beyond shopping to understand the people and traditions behind what a destination makes.

There was a time when the travel souvenir was fairly straightforward.

A magnet.

A bottle of wine.

A scarf.

Something from the museum shop.

I still love bringing things home. In fact, one of my favorite travel possessions is a pair of custom-made silk pajamas I had made in India. I love them not because they were expensive or particularly flashy, but because they immediately take me back to where I was, who made them and the experience around choosing the fabric and having them created.

And I think more travelers are starting to want that same thing.

Not necessarily more stuff. More story.

From Goods Getaways to Something Deeper

A few years ago, Expedia identified a trend it called “Goods Getaways,” where travelers were increasingly planning trips around specialty goods, local delicacies and things they could only really find in a particular place.

I wrote about it at the time because it felt incredibly familiar to me.

Perfume in Paris. Chocolate in Switzerland. Skincare in Japan. Textiles in India. Ceramics somewhere they have been made for generations.

The item becomes part of why you travel.

But lately, I think that behavior is evolving again.

We're not only asking:

What should I bring home?

We're asking:

Who made it?

Can I meet them?

Can I see how it's done?

Can I understand why this particular craft belongs to this particular place?

Welcome to the Era of the Skill Seeker

FINN Partners' 2026 TrendHawk report highlights a growing appetite for travel experiences centered around artists, craftsmanship and traditions, citing research that roughly 31% of vacationers prefer learning something new over simply buying a keepsake.

GetYourGuide is seeing the same thing. Its 2026 trend research calls these travelers “Skill Seekers,” with around 31% preferring to learn something new rather than buy a souvenir and workshop bookings reportedly rising 54%.

That doesn't mean every vacation suddenly needs to become summer camp.

You do not need to return from Italy as an amateur leatherworker.

You don't have to spend half a day throwing pottery if you don't particularly like pottery.

Sometimes the luxury is simply access.

The chance to walk into an atelier.

Meet a designer.

Watch an artist work.

See the loom.

Visit the workshop.

Understand the process.

Commission something especially for you.

Then go to lunch.

That is where I think this kind of travel becomes much more interesting.

Paris: Couture as Cultural Access

This summer, I planned a private fashion-focused experience in Paris for a mother and daughter who were deeply interested in fashion.

It happened during an extraordinary week, in the heat of Men's Fashion Week and just before Couture Week, and through my partner Maison Firestone we were able to create access tied to the world of Schiaparelli and high fashion.

The point wasn't simply to “go shopping in Paris.”

It was to understand a little more about why Paris is Paris when it comes to fashion.

The houses. The ateliers. The construction. The history. The people whose hands create things most of us only ever see finished on a runway.

That kind of experience can completely change a day in a city.

Instead of another checklist of landmarks, the itinerary becomes a lens through which you understand the destination.

India: Wear the Story Home

India is almost impossible to separate from its textiles.

Silk. Block printing. Embroidery. Weaving. Tailoring. Dyeing.

You can absolutely shop beautifully in India, but the experience changes when you're selecting the fabric, watching the process or having something made specifically for you.

My silk pajamas are a perfect example.

They're useful. They're beautiful. But more importantly, they belong to that trip.

I didn't buy something that happened to come from India.

I brought part of the experience home.

Turkey: A Rug Is Never Just a Rug

Anyone who has spent time learning about Turkish rugs knows how quickly what looks like “shopping” becomes storytelling.

The weaving techniques.

The patterns.

Where the wool or silk comes from.

The meaning behind motifs.

The time it can take to create a single piece.

And then you begin hearing the stories passed down alongside the craft.

Historically, textiles and rugs could also represent real economic value for women and families. A rug wasn't simply decorative. In some communities, a valuable textile could function almost like portable wealth.

That context changes what you're looking at.

Suddenly, you're not standing in front of home décor.

You're looking at craft, labor, economics, family history and tradition woven together.

Peru: Understanding a Place Through Textiles

Peru is another destination where textiles offer an extraordinary way into the culture.

In Andean communities, weaving traditions can communicate place, identity and heritage through color, fiber, pattern and technique.

Spend time with local weavers and you start understanding everything from the use of alpaca and other fibers to natural dyes, traditional looms and the amount of knowledge passed from one generation to another.

Again, you don't necessarily have to make anything yourself.

Simply watching someone work and understanding what you're seeing can add enormous depth to a trip.

And if you do bring home a textile afterward?

It isn't just something pretty you found in Peru.

You understand a little more about what went into making it.

Oaxaca: The Story Inside the Glass

This same philosophy applies just as easily to food and drink.

Take mezcal in Oaxaca.

Yes, you can order a mezcal cocktail at a beautiful bar.

Or you can go further.

Visit a palenque. Learn about agave. Understand how different varieties grow, how they're harvested, roasted, crushed, fermented and distilled.

Meet the people producing it.

Taste different expressions.

Suddenly, the bottle you bring home isn't simply alcohol from Mexico.

It's geography, agriculture, tradition and craftsmanship in a glass.

The souvenir has context.

Portugal: Make the Tile, Then See the Tiles Differently

I once made a tile in Portugal.

Was I suddenly qualified to tile a Portuguese palace?

Absolutely not.

But the experience made me look at azulejos differently for the rest of the trip.

That's the quiet magic of these experiences.

A little bit of participation changes how you see everything afterward.

You notice the imperfections.

The repetition.

The scale.

The amount of work.

You realize that what you had previously registered as “pretty tiles” represents thousands of individual decisions and generations of technique.

Japan: Craft as Philosophy

Japan may be one of the richest destinations in the world for travelers interested in craftsmanship.

Ceramics. Knives. Indigo dyeing. Lacquerware. Washi paper. Woodworking. Tea. Textiles.

FINN's report points specifically to kintsugi experiences, where travelers learn the traditional art of repairing ceramics in a way that highlights rather than hides their fractures.

That's an experience, a craft and a philosophy all at once.

Which is exactly why this kind of travel can be so powerful.

Morocco: From the Souk to the Workshop

Morocco is another destination where craftsmanship is everywhere.

Zellige tilework. Rugs. Leather. Metalwork. Embroidery. Wood carving.

You could spend an afternoon simply wandering the souks and admiring the finished products.

Or you can begin asking where they're made.

Who makes them.

How the techniques vary from one part of the country to another.

What is handmade versus mass-produced.

Which traditions have been passed through families.

That little bit of curiosity often turns shopping into one of the most memorable parts of the itinerary.

You Don't Have to Make the Thing

This is probably my biggest takeaway from the whole “skillcation” conversation.

The experience doesn't have to be performative.

You don't need a certificate.

You don't need an apron.

You don't need to spend four hours making something mediocre just so you can say you did it.

For some travelers, taking the class is the fun.

For others, the extraordinary experience is being invited inside somewhere they'd never otherwise enter.

That's where tailored travel becomes genuinely tailored.

Maybe you want to design a piece of jewelry.

Maybe you want to meet the winemaker rather than simply taste the wine.

Maybe your daughter is obsessed with fashion and you'd rather build a day around couture craftsmanship than another general Paris tour.

Maybe you're an architect and want to understand Moroccan tilework.

Maybe you collect ceramics.

Maybe you have absolutely no intention of weaving anything but would love to meet the person who has spent 40 years doing it.

The best itinerary isn't the one with the most activities.

It's the one that knows why you're interested in being there.

The New Souvenir Is the Story

I don't think traditional souvenirs are disappearing.

I'll happily bring home the wine.

Or the rug.

Or the chocolate.

Or another pair of pajamas.

But the object means more when you know something about the person who created it, the tradition it comes from and why it could only really come from that place.

That's what I'm increasingly interested in when I travel.

And it's increasingly what I want to build into itineraries for my clients.

Because twenty years from now, you may not remember every church you walked through.

But you will probably remember the woman who showed you how that textile was woven.

The designer who opened the atelier.

The mezcal maker who handed you a glass.

The silk pajamas made specifically for you.

The best souvenir might still be something you bring home.

You just understand why it matters now.

Want a Trip Built Around the Things You Actually Care About?

Fashion. Food. Wine. Art. Design. Craftsmanship. Architecture. Horses. Hotels.

This is exactly where a tailored itinerary becomes fun.

Tell me what you're obsessed with, and we'll build the trip around it.

Plan a Tailored Trip.

And if you're still looking for ideas about what to bring home:

[READ: GOODS GETAWAYS, THE TRAVEL TREND TURNING SHOPPING INTO PART OF THE TRIP]