17 Old-Fashioned Vacation Souvenirs You Can’t Buy Now
Many souvenirs that travelers once brought home from vacations are no longer made or sold today.
- Sophia Zapanta
- 5 min read
Souvenirs used to be small, personal reminders of a place or time. They reflected local traditions, printing methods, and trends from past decades. Today, many of those once-common vacation items have disappeared from shops, replaced by mass-produced products or digital alternatives.
1. Destination Pennants
Bibekgaire14 on Wikimedia Commons
Felt pennants with printed place names and images were once sold at nearly every tourist stop. Travelers pinned them to walls or corkboards to remember where they had been. The simple colors and designs gave them a handmade look. They are rarely produced today and are mostly found in vintage stores or antique markets.
2. Photo Viewers with Film Discs
Lisa from Pexels on Pexels
Viewers like the View-Master used reels of tiny photographs to show landmarks in 3D. Tourists could buy reels from specific cities or parks. The images gave a sense of depth and were often used to relive the trip at home. These are now obsolete, replaced by smartphones and digital media.
3. Matchbooks from Hotels
Carol M. Highsmith on Wikimedia Commons
Hotels and motels often gave out free branded matchbooks with their logo and contact details. They were both useful and collectible, especially for those who kept them in scrapbooks or drawers. Many travelers picked one up at every stop. Smoking bans and safety concerns have nearly ended this practice.
4. State or Country Plates
Giorgi Balakhadze on Wikimedia Commons
Miniature decorative license plates printed with state names or city titles were once common in roadside gift shops. Kids would attach them to bikes or collect them in albums. They were often made of metal with bright colors and bold letters. These have mostly been replaced by magnets and stickers.
5. Shell-Covered Trinket Boxes
Pharos on Wikimedia Commons
Small boxes decorated with real seashells were sold in beach towns across the world. They were often lined with velvet inside and used to hold jewelry or coins. The shells were glued by hand, giving each one a unique look. These have faded out in favor of plastic or factory-made gifts.
6. Hotel Luggage Stickers
Hannes Grobe on Wikimedia Commons
Hotels once gave out or applied stickers to guests’ suitcases showing the hotel name and logo. The stickers acted like travel badges, marking where you had stayed. Some travelers even collected them on large trunks. Airlines and modern luggage trends have made this practice rare.
7. Postcard Booklets
The Cairo Postcard Trust on Wikimedia Commons
Instead of single postcards, travelers could buy booklets with up to 20 connected images. These were bound by perforated edges and showed a place’s top sights. You could tear them out to mail or keep the full set as a souvenir. Most postcard sales today are limited to single cards.
8. Custom Name Keychains
Adelaidasofia on Wikimedia Commons
Gift shops used to sell keychains with hundreds of names printed on them, arranged on spinning racks. It was a small thrill to find your own name or that of a friend. The designs often included place names or local icons. These have become less common with the rise of personalized online items.
9. Miniature Snow Globes with Water
Noël Zia Lee on Wikimedia Commons
Souvenir snow globes with local scenes inside were popular across tourist cities. Many included real water and glitter that swirled when shaken. They were small enough to pack but fragile. Airport security concerns and cheap plastic replacements have lowered their presence in stores.
10. Printed Hand Fans
Suzuki Harunobu on Wikimedia Commons
Decorative paper fans with printed artwork or cityscapes were once sold in warm-weather tourist areas. They were both practical and collectible. Many had wooden or plastic handles and folded for easy storage. These are rarely sold now as air conditioning and modern cooling items have taken over.
11. Travel Patch Badges
US Army on Wikimedia Commons
Woven patches with national flags, landmarks, or place names were bought to sew onto jackets or backpacks. They were often part of a traveler’s personal collection. These patches served as quiet reminders of places visited. Today, stickers or digital tracking apps have taken their place.
12. Scented Sachets from Gift Shops
Jebulon on Wikimedia Commons
Small fabric pouches filled with dried flowers or herbs were sold as scented souvenirs. Local shops made these by hand, often using lavender or pine. They were placed in drawers or bags to bring back the smell of the destination. Mass-produced air fresheners have replaced them in many places.
13. Personalized Souvenir Plates
Nizzan Cohen on Wikimedia Commons
Thin ceramic or metal plates printed with local scenes were displayed on stands or hung on walls. Some included the visitor’s name or the date of the trip. These were once a common item in gift shops across small towns. They are no longer widely made due to shifting tastes and lower demand.
14. Vacation Slides for Projectors
DTKessler on Wikimedia Commons
Tourist stores sold slide sets of cities or parks that people viewed with home projectors. These were actual photographic slides in small cardboard mounts. Families would show them during gatherings to share their travels. The rise of digital photography ended their production.
15. Embroidered Travel Hankies
Łeba on Wikimedia Commons
Handkerchiefs with embroidered images or place names were once a stylish souvenir. They were sold folded in gift boxes and used for display or personal use. Some were decorated with flowers, monuments, or birds. These items have almost disappeared from souvenir stores.
16. City-Specific Souvenir Coins
www.usmint.gov on Wikimedia Commons
Many tourist attractions used to sell stamped or pressed coins featuring a local landmark. These were sometimes made on-site using a hand-cranked machine. Visitors paid a small fee to create one. These machines are harder to find today and have been removed from many places.
17. Travel Scrapbook Kits
charan sai on Pexels
Shops sold pre-packaged sets for making vacation scrapbooks, with stickers, labels, and printed pages. They encouraged people to document their trips in a creative way. These kits often included small envelopes for ticket stubs or notes. They are no longer common due to the shift to digital journaling.