I continue with the theme of featuring children’s books this fall Children’s Book Week. Today, with the long-ago planned schedule for my blog, I bring you travel books for kids, well, I mean kids of all ages. So there is something in here for everyone, whether you are 3 or 30 or even older.
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13 Amazing Travel Books for Kids of All Ages
The Atlas Obscura Explorer’s Guide for the World’s Most Adventurous Kid
The Atlas Obscura Explorer’s Guide for the World’s Most Adventurous Kid by Dylan Thuras, Rosemary Mosco and illustrated by Joy Ang (Children’s Travel Books | 7 – 11 years, and up | Workman Publishing Company | September 18, 2018)
This book is a thrilling expedition to 100 of the most surprising, mysterious, and weird-but-true places on earth. As you climb mountains, zip-line over forests, and dive into oceans, this book is your passport to a world of hidden wonders, illuminated by gorgeous art.
I love checking out Atlas Obscura’s website to explore my hometown; and using it has certainly lead me to delightful discoveries right in my backyard as well as when traveling to other locations. I have previously read (though not reviewed) An Explorer’s Guide to the World’s Hidden Wonders and thoroughly enjoyed it.
This book for young (and older) adventurers is full of amazing destinations. Each destination – be it a country/continent/state or something else includes quick facts as well as a short description of the featured “adventurous” part of the location. The illustrations are beautifully done with details that capture the feeling of adventure and atmosphere, while maintaining the reality aspect of it all.
I know I have added many destinations to see for myself: including the Devil’s Pool over Victoria Falls, for one.
Lonely Planet Kids: Hidden Wonders
Lonely Planet Kids: Hidden Wonders: A Guide to the Planet’s Wildest, Weirdest Places by Lonely Planet (Children’s Travel Books | 9 – 12 years, and up | Lonely Planet | November 19, 2010)
Take a journey into the unknown and discover the planet’s wildest and most wonderful sights. Paddle through the eerie glowworm caves of New Zealand, ride with the wild horses of the Namib desert, swing off the end of the world in Ecuador, and be amazed
Lonely Planet’s sterling reputation for being a travel expert is well deserved, and this book adds to that reputation wonderfully. Starting with the fantastical cover to cool colored pages and wonderful fonts, icons, photos and artwork, and of course, the included totally wondrous sights across the world, this book from Lonely Planet is sure to both satisfy and inspire your travel urges!
Get it for yourself, or for anyone who loves to travel, or well, anyone at all! A cool book to dip into anytime.
A Ticket Around the World
A Ticket Around the World by Natalia Diaz and Melissa Owens, and illustrated by Kim Smith (Children’s Travel Books | 4 – 8 years, and up | Owlkids | March 1, 2022)
This informational picture book brings engaging nonfiction content to younger readers by showing them how other children live around the world. Playful illustrations done with stylized realism lend warmth and whimsy to the book, making each locale feel welcoming. A Ticket Around the World will leave young readers feeling like they’ve toured the globe without ever having left home.
A sweet and fun way to introduce both nonfiction and travel books to younger readers. This book has a surprising amount of information for its size! I love how this book allows readers to explore the world. At the same time, they end up learning about different countries, cultures, and lives of people in different places. The artwork is appealing and so very aptly done for this book.
Everything & Everywhere
Everything & Everywhere: A Fact-Filled Adventure for Curious Globe-Trotters by Marc Martin (Children’s Travel Books | 5 – 9 years, and up | Chronicle Books | October 9, 2018)
From Hong Kong to Reykjavik, Ulaanbaatar to New York City, this beautifully illustrated, fact-filled adventure book will take curious kids on a lush and unexpected journey around the globe to discover what makes each place unique. Sleepy sloths, colorful cows, staggering skylines, and terrible traffic—countless surprises await globetrotting children of all ages. All you and your child need is a good travel guide and a big imagination. Let’s go!
A fun fact filled journey around the world with delightful illustrations full of whimsy and wonder at the same time! I am totally in love with this book, and am going to look for other books by him. And I also realized I have read another equally delightful book illustrated by Martin – Every Child a Song.
This book can seem busy, but delightfully so! I love how the watercolor illustrations and words work with each other to give readers a look into different places around the world.
National Geographic Little Kids First Big Book of the World
National Geographic Little Kids First Big Book of the World by Elizabeth Carneyand (Children’s Travel Books | 3 – 6 years, and up | National Geographic Kids | July 14, 2015)
This charming reference introduces young readers to the wider world by exploring languages, landscapes, weather, animals, capital cities, mountains, deserts, and other landscapes and landforms, and more. It encourages kids to get play with activities such as creating a mini-rainforest in a bottle and singing a simple song in Spanish. More than 100 colorful photos are paired with kid-friendly and age-appropriate maps along with basic facts about each continent. This book will quickly become a favorite at storytime, bedtime, or any other time.
While I never bought this book for my own kids when they little (because it got published a little later), I did get them other NatGeo Little Kids books over the years and we loved how they manage to put the right combination and amount of pictures and text to teach while keeping it fun for this young audience! Another book well-done!
50 Adventures in the 50 States
50 Adventures in the 50 States by Kate Siber and illustrated by Lydia Hill (Children’s Travel Books | 5 – 9 years, and up | Wide Eyed Editions | October 6, 2020)
From the award-winning author of National Parks of the USA, Kate Siber, this stunning book showcases an amazing adventure activity to try in every single state. 50 Adventures in the 50 States features gripping outdoors activities, vividly illustrated and described alongside fascinating facts about the nature and geography of each activity location – the very best the U.S.A. has to offer budding young adventurers!
I talked about the series this book belongs to in my Tuesday series post. That list incidentally has a few other books/series which could also be added here. All of the books in this series can easily be part of this list (so imagine they are, by extension!). In this one, we can go on adventures in every state; from surfing (of course) in California to glacier walking in Alaska, and so much more! I am more than ready for more than a few adventures now!
Follow That Map!: A First Book of Mapping Skills
Follow That Map!: A First Book of Mapping Skills by Scot Ritchie (Author, Illustrator) (Children’s Travel Books | 4 – 9 years, and up | Kids Can Press | February 1, 2009)
With an appealing search-and-find technique, Follow That Map! is an interactive picture book that explains and demonstrates key mapping concepts.
Taking a step down a different path now with this book. If we travel, knowing how maps work can be useful. Granted, technology makes it easy to take us from point A to point B; but we cannot always depend on tech (I know by experience!); and knowing how to read maps or understand some basics is useful. This book explains the very basics to young audiences (and can help older readers too) by showing how maps works and how cool they really are!
If You Lived Here: Houses of the World
If You Lived Here: Houses of the World by Giles Laroche (Children’s Travel Books | 3 – 7 years, and up | Clarion Books | October 25, 2011)
Step into unique homes from around the world and discover the many fascinating ways in which people live and have lived. If you lived in the mountains of southern Spain, your bedroom might be carved out of a mountain. If you lived in a village in South Africa, the outside of your house might tell the story of your family. And if you lived in a floating green house in the Netherlands, you could rotate your house to watch both the sunrise and sunset.
I am not sure what I love more about this book: the collage-style artwork or the simply cool selection of house types featured, or maybe it is the way the information is presented. I learned about so many different types of homes I had had no ideas about before I read this book!
Wherever You Go
Wherever You Go by Pat Zietlow Miller and illustrated by Eliza Wheeler (Children’s Travel Books | 1 – 3 years, and up | LB Kids | February 12, 2019)
Join an adventurous rabbit and his animal friends as they journey over steep mountain peaks, through bustling cityscapes, and down long, winding roads to discover the magical worlds that lie just outside their doors.
So this one is slightly different from the rest of the books on this list, in that it leans away from nonfiction or reality. But it simply takes readers on a journey and shows us all how journeys (like the drive we go on any day, or the hike we take in our neighborhood trails, or simply life itself) are.
It is such a sweet, sweet read with the sweetest illustrations as well; and sure to inspire you to step out of your home and explore the world. The book reminded me a lot of another favorite classic Oh, the Places You’ll Go, though the focus here is travel itself.
Atlas of Adventures
Atlas of Adventures: A collection of natural wonders, exciting experiences and fun festivities from the four corners of the globe by Rachel Williams and and illustrated by Lucy Letherland (Children’s Travel Books | 4 – 7 years, and up | Wide Eyed Editions | August 6, 2015)
Set your spirit of adventure free with this lavishly illustrated trip around the world. Whether you’re visiting the penguins of Antarctica, joining the Carnival in Brazil or taking a canoe safari down the Zambezi River, this book brings together more than 100 activities and challenges to inspire armchair adventurers of any age.
So I have read a different book with the same main title (and a different tagline), and love them both! This one is perfect for those days you want to head out but need to stay put for whatever reasons. (Well, all the books in this list can be used to armchair travel anyways, but again, all the books on this list will inspire and make you want to travel too)
Anyway, back to this book. It covers so many cool and unique places around the world, and yes, adventures too. The illustrations are colorful and full of details that will have young (and older) readers delightfully pore over them. No matter how avid a traveler you are, and no matter your age, this book is sure to keep you engaged (and informed).
This Is How We Do It
This Is How We Do It: One Day in the Lives of Seven Kids from around the World by Matt Lamothe and illustrated by xxx (Children’s Travel Books | 7 – 11 years, and up | Chronicle Books | May 2, 2017)
This genuine exchange provides a window into traditions that may be different from our own as well as mirrors reflecting our common experiences. Inspired by his own travels, Matt Lamonthe transports readers across the globe and back with this luminous and thoughtful picture book.
I have read many books like this. The ones documenting the lives of kids across the world allowing us a peek into how different countries and cultures look and live. And I have enjoyed them all. But I know I will remember this book for a longer while yet. I absolutely love the presentation with the appealing, detailed, and realistic illustrations as well as the relatable, everyday aspects of a child’s life (from their homes, families, food, school, and play). All of this make it a must-have for school and home libraries.
This Is (Series)
This Is by Miroslav Sasek (Children’s Travel Books | 6 – 8 years, and up | Universe; First Thus | May 30, 2003)
First published in the late 1950s to the early ’60s, and now updated for the current times, Sasek’s jaunty, colorful illustrations in this beautiful series of travel books featuring various cities around the world will still dazzle kids and adults alike.
I picked up and read a few books in this series. I guess my favorite has to be the San Francisco one (well, I am biased!). They are all charming, and carry the old-world charm of the original versions while being spruced up for today. The illustrations have a postcard kind of vibe. The many details will want you to keep looking back at them. The informative narrative educates readers while being perfectly suited for young readers to enjoy on their own. I know I learned something new about the city by the bay through the pages here!
Destinations of a Lifetime: 225 of the World’s Most Amazing Places
Destinations of a Lifetime: 225 of the World’s Most Amazing Places by National Geographic (Travel Books | Older teens and up | National Geographic | October 27, 2015)
NatGeo takes you on a photographic tour of the world’s most spectacular destinations, inspiring tangible ideas for your next trip. Travel to hundreds of the most breathtaking locales―both natural and man-made―illustrated with vivid images taken by the organization’s world-class photographers. These images, coupled with evocative text, feature a plethora of visual wonders: ancient monoliths, scenic islands, stunning artwork, electric cityscapes, white-sand seashores, rain forests, ancient cobbled streets, and both classic and innovative architecture.
While this one is simply a travel reference book, it can easily work for the highly curious tweens and interested teens in your life too. I know my whole family enjoys such books all the time. We find many a cool destination to explore in books like this. The photographs are sure to hook you in first. And then the descriptions will have you booking tickets or at least planning trips for the “sometime-soon”.
Related Reads for Travel Books for Kids and Adults Too!
- Atlas of Adventures: Wonders of the World
- Go Anywhere Literally
- Amazing Expeditions
- Travel With the Atlas of Forgotten Places
And Now, the End of This Post
Dear reader, have you read any of these books? If yes, I welcome your thoughts on them. If not, which of these books would you pick first? And as always, I welcome your recommendations for more such books (fictional travel books welcome too!)
This post also goes towards Thursday Thirteen where I always find amazing lists of thirteen things from bloggers I know you will also enjoy reading!
There are so many books listed that Lia would enjoy! She loves maps and learning about the different states and of course she loves nature so the National Geographic book would be high on her list. Thanks for the great book suggestions.
This is such a fantastic list! I’ll be coming back to it often. I’m especially liking the look of the 50 states book; my seven-year-old would really like that one!
I haven’t read any of these books, but would like to read the Atlas Obscura one and the National Geographic one. That one with the bunny on it looks like a good one to send to my niece for Christmas! Thanks for playing Thursday Thirteen!
Glad to see there is a book about mapping skills. I still prefer using maps to GPS.
These are great ways to inspire kids to explore through travel. They all look so interesting!
Awww, I love your selections. So far I like the ticket around the world. I am sure my daughter will love it too.
This is a great list! I would love to teach my daughter some mapping skills. Will take your advice and try to get a copy of the book you recommended. Thank you for sharing.