Mike Yardley: Six great travel books for Christmas gifts

If you’ve got a keen traveller, or armchair traveller in your family circle, allow me to help you out with your Christmas gift ideas. Nothing fuels my wanderlust more than delving into some seriously good reads. For escapist inspiration, here’s six recommended books that all deserve to top the Christmas wish list. 

Lonely Planet’s Best in Travel Guide. The 2027 edition marks the 19th outing for this annual guide, featuring 50 overall picks split into 25 must-visit destinations and 25 must-do experiences. The list tends to highlight less crowded, off-the-beaten-path locations and unique local experiences designed to support communities. As you may have heard, Dunedin and the Waitaki District made the cut for Oceania, celebrated for showcasing New Zealand's unique character and quirky charm. Notable entries further afield - Veneto (Italy), Gujarat (India), Okinawa (Japan), Oman and Estana, Kazakhstan.  

Also from Lonely Planet, if you’re looking for a glossy coffee-table book that is also packed with travel tips and tricks, I strongly recommend Secret Wonders of the World. Discover 385 weird and wonderful sights and places around the globe - from eerie ghost towns to wacky natural phenomena - that you’ve probably never heard of. Dive into 385 of the strangest sights and places on the planet that crowds rarely reach, the Skeleton Coast in Namibia or Gnomesville in Australia. It’s coffee-table book with kick. 

I do enjoying reading people’s travel memoirs, diving deep into the thrill and turmoil of unexpected adventures and drama. Hot off the press, a new Kiwi release that I’ve thoroughly enjoyed devouring is Marie Curran’s From Place to Place, From Time to Time. This curated collection of 34 travel tales from the Dunedin author, chronicles personal  adventures in Europe over five decades. Marie’s writings begin by recounting her student road trip fifty years ago with her future husband, which included being held up at gunpoint in communist Czechoslovakia. She’s a gifted story-teller. It’s a cracking read. 

If you’re planning a journey to the Land of the Rising Sun, here’s the book for you.  Chris Broad’s Journey Across Japan is the essential guide to all 47 prefectures, far beyond the cookie-cutter itineraries. Each prefecture has their own rich history, traditional crafts, local foods, and mildly terrifying mascots. Chris Broad is a British filmmaker and founder of the Abroad in Japan Youtube channel, one of the largest foreign Youtube channels in Japan with over 3 million subscribers.  The book is packed with enthralling and hilarious anecdotes, while also delving into etiquette, essential Japanese language, and top tips for what to eat, buy, and see. 

If you’re looking for novel with strong travel flavours, you’ll struggle to put down Philippe Colin’s The Barman at the Ritz.  It’s based on the true story of a Jewish barman-cum-spy who served the Nazis in the Ritz Paris during WWII. Despite the Occupation, the prestigious Ritz Hotel managed to remain open, fast becoming a favourite spot for Nazis eager for a taste of French refinement. Its celebrated barman, Frank Meier, is forced to adapt to this new clientele. But he is hiding a secret that no one can find out: he is Jewish, as are several other staff including the hotel director’s wife. With every word and smile, the atmosphere becomes more and more suffocating. It is chilling, intense and utterly engrossing. A gripping read. It would make a hell of a movie. 

Finally, I do love nerding out on paper maps. Yes, digital maps are a godsend when you’re in unfamiliar territory, but pouring over a paper map and all its places is a sure-fire way to all lose all sense of time. In that spirit, the ultimate map-based escapism would have to be the new release, Civilisations Map by Map. A glorious history of the world’s most important civilisations, geographically. 

From Mesopotamia’s thriving trade hubs to the spectacular cities of the Inca Empire, Civilisations Map By Map charts the rise and fall of more than 90 pioneering early societies. It’s like time travel through 6,000 years of history – from Alexander the Great’s conquests across three continents, to the rapid rise of the Aztec Empire. The book also spans the birth of writing, the calendar, coinage, and urban planning, along with the spread of early scientific knowledge, and religious, philosophical, and political ideas. Crafted by a global panel of expert historians, Civilisations Map By Map uncovers the incredible stories of our shared past, one map at a time. It could gobble up your whole summer holiday!