I’ve always kept a travel journal on my trips.

I recently found the one I wrote on my first trip to Europe when I was 13.

My handwriting was so large, each day’s entry took up several pages. But I wrote down what we did each day, where we ate, how I felt about it- “my feet are sooo tired,” “the Sistine Chapel was amazing even though I forgot my glasses.”

Here are some tips for keeping your own travel journal:

You can hand write or type, whichever works best for you.

–It doesn’t matter what kind of notebook you use. I’ve used a lot of inexpensive spiral notebooks, fancier bound books, travel journals with spaces for photos and receipts. I try to use a new notebook for each trip but if I have a few short trips close together, I’ll use the same journal.

-There are some neat apps for journaling on a phone or computer. I’ve used Momento and Penzu. They are great for adding in photos and text.

I’ve also used the Notes app on my iPhone. It’s easy to copy and paste a Note, print it, or share it.

-Take some time every day to jot down what you want to remember about the day’s activities.

Do you want to remember every restaurant you tried and what you ate? Focus on getting that information down each day.

Do you want to remember what you did and how you got there? Get those details down each day.

Add poetry, lists, faves and dislikes, hits and misses.

– In a previous post I described how I often do a “Top Ten List” for each day. That is a great memory keeper. Make it a “My Favorites” or “My Pet Peeves” list.

– Add in drawings, even if you are not an “artist.” Just little sketches or smiley-faces stick figures can add to the journal.

-I copied a photo I took and then wrote why I took the photo in my journal.

Keep entry tickets, maps, postcards, things with logos on them.

–You can have fun pasting these into your travel journal when you get home. I often bring a small glue stick to do this as I go along.

The important thing is to keep up! Even just a few notes each day will pay off for you in the end. And you will have a trip journal that you’ll keep forever!