Mother’s Day Gift Guide 2024: Luxury Beauty Gifts For Long-Haul Travel

Moms are always active, but usually their energy goes toward taking care of other people. Whether you have an active beach mom or one who enjoys attending fitness classes or playing a sport, when they’re on vacation, they deserve to take care of themselves. Here are my picks for exercise and wellness gifts that travel well and meet all of mom’s vacation needs.

Whether one’s mother is just starting to take lessons or is the Singles Champ of her club, anyone can benefit from some serious tennis coaching. Since many tennis programs are also located in destinations that are tempting vacation spots as well, holiday time goes along with the training.

The terms “toiletry bag” and “cosmetic case” are often used interchangeably although toiletry bags are usually larger and hold more than cosmetics.

I grew up vacationing in a beach town called Nags Head on the Outer Banks, the string of barrier islands off the coast of North Carolina. My parents did, too — they were high school sweethearts — and their stories about hitchhiking to Nags Head as teenagers in the 1960s and seeing bands like the Drifters perform at the local dance hall were the stuff of legend in my mind. As a kid in the ’80s, I loved climbing the massive sand dunes at nearby Jockey’s Ridge State Park and fishing at Cape Hatteras. So I was excited to learn that this month, Steidl will publish a book of images the photographer Joel Sternfeld took in Nags Head in the summer of 1975. Sternfeld’s weatherworn cottages and roadside snack bars bring back memories real and imagined, and I’ll enjoy reliving them with my mom. The book is currently available for preorder, so, in the meantime, I’m eyeing some other ’70s-inspired gifts for Mother’s Day. Vacation’s Orange Gelée sunscreen is reminiscent of the vintage tanning staple Bain de Soleil, and this portable wine chiller designed in 1978 by Richard Carlson is easy to find on eBay. It fits two bottles of wine. Alternatively, Cann Social Tonic’s zero-proof Roadie pouches, infused with 2 milligrams of THC, travel easily to the beach. And for a nostalgic summer pants set, turn to the Rockaway Beach-based Zingara Vintage. The designer Erin Silvers custom makes her ZingaraTerry loungewear from vintage YSL towels produced in the 1960s and ’70s.

Coolibar makes three items that are fashionable, fit moms of all size, and best of all, offer UPF 50+ protection. The Freestyle Long Sleeve Rash Guard is refreshingly different from the traditional form-fitting styles. It cuts a feminine figure that flatters, but a bit of flare at the bottom makes it loose around the middle. The side zipper stores your phone out of the way of movement and hides behind a fabric cover. This shirt is ideal for paddle boarding, kayaking, and beach volleyball.

Good hotels are in the business of cherishing their guests. Hotels - at the highest end - are all about curation, which makes the products they sell in their shops particularly desirable, whether fashion, furnishings or art. Here are some presents that every mother will love.

Why experience the creations of one chef when you can experience a range of local and noted guest chefs plus wine tastings, seminars and other gastronomic treats? That’s the ethos of an enticing food festival and it’s even better when it’s located in a destination that is desirable anyway as a holiday spot. Here are some of the best festivals in, and just outside of, the U.S.

That hottest club in town is Cookbook Club! And whether mom is in one right now, thinking or starting one or joining one, these gifts will help her prep for the most delicious social gathering of the 2020s. Prepare to be lauded as the best child (or spouse) of this cookbook club member, because these gifts are perfect.

Traveling can be hard on the skin. Your travel-loving mom probably knows this all too well. However, with the right lotion, there’s no need to worry. Here is a carefully selected variety of skin-nourishing lotions to help your mom maintain hydrated and healthy skin in any climate.

Fragrance is superb at creating a sense of place - and they are powerful sensory weapons for luxury hotels. Whether it’s a flickering, highly fragranced reminder of a perfect holiday, a signal of a forthcoming trip or an opportunity to dip into a beautifully curated world, these candles will help your mother dream of her next vacation.

If mom’s idea of a great getaway is using someone else’s kitchen to prepare lavish feasts, well, celebrate that. Especially if you’re invited on the trip! Rental properties are notorious for having dangerously dull knives, a lack of specialty kitchen equipment and often a selection of essentially much more stark than what was promised. Help mom feel prepared and pampered in any kitchen with these great gifts for cooks who love to chef it up at an Airbnb, VRBO or any rental home away from home.

If your travel-loving mom loves painting her nails before or during her travels, she’ll love to open her Mother’s Day gift and see nail polishes in colors just right for her. These vegan, cruelty-free nail polish options can help make your mom’s life more colorful and fun. Also, nail polish is a gift that can last for months or even years, and your mom is sure to think of you and remember your thoughtfulness every time she goes to choose one of her favorite shades.