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The World Is Your Oyster

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Karen Haymon Long

Published: November 23, 2007

You're in luck when holiday shopping for a traveler. The whole world is your market. You can buy maps and photo books of every place on the planet. Give novels set in faraway places or guidebooks to places close to home.

Canteens, compasses and canoes. Luggage and lanterns, journals and ski jackets. With a little thought, it's easy to delight a traveler.

Here are some ideas:

When Bright Is Bad

Nothing's more frustrating than not being able to read outside in the sunshine. Squinting isn't the best way to read maps, guidebooks or a good novel, for that matter.

Ono's Trading Co. has developed polarized bifocal sunglasses perfect for travelers who want to read at the beach, in a hammock, an outdoor café, on a boat, or anywhere else in the world outside.
"Specially designed readers have been built into the lenses … to make outdoor activities more enjoyable," the company's literature says.

They come with a year warranty and range from $89 to $150. Order by calling 1-866-865-4695.

City Walks

The newest guidebooks veer from the traditional book form.

The City Walk series, published by Chronicle Books, features a boxed set of easily portable cards showing maps and good places to visit. On the backs are descriptions of places on the card. Some cards also offer a history of the place.

"City Walks: Boston" has cards with maps and descriptions of the John F. Kennedy Library, the Back Bay area and Copley Square, Newberry Street Shopping and SoWa Art Galleries, among other highlights.

Some of the cities available are New York City, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Paris, Rome, London and other places.

Each box sells for $14.95. Another plus: They're small enough to fit in a Christmas stocking.

Suitcase Ornament

Hallmark's new suitcase Christmas ornament is so cute you'll want to buy one for yourself and your friends.

Selling for $12.50, it's a mini-me of the real thing, plus a name tag, a guidebook and a map to make it look even more authentic.

Look for it at Hallmark Gold Crown stores and other shops where ornaments are sold.

Stylish On The Slopes

Your favorite skier doesn't have to bulk up to stay warm. Patagonia.com offers several lightweight ski jackets for men and women. The one pictured here for women is Lightweight R4 and sells for $200.
The online store also has hats, vests, bags, kids' vests, wetsuits and all kinds of other great gift ideas for the travelers on your list.

Shop The World

Museum shops offer a treasure trove of gifts from all over the world. The Metropolitan Museum of Art's gift shop is one of the best in a U.S. museum.

Many of its gifts are online at www.metmuseum.org/store. The site also sells gift certificates.

Just some of its selections: A bronze sculpture of a performing bear, $165; a Rembrandt tote bag, $20; a red wool shawl from Venice, $125; a Roman multistone ring, $625; and a red child's backpack adorned with a blue Egyptian hippo, $25.

Send Them Camping

Tents are a whole lot cheaper than hotel rooms. Plus, by giving someone a tent, you give them the scenery to go along with it.

L.L. Bean sells all sorts of tents. A versatile one that sleeps four: The Vector Dome Tent No. 4. It comes in silver and gold, sells for $299 and can be set up in 10 minutes.

To order, go to www.llbean.com.

Wine Tour Getaway

Give wine-loving travelers on your gift list a tour of Tuscany's wine country. By doing so, you will also be benefiting The Florida Aquarium.

The May 11-17 tour goes to the wine regions of Chianti Classico, Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. Those on the trip will stay in hotels in Florence, San Gimignano and Pienza.
Cost is $3,495, based on double occupancy (flight not included). From this, $500 (tax deductible) will go to Tampa's aquarium.

To find out more, call 1-800-449-7147 or go to www.insiderwinetours.com.

Send Them Fishing

Another great gift for travelers: an outing with a professional fishing guide. You can pay for a full or half day in salt or fresh water.

To locate guides, just put the words "fishing guide" and the destination you desire into a search engine such as Google or Yahoo! Or write your fishing friend an IOU.

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