72 ideas

Travel Sketching Ideas

One thing to sketch where you are right now, on the way or once you arrive.

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A bicycle rack by a canalRows of wheels and the water's edge behind.

Next step Streets in perspective

All 72 ideas

On the way 12

A ferry's railing and the wake behind Railing lines crossing the page, a white V spreading on the water.
A roadside coffee cup on the car roof A cup, a lid and the curve of the roof. A pause on the road.
A suitcase on the luggage belt A box on a curved belt, other bags queuing behind.
The car dashboard and the road ahead The wheel's curve at the bottom, the road narrowing to a point.
The departure board at the station Rows of lines and a clock above. Write in your own train's time.
Fellow passengers asleep, backs of heads only Hair shapes and headrests. Nobody poses better than a sleeper.
Fields rushing past a train window Draw only the far hills; the near things move too fast.
The platform clock while you wait A circle on a bracket. Draw the hands at the time you arrived.
The seat back in front of you Screen, pocket, folded table. A good one when there is nothing else.
The view past the wing from a window seat The wing's edge cuts across the page; clouds are soft flat shapes below.
Your boarding pass and passport on a tray table Flat rectangles from above. Add the fold lines and a coffee ring.
Your shoes on the floor of a bus Look down: shoes, a bag strap and the grooved floor.

Show all 72 ideas (60 more)

Where you stay 12

A borrowed kitchen and its odd kettle Someone else's cups and a kettle you had to learn.
A tent from the inside, door open The triangle of the door and the world outside it.
The balcony rail and the street below Draw the rail crisp and the street faint and busy.
The breakfast table on the last morning Plates from above, crumbs, a map folded beside them.
The campsite at dusk Tent shapes dark against a pale sky, one lit lantern.
The door of the place you stayed Its number, its colour, the step in front.
The rented bed before you make it on day one Big folds and one pillow on the floor.
The shower you had to work out Taps, a hose and a sign, drawn as a puzzle.
The towel folded into an animal on the bed A folded shape on a flat bed. Keep it simple.
What you see from your room on arrival Frame the page with the window edge and draw what fits inside.
Your key card or room key on the table A small shape with its number. It dates the page.
Your open suitcase, half unpacked Clothes spilling over the edges, a toiletry bag on top.

Streets and buildings 12

A bicycle rack by a canal Rows of wheels and the water's edge behind.
A church or temple roofline against the sky Only the silhouette; skip the details.
A corner café with its awning out Striped awning, two tables and a chalkboard.
A door you walked past and loved The frame, the handle and the plants beside it.
A lamp post with a sign pointing three ways Arrows to places you went, in your own lettering.
A mailbox in the local colour One shape, its colour noted beside it.
A stepped street climbing a hill Steps shrinking uphill, walls on both sides.
A street sign in a language you are learning Letters as shapes; copy them exactly.
Balconies stacked on a building front Repeat one balcony shape up the page.
Laundry between two houses, seen from below A line of shapes between two walls, the sky a thin strip above.
The shelter where you waited for the wrong bus A roof, a pole and the people waiting.
The skyline from the highest point you reached Rooftops as a ragged line. Label the ones you know.

Food and markets 12

A dinner table after everyone has left Empty glasses, crumpled napkins, a candle burnt down.
A fishmonger's ice tray Fish in rows on a bed of chips of ice.
A holiday cone melting faster than you can eat it A cone, a scoop and one drip line.
A menu you could not read Copy a few lines of it; the shapes are the memory.
A street-food cart and its queue The cart's shape and a line of backs.
The bread shop you went back to every day Round and long shapes in rows behind glass.
Coffee and a pastry on a café table Cup, saucer, a flaky shape on a napkin.
Crates of local fruit with hand-written prices Crates of round shapes in rows, a price card in each.
The first thing you ate there A plate from above. Write the name as the menu did.
Lunch spread out on a wooden bench seat Bread, fruit, a bottle of water, all on one slat.
The receipt from a meal, taped in Draw a piece of tape across it and sketch the table beside.
Spices in sacks at a market Soft sacks, folded tops, cone-shaped piles.

Small things you carry 12

A coin or banknote from the place One side of a coin, big on the page.
A leaf from a tree you did not know Draw it life-size and ask someone its name.
A local cat on a doorstep Curled or sitting, the doorstep under it.
A postcard you did not send The front as a tiny drawing inside your drawing.
A shell or pebble from the beach One small object, drawn large with its shadow.
A small memorial plaque on a seat The slats and a small rectangle with words.
A stamp in your passport A rough box with a date. Copy only the shape.
Coins and receipts from day three, emptied out Coins, a receipt, a key, a gum wrapper.
The map you used, folded wrong Creases and a pencil route across it.
Your hand holding the day's ticket Your hand and the ticket, from where you see them.
Your ticket stubs laid in a fan Flat rectangles overlapping. Copy one date.
Your walking shoes at the end of the day Dust on the toes, laces undone.

Views 12

A beach from your towel Your feet at the bottom, the sea line across the middle.
A garden you paid to walk round One bed of flowers and the path beside it.
A harbour of small boats Hull shapes, masts as lines, reflections below.
A mountain path and its signpost A post with arrows, the path winding up behind.
A waterfall you walked to A pale vertical band, rocks either side, mist at the base.
The last view before you leave Whatever is in front of you on the way home.
Looking down a river from the middle of a bridge The river narrowing away between its banks.
One sail on a wide lake A flat oval of water, a tiny triangle and its reflection.
Palm trees or pines, whichever is there Draw the trunks' lean first; every place has its own tree.
Rooftops from a train as it pulls in A row of roofs, chimneys and the platform edge.
The sunrise you got up early for Only the horizon and the sun's position. Colour notes in words.
The view from a roadside lookout Layers of hills, each paler than the one in front.

How this list was compiled: Original list written for Draw This Next on 2026-09-24: 72 things to sketch while travelling, in six groups (on the way, where you stay, streets and buildings, food and markets, small things you carry, views), each hint saying what to catch in the time a trip allows. No facts are stated; nothing names a real place, brand or airline. No item repeats a title from any other list on the site. Licence: own work

How it works

Travel sketching works best when you draw what is in front of you, even a tray table. These 72 ideas are sorted by where you are, and each hint says what to catch in the time you have.

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What to put in a travel sketchbook

Draw the ordinary things that will bring the trip back: your room key, a menu you could not read, a stamp in your passport. Small things you carry holds 12. Tape in a ticket or receipt beside the drawing and write the date.

Five minutes is enough

Most hints fit a short stop: the far hills from a train, the silhouette of a roofline, the shapes of a fruit crate. Draw the outline on the spot and add colour later from notes in words.

Carry one pen and a small sketchbook, nothing else. The less you unpack, the more you draw.
On a sketching trip, draw the first morning's breakfast. It starts the book without pressure.

Questions and answers

What should I sketch when travelling?

Whatever is in front of you: the departure board, the view past the wing, the first thing you ate. Ordinary things bring the trip back better than landmarks.

What do I need for travel sketching?

A small sketchbook that fits a pocket or bag, one pen that does not smudge and, if you like colour, a small watercolour set with a water brush.

How do I sketch people without them noticing?

Draw backs of heads, people asleep or people waiting, who stay still. Keep it to shapes and posture, not faces, and stop if anyone minds.