OK, whether these are all actually travel books is debatable. But they all have the spirit of travel, of adventure, of exploration.
And they’re all great!
Young Kids
- Next Stop Grand Central and Sayonara, Mrs. Kackleman by Maira Kalman.
- Katie and the Mona Lisa, Katie Meets The Impressionists, and Katie in London by James Mayhew.
- This is Rome, This is Paris, This is London and This is Greece by Miroslav Sasek.
- Charlie’s Superhero Underpants by Paul Bright.
- Magic Tree House (Books 1-4) or the entire series by Mary Pope Osborne.
- Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak.
- Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett.
- An Extraordinary Egg, Frederick, and Fish is Fish by Leo Lionni.
- Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson.
- Jumanji by Chris Van Allsburg.
- The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton.
- The Caboose Who Got Loose and The Wump World by Bill Peet.
- Andrew Lost On the Dog , Andrew Lost In the Garden, and Andrew Lost In the Jungle or the entire series by J.C. Greenburg.
- Madeline and Madeline’s Rescue by Ludwig Bemelmans.
- Once Upon an Ordinary School Day by Colin McNaughton.
- Paddington by Michael Bond.
- Oh, the Thinks You Can Think! by Dr Seuss.
- Make Way for Ducklings and Time of Wonder by Robert McCloskey.
- Richard Scarry’s Cars and Trucks and Things That Go, Richard Scarry’s What Do People Do All Day, and Richard Scarry’s A Day at the Airport.
- Pippo the Fool
- Pompeii … Buried Alive (A Step Into Reading book)
Older Kids
- National Geographic Kids Almanac 2012, National Geographic World Atlas for Young Explorers, and National Geographic’s Wild Animal Atlas.
- Galileo for Kids – His Life and Ideas – with 25 Activities
- Around the World – 3 Remarkable Journeys (a graphic novel)
- Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator, and James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl.
- Marco Polo – A National Geographic Youth Biography
- The Red Umbrella
- The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis.
- The Harry Potter Series by J. K. Rowling.
- The Princess Bride by William Goldman.
- Holes by Louis Sachar.
- Alice In Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll.
- A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle.
I update this whenever we read a good new book. Please offer your suggestions below. Thanks.
Questions and Comments
Hotel Tips
Many readers ask about the best websites for booking hotels. These are my favorites.HotelsCombined.com – The absolute best for finding deals and discounts.
Booking.com – Specializes in Europe.
Agoda.com – Specializes in Asia.

Great list! So many of our favorites are on the list – Katie series, Magic Treehouse, This is… There is a Madeline in Rome that is also fun.
Hey Jennifer. I like Madeline in Rome too but tried to restrict the list to my very favorites — or it would get very long in a hurry