Choosing the Best Traveler’s Notebook Size for Your Endeavors

by Galen Leather August 04, 2026

To some, a traveler’s notebook is just a notebook. But to you, it’s more than just a notebook. It's where you keep your treasured memories detailing the ups and downs of life on the road. It's your safe space for expressing your thoughts and feelings without fear of judgement. It's a means for discovering and understanding your intricate inner world while you're exploring your expansive outer world. It's your solace in the lonely moments that come with the downtimes of travel, a way to keep the boredom at bay during the long waiting times at airports, and a means to share your experiences with your future self when no one else is around to share them with.

Despite living in a digital age, the most creative and adventurous people prefer a pen and paper. The small screen on a smartphone or tablet simply don't do justice for your vast imagination, and the last thing you need is your tech gadgets to run out of battery at the peak of your creativity and adventure.

So, for the true travel enthusiast, a refillable leather journal in the form of a traveler’s notebook is as essential to your experience as is your suitcase. Your traveler's notebook is almost a part of you.

For others, they are happy list taking, or simply collecting little momentos from the road. In this case, you want something to store these things in. Or maybe you're an artist who loves to sketch your ideas on paper.

Considering there's no real 'right or wrong way' to record your travel memories, the underlying similarity is you want to keep them safe and protected from being damaged while on the road. You also want a something that will fit your needs, that is, its size and features. So we've dug deep to explore the various traveler’s notebook sizes to see what each can do for your future travel endeavors and to help you choose the best traveler's notebook for your needs.

Origins of the Traveler’s Notebook

In 2005, Atshuhiko Iijima brought a prototype of a notebook to a trade show in Tokyo with the hope of getting some feedback about the viability of the product. What made the notebook distinctive was its simplicity coupled with ingenuity: a simple cowhide cover, brass bindings, blind-stamped branding and elastic bands that gave the user endless possibilities for customization. Mr. Iijima was the Director of Imports Control at Designphil, the company behind the subsequently launched Midori Traveler’s Notebook, which officially began changing the course of the planner world when it landed on store shelves in 2006. Arriving in the midst of a digitized world, the Traveler’s Notebook was the antithesis of the modernization happening all around its developers.

Developing The Traveler's Notebook

The Traveler’s Notebook was designed and developed by a team of three at Designphil that still works on it to this day. Part of what makes it special is the production team’s intimacy with one another having been working on the evolution of the notebook for so many years. There is a trust built amongst them and a solidarity that comes from working on such a small team.

A partnership with artisans in Chiang Mai, Thailand, a city known for small woodworking and leather studios, is a key part of the success of the TN, the shorthand name that enthusiasts have given the notebook. The artisans in Chiang Mai have approached the project with a carefree nature and flexibility that Mr. Iijima needed in the early days of developing the product.

In the past thirteen years, the Midori TN has remained virtually unchanged, but millions of users worldwide have discovered it and it is one of the most popular organizational systems in the world.

For those who have never experienced it, here are the basics on how it works.

How The Traveler's Notebook System Works

The leather cover has both horizontal and vertical elastic bands. The horizontal band on the outside holds the TN closed when it’s not in use. The internal vertical bands are where the magic happens: these bands hold various inserts in place against the spine of the notebook and act as connecting bands to “bind” the inserts to one another. The size of the spine determines the number of inserts and accessories the TN can hold. A standard Midori TN holds four inserts comfortably. Midori’s version comes in two sizes that hold four inserts: The Standard and the Passport, which was introduced as a smaller pocket version in 2009. Both come in Black, Brown, Blue and Camel, the latter two originally offered as Limited Edition colors, that were made a part of the permanent collection due to their popularity and functionality. Designphil offers limited editions and colors of the TN fairly regularly and have also embarked on strategic partnerships with other brands, the most recent being a collaboration with Prada made especially for the iconic British department store, Selfridge’s.

They make a wide variety of inserts, i.e. watercolor, grid, lines, thin paper, kraft paper, folders, zip pouch, etc. and undated and pre-printed dated planner inserts for those who wish to use their TN’s for date and timekeeping.

As the TN caught on, other companies began to offer notebooks based on this same system. The marketplace finds itself fortunate to have so many beautiful TN’s for consumers to choose from.

Galen Leather's Traveler's Notebooks

Covers from Galen come in both standard regular and passport sizes, as well as, A5, Xlarge, Large and Pocket sizes. You can see the dimensions of these sizes and suggestions for the inserts here.

Galen Travler's Notebook covers are available in eleven colors of its signature leather. Additionally, Galen offers a host of other inserts, refillable notebooks, and accessories. The TN Wallet comes in both Regular and Passport sizes, allowing the TN to become both your organizing system and your wallet. This makes for a complete daily carry wallet that remains lightweight with a slim profile.

Galen’s Everyday Notebooks made with Tomoe River paper fit the Passport, Pocket, Regular and A5 TN’s, with additional sizes on the horizon. Brass charms, leather tags, monkey’s knot bookmarks and a selection of nineteen colors of elastic, allow you to make the Galen TN’s an expression of you. Use the handy “show me” feature on the Galen website to see all of these options for making the Galen TN your own.

Other Ideas For Your Traveler's Notebooks

Some of the other popular companies making well-made TN covers and accessories are Chic Sparrow (www.chicsparrow.com,) Sojourner (www.sojournerusa.net,) and Gillio (www.gillio.be). They offer leathers in a multitude of colors and designs. Etsy is an incredible resource for smaller makers creating exceptional inserts. Some of my very favorite inserts come from GoodINKpressions, YellowPaperHouse and BookfellStudio. All make wonderful tools for using your TN as a bullet journal cover, diary, datebook, habit tracker, sketchbook or whatever you desire it to be.

That is the beauty of the TN, that it can be what you need it to be and that can be ever-changing, as the TN allows you to change inserts as easily as you change your objectives for it.

For The Travel-Obsessed

You’re the type of person who has a passport full of all kinds of stamps from different places across the globe. There’s no adventure you’re not willing to partake on and you’re always the first one to explore off the beaten path. For you, the best traveler’s notebook sizes are ones that fit your passport and important documents.

Our luxury leather passport notebook fits a standard issued passport or Midori passport insert, and can also be used for any insert that fits 5" x 3 ½". This allows you to keep all your travel documents in one place, so you travel with ease and peace of mind.

For The Note-Taker

As a regular traveler, your idea of a good time is any time you get to unplug. You’re more of a note taker than you are a Candy Crush player. You like to escape and explore the outdoors, sans text messages, social media notifications and phone calls. However, you also like to jot down some notes while exploring the earth.

Our luxury leather pocket traveler’s notebook size is perfect for the note-taker. If you've been looking for a field notes leather cover, this is for you! It’s the perfect size for 3-4 Field Notes, Moleskine Pocket notebook inserts or anything with a size of 5 ½" x 3 ½". This notebook size allows you to take some notes whenever and wherever your traveling takes you. There’s no need for electricity or a charge, and it keeps everything you need all in one place!

For The List-Maker

Every traveler knows the importance of a good list. You make a list of things you buy before you take off, things you pack, things that can’t go on your carry-on, things to do, places to see and the list goes on. Pardon the pun. Without your lists, you’d be lost. They keep you organized and prepared for your future travels.

Our regular personalized traveler’s notebook is perfect for you. It’s 4.5" wide, designed to give you enough room to make your lists without taking up valuable suitcase space. This size can fit any 1-5 Midori standard regular notebook inserts.

For The Blogger

As a blogger, pen and paper are your lifelines like a smartphone is to a millennial. You’re constantly coming up with all kinds of new ideas, many of which happen at the weirdest, most unpredictable times. In a rainforest? Idea! Trekking bare foot in a desert? Idea! Your mind is always running and your travels spark so many ideas, you’d forget half of them by the time you returned back to your hometown.

Our A5 luxury leather traveler’s notebook sizes are ideal for you, as they fit any insert at size 8.27" x 5.83" including our Leuchtturm1917 notebooks and Rhodia notebook. The elastic closure also keeps your masterpieces safe throughout your travel.

For The Doodler

Forget the fidget spinner! You’ll likely lose it during your travels anyway. What you really need is our large luxury leather traveler’s notebook size. These fit 1-6 Moleskine Cahier notebooks or any size at 8.25" x 5", giving you all the room you need to keep yourself entertained wherever you are.

For The Artist

For the artist seeking inspiration amongst their travels, an extra-large traveler’s notebook is the size you need. Our luxury leather bullet journal fits 1-3 Moleskine Cahier notebooks or any size at 7.87” x 10.31”. This bullet journal size is ideal for artists as it allows you to accurately transfer your travel experiences onto paper, so you can treasure the details of your days for years to come.

Choosing The Right Traveler's Notebook

When choosing the size of your TN, you should always keep in mind what you’d like to use it for, what you will carry it in, and how much space you need for plotting and planning on its pages. While some like to keep their TN compact in size, others love a roomier TN. It’s a matter of personal taste, which is the essence of why the TN is so universally appreciated. Which brings me to the crux of this entry. The TN is practical, simple, elegant, creative and flexible. All of those things are what make it a useful tool, but there is something special about the TN that has made it much more than just another system. It is beloved, and I have some ideas about why this is so.

Let’s go back to Mr. Iijima. He said that the TN is “a way to look back on oneself”. There is something powerful about compiling a record of your life. I think about all of the journals I filled while growing up and how they capture all the moments in time that define me. I put my emotions on the page and they remain even though I’ve changed and evolved. When we travel, whether to faraway places or through our daily lives, the TN goes with us and lets us engage with it while we engage with the world. It brings a sense of excitement to travel, life and work, and as Mr. Iijima noted “the essence of the person shows up in the pages”. I love to think about the TN holding onto some small part of the person and who they were in the moments they were making entries in it.

What Makes the Best Traveler's Notebook?

Once you know your size and use case, the best traveler's notebook comes down to a handful of things worth checking before you buy:

• The leather. Look for full grain leather that will develop a patina rather than coated or corrected leather that stays uniform. The original Midori cover is prized precisely because it scratches, darkens and moulds to its owner over years of use. This is a feature, not a flaw.
• Replaceable elastics. The elastic bands do the structural work in this system and they will eventually stretch. A cover is only as good as your ability to re-thread new elastic through it, so check that the maker sells or supports replacement elastic.
• Insert availability. A cover in a common size gives you the whole ecosystem: Traveler's Company refills, independent makers, and our own notebooks. A cover in an unusual proprietary size ties you to one supplier.
• Personalization. Because a traveler's notebook is a years-long companion rather than an annual purchase, details like embossed initials, charms and elastic colors matter more than they would on a disposable notebook.

Midori's original remains the benchmark, and makers like us, Chic Sparrow and Gillio each interpret the same system with different leathers, colors and price points. There is no single best; there is the cover whose leather you want to watch age.

Traveler's Notebook vs. Field Notes and Other Systems

Field Notes and the traveler's notebook are not really competitors. Field Notes are complete, disposable memo books: you fill one, shelve it, and start the next. A traveler's notebook is a permanent leather cover that holds notebooks like Field Notes inside it. The two combine naturally, and a pocket size cover holding three or four Field Notes gives you the durability and pen loop options of a leather cover with the memo books you already use.

The other common alternative is a ring-based system like Plotter or Filofax, which holds loose punched pages instead of bound booklets. Rings let you rearrange individual pages; the traveler's notebook trades that for slimness, a flatter writing surface and bound booklets you can archive whole. If you archive finished notebooks as a record of your life, the booklet approach is the one that rewards you years later.

Passport Size Inserts: The Best Moleskine Alternatives

A frequent question from passport size owners: which Moleskine fits it? The answer is none. Moleskine does not make a passport size insert. Its smallest cahiers follow the pocket standard, which is taller than a passport cover. If you want quality passport inserts, these are the ones to know:

• Traveler's Company refills. The original ecosystem, with MD paper that handles fountain pens well, in blank, lined, grid, sketch, kraft and dated planner formats.
• Galen Everyday Notebooks. Our Tomoe River paper notebooks in passport size, for those who want the thinnest fountain pen friendly paper in the smallest cover.
• Muji Passport Memo. The budget option, sold in dotted grid, lined and plain with 24 sheets per book. It fits passport covers exactly and costs a fraction of branded refills.
• Independent makers. The Etsy makers mentioned above sew passport size inserts in paper stocks and layouts the big brands do not offer, including Tomoe River and dot grid planner formats.

Are Traveler's Notebooks Still Relevant?

Ironically, the digital world has played a major role in the Traveler’s Notebook story. The TN arrived just four years before Instagram and IG has become the platform for TN lovers worldwide to share their passion and ideas for the system. At last check there were 3.6 million posts on Instagram using the #travelersnotebook. On any given day, well, you could spend the whole day, looking at them. It is extraordinary to see what a small piece of leather and some elastic bands has inspired. Its simplicity has birthed artistic expression all over the globe.

We are all on our own journey. Taking the time to record it in a TN makes us more aware of the present moment; what we see, smell, hear, taste and experience.

Maybe that is why the motto of the Traveler’s Company is “Live Everyday Like a Journey”. This simple product, the brainchild of a team of three, has profoundly changed the way that those of us who use it live, capturing moments of importance and clinging to the analog with all of our might.

You never have to worry about your traveler’s notebook running out of battery when you have a spark of creativity. For the exact dimensions of every size and which inserts fit each one, see our full traveler's notebook size guide. Shop Galen Leather luxury notebook cover sizes today and complete your travel accessories. You also have the option of customizing with embossed initials and adding on a unique travel charm for more personal flair.

One final note: The insert I used to make notes for this blog entry were written on my favorite Galen Everyday Notebook Insert in my Special Edition Blue Midori Traveler’s Notebook, which I have recently painted stripes on using Angelus Acrylic Leather Paint (another really fun way to personalize your TN, you can find it at most craft stores). I’m planning to add a Crazy Forest Green (my favorite!) Galen Wallet insert and an “It leaves you speechless then turns you into a storyteller” Leather tag with dark blue elastic to make it completely my own. I hope you get as much joy from designing your TN as I did mine.

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