The Best Tarot Cards for Travel
We all have that one staple item we take on every vacation. A classic black dress, your favorite shampoo, or jewelry that goes with everything. For witches, the dress they take is for rituals, the shampoo they use is enchanted for glamour along with smelling amazing, and the jewelry is always protective. But one other essential that we love to have on us when we leave the house is a divination tool for quick answers from the universe. While we can divine and receive answers in a myriad of ways, my bag never feels complete without a tarot deck tucked inside. Thanks to the many options available today, divination has never been easier, and there are many tarot cards and divination tools that are so perfect for travel you will always have your preferred method of divining wherever you go!
Tarot Cards:
Most decks offer miniature versions of their full size counterparts, sometimes no bigger than your thumb! While the smallest end of these options may be more of an inconvenience for shuffling, the standard miniature decks I have tried have been a lifesaver for storage and easy access.
Lo Scarabeo Tarot of Pagan Cats– Mini, decorative, and for cat lovers of all ages! This deck follows the rider waite smith structure with renaissance cats of all shapes and sizes! The structure of the cards is in roman numerals, and the suits use small graphics to denote the page, knight, king and queen cards. It did take some time to figure out the difference between the king and queen cards because the crowns used to represent them are fairly similar. Otherwise, it is a fantastic deck for solo reading or to impress fellow cat lovers you encounter on your travels!
White Sage Tarot– I especially love this deck because it comes in a tin, which is a perfect option to toss into a bag and not worry about the cards taking on damage, even light water, though the case is not airtight. The imagery is simple and elegant, the cards measuring at about palm size up to the fingers. The only truly decorative cards are the major arcana and face cards, the rest are represented by common elements for each suit: cups, staffs, ribbons and sand dollars. Because of the watercolor element in the cards, it is one of my favorite decks to take to the beach, and I often find the messages I receive are no nonsense, to the point, yet delivered with a sage-like grace. *You will develop your own relationship with each deck, some may have similar energies to what i describe while others surprise you entirely!*
Mini Rider-Waite Smith- These cards would personally fall on the inconvenient side for me, though they do have their moments. I usually keep them in the box and select a card or two from there rather than trying to shuffle, I’ve almost lost them to a light breeze once or twice. But you won’t find many cards this small, which is good for discrete witchcraft or if you’re really pushing the weight limit on your suitcase! this is the only version of the classic deck that I have, and they usually give straightforward readings.
Runes, charms, dice, & pendulums:
Elder futhark, witch’s runes, bones, shells, even old jewelry charms make excellent divination sets! Most runes, like most tarot decks, are fairly easy to travel with. However, sometimes the items in your set like bones can be more fragile and prone to breaking. Sometimes this is a natural occurrence of your set, and you will lose and acquire pieces over time, others, the breaking is part of the functionality of the set itself. Having a travel set allows you to form a different connection to the set you keep at home. You may even wish to craft your rune set over time from items you have found along your travels, making it curated specifically for going abroad and incredibly unique to you! With sets like these, make sure you make your own guidebook, and the pieces purpose may reveal itself over time.
Pendulums are also something you can make on the go, or create in a pinch with a heavy charm on a chain. You may wear a pendulum as part of your everyday jewelry, or you may wish to keep one in your travel case. I personally have the least amount of experience, and patience, for pendulums, however I bonded with a beautiful piece of ocean jasper that fits perfectly in the mint tin that functions as my tiny travel kit. It has been especially helpful during my beach cleanups, finding stubborn hidden pieces of trash or surprising nautical treasures!
Divination Tips Abroad:
-Cleanse and refresh your cards before reading in a new place, especially if you haven’t used the deck in a while. Regular cleansings of your deck is a good habit to get into, and you can test out different methods to see which gives your deck the refresh it needs. For example, I love to cleanse with rosemary, and my decks prefer this too, but when I travel and can’t work with smoke, I’ll leave the deck in the sunlight for a few minutes, then gently tap on the cards to knock out the stagnant energy.
-Find a quiet place for your first reading. I am always awed by the readers who can concentrate in noisy environments. Even reading for as long as I have, I still prefer a nice, relaxing environment where I can connect to the universe and my guides without distraction.
-Don’t advertise readings unless you know the location you are traveling to well and their laws. Though these days it’s rarely enforced, there are still some places that have laws against fortune telling, and others may require a permit. While it might be tempting to make some extra money on your travels, make sure you check the local laws first!
-Be sure to introduce yourself to the local spirits. I’ve had my readings scrambled a time or two while traveling because the messages my guides were trying to send were getting crossed with the Genii Loci of my geographic location. This can be as simple as grounding your feet into the earth near where you are staying, or finding a nearby tree. Bring your cards with you introduce yourself, and conduct an interview with the local spirits, seeing which cards they present themselves as, and if they have any messages or wisdom they would like to share. While our ancestors and spirits guides are familiar and comforting to reach for in unfamiliar places, do not discount he wisdom the local spirits can offer. My final advice on this would be to bring a small offering in gratitude for the place that you are staying. Fresh water is a great choice!
Wherever the waters of life may sweep you off to, having a good set of tarot cards, or any other form of divination, for your travels can serve as the compass and provide direction on the next step of your journey!
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