{"id":554,"date":"2026-10-21T17:13:12","date_gmt":"2026-10-21T09:13:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bestoutofbest.com\/blog\/?p=554"},"modified":"2026-10-21T17:13:12","modified_gmt":"2026-10-21T09:13:12","slug":"can-i-use-coil-binding-for-travel-journals-47d8-81c4b9","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.bestoutofbest.com\/blog\/2026\/10\/21\/can-i-use-coil-binding-for-travel-journals-47d8-81c4b9\/","title":{"rendered":"Can I use coil binding for travel journals?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hey everyone, it\u2019s Mia here from the coil binding team, and today I\u2019m diving into a question I get at least a dozen times a week: \u201cCan I use coil binding for travel journals?\u201d Spoiler alert\u2014yes, 100% you can, but there\u2019s a ton of nuance here, especially if you\u2019re someone who\u2019s actually taking these journals on the road, not just leaving them on your desk for weekend writing sessions. Let\u2019s break this down like we\u2019re geeking out over our favorite travel hacks, no stuffy jargon allowed. Coil Binding<\/a><\/p>\n

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First off, let\u2019s start with what makes travel journals different from, say, the journal you use to track work meetings or your kid\u2019s soccer stats. When you\u2019re traveling, you\u2019re not just writing on a couch at home\u2014you might be scribbling on a bus bumping through the Italian countryside, a park bench in Thailand, a tiny hotel room desk that\u2019s barely big enough for your phone and a snack, or even while waiting in line for a museum. That means the binding has to do two big things: lie flat (so you don\u2019t have to fight with the journal to write in the middle) and hold up to being stuffed in a backpack, tossed in a tote, or squished between a water bottle and a portable charger.<\/p>\n

Now, coil binding (that\u2019s the spiral plastic or metal loop you see on notebooks, right? The one you twist open and close with a pencil, not the comb binding that\u2019s super floppy) checks both of those boxes way better than a lot of people give it credit for. Wait, let\u2019s confirm: I\u2019m talking about double-loop coil binding, the kind we specialize in here, not the cheap single-loop stuff that comes on those drugstore notebooks. The double loop is thicker, more durable, and doesn\u2019t pop loose when you\u2019re twisting it to adjust pages. That\u2019s a key distinction\u2014if you\u2019ve only ever used the flimsy coil from a 99-cent notebook, you might have written it off, but we\u2019re talking about the good stuff here.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s talk about durability first. I\u2019ve seen so many travel journals with glued bindings split within a week of a trip. Glued binding works great for hardcover books, but it\u2019s basically just a thin strip of adhesive holding the pages to the spine. Yours is going to get folded, stuffed, and maybe even rained on (no judgment, we\u2019ve all forgotten our journal in a beach bag). Coil binding, on the other hand, runs all the way through every page, so there\u2019s no single weak point. Even if a few pages get wet, they\u2019re not going to fall out entirely\u2014they just might take an extra day to dry, which is way better than starting a journal with half your pages missing after a rainstorm. We\u2019ve tested our travel coil bindings by stuffing them in a backpack with a loose water bottle (don\u2019t ask, it was a test) and even tossing them into a hotel room laundry basket by accident, and they still worked fine. The plastic ones? We use polypropylene, which is flexible, water-resistant, and doesn\u2019t crack even in cold mountain weather or hot beach sun. The metal coils? They\u2019re aluminum, so they don\u2019t rust, even if you spill a coffee on your journal (again, no judgment).<\/p>\n

Next, the lie-flat thing. This is a game-changer for travel. When you\u2019re writing in a car or a small space, you don\u2019t want to have to hold the journal open with one hand while you write with the other. Coil binding lets you fold the journal back on itself completely, so it\u2019s just a stack of pages lying flat, no curved spine, no pages popping closed. I used a coil-bound travel journal last year when I was in Japan, and I scribbled train tickets, restaurant notes, and silly drawings while sitting on a tiny Shinkansen seat that was smaller than my desk at home. I didn\u2019t have to fidget with the binding at all\u2014just opened it to the right page and wrote. Glued bindings usually won\u2019t lie flat, because the spine is glued tight, so you end up with a big gap in the middle that\u2019s hard to write on. Comb binding (the plastic ones that snap into place) is even worse for lying flat\u2014they often crease the spine if you fold them back too far, and the comb itself can dig into your hand if you\u2019re holding the journal for a long time. Coil? It\u2019s smooth on the edges, so no digging, no creases, just a flexible spine that bends however you need.<\/p>\n

Wait, but what about portability? A lot of people worry that coil binding will make their journal too bulky to carry around. Let\u2019s be real: when you\u2019re traveling, every ounce counts. But the thing is, coil binding is actually one of the most compact bindings you can get for a notebook. The spine doesn\u2019t add nearly as much bulk as hardcover bindings, or even spiral metal bindings that have a thick outer loop. Our thin-profile travel coils are barely thicker than a pencil, so your journal will fit in a crossbody bag, a jacket pocket, or even the side pocket of a backpack without taking up extra space. I\u2019ve seen people slip a coil-bound travel journal into the pocket of their jeans on a day trip, no problem. The key here is to use a thin coil size\u2014for travel, we recommend a 0.5-inch coil max, so it doesn\u2019t add unnecessary bulk. If you get a thicker coil, yeah, it\u2019ll be bigger, but most travel journals don\u2019t need more than 100 pages anyway, which fits perfectly in a thin coil.<\/p>\n

Now, let\u2019s get real about the downsides, because I don\u2019t want to sell you something that\u2019s not perfect. The biggest one is that coil binding can be a little tricky to replace if a page gets torn. If you have a page with a great travel memory, a photo you glued in, or a correction you need to make, you can\u2019t just rip it out like you can with a glued notebook. You have to untwist the coil, pull out the old page, and maybe add a new one\u2014wait, but that\u2019s actually a pro for travel, right? Because you don\u2019t want pages falling out accidentally. If you\u2019re the kind of person who loses pages, glued binding is terrible, but coil keeps every page secure. If you do need to replace pages, it\u2019s not impossible\u2014you just need a small coil tool (we sell those too, if you need one) and a little patience. Another small downside: if you\u2019re using a really tiny journal (like a 3×5 pocket journal), the coil might take up a little space, but even then, we make mini coils for exactly that.<\/p>\n

Wait, let\u2019s also talk about customization, because a lot of travel journal users love adding little touches. Coil binding is super customizable\u2014you can get the coil in different colors (bright red for your Paris trip, blue for a beach vacation, whatever) to match your journal cover, and you can get covers made out of canvas, leather, or even recycled materials that are durable for travel. We work with a lot of small travel accessory brands that make custom coil-bound journals, and they tell us that their customers love being able to pick the coil color, add a embossed name on the cover, and have a journal that\u2019s totally unique. Plus, if you want to add stickers, tickets, or maps to your travel journal, the coil gives you enough space to glue things in without worrying about pages overlapping too much\u2014you can even flip the coil all the way around to add things in the back, which is way easier than with other bindings.<\/p>\n

Let me throw in a personal story here, because I\u2019ve been in this game long enough to have some war wounds. A few years back, I took a trip to Portugal with a friend who was using a fancy glued leather travel journal. Halfway through the trip, she sat on the bus and her journal got crushed between a suitcase and a window. The spine split, and 20 pages fell out. She was devastated\u2014half her notes from the food markets and the fado shows were gone. Meanwhile, I was using a basic coil-bound journal I\u2019d bought at a local stationery store. I spilled port wine on it (oops), stuffed it in my backpack every day, and even dropped it in a puddle once. The coil didn\u2019t pop, the pages didn\u2019t fall out, and I didn\u2019t lose a single note. That\u2019s when I realized coil binding isn\u2019t just for notebooks in an office\u2014it\u2019s made for people who are actually out exploring, not just writing about it.<\/p>\n

Now, let\u2019s address the question I get all the time: \u201cIs coil binding better than spiral binding for travel journals?\u201d Wait, sometimes people mix those two up. Spiral binding is usually the old-school metal loop that\u2019s thick and can dig into your hand. Coil binding is the plastic (or aluminum) loop that\u2019s thinner, more flexible, and doesn\u2019t have that sharp outer edge. For travel, coil is way better than spiral because it\u2019s more compact, doesn\u2019t dig into your hand, and is more flexible. We\u2019ve tested both, and our customers say they prefer coil 9 out of 10 times for travel because it\u2019s less bulky and more comfortable to hold for long periods.<\/p>\n

Wait, but what about if you\u2019re a digital nomad who uses a travel journal alongside your laptop? Coil binding is great for that too. You can leave your coil-bound journal open next to your laptop while you\u2019re working from a caf\u00e9, and it won\u2019t tip over like a glued journal might. The thin spine means it doesn\u2019t take up much space on your small desk, and you can flip through pages quickly to find a note about a client meeting or a restaurant recommendation.<\/p>\n

Now, let\u2019s talk about something a lot of people don\u2019t consider: how coil binding works with different paper types. Travel journals use all kinds of paper\u2014lined, unlined, watercolor, even thick cardstock for tickets and photos. Coil binding works with any paper thickness, as long as you use the right coil size. For watercolor paper (which is thicker), you just need a slightly larger coil to fit the extra pages, and that works fine. We\u2019ve had customers make travel journals with watercolor pages for sketching on trips, and the coil holds the thick paper perfectly without bending or breaking.<\/p>\n

But wait, let\u2019s not pretend there\u2019s no alternative. If you\u2019re someone who writes only at home, glued or sewn binding might work, but if you\u2019re traveling, coil is the way to go. Let\u2019s do a quick pros and cons to make it clear:<\/p>\n

Pros of coil binding for travel journals:<\/p>\n