Guitars aren’t the most transport-friendly objects in the world, composed of a number of delicate parts that combine to create a bulky design. The reality is that many guitarists want to take their guitars with them on their excursions and we’d argue the ideal way to do that is equipping yourself with one of the best travel guitars.
A travel guitar will be designed to be ideal for the guitarist on the move, typically designed with smaller bodies that take up less room in a car or train, with some even fulfilling the criteria for handheld luggage for planes, so you don’t have to worry about damage occurring at the hands of baggage handlers. Travel guitars aren’t limited to just something for when you’re on the move; the best travel guitars will also be perfect as a compact instrument to keep around the home for comfortable and easy playing.
Whether you’re a fan of acoustics or are more of an electric player, there is a travel guitar for you, and we’ve selected the best across both varieties.
Quick list
Though this might be on the larger side of a travel guitar, it is still more compact than all of Lowden’s other offerings. Simply put, the Wee Lowden is one of the best sounding smaller-bodied acoustic guitars on the market.
Not Taylor’s smallest offering, but definitely one of their better sounding compact instruments, the GS Mini has proven to be a hit with all manner of guitarists. You’ll even see pros use them on the biggest stages in the world.
Folding guitars have been done before, but the Furch Little Jane is a folding guitar that actually sounds very, very good. This acoustic travel guitar is made from all solid woods – a solid red cedar top and solid mahogany back and sides, giving it a beautiful, mellow and warm sound.
Probably one of the most popular compact six-strings ever made, the Martin LX1E has truly earned its place on our list of the best travel guitars. It’s around a 3/4 size, with a 23” scale.
Blackstar’s Carry On range aims to provide players with quality instruments that are easy to take on planes so that you don’t have to skip your practice sessions when you’re traveling.
A travel guitar doesn’t necessarily always have to be short scale, and this is a case in point. The Ultra-Light Travel Guitar boasts a full 24.75” scale length, but the entire thing measures just 28”.
A 3/4 size guitar is smaller all over – smaller scale length (22.75” in this case), smaller body, neck, headstock etc. You might have to adjust your playing somewhat to accommodate these shrunken features, but most players can become accustomed to it.
This effectively cuts the body of a Strat down to just its scratchplate, reducing its size dramatically. The 6-in-line is then reduced to 3+3 making a further size reduction.
A classic style that will appeal to fans of full-scale guitars. Featuring three pickups, there are lots of tonal options, making it very versatile.
Best acoustic traveler
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Though this might be on the larger side of a travel guitar, it is still more compact than all of Lowden’s other offerings. Simply put, the Wee Lowden is one of the best sounding smaller-bodied acoustic guitars on the market.
It’s incredibly bold and punchy, with superb note definition and clarity. Its dimensions are smaller than that of a more traditionally sized acoustic guitar, but the projection that it delivers would have you fooled – this guitar is loud when you push it. It also reacts beautifully to playing dynamics, offering all the shades of quiet and loud that you’d want.
Different versions of this guitar are available, but the mahogany back and sides combined with the red cedar top deliver a wonderfully balanced sound. The build quality is absolutely second to none; though of course, at this price point, you’d expect that.
Best with larger body
Not Taylor’s smallest offering, but definitely one of their better sounding compact instruments, the GS Mini has proven to be a hit with all manner of guitarists. You’ll even see pros use them on the biggest stages in the world.
This GS Mini-e Koa Plus sports a solid koa top and laminate koa back and sides which allow notes and chords to ring out with complete clarity and detail. Koa responds really well to your playing – it’s responsive and dynamic so allows you to play with lots of expression. The shaded edge burst finish looks truly incredible and adds a touch of class to the whole thing too.
This 23.5” scale guitar comes fitted with Taylor’s flagship pickup system as well – the ES-2. This allows you to amplify your guitar through a PA system or amp in a way that’s more dynamic and more natural. It ships with a fantastic Aero Case that offers nearly as much protection as a hard case, but is much lighter.
Best foldable traveler
Folding guitars have been done before, but the Furch Little Jane is a folding guitar that actually sounds very, very good. This acoustic travel guitar is made from all solid woods – a solid red cedar top and solid mahogany back and sides, giving it a beautiful, mellow and warm sound. It’s harmonically rich, and has some of that parlor-style punch in the midrange. It’s also extremely dynamic, projecting when you want it to, but responding nicely to softer playing.
It’s extremely well designed. The body, neck and headstock are all separate when packed down, but it’s very quick to construct when it’s time to play. The clever locking mechanism keeps the neck in place, adding the right tension to the strings, and even retaining tuning somewhat between sessions. The Furch Little Jane even comes with its own padded backpack so you can take it on your travels right away.
Best for small hands
Probably one of the most popular compact six-strings ever made, the Martin LX1E has truly earned its place on our list of the best travel guitars. It’s around a 3/4 size, with a 23” scale. Players who are already accustomed to a full size guitar might get along with this particularly well as the neck width is about the same, measuring 1 11/16” at the nut.
Solid spruce sits atop a high pressure laminate mahogany back and sides creating a balanced but fairly bright tone. There is a touch of that boxy sort of sound you often get with smaller acoustics (though nowhere near as much as some cheaper models), and there aren’t tons of low end frequencies, but that’s if we’re being picky. Overall, the projection and tone of the LX1E is excellent.
It is available without (Martin LX1), but this is equipped with a Fishman Sonitone pickup. The controls are easily accessible and it’s very much a case of plug in and play, making it one of the best travel guitars for potentially gigging with. If you’re navigating public transport to get to shows, then this is definitely one to consider.
Best electric traveler
Blackstar’s Carry On range aims to provide players with quality instruments that are easy to take on planes so that you don’t have to skip your practice sessions when you’re traveling.
Cheaper versions of this are available, but the flagship Carry On model has a number of features that make this one of the best travel guitars on the market. Made in partnership with the master luthiers at Gordon Smith, this compact instrument has a one-piece okoume body, set neck and a coil-splittable humbucker. This gives you a range of amazing tones, as well as bags of sustain.
It stays in tune well, and the intonation is just right. It’s really compact, but it plays more like a full size guitar, so you don’t lose much of the feel you’d normally get with a bigger instrument. It also comes shipped with a quality gigbag, so you’re ready to hit the road as soon as you get it.
Best with full scale length
A travel guitar doesn’t necessarily always have to be short scale, and this is a case in point. The Ultra-Light Travel Guitar boasts a full 24.75” scale length, but the entire thing measures just 28”. They say that it’s actually 28% shorter and 68% lighter than your average electric guitar. The lap rest detaches when not in use too, making it extremely portable.
It’s fitted with a single dual rail humbucking pickup that delivers punchy but articulate tones. It’s not the most versatile instrument in the world, but that’s not really the aim here. Still, you can probably tackle most styles of music with it. The tuning pegs are also built into the body which obviously gets rid of the necessity for a headstock, and they actually work very well too.
If you’re flying a lot, or maybe space is at a premium in the car and you want to take this and maybe a battery powered amp with you, then this makes for a fantastic travel guitar.
Best traveling offset
A 3/4 size guitar is smaller all over – smaller scale length (22.75” in this case), smaller body, neck, headstock etc. You might have to adjust your playing somewhat to accommodate these shrunken features, but most players can become accustomed to it. The short scale also lends the guitar a really nice slinky feel, so you might find yourself playing a little differently to normal, which can spark creativity.
This fantastic looking offset is fitted with a pair of quite high output, punchy sounding humbuckers. So, if you’re seeking a portable guitar for rocking big riffs and ripping solos, then this is absolutely one to consider.
It’s also well priced. Maybe you’re just seeking a guitar to take out occasionally, enabling you to leave your main instrument at home. This is of a good enough standard to do the job well, and it means that you’re not having to throw your more expensive guitar in the back of a car or van etc.
Best for Strat fans
This effectively cuts the body of a Strat down to just its scratchplate, reducing its size dramatically. The 6-in-line is then reduced to 3+3 making a further size reduction. All in all, it’s about the size of a regular Strat, minus the headstock, making it altogether a lot more portable.
You’re not having to sacrifice anything in terms of tone here. The Travelcaster has three single-coil pickups and a five-way selector, giving you all the chimey, glassy tones that you’d expect from this kind of configuration. The tremolo works nicely too – again, something you don’t have to sacrifice.
What’s particularly great about this model is that it has the full 25.5” Strat scale length meaning that your fretting hand won’t have a clue it’s playing on a travel guitar. Chords, scales and licks will feel as they do on a full size guitar, though you might just have to slightly accommodate for a different neck profile.
Best for versatility
Steinberger is probably the king of the headless guitar, with original models fetching thousands of dollars on the used market. Fortunately, Steinberger has relaunched the shape as the Spirit GT-PRO Deluxe, a far more cost-effective way to get your hands on one of these truly wild guitars.
Featuring an HSH pickup configuration paired with an on-board, locking tremolo system, the Spirit GT-PRO Deluxe is probably the most versatile electric travel guitar money can buy when it comes to tones.
It’s not quite as ergonomic as some guitars, particularly if you sit down a lot when you play, but we think that, despite its diminutive size, it could easily be your main instrument. It has all the guts and tone of a bigger-body electric and plays just as you’d hope, with 24 medium-jumbo frets and a familiar 25.5” scale length. The looks won’t be for everyone, but for others, it’s an iconic shape that would make for an ideal part of your collection.
FAQs
What is a travel guitar?
When we’re talking about the best travel guitars, we’re looking for instruments that are physically easier to travel with. Size and weight play a huge part, so the above choices will all be smaller than your regular full-size guitar, which in turn, will make them lighter.
Some might just have slightly reduced dimensions when compared to a full size, making it a little more practical to take out on the go. Others might have completely different designs that render them suitable for taking on planes as hand luggage. How small you want it completely depends on your wants and needs.
Should I choose an electric or acoustic?
Choosing between electric travel guitars and acoustic travel guitars is much like choosing between the two in any other instance, it will be entirely down to what kind of music you play and the sound you’re looking to achieve. There are probably slightly more options for acoustic travel guitars than electrics, particularly at the higher end of the market.
Travel acoustic guitars may suffer from a slight loss of tone and volume due to their size. An acoustic makes its sound from the resonance of its body, as there is less body in which the sound can resonate – a travel guitar will typically not produce as much volume and particularly suffers when it comes to producing big low-end. Some clever construction techniques can mitigate this, but if you’re looking for a big, boomy acoustic, it’s worth investing in a travel acoustic with an integrated pickup, as this can be plugged in to compensate for any lack of volume and low-end.
Travel electrics, on the other hand, may be less comfortable than some of their large-bodied brothers, particularly when sitting down, though this may be negligible when stood up. To combat the smaller frames, some travel electrics, such as the Traveler Guitar Electric Ultra Light, have features such as lap rests to make them more ergonomic.
Are the pickups important?
Though pickups are obviously crucial to the construction of an electric guitar – travel-size or standard – they are also extremely useful for travel acoustics. A travel acoustic will generally be significantly smaller than the likes of a dreadnought acoustic, which means they physically cannot produce the amount of volume of a larger acoustic. The addition of a pickup can help eradicate this issue, giving you the chance to plug into a PA or acoustic amplifier to get additional volume for gigging or louder practice.
Travel electrics may not have the range of pickup options of full-sized guitars, often only having a single pickup – single coil or humbucker – but that doesn’t mean they can’t still be great, just bear in mind that their versatility may be somewhat limited.
Is the scale length important?
The vast majority of travel guitars will have a shorter scale length, which may make the neck feel a little strange to players of full-size instruments. To combat this, some short-scale guitars may reduce the number of frets to give the player a little more room for their fingers – 18 frets spaced over 23”, for example, will give your fingers more space than 22 frets over the same scale. Shorter-scale length guitars can be really helpful for younger players with smaller hands, and a travel guitar may also be perfect for transporting between home and school or guitar lessons, so they could be ideal starter instruments.
If you’re really against short-scale length, there are some travel guitars that have a full-scale length and have cleverly shrunk the rest of the guitar instead.
How we test
At Guitar Player, our team of writers aren't just music enthusiasts; we're real-life musicians. Our hands-on experience with travel guitars ensures that our reviews and recommendations are backed by practical knowledge and real-world testing.
When it comes to selecting the best travel guitars, we leave no stone unturned. Meticulously evaluating factors like tonal versatility, sonic character, build quality, and value for money, it's only after rigorous testing in a variety of playing scenarios do we choose products for our guides. We stand by our selections, ensuring that every set of strings we recommend is one we'd use ourselves.
Read more on how we test gear and service at Guitar Player.
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