1. The list in brief
2. Best for most people
3. Best value travel camera
4. Best-looking travel camera
5. Best action camera
6. Best tough camera
7. Best premium compact
8. Best small full-frame
9. Best hybrid travel vlogger
10. Best for moving subjects
11. Best superzoom bridge
12. How to choose
13. How we test
Weekend break or long-haul getaway, the best travel cameras will help you shoot stunning images of your adventures. From premium compacts to lightweight mirrorless models, we’ve tested the best travel cameras and ranked our favorites in the comprehensive list below. Wherever you’re heading, our expert guide is designed to help you find the ideal option for your skills and budget.
We think the best travel camera for most people right now is the OM System OM-5. It pairs smartphone-beating image quality with the flexibility of interchangeable lenses, and packs it all up in a shell that’s weatherproof and portable.
You’ll find a wide range of top travel cameras below, including some of the best mirrorless cameras. Our experts have spent countless hours testing the best options in real-world settings, taking them on the move to assess how convenient each one is to use, shoot and travel with. We’ve distilled the results to make your choice clearer, and included some useful buying advice to keep in mind when deciding.
Tim is TechRadar's Cameras editor, with over 15 years in the photo video industry and most of those in the world of tech journalism, Tim has developed a deeply technical knowledge and practical experience with all things camera related. He’s also worked in video production with clients including Canon, and volunteers his spare time to consult a non-profit, diverse stories team based in Nairobi.
The quick list
If you don’t have time to read our full list of the best travel cameras, you can read the round-up below for a shortcut to the top options for your needs and budget. If you find one that takes your fancy, use the links to jump to our full write-up.
The best travel camera overall
Squeezing a host of features into a compact, weatherproof body that’s compatible with a range of lenses, the OM-5 is the ideal travel camera.
The best value travel camera
With a large 1-inch sensor and useful 15x optical zoom, the Panasonic TZ200 puts smartphone-beating performance in your pocket.
The best-looking travel camera
Don’t be fooled by its lovely retro looks: the Nikon Z fc is every bit the modern travel camera, with a useful touchscreen and top image quality.
The best action camera for travel
Small but powerful, the GoPro Hero 11 Black uses a new 8:9 aspect ratio to offer enhanced framing flexibility, ideal for sharing travel videos to social.
The best tough travel camera
If your travels take you off the beaten track, the Olympus Tough TG-6 is an intuitive rugged camera that can deliver decent results in difficult situations.
The best premium compact
With a fixed 23mm focal length and small form factor, the X100V is a powerful tool for street photography, producing detailed, realistic stills.
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The best small full-frame camera
Combining a small form factor with a high-res 61MP sensor and fantastic autofocus, the Sony A7C R is the best full-frame camera for travel photography.
The best hybrid for travel vlogging
A capable sensor and automated settings, including a Vlogging mode, make the Fujifilm X-S20 an accessible tool for stills and video on the go.
The best for moving subjects
The compact A6700 uses AI-powered autofocus to reliably snap on to animals, insects, cars and more. The Fuji X-S20 is better for video, though.
The best superzoom camera
Even with a 1-inch sensor, the Sony RX10 IV delivers sharp stills and video, with the added versatility of a generous 24-600mm zoom range.
The best travel cameras in 2023
Why you can trust TechRadar We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.
Below you'll find full write-ups for each of the best travel cameras in our list. We've tested each one extensively, so you can be sure that our recommendations can be trusted.
The best travel camera overall
✅ You want a robust travel camera: Light enough to travel with but tough enough to deal with bad weather, the OM-5 is a ruggedly dependable camera.
✅ You shoot handheld a lot: The OM-5 has excellent image stabilization for stills, meaning you can cross a tripod off your packing list.
❌ You want the best image quality: Its Micro Four Thirds sensor is decent enough, but some rivals offer more pixels and better low light performance.
❌ You have large hands: Handling is surprisingly good for a small camera, but the grip is not very deep, especially for those with bigger hands.
The OM-5 is only a relatively minor update of the Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark III, but its combination of talents make it an ideal travel camera in our book – particularly if you want the flexibility of interchangeable lenses. It shoehorns a lot of features into a compact, weatherproof body that's compatible with a wealth of equally small lenses. Most of its skills, including excellent in-body image stabilization and computational photography modes, are also designed with travelers and adventurers in mind.
Our testing found that, for its size, the OM-5 delivers excellent video and stills quality, which is bolstered by a stabilization system (good for 6.5-stops of compensation) that gives you a high hit-rate of keepers. We also enjoyed the high-quality feel of the camera's dials and those in-camera software tricks, like Live ND and in-camera focus stacking, which are ideal for macro shots or blurring skies, surf and water for an ethereal effect. Less good are the fairly average EVF resolution, 4K/30p limit for video and relative limitations of its smaller sensor, but these are all acceptable trade-offs considering this camera's size and price.
Read our in-depth OM System OM-5 review
The best-value travel camera
✅ You want an all-in-one compact: You can’t beat the TZ200 for portability, but it’s also a feature-packed option with a useful zoom range and 1.0-inch sensor.
✅ You want a large zoom range: At 15x optical zoom, the TZ200 offers the versatility to shoot all sorts of subjects on your travels.
❌ You like an ergonomic grip: The Lumix TZ200 has plenty of manual controls on the metal body, but there’s not much of a grip to get your fingers around.
❌ You want a cheap camera: Its generous feature set makes the TZ200 excellent value, but its still pretty pricey for a premium compact.
With smartphones now raising the bar for point-and-shoot photography, compact cameras have to offer something special to justify their place in your travel bag. The ZS200 / TZ200 does that with its large 1-inch sensor and versatile 15x optical zoom. It might be towards the upper end of the 'budget' compact camera market, but Panasonic's travel zoom continues to offer great value.
Its large 1in sensor produces better natural image quality than most smartphones, despite the latter's advances in multi-frame processing. Our tests found colors to be nice and punchy, with the dynamic range allowing you to recover lost shadow detail with post-processing if needed. Even at 24mm, vignetting and distortion is nicely controlled. There's also a handy built-in electronic viewfinder, which makes it easier to compose images in bright light. It's still quite pricey, but this is still the best travel zoom compact camera available right now.
Read our in-depth Panasonic Lumix ZS200 / TZ200 review
The best-looking travel camera
✅ You care about camera design: From the retro dials to the circular viewfinder, the Nikon Z fc channels classic style to fantastic effect.
✅ You like manual exposure control: Dedicated dials for ISO, shutter speed and exposure, complemented by a lens control ring, give excellent manual control.
❌ You need a wide choice of lenses: There are only a handful of Z-series kit lenses designed for the APS-C format, limiting your options for expansion.
❌ You want a rugged camera: Although it looks like the sturdy FM2, the Z fc isn’t weather-sealed, so it’s not one to take on rainy adventures.
Travel photography is all about capturing memories and Nikon’s Z fc fully embraces the concept of nostalgia: it’s a stunning homage to the 30-year-old Nikon FM2 – complete with retro styling, dimensions and dials. Despite the throwback design, it’s a very modern camera inside, sharing many of its specs with the capable Nikon Z50. While some photographers might wish for a full-frame sensor, the Z fc’s APS-C number does a stellar job of capturing stills and 4K video, aided by reliable tracking autofocus. Our tests found that its 20.9MP sensor had an excellent handle on noise, especially under ISO 800, while dynamic range was impressive.
Its vari-angle touchscreen is also a brilliant addition, making it easy to frame travel selfies – or folding away completely for a leather-back look that lets you pretend it's the Eighties. The Nikon Z fc isn’t as sturdy as the camera that inspired it (there’s no weatherproofing, for example), but it’s still a beautifully unique camera for casual use. And with dedicated dials for ISO, shutter speed and exposure, plus a customizable lens ring, it’s also an easy one to control on the go.
Read our in-depth Nikon Z fc review
The best action camera for travel
✅ You want a rugged travel camera: Waterproof down to 10m, the GoPro Hero 11 Black is a great choice for capturing action-packed travels.
✅ You plan to share on social: The 8:7 aspect ratio of its sensor gives you lots of flexibility to crop footage for social, including vertical videos.
❌ You plan to shoot in low light: Its 1/1.9in sensor shoots sharp footage, but it still struggles with noise handling in lower lighting conditions.
❌ You want a hybrid for stills: While the sensor can shoot 27MP stills, you’ll get a better photography experience from a standard alternative.
Thanks to a new 1/1.9in sensor with an 8:9 aspect ratio, we think the GoPro Hero 11 Black is the top action camera for travelers. Its max resolution of 5.3K/60p is the same as the Hero 10 Black, but the option to reframe footage for different social channels without sacrificing quality is a big deal if you like to share your adventures. So is the ability to capture dramatic TimeWarps at 5.3K, raw bursts at 30fps, and 24.7MP stills from 5.3K video.
Physically identical to the Hero 10 Black, the Hero 11 Black ships with the larger Enduro battery as standard, giving more time between recharges on the road. Its updated interface lets you tweak the user experience, with ‘Easy’ and ‘Pro’ modes to suit your skill level. It proved a polished tool in testing, wrapped up in familiarly robust housing. Improved Horizon Lock and HyperSmooth 5.0 smarts also do a remarkable job of stabilizing handheld video. Stills quality can’t compete with a proper camera, but the Hero 11 Black is still an impressively rugged, pocket-friendly choice for adventurous travelers.
Read our in-depth hands-on GoPro Hero 11 Black review