Telescopes / For travel
This group

Travel Telescopes

Checked 2026-10-24

Compact kits that fit into backpacks for camping and hiking trips 58 telescopes · 39 brands

For adults For beginners For kids Refractor For moon viewing Portable Tripod included For travel Budget With phone adapter Altazimuth mounts 90mm aperture 80mm aperture Equatorial mounts Reflector 70mm aperture Professional For bird watching For deep sky For astrophotography 600mm focal length Black Smart Digital Dobsonian 800mm focal length Monocular 400mm focal length White 50mm aperture STEM learning Tabletop mounts Maksutov-Cassegrain 130mm aperture 60mm aperture 900mm focal length 114mm aperture 300mm focal length Blue Waterproof 700mm focal length Red Green

Best Travel Telescopes

# Item Level House Notes See listing
1 Travel Telescope with 90mm Aperture and Stool 8.6 Dianfan Travel Telescope with 90mm Aperture and Stool $120 Dianfan For adults · For beginners · For kids
$120 See listing
2 Portable travel refractor with 900mm focal length 9.1 Celticbird Portable travel refractor with 900mm focal length $140 Celticbird For adults · For beginners · Refractor
$140 See listing
3 Tabletop Maksutov Cassegrain compound telescope 8.5 SARBLUE Tabletop Maksutov Cassegrain compound telescope $99.99 SARBLUE For adults · For beginners · For kids
$99.99 See listing
4 Eighty millimeter travel refractor with phone adapter 8.6 Celestron Eighty millimeter travel refractor with phone adapter $117 Celestron For adults · For beginners · Refractor
$117 See listing
5 Refractor telescope with 80mm aperture and 600mm focal length 7.4 Hawkko Refractor telescope with 80mm aperture and 600mm focal length $89.99 Hawkko For adults · For beginners · Refractor
$89.99 See listing
6 Portable 70mm travel refractor telescope for kids Koolpte Portable 70mm travel refractor telescope for kids $56.99 Koolpte Black · Refractor · For kids
$56.99 See listing
7 Compact 90mm Refractor with Travel Tripod 8.3 HUGERSTAR Compact 90mm Refractor with Travel Tripod $110 HUGERSTAR For adults · For beginners · Refractor
$110 See listing
8 Gray 80mm refractor telescope with backpack 8.7 EACONN Gray 80mm refractor telescope with backpack $99.99 EACONN For adults · For beginners · Refractor
$99.99 See listing
9 Mini Pocket Monocular with 8x25 ED Glass 9.0 OLIMT Mini Pocket Monocular with 8x25 ED Glass $69.99 OLIMT For adults · Portable · Monocular
$69.99 See listing
10 Travel 80mm Maksutov Cassegrain with phone adapter 7.9 HOROX Travel 80mm Maksutov Cassegrain with phone adapter $190 HOROX For adults · Portable · Tripod included
$190 See listing
Before you buy

Travel telescope questions

Will a travel telescope fit in a carry-on bag?

The smallest kits, like a 60mm with a 400mm focal length, pack into a backpack that can fit in an overhead bin. An 80mm with a 900mm focal length is longer and may need to be checked or strapped to the outside of a pack. The included bag is sized to the tube and mount.

Can I use a travel telescope for bird watching?

Yes, a refractor with a low-power eyepiece works for birds and wildlife during the day. The altazimuth mount lets you pan smoothly across a field. You may want a tripod that sets up quickly since birds do not wait.

How stable is a travel tripod?

Travel tripods are lighter than full-height stands, so they can shake in a breeze or when you touch the focuser. Setting up on solid ground and keeping the legs short helps. For high magnification, the image may wobble more than with a heavier mount.

What can I see with a 70mm travel refractor?

A 70mm refractor shows the moon's craters, Saturn's rings, Jupiter and its moons, and bright clusters like the Pleiades. From a dark campsite, you can pick out the Orion Nebula and the Andromeda Galaxy as fuzzy patches. It is not enough for faint galaxies or detailed planetary cloud bands.

What travel demands from a telescope

A travel telescope has to collapse into something you can carry on your back or stash in a car trunk without giving up the optics that make it worth bringing. The samples are refractors with apertures from 60mm to 80mm and focal lengths from 400mm to 900mm, paired with altazimuth mounts that break down or fold. The kit usually includes a backpack or carry bag sized to the tube and mount.

Weight and packed size matter more than aperture here, so these scopes trade light-gathering for portability. A 60mm or 70mm refractor fits in a daypack; an 80mm is bulkier but still manageable for camping. The tripod legs are often shorter or collapsible, and the mount head detaches.

Forms and sizes that show up

The travel kits in the samples are almost all refractors, with apertures of 60mm, 70mm, and 80mm and focal lengths of 400mm, 600mm, and 900mm. A 60mm with 400mm focal length is the smallest and lightest, good for moon and landscape views. A 70mm or 80mm with 600mm to 900mm focal length gives more reach for planets and brighter deep-sky objects.

Backpacks and carry bags come with the kits, sometimes with room for a phone adapter and a couple of eyepieces. Colors include black, red, green, blue, and navy, with some leather accents on the bags. The mount is an altazimuth type that moves up-down and left-right.

The trade-off for packing small is a narrower aperture and a lighter mount that can vibrate in wind. These scopes are not meant for long-exposure astrophotography or faint galaxies. They are for quick looks at the moon, planets, and wildlife from a campsite or trailhead.

Related
Portable For adults For kids For beginners Refractor With phone adapter Budget For bird watching