Unique Best Man Gifts That Aren't a Hip Flask, Cufflinks or a Pocket Knife

Search for best man gifts and you'll be offered the same handful of things on repeat: an engraved hip flask, a pair of cufflinks, a pocket knife and, if the groom is feeling generous, maybe even a swanky watch. None of them is a bad gift. They're just the gifts that tend to be given to everyone.

But your best man isn't everyone.

He's the one who has been on call for months: organising the stag, wrangling the group chat and writing the speech that will either land perfectly or become family folklore.

The most meaningful gift for a best man is something tied to a shared interest or a shared memory, rather than to the wedding itself. 

And that’s where maps enter the room of perfect gifts…!

Everyone I’ve ever met has a fascination with maps to some degree (unless my friends are all total map aficionados too…) and they resonate on so many levels.  Whilst we traditionally think of a map as a navigational aid, they can often hold many sentimental memories of a place once visited, or an occasion that needs to be marked in ink for prosperity. Maps are also used to mark a series of places that have a significant meaning to the recipient, and are referred to time and again.

For example:

A map of Scotland's whisky distilleries is a wonderful gift for the whisky connoisseur, a Top 100 golf courses map for the golf enthusiast, a classic racing circuit print for the petrolhead, a Munros map for the walker, or a personalised map of the place where your friendship began.

Why a map makes a better best man gift

It's about him, not the wedding. A hip flask engraved with a date is a souvenir of your wedding. A map of his favourite golf courses or the hills he keeps threatening to climb is a gift for him.

He'll actually keep it. Flasks and cufflinks tend to retire to a drawer after the big day. A framed print goes on a wall, in a study or office, where it gets seen every day.

It carries a story. A map is a place, and places are where stories happen. The best ones start conversations ("have you been to that one?") and quietly say I know what you're into.

Gifts for the whisky lover: the Scottish whisky distilleries map

Best for: the man who already owns a flask and has opinions about peat.

If your best man's idea of a good evening involves a dram and a long debate, this is the upgrade on the traditional whisky gift. 

Mapelio's Scottish Whisky Distilleries map plots 152 distilleries across a topographical map of Scotland, with each whisky-producing region grouped together and the grain distilleries that underpin blended whisky included.

It's part artwork, part planning document. Pair it with a bottle from a distillery on the map and you've given him a gift and the excuse for a road trip, whether that's Speyside, Islay or somewhere in between.

Gifts for the golfer: the Top 100 golf courses map of the UK and Ireland

Best for: the friend with a handicap he mentions more often than he should.

Every golfer has a list in his head of the courses he's played and the ones he's desperate to. 

Mapelio's Top 100 Golf Courses map of the UK and Ireland turns that list into something he can hang on the wall. Rankings are taken from the Top 100 Golf Courses listings compiled by a panel of international experts, with each course pinned to its exact location and listed in rank order beneath the map.

It makes a natural bucket list, and an even better pact: we play them all. If you're giving it to your best man, you're also quietly booking yourself a few golf weekends.

Gifts for the petrolhead: motor racing circuit maps

Best for: the one who has opinions about tyre strategy and never misses a race weekend.

Mapelio's motor racing circuit maps cover everything from Formula One venues such as Silverstone, Monaco, Monza and Spa-Francorchamps to the Nürburgring Nordschleife, Goodwood, Brands Hatch and the Isle of Man TT course. There's also a good spread of American circuits, including Indianapolis and Daytona.

The trick is to choose the circuit that means something. The track where you watched your first race together, the one he's lapped on a track day, or the one that's on his list. Sizes run from A4 to A1, so there's a version for most budgets.

Gifts for the walker: the Munros map

Best for: the friend who owns more waterproofs than sense and is always "up a hill" at the weekend.

The Munros are Scotland's mountains over 3,000 feet, first catalogued by Sir Hugh Munro in 1891, and the current list stands at 282. Mapelio's Munros contour map marks every one at its true location, lists them by elevation in descending order and includes a designated space to mark each one off once it's climbed. It comes in two styles, topographical and minimalist.

If he's already ticked off a few, it's a scoreboard. If he hasn't started, it's an invitation, and you've just given yourself a plan for the next few years of long weekends.

For the mate with a shared story: personalised maps

Best for: the friend you've known for years, and the places that made the friendship.

Sometimes the most thoughtful gift isn't about a hobby at all. It's about where it all happened. 

Mapelio's personalised maps let you design a custom map of any place that matters, choosing from a range of styles, colours and sizes, framed or as a fine art print. You can also create a street name map in the style of a classic Monopoly street.

Ideas that work well:

• The university town where you met, or the student street you shared
• The holiday that everyone still talks about: the island, the city or the villa
• The stag destination, as a keepsake of the weekend he organised
• The village or town you both grew up in
• The first house or flat you shared as a street name map

Add a short handwritten note on the back of the frame or in the card. It's the inside joke, not the artwork, that people remember.

Which map for which best man? A quick guide

When to give it, how much to spend and how long to allow

When: The rehearsal dinner is the most common moment for the best man's gift, usually alongside the ushers (or groomsmen if you’re across the pond). If you've chosen a framed print, a quiet moment the evening before, with a card, beats handing it over in front of a crowd.

How much: There's no fixed rule. One UK retailer suggests a starting point of roughly 10 to 25 per cent of what the best man is spending to take part in the wedding, and it's a common convention to spend a little more on the best man than on the rest of the wedding party, but the real truth is that the meaning of the gift should outweigh the cost by a long margin.

How long to allow: Mapelio maps are made to order, and delivery is typically four to ten business days, longer at peak times. Free shipping is available to the UK, USA, Australia and the EU. Personalised maps need a little more thinking time, so start early and leave a few weeks before the wedding.

Every map is printed on 200gsm fine art paper, designed in our Cotswolds studio, and available either as a print or in a handmade wooden frame, ready to hang.

Best man gift FAQs

What is a good unique gift for a best man?

A gift linked to a shared interest or memory works best: a whisky distilleries map for the whisky fan, a golf courses map for the golfer, a racing circuit map for the motorsport fan, a Munros map for the walker, or a personalised map of a place that matters to your friendship.

What can I give my best man instead of a hip flask or cufflinks?

Choose something he'll display rather than store away. Framed map prints are a good alternative, because they're personal, decorative and tied to something he cares about, whether that's whisky, golf, motorsport, hillwalking or the place you met.

Who buys the best man a gift?

Traditionally the groom (and often the bride too) gives the wedding party a thank-you gift ahead of the big day. The best man usually gets a slightly more special gift than the ushers.

When should you give the best man his gift?

Most couples give it at the rehearsal dinner. Some give it at the stag, or in the days before the wedding.

How much should you spend on a best man gift?

There's no set amount. A common rule of thumb is 10 to 25 per cent of what the best man is spending to be part of the wedding, but don’t sweat it - a gift with real meaning will hit the perfect note regardless of budget.

I'm the best man. What should I give the couple?

A personalised map of the place they met, got engaged or are getting married makes a thoughtful gift for the couple, and one they can hang in their first home together.

Finding the right map

A best man gift doesn't need to be expensive or extravagant. It just needs to show that you know him. Browse Mapelio's Scottish whisky distilleries, Top 100 golf courses, motor racing circuits and Munros maps, or design a personalised map of the place where your friendship began.