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The world we are living in is full of options, choices, and interesting things to buy. Never before we had so many products available on the market. It’s easy to get lost in the sea of possibilities, especially when you are thinking about getting something for the little ones. Even though it may sound funny, choosing the best travel gifts for toddlers may be very challenging.
We have colorful, interactive toys, fluffy teddy bears, and travel gadgets. What to buy to make sure both kids and parents will actually love it?
I am talking about parents on purpose- when you want to make a surprise for the kids, make sure the gift will also be ok for their parents too. They won’t bring a huge toy on a trip. The children will cry that they want to pack their new presents, and it won’t be possible. That’s why you need to make sure that the travel gadget for toddlers that you are buying will truly be useful.
With help of our blogging friends, we’ve created this list of the best travel gifts for toddlers. I hope you will love them all as much as we do!
The Melissa and Doug Reusable Sticker Packs
Recommended by Katie from Green Active Family
Our 1.5-year-old has been to 14 countries now, so we’ve developed a bit of expertise in terms of keeping her (and us) happy en route and at our destination.
Kids Bluetooth Headphones
Recommended by Jennifer from Backyard Travel Family
If you are travelling long haul, one of the things kids often look forward to, are the entertainment systems.
We often travel from New Zealand to the USA to visit grandparents and it is a mighty long flight. But they love the new screen time and not having to entertain them for 12 whole hours is certainly a parents’ dream.
However, if you are traveling with a toddler, the headphones provided are usually too big. Parents spend more time putting them back on or figuring out how to allow the kids to listen because in fact they are designed for adults.
So one of the best travel gifts for toddlers is a set of kid’s Bluetooth headphones.
Kids’ headphones are designed for little heads and also have some cute bells and whistles. For example, we have these Riwbox headphones. They light up when the kids are using them and come in a whole lot of fun colors. They even have cat ears for animal lovers.
Bluetooth headphones are great as the kids don’t get tangled in the cords. There are no choking hazards and are just generally easier to use. As well as using these on a plane, they are great for kids to listen to music in the back of the car.
You can have the iPad or device in the front and kids can just have the music to listen to. It’s a great way to keep a toddler entertained while traveling when they have already had enough screen time for today.
Kids’ Camera
Recommended by Celine from Baby Can Travel
A kids’ camera is one of the best travel gifts for toddlers. It is perfect kids as young as 3 years old.
A fun kids’ camera will help your child stay engaged with what’s going on around them and they’ll love to take pictures of the things that interest them. With a digital camera for kids, you can let your child take as many pictures as they want.
What’s even more fun for parents is getting to see the world through your child’s eye. Just make sure that your child’s camera is shockproof because your child will inevitably drop the camera (possibly several times).
As toddlers do, ours both paid a lot of attention to everything we did. When we travel we take a lot of pictures, so our daughter was thrilled to get her very own camera to take her own pictures. We like the added benefit of having easy games on the camera for those daily outings that involve long bus rides or in the car when on a road trip with a toddler.
While we try to keep screen time to a minimum, this is a fun opportunity for our child to play with her camera even more. This also means that we don’t need to carry a bunch of extra items to entertain the kids.
Toddler Travel Mug
The toddler travel mug is one of these small things that may make the little ones happy. They are great both for hot and cold beverages. Plus, they have a silicone seal and straw, so it’s up to your kid how they will use it.
Older toddlers may simply remove the seal and use the cup like the adults. If you want to avoid the risk of spilling the beverage, simply put on the seal and use the mug like any other 360 cup!
If you don’t have enough space to pack the cup with the handle, consider portable silicone toddler travel mug. It’s really small and can be also used by adults!
Kids’ Head Torch
If you are looking for the best travel gifts for toddlers, consider something that will actually be useful not only fun! If you’re a camping family, a kids’ head torch is a must.
Whilst you can get kids head torches with a dinosaur head and other characters, we found practicalities to be more important if you’re regular travelers. You want a kids’ head torch that is lightweight, comfortable, waterproof, and adjustable. It’s also handy if it’s rechargeable, so as not to waste batteries.
Travel Potty
Portable travel potty is one of the best travel gifts for toddlers that parents will also enjoy.
When you are on the road, it’s sometimes hard to find a perfect spot to pee or poo for the little ones. Traveling should not stop the potty training that you have both trying hard to keep every day.
Pottete plus travel is one of the travel gadgets for toddlers that we use on every trip. It’s small and light, you can easily pack it to the backpack. What’s more the potty may be used as a travel seat (to put on the toilet) or as a potty.
You can buy special plastic bags that absorb liquids so after your kid peed, you can throw the used bag away, mess-free. How awesome is that?
See our full toddler travel gear (follow the link).
Board Games
Recommended by Penny from Globe Trove
Finding one for a toddler, however, is a little trickier. The idea is that it needs to be age-appropriate, small enough to be easy to carry, and versatile enough that it should keep them engaged for a long while.
Haba has a large variety of games designed for exactly this age group and some of them are so intuitive that it can keep an adult engaged for long. I found My First Orchard really intriguing and I can’t wait till my kid is old enough to play it.
If you browse through the game, you will notice that it even teaches the kids how to use dice. The dice is large-sized of course
One of the reasons that I think that board games are great gifts is because it keeps a toddler engaged which isn’t always easy. They are also intriguing enough that adults don’t mind playing. Which on the whole means that it is a family activity that can be used on a trip especially if there are unforeseen delays or if the weather acts up.
Ride-on Suitcase
Recommended by Melissa from Thrifty Family Travels
As well as kids being able to ride these suitcases around the airport, they can be used as hand luggage, so kids can take all their favorite things on the plane.
Of course, the main attraction to the Trunki is the fact that the children can ride them through the airport instead of walking. The suitcase has four wheels built into the suitcase as well as two handle type things at the front.
Kids then sit on the suitcase, holding on to the handles and then ride it either by scooting along with themselves or by having an adult pull them along.
The other good thing about the Trunki is that they can be used as somewhere for your child to sit if there aren’t any available seats for them, like when you’re standing in long airport lines. Plus if you’re child no longer wants to ride it, no worries as it comes with a shoulder strap so parents can easily carry it.
The Trunki comes in so many cute colors and designs. There are plain colors like pink or blue, or animals including a tiger, bumblebee, or a pretty little unicorn. There are so many cute designs that there is bound to be something your little toddler will just love.
Travel Tray for Toddlers
Whether you are in the car or on a plane, this travel tray for toddlers will guarantee a safe and mess-free play.
Your kid could play lego, or any other game with small parts and you will be sure nothing is lost.
Fun n Fly travel desk for toddlers is portable and light, so you can easily fit it in a backpack. What’s even more awesome, the tray may be washed in a washing machine, so you can be sure your kids’ play will be always hygienic.
AquaDoodle
Recommended by Sinead from Map Made Memories
The mats are made from fabric so can be washed and used again but can also be folded or rolled so are lightweight for traveling with toddlers. Once you have the Aquadoodle pens and mats you only need water to ensure endless fun and learning for your child.
The Aquadoodle mats come in an array of sizes so large mats can be used to spread out on the floor of a hotel or at the beach whereas small mats can be used on airplanes or cafe tables. Our family likes traveling by train and we have found Aquadoodle to be the perfect toy to entertain young children in small spaces.
The no-mess feature of Aquadoodle means that you can use them on public transport, in rental cars, and in restaurants. Plus, they will not break like wax crayons tend to or run out like felt tip pens. Aquadoodle will be a travel toy that will last for years and will follow your child as they develop from shapes and scribbles to words and pictures.
The Shrunks Inflatable Travel Bed
Recommended by Amanda from Toddling Traveler
It’s also lightweight enough that you can easily pack it in a suitcase or even a backpack without taking up too much packing space.
That means that unlike some toddler cots that only work when you’re driving to your destination, you can easily bring this toddler travel bed with you when flying. Toddlers will love having their own bed, and it takes a standard crib size sheet. That means you don’t need to purchase any special bedding.
This travel bed especially works well if you’re sharing a room as a family and need the extra bed. It was perfect for us on a recent trip to Disney with toddlers when sleeping with five people in one room. Although this was originally purchased as a practical Christmas gift from the grandparents, my toddler loves it so much that he will often ask to get out his “blow up bed” just for fun.
Travel Pillows For Toddlers
When you are traveling for the entire day, taking a good, long nap may be a life-saver. Most kids fall asleep in a car easily, however, your job is to make sure their nap will be long enough!
It won’t be possible without a proper travel pillow for toddlers. The one from Trunki supports kids’ necks. It also has magnetic paws in the front that guarantees a comfortable chin rest.
Trunki travel pillow for toddlers come in different colors and shapes, so you can be sure your child will love it!
Scratch Map For Kids
Recommended by Tori from Tori Leigh
Children and families that love to travel will enjoy receiving a travel map to display their family vacation memories.
A push pin or scratch map provides a visual for where your family lives and where you have visited. Children also love seeing and choosing new destinations when looking at the map.
See how close or far something is and if you can get there by driving, plane, or boat. Families can point out new cities and countries and use the map to initiate a dialogue about different places and cultures. It’s also fun to remember past destinations and trip memories.
You can build your own DIY push pin travel map with a canvas map, an inexpensive frame, and cork. Any gorgeous map can then make the perfect gift! Even toddlers can enjoy the family DIY project, finding destinations, and placing pins into the cities you’ve visited, safely of course. The process is a great opportunity to re-shared memories.
Ready to mount pin maps are available for purchase, as well as scratch maps. If pin maps worry you, scratch maps are a fun and safe alternative. For toddlers, a scratch map can sit at eye level and provide more independent interaction.
Kid Binoculars
Recommended by Umang from Travel Max
Travel Harness For Toddlers
Let’s face it- running around is in kids’ nature. They love discovering the world, learning new things, touching, jumping, asking weird questions. You can’t stop it. While it’s fun at home, it may be quite dangerous when you are on the road.
Travel harness for toddlers may be a really good idea to bring on the trip. It’s safe both for kids and parents. Your toddlers could still walk by themselves but you will be in control of how far they could go.
It’s not good to use it all the time (at the end of the day, we all need some freedom!) but using it in risky situations like walking along the busy street will be great both for kids and the parents.
We don’t use travel harness for toddlers when we travel but we found a good alternative that our baby girl loves- a backpack with a leash.
It works just like the harness but the kids feel better when they can carry a backpack with their favorite toy or snack when they travel.
Plus, the Skip Hop backpacks with leashes are super cute, they come in different shapes and designs. Mia chose a giraffe but we also considered a pink and blue butterfly and a red ladybug.
My Travel Journal From Lonely Planet
Recommended by Nisha from Nerdy Footsteps
The journal is full of suggestions for writing topics, lists, and lots more fill-in fun. Not only will this keep them entertained, but it will also help them to record their memories. The journal also poses some questions to be filled in that will motivate young travelers to observe the new surroundings and learn about the new destination.
It has ample amount of space to write, draw, and color, so kids can use the notebook in their own preferred style. With its bright neon cover and fun drawings and illustrations inside, this journal especially catered towards kids.
This makes for a wonderful gift for parents as well. They can be involved in this journaling activity, either by giving them, even more, prompts or just helping them observe the surroundings more deeply. By the end of the trip, parents and kids will have perfect memorabilia for years to come. Feel free to buy yours now!
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Did you enjoy reading this post about the best travel gifts for toddlers? Let us know in the comments below!
One Response
Wow! You have a very good list of gifts! I noticed children’s headphones with bluetooth. We often travel by plane and sometimes
it’s so hard to keep your son in one place for hours. I think this is exactly what we need.