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10 Awesome Travel Toys for Road Trips

Toys, games and puzzles to make the journey more enjoyable

Vicky McDonald
 | 

Published on: June 13, 2021

kids-on-car-trip

Traveling with young kids requires a lot of patience, tons of road trip games, snacks and a couple of toys to keep them busy. Here are 10 clever and compact toys to make that journey a little easier! 

Scavenger hunt card game

These fun cards are perfect for road trips and will keep your kid's eyes, ears and even nose busy looking for clues and answers. The set comes with 54 cards so should keep the whole family amused on a long journey.

Magformers

This clever magnetic construction set has just 14 flat pieces, but you can make lots of silly shapes with them. They're small and compact and will keep them busy for a wee while. 

Travel Tangram Puzzle

This clever puzzle book comes with 10 pieces and 360 different patterns for kids to replicate. All the pieces are magnetic and fit safely inside the book so they won't get lost. It also comes with a nifty travel case. 

 

A busy book

This book is designed to keep little hands busy with buttons, snaps and laces. Thankfully, all of the pieces are tethered inside so there is no danger of them being swallowed up by the back seat. 

Travel coloring kit

Instead of hauling lots of heavy coloring books, this lightweight carrying case has a reusable coloring mat. You slide one of the coloring pages into the plastic mat and color with washable crayons. To start again, simply wipe off the color and begin a new coloring project.

 

Mess-free painting kit

These genius reusable coloring books are ideal for kids who love to paint and parents who like to keep things clean. Simply fill the paintbrush holder with a small amount of water and use it to paint on the special pad. When the paper dries, the color disappears and your kid can start painting all over again. It's the perfect coloring book for any type of journey. 

Minecraft magnetic logic game

If your kids love Minecraft, but you're hoping to ease off electronics for your vacay, this Minecraft-themed logic game is a good bet. It's perfect for long car trips and comes with multi-level challenges for players of different ages and abilities.  

Paint by sticker

No matter where you go, these sticker books are brilliant for keeping kids occupied. Once your sticker book is completed, you can easily take out all the pages and make it into a giant collage for your kid's bedroom. 

 

Barney the Crab

This cute buckle toy is so simple but a real toddler-pleaser with all those clasps and zips to master. It’s small, lightweight and has a secret pocket for your kid to store their little treasures. 

Reusable stickers

Stickers are probably the bane of my life. However, I make an exception for this incredibly clever product. These reusable stickers from Melissa & Doug are sticky enough to stick to the pad, but not on the car (or anywhere else for that matter).

Editor's note: This article was first published in 2019 and has been updated for summer 2021.

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