26+ Best Road Trip Toys for Kids, Toddlers, and Babies [2024]

SEARCHING FOR THE BEST ROAD TRIP TOYS?

We can help! We’ve been traveling with kids since 2015, so we have spent a lot of time on road trips with kids. And I mean a lot. We spend about 6 months a year living full-time in our motorhome, exploring the coasts, national parks, and everything in between.

All this driving has really given us some time to figure out these helpful tips and road trip toys for kids.

How do you survive a road trip with kids?

A lot of articles on this subject talk about how to survive a road trip with your kids and honestly, I don’t like this idea. If you go into something with the mentality of just surviving it, that is probably just what you will do. Just surviving doesn’t sound like very much fun to me.

Have a good attitude and determination that you’ll enjoy it. Your attitude will rub off on everyone else on the trip and it will be a more enjoyable experience all around. You want to enjoy your vacation, not just survive it.

How do I keep my child entertained on a road trip?

Keeping your children entertained on a road trip is a balance of letting them entertain themselves and having a good supply of road trip games, crafts, entertainment, and activities. The kids do not need entertained 24-7 in the car.

Rowen and Raven started to pretend play with each other in the car on our west coast road trip and it was the best. Sometimes they would go a long time playing with each other. There were no questions for me, and I was not scrambling to come up with things to entertain them with.

I have found they are most likely to entertain themselves when they had their toys from home that they played pretend with often. They played Paw Patrol and princesses all while riding down the road in the motorhome. It is one of our best tips for road trips with kids.

Travel Toys for Kids

Before heading out on any vacation with kids, I find some new and inexpensive toys to bring. My favorite place to find the best deals is the bargain section at Target and the dollar store.

During our vacation to the Florida beaches, we found all types of toys – small Legos, babies, small plastic animals, and simple activities. The kids always enjoy having a new activity or toy to keep them entertained in the car.

Also, let the kids pick out some of their favorite small fun toys to bring from home. My kids are the most creative with the toys they have played with a bunch.

Road Trip Toys for Kids

There are a bunch of different activities, crafts, and games that our kids really enjoy doing during our road trip with kids. My kids don’t need help with most of the activities, so my participation is limited which is so nice!

Here is a list of our favorite road trip toys for kids.

1. Me Readers

These Me Readers are one of our favorite road trip activities for kids. My three-year-old and six-year-olds both love them. We have two different sets that my kids share, and they have been so loved during our road trips. They are really easy to use and keep the attention of kids of any age group very well.

👉 Click on Any Image Below to Shop Me Readers 👈

2. ISpy

Another entertaining book that my six-year-olds can do on their own is the ISpy books. They enjoy finding the different items on the page and seeing who can find something the fastest.

▶ Check Prices Here for the ISpy Book!

3. Highlights Sticker Books

Another activity book set that we always have during our road trip with kids Highlight Sticker Books. My six-year-olds have really gotten into these books over the last year. We do cut the sticker book pages apart to make it easier to stay on the right page so having a small set of scissors on hand is helpful.

▶ Check Prices Here for the Highlight Sticker Books!

4. Puffy Sticker Books

These reusable sticker books are so nice because your kids can use them over and over. The puffy style of reusable stickers is so much easier to get off the pages and is very kid-friendly.

▶ Check Prices Here for the Puffy Sticker Books!

5. twistable-colored pencils

The twistable-colored pencils are very nice because you don’t have to worry about sharpening them. It is really easy to keep them in a zip pouch and pull them out to color when you are driving down the road.

The only downfall of the twist-colored pencils is using them with the toddler age. My toddler will sometimes make the colored pencil way too long by twisting the top and then it just breaks off.

▶ Check Prices for Twistable-Colored Pencils Here!

6. Coloring Books

Coloring books are one of my kids’ favorites during a road trip. A coloring book is some of the best travel toys for kids as well as toddlers. They are perfect regardless of the age of your child.

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7. Sticker Face Books

The sticker facebooks are so much fun! My six-year-olds love doing these sticker books when we go in our motorhome. There are a variety of different themes ranging from pirates to princesses.

Tip: Instead of ripping the faces out, tear the stickers out instead. This will keep all of the faces in the book and will keep your vehicle much tidier. Then the big kids can go back and look at their face art.

▶ Check Prices for Sticker Face Books Here!

8. Scratch Art

Another idea to foster creativity during the car trip is scratch art. The pages come all black and then the kids can use a wooden pencil to scratch off the black, revealing a vibrant and neon background. Your kids can draw different designs in the book and keep their artwork neatly collected in the book.  

You can also buy pattern books with unicorns or outer space.

▶ Check Prices for Scratch Art Books Here!

9. Boogie Board

Boogie boards are a great way to color, draw and practice writing during your road trip. Younger toddlers will enjoy scribbling and drawing on the board and can easily erase with the push of a button. My older kids still enjoy coloring on the board but also use it to spell things that we see during our trip.

No matter the age you are planning for your road trip with kids, these will be a hit!

Tip: If your board doesn’t come with the stylus attached to the board, tie a string on the stylus to prevent losing it. We have lost so many styluses.  

▶ Check Prices for Boogie Boards on Amazon Here!

10. Magnetic puzzles

For more hands-on entertainment, these magnetic puzzles are a lot of fun! The magnetic part of the magnetic puzzles make it really easy to do in the car without the worry of easily losing pieces. You can buy a couple of different puzzles and pass them around in the car.

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11. Plus plus blocks

A STEM toy that older kids really enjoy during a road trip is plus plus blocks. There is one shape of block in the set but that can be used to build endless designs. You can use them to create 3D designs as well as flat mosaics. These blocks are suitable for kids starting around the age of five.

The best way to store the plus plus blocks is a zipper pencil pouch. The blocks are smaller so if you think your child may have a hard time keeping track of the pieces, you can bring a couple of trays to keep the blocks on.  

▶ Check Prices for Plus Plus Blocks Here!

12. Bop it

Bop It is one of the fun and easy travel games that can easily entertain the whole family during your next family trip. If you are sitting close enough to each other, you can pass it back and forth or kids can use the game individually. There is some noise in the game so keep that in mind.  

▶ Check Prices for Bop It Here!

13. Glow bracelets

If you are going to be driving in the dark, glow bracelets are a really fun idea to give to kids. My girls love seeing the neon colors in the glow sticks and helps us get through the last few miles of our drive before we get to our campground.

▶ Check Prices for Glow Bracelets Here!

14. Fashion Design Art Activity Set

A fashion design art set is one of my kids’ favorite art activities lately. They love getting to design the outfits and then scratching the design onto the paper. It comes in a very nice carrying case which makes it a good road trip toy.

▶ Check Prices on Fashion Design Set Here!

15. Would You Rather Questions

While this isn’t necessarily a toy, Would You Rather is a great book that will provide endless entertainment for both you and your kids during your road trip. This is a great way to foster communication and help promote thought-provoking questions.

This is a great way to develop critical thinking, creativity, and friendly debate skills in kids.

▶ Check Prices for Would You Rather Here!

16. Paint by Sticker Books

Another really fun road trip toy for kids starting at about age 5 or 6 is Paint by Sticker books. Kids will love getting to find the stickers and matching them up to make fun art pieces. Kids should be old enough to get the stickers off the page and find the matching number.

This is also a great activity to keep kids entertained in a hotel room.

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17. Scavenger Hunt for Kids

Another fun card game to play in the car is Scavenger Hunt for Kids. This is a fun way to get kids to look out the window, enjoy the scenery, and be on the lookout for their scavenger hunt items.

You could bring some fun new treats or small prizes for the winners to encourage everyone to participate.

▶ Check Prices Here for Scavenger Hunt for Kids!

18. Ipad

We do have a couple of iPads we bring during our road trip with kids. We don’t bring them out every time we drive but they are nice to have on days where I am tired and want the kids to really entertain themselves.

Before we leave, we download shows off Netflix as well as educational apps. They usually have to do some time on the educational apps before getting to watch shows. We also don’t usually bring the iPads out until we have been driving for a while.

▶ Check Prices for an Ipad Here!

19. Ipad case

Our Ipads have been dropped so many times and this style of Ipad case really holds up against being used by three kids. We have not had any problems with broken screens or the case breaking. Having a good Ipad case is one of our road trip essentials with kids.

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20. Headphones

If you are going to have multiple kids on devices at a time, it will save some sanity to have headphones for each of the kids. You can also use these compact headphones if you fly with your kids.

▶ Check Prices for Kids Headphones Here!

Road Trip Toys for Toddlers

Having age-appropriate road trip toys for your toddler will make your driving time go so much smoother. It will help keep them entertained and it will be much less stressful for you. Try to have your toddler sit as close to your seat as you can so you can help with getting activities set up or picking up dropped toys.

21. Water Wow

Water Wow is a great coloring activity that uses water on the pages and when it dries, the pages go back to white and you can color them again. You can skip all of the messy paints in the car but still have your kids feel like they are painting. The small water paintbrush can be difficult to fill while you are driving so fill it up before you start driving.

We love the Water Wow books for a road trip with kids through about age four, making it one of the best toddler travel toys. By the time kids get around the age of five I don’t think these books are quite as effective for keeping kids entertained. The water painting gets too easy and only lasts a few minutes.  

▶ Check Prices for Water Wow Here!

22. Imagine Ink

Imagine Ink is a great alternative to the Water Wow for older kids as well as younger kids that you don’t want to get markers all over them. We consider these coloring books to be one of our road trip essentials for kids.

One time I gave my one-year-old regular markers, and by the time we got to our campsite, she had drawn all over her legs. Instead of using a water paintbrush, there are markers that only work on the coloring pages. My kids love the Imagine Ink books.

Amazon has a great selection of Imagine Ink. I also frequently find these in the dollar section at Target.

▶ Check Prices for Imagine Ink Books Here!

23. Color Wonder

Another great mess-free option for coloring in the car is Color Wonder. These toddler toys are special markers and paper that only work with each other. If the markers are used on anything besides the Color Wonder paper they are just clear.

Color Wonder is a great option if your toddler or child likes to pick their colors and doesn’t just want to use one paintbrush or color when they are coloring.

👉 Click on Any Image Below to Shop Color Wonder Books 👈

24. Lacing Cards

Another great road trip toy for older toddlers and younger kids is lacing cards. The lacing cards require focus and concentration which will help keep them focused and occupied while you are driving. It is a great toy for developing fine motor skills.

These lacing cards come in all sorts of fun designs like animals, dinosaurs, princesses, and unicorns. We have the unicorn and mermaid set and my kids love them.

▶ Check Prices for Lacing Cards Here!

25. Leapfrog 100 Animal Book

The Leapfrog 100 Animal Book is a very interactive and educational book that toddlers will love. We have one of these and my six-year-olds will also pick it up from time to time. There are lots of noises that will help to keep your toddler entertained during your drive. There are lots of buttons for their little hands to push.

This is also a great educational resource as your toddler starts learning about wildlife.

▶ Check Prices Here for the Leapfrog 100 Animal Book!

26. Board Books

Without fail, my toddler loves reading books in the car. I will usually pick one new book and then just bring some of her favorites from home. We will bring a bin for her toys and books so I can easily pick them up when we are stopped for lunch or fuel. I store this bin in front of her seat so it is easily accessible.

Here are some of our family’s favorite board books.

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Road Trip Toys for Babies

When going on your next family road trip, try to place your baby as close to an adult who isn’t driving, older siblings, or family member. Without a doubt, babies are going to throw a lot of their toys out of reach and will need to be given new toys while they are awake. I usually put the baby behind the passenger seat so I can easily hand them different road trip toys.

A great way to avoid a baby throwing things on the ground is to get toys that attach to his or her car seat. There are lots of great toys with fun colors and sounds that are very entertaining for babies. You can also buy toy straps that will make it harder for the baby to throw the toy onto the ground.

It is also nice to go on a road trip with a baby because you can time a lot of the driving around when the baby sleeps. When we drive in our RV with a baby, we try to time our departure time to be around nap time.

Here is a list of some of our favorite travel toys. Also, don’t be afraid to bring some of the toys you already have from home, especially if he or she has a favorite toy.

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FAQs – Road Trip Toys

How do you pack toys for a road trip?

Organizing your road trip toys is an important part of preparing for a road trip. You need to have your toys easily available for your kids to get. If you are driving there and back, you may want to save some of the crafts, new toys, or activities for your drive home as well. I will usually give the kids half of the new things on the drive to our destination and the other half on the way home.

We have two different ways that we organize road trip toys. The first way is with a kids’ backpack. I give my backpacks to kids when I feel like they are old enough to manage putting items back in their backpacks and managing their activities.

Before that, I keep a large bin within arm’s reach where I can hand babies and young kids their toys. The bin makes it really easy to see what toy choices we have and it is very easy to clean the toys up.

There are also great organizing trays and hangers that you can put in your car that make organizing road trip toys very easy. The tray options are great for toddlers because everything is within reach and lots of them come with a hard surface area great for coloring and playing with toys. The hanging options are great for elementary-aged kids who can reach and put away their toys.

Hanging and Middle Seat Organizers

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Backpacks

We have found kids’ backpacks are one of our road trip essentials for kids when we drive. They can keep their toys and snacks within their reach and manage to get some things for themselves. This is especially helpful when we are in the motorhome and I can’t reach where they are sitting.

How do you keep kids entertained on a road trip?

Making sure you have entertainment for your kids during a road trip is the first thing you can do to set yourself up for success. This doesn’t mean you have to entertain them the entire time but you give them enough activities that they can keep themselves entertained.

Along with toys, we have found games, podcasts, and having enough snacks will make your road trip go smoothly.

Podcasts

Before hitting the road, do some research about different podcasts your kids might enjoy. My older kids love having something on the radio that they enjoy listening to whether it is Disney music, an audiobook, or a podcast.

Here are some of the highly recommended podcasts for kids:

• Sparkle Stories
• Tumble Science
• But Why
• Brains On
• Circle Round
• Reading Big
• Story Pirates
• Finn Caspian

Road Trip Snacks for Kids

Bringing plenty of snacks is one of our road trip essentials with kids. Snacks for the kids. Snacks for the adults. That’s how we work. We usually bring about double the snacks we think we will need.

Somehow after a huge breakfast, everyone is hungry an hour later. Our day always runs more smoothly when we have plenty of food on hand. We aren’t stressed about finding things that the girls will enjoy.

Our family has found it best to eat relatively healthy snacks like granola bars, cherry tomatoes, grapes, apples, cheese, crackers, and nuts because they leave us feeling better than really sugary foods.

We love giving the kids their snacks in the Munchkin Snack Catchers. They are easy to refill, and we don’t have to worry about the girls spilling their snacks everywhere.

Here are some of our favorite snacks to eat while we are on the road:

• Cheese sticks
• Ziploc bag filled with goldfish, veggie straws, pretzels, Chex mix, or crackers
• Fruit snacks
• Cut up fresh fruits like strawberries, grapes, blueberries, or oranges
• Apple sauce pouches
• Popcorn
• Mixed nuts
• Pepperoni sticks or jerky
• Gogurts
• Fresh vegetables like cherry tomatoes, sugar snap peas, and carrots

If you are going to be feeding more fresh fruits, veggies, and cheeses, we recommend these snack dividers. They make it really easy for the kids to get the snacks that they want.

▶ Check Prices for Snack Dividers Here!

What to bring for long car rides with kids?

Making sure you have what you need before heading out on a long road trip with your kids will make all the difference for your trip. The main categories I make sure to cover are food, water, entertainment, and comfort items.  

Tips for Road trip activities for kids   

Along with making sure you are equipped with enough snacks and entertainment, there are a few things you can do to make sure you have a great road trip with kids.

1. Allow plenty of time to reach your destination

The longer we traveled on our road trip with kids, the more we found this to be true. It’s especially the case when you’re driving down the road with all their toys, bathroom, and kitchen within view on an RV road trip.

We were constantly stopping for fuel, taking potty breaks, eating meals, etc. Try to not view this as a hindrance but as a chance to stretch your legs. I’m not saying to plan on stopping at every exit but be smart and strategic with your stops.

The less we stopped, the better but there are some stops you just cannot prevent.

2. Have No Shame When It comes to electronics but be strategic

When we are home, we really try to limit screen time. However, this all goes out the window as one of our road trip activities for kids. It’s not like we hop in the car and immediately start the electronics though. We use them as something to look forward to after we have been driving for a certain amount of time. We have two iPads that we bring. I usually will have some kid apps on them as well as downloaded movies or shows from Netflix.

Make sure to bring the needed chargers or batteries for your electronics. If you are downloading media, download these before you head out.

3. Be Prepared for Leaks, Spills, and Accidents

It seems like, between the three kids, there is always some sort of spill or accident going on. Make sure to have extra clothes easily accessible along with Ziploc bags and baby wipes. It is also helpful to have a garbage bag in your car. We have one that we use, and it helps keep the garbage and the used clean-up supplies all contained. We just empty it when we stop for gas.

Another road trip idea with kids is to make sure you have leak-proof cups. We have tried so many different types of water bottles looking for anything that doesn’t leak and is kid-friendly. We have found two different options that so far (keep your fingers crossed) haven’t started leaking.

The first is the Good2Grow juice bottles. They come with characters on the top which my kids really enjoy. After the kids have drunk the juice inside, keep the bottles to reuse them. We have been using ours on a daily basis for months without leaking. They also easily fit in the car seat cup holders making them the perfect drink container to take on a road trip with young children.

The second option is the On the Fly Nalgene Water Bottles. The lid on this is a little tricky to snap down for our four-year-olds so keep that in mind. They are just at the point where they are figuring out how to close it. For older kids, closing this lid would not be a problem.

▶ Check Prices for the Nalgene Water Bottle Here!

If you are going to be going on your road trip in an RV, be sure to check out our guide to traveling in an RV with a baby.

4. DON’T FORGET THEIR COMFORT ITEMS during your road trip with kids

Since they were babies, Rowen and Raven have slept with gauze blankets. They really have a hard time sleeping without them. It is no different in the car. We always double-check we have a blanket for each of them so that even if they don’t sleep, they can still have some quiet time with their comfort items.

5. BRING SOME FAVORITE BOOKS AND GIVE AUDIO BOOKS A TRY as one of your road trip activities for kids

My kids love looking at books in the car. We bring some of their favorite books from home as well as some picture books I have made. They are just simple photo albums with pictures of extended family members, old family vacation pictures, and other family pictures. They love remembering our previous vacations and then we get to talk about those vacations as we drive.

We learned how fun (and important) audiobooks could be on our seven-week West Coast road trip with kids. We did not think to bring audiobooks on our trip with us. Rowen and Raven asked us to tell the same stories over and over and over! It would have been so much easier to start the audiobook and have the kids listen to that instead. Find audio versions of their favorite stories.

6. BE ORGANIZED AND PLAN WELL for your road trip with kids

I am a big list writer, planner, and organizer. This always serves us well when we road trip. We will have an idea of how far we need to drive, where we are staying and any fun stops along the way. If we don’t know where we are staying, the day is always a little more stressful.

Along with planning your day, plan in advance entertainment for the kids. Have is easily accessible in the car and the drive will go smoother and be less stressful. It is one of the best tips for road trips with kids to ensure a day goes smoothly.

What’s a good road trip for kids?

When it comes to finding a good road with kids there are a couple of things to keep in mind.

First, how long do you have to drive between your stops? I see people in my online Facebook travel groups that are planning a trip with 6+ hours of driving every single day. This is not a good idea, especially if you are driving with kids.

The longer you have to drive, the more tired everyone will be. When we are moving to a new place, a two or three-hour drive is much better than a 10-hour drive. You can plug your destinations into Google maps to see the driving time between stops.

The second thing I look at is what kind of activities and places can we visit that my kids will enjoy. They love going to aquariums, the zoo, and beaches. We work those activities into our road trips whenever we can.

You can check out our family guides to see what activities our kids have really enjoyed in the places we have been!

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