My husband and I have always enjoyed traveling. Friends and family used to tell us that traveling stops after having kids, but we haven’t found that to be true at all. Over the years, we’ve visited seven different countries with our kids. It’s definitely harder, but it’s well worth the effort to continue doing what we love. It makes us incredibly happy to have our kids along with us when visiting some of our favorite spots and exploring new places.
Most of our family travels involve airplane flights, which can be as short as three hours or as long as 11 hours. We don’t expect our kids to sit patiently the whole time, so we pack activities and snacks to keep them entertained.
When deciding what activities to bring, I’m mindful to pick items that are quiet, simple, and easy to travel with. I’ve found it best to bring new items they’ve never played with before to keep their interest level high. But if I need to bring items they already have, I keep it a surprise so that it’s still somewhat exciting for them. When it’s time to play, I only let them bring one item out at a time to make sure I’m not overwhelming them and have enough activities for the whole flight.
My kids are two and four years old and they each have their own bag of activities specific to their likes and preferences. Even though they both enjoy some of the same activities, it’s better that they have their own to avoid conflict when they don’t want to share.
I like to browse for different activities at dollar and craft stores for inexpensive ideas. Below is a list of my current go-to items that the kids love. These have also worked wonderfully during car rides and even during meal times.
Fun Activities for the Plane/Traveling
No Mess Drawing
Water Wow Reveal Pads
These are sturdy and reusable water coloring activity pads. All you need to do is fill the brush with water. There are four different themed pads that the kids can color in with the wet brush. Once it dries, it can be colored in again. It’s compact and the water pen can easily be stored in the built-in tray. Be sure to empty the brush before storing it to avoid leaks.
Boogie Board
This is a battery charged LCD notepad that changes colors when you draw on it. It comes with four drawing tools that have different writing tips and transfer designs on the sides. Each one can be clipped to the corners for easy storing. It easily erases with a push of a button and the battery can last up to five years.
Magna Doodle
This is a simpler and less expensive option to the Boogie Board. It’s a magnetic drawing board and erases with one swipe. It comes with an attached writing pen and three stamps. To keep the stamps in place when traveling, I place a strip of tape across it to keep them from falling out.
Paper and Crayons
My daughter loves to draw on paper so she can give her masterpieces to family and friends. She uses a 9” x 6” sketchbook from the dollar store with this multi-colored pen and a few regular crayons (my 2 year old son only uses crayons). Once they’ve used up these crayons, I plan to buy these triangular crayons, which won’t roll when traveling.
Sensory Play
*These may require additional screening by TSA.
Play Sand
This stuff is pretty amazing and the kids can’t get enough of it. It looks and feels like regular sand but can be easily molded, shaped, pulled, and cut. It’s safe and non-toxic, and it doesn’t stain or dry out so it can be used over and over again. It’s also super easy to clean because it only sticks to itself and not you or your clothes.
Slime
This one is new to the kids and they were fascinated by the wet and gooey texture. They love having it ooze through their fingers and it kept them busy for a while. The slime is safe and non-toxic. Since you don’t need a lot of it to play, my kids were more than happy to share their slime with the other kids around them. These do stick to clothes, so it’s important to be careful.
Play-Doh
This is a classic and what my kids play with on a typical day. I find that this holds the shape the best when my four year old daughter makes pretend pizza complete with a crust and toppings. I found 4 ounce containers of dough bundled with small toys at the dollar store, making it easy to travel with.
Yummy Treats
Snack Pack
According to my kids, anytime is a good time for snacks. They love this four compartment snack container because it holds a variety of snacks. For our recent trip to Mexico, they wanted chocolate covered pretzels, graham cracker bunnies, popcorn, raisins, cashews, and crispy rolls. Some other kid-friendly options for these would be Cheerios, Kix, blueberries, apple slices, crackers, and yogurt melts.
Individual Snack Bags
It’s always better to pack more snacks than you think you need. So if you don’t have a snack container or want to bring additional snacks that don’t require additional packaging, you can bring fruit sauce packets, yogurt packets, wrapped cracker packs, or individually packed cookies. I like to keep all the snacks together in this cooler bag to insulate everything without taking up a lot of space.
Organic Lollipops
I try to limit our kids’ intake of sugary snacks, but this is my secret weapon to keep them happy and temporarily occupied. They’re made with simple ingredients and are all flavored and colored with real fruit juice. Sucking on these also helps their little ears with the air pressure changes during take-off and landing.
Visual Stimulation
Puffy Stickers Activity Books
These are such fun activities that encourage imagination and development for both of my kids. This set comes with double-sided pirate, safari, and farm backgrounds and stickers. My oldest plays by creating stories within the different themes and we use them to teach my youngest what the animal and objects are. The reusable puffy stickers are sturdier than regular stickers, making it easier for little fingers to handle. I found this other set of additional puffy stickers at the dollar store.
Digital Tablet
This is a must for us to bring so the kids can play their favorite games and watch their favorite movies and videos. I try to limit how often they get to use it as it can be a bit addicting. It’s important to pre-load their favorite content before departing so it can be played without the internet.
Books
We always read a book before bedtime, so I bring one or two books per kid to get them sleepy enough to nap on the plane.
Miscellaneous
Gel Clings
You can find these at the dollar store. It’s a great activity when waiting for take-off and can’t take your bag or anything else out. The kids have so much fun sticking them to the window. If the kids aren’t in a window seat, they can stick the gel clings on the armrest or tray table. These toys tend to be single use since they collect hair and dust, and my youngest likes to eventually rip them up into tiny little pieces.
Bubbles
I only bring these out during beverage or snack service, when I know most patrons are awake, as this brings out a lot of giggles from my little ones. Since these are liquids, they need to be put into TSA approved bags for security inspection. I picked up a three-pack from the dollar store.
Balloons
My kids love balloons. I blow it up just enough to give it a round shape, but small enough that it’s less prone to popping (about 6” diameter). They typically start by throwing it in the air for a bit and then cradling it for the rest of the trip like it’s a stuffed animal. I picked up a bag from the dollar store.
Pom Poms
These are great for my two year old to practice his fine motor skills. He picks up the pom poms with tongs, pours them into cups, and separates them by color. I bought a colorful bag of assorted sized pom poms from the dollar store.
Water Bead Squishes
I originally bought these for my youngest child, but my oldest enjoyed it more. She had a lot of fun squeezing and stretching it. I bought it at the dollar store.
How do you keep your little ones entertained during flights?
