If you are heading out on adventures with your family soon, and wondering about the best travel gifts for kids right now, I hope this post helps you out! From toddlers to teens, there is a little something for every explorer on your list this year. These best travel gifts ideas are perfect for the holiday season, birthdays, or even graduation…any time you want to encourage a child in your life to get out there and explore the world!
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Best Travel Gifts for Kids: Books
Some of the best travel gifts for kids are the best travel books! Kids of all ages love learning about the world around us. I hope this list of books helps you find the perfect travel gift for the children in your life.
If the World Were 100 People by Jackie McCann is a fantastic book teaching kids about what the world would look like if shrunk down to just 100 individuals. It’s a fascinating book to explore with your children to talk about culture, race, economics, and food around the planet. It is a great eye-opener to read before or during your travels.
DK Find Out! books are a great series to explore the world around you. Before traveling to Europe, read the Castles or World War II book together. Check out the book about Ancient Rome before exploring Italy. Books on Ancient Egypt or the Mayan culture will also expand your child’s understanding of the world.
Where is Antarctica? and all of the “Where is?” and “Who Was?” books are some of my favorites for helping kids explore the world around them. Before you travel, check to see if there is a book in this series about your location. There are books about the Great Barrier Reef, the Amazon, the Eiffel Tower, Disney World, the Statue of Liberty, and more! The perfect gift for the whole family to read together.
Lonely Planet Kids Travel Book is a favorite around here! This one takes kids to around 200 different countries with amazing facts and beautiful photos. Such a great gift for kids who have a love of travel. It’s also a perfect book to read with your little travelers who want to explore at home on rainy days.
Activity Books
On the Plane Activity Book by Heather Alexander is a great book filled with travel games you can play in the airport and on the airplane! My older kids love the quizzes and the drawing portions especially! Perfect to throw in the backpack for those long flights and a great way to connect together while you travel.
Highlights Puzzle Mania Brain Teasers is a great collection of games, puzzles, and jokes. It’s a great option for road trips or airplane travel! I like to wrap this one up with a package of kid’s favorite bubble gum for long-haul flights.
Best Travel Gifts for Kids: Games
Another great gift idea is travel games! Our young kids and older children love playing games together and taking these on a family vacation. It’s almost like a sign that we are going on a trip when we pull out the travel bingo, card games, and Mad Libs! Here are a few of our favorites.
Travel Far Mad Libs is so much fun for older children, ages 8 and up. We add this great addition to our day packs when we have some travel time, and we want to play together. Such a great travel gift idea!
eeBoo Travel Bingo is a great game for 1-4 players on a long road trip. Each little traveler looks for popular landmarks along the route and fills his card. The first one to make Bingo wins! Add this one to your fun travel gifts list.
Melissa and Doug Travel Bingo is one of our favorites and a great idea for travel or even in your hotel room. The boards are good quality, heavy boards so they withstand multiple trips.
Skillmatics Guess in 10 should be on your list of great travel gifts. Each card focuses on a different state and you can ask 10 questions to have your family guess which state the card describes.
Best Travel Gifts for Kids: Journals
A travel journal is one of the best gifts you can give for family travel. You can find them easily with plenty of fun, cute designs. Add them to the list of practical travel gifts. It’s also a good idea to record your adventures together to remember your explorations. It’s so much fun to look back at these journals with your older children and reflect on how they have grown up through the years. Here are a few of my favorites for Christmas gifts, along with some fun pens to use as well:
The Ultimate Travel Journal for Kids is a great journal for young kids. It’s super colorful and filled with plenty of easy prompts for children, best for kids ages 6-9 or so. It also has some fun games that younger children will enjoy!
Kids Travel Journal by Peter Pauper Press is another great kids’ option and a fun way to document your trip. I love the fill-in-the-blank options and the journal prompts that give the inspiration to write. Take it to explore United States national parks, on a cruise, in the car, or on the plane!
Gel Pens Set of 20 is one of my girls’ favorite small gifts. They can’t wait to use all of the different colors and use them on our travels. I do keep them hidden until our travel dates to build anticipation for opening that pack! Add this one to your great list of travel gifts.
Journal Pencils
Faber-Castell Grip Colored EcoPencils are another great way to keep your great kids entertained and also fall into the useful gifts category. Little hands will find the grip features helpful and love the huge variety of colors!
Scentco Graphite Smencils have been my favorites since elementary school! That’s a long time ago. Why are they so perfect? The colors and the scents are amazing. Add these to your unique travel gifts. The kids will love you!
Best Travel Gifts for Kids: Travel Toys
Fat Brain Toys Dimpl Digits is such a fun gift for little kids. It’s the popper toy for little hands, and my toddler is obsessed with it! We can even practice counting while we play with it.
The Bounce Pinky Ball is one I keep in my purse at all times. When you need something quick and active, pull it out. It’s an easy way to distract your kids and get out some energy during a layover or time outside. Young children and older kids will love it!
Best Travel Gifts for Kids: Headphones/Tablets
If you are on a flight or in a car for a long time, make sure you pack headphones and a tablet to help keep any young traveler entertained. It’s a good idea to keep a portable charger in your bag too to avoid any meltdowns. Here are a few of our favorites:
Kindle Kids Kids Edition Tablet is one of our best travel gift ideas. My girls love being able to download their favorite books and always have them on the go. I like that it is geared for reading books and doesn’t have the distraction of games. (I have nothing against games but I like having a books-only option.) It also includes Amazon Kids+ with a full library of selections, including Harry Potter and Artemis Fowl. You can also pair it with Audible and listen with these wireless headphones and protect those little ears.
Best Practical Travel Gifts for Kids: Backpacks/Water Bottles
Be sure to consider your practical gifts to add to your list of best travel gifts for kids. A sturdy backpack, leakproof water bottle, and some fun luggage tags make perfect presents! Find some of our best choices:
Pokemon Luggage Tags are definitely on my seven-year-old’s list this year! Can’t wait for him to find them in his stocking this year. Choose whatever reflects your child’s interests: Harry Potter, Star Wars, video games, Disney, and more!
This light, foldable water-resistant backpack is one of my favorites. I really appreciate that my kids can easily fold it up and store it in our suitcases when we are at our destination. I also love that there are water bottle holders on the side, crucial for long travel days. They love the bright colors! Get out there and explore the great outdoors.
CamelBak Eddy Kids BPA Free Water Bottle is one of our favorite water bottles. It is durable and you can always order more straws if needed. If traveling by air, be sure to leave it empty to get through security and refill at water refill stations throughout the airport.
I hope this list of the best travel gifts for kids has been helpful to you. What do your kids love to pack for travel? Be sure to hop to some of my other posts about traveling with kids for more info. And, sign up for my newsletter and receive a free packing list!
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