First off, I’m not opposed to screen time for toddlers. I have taken many flights with toddlers and I have always included some screen time on flights to help entertain our toddlers on the airplane. But, I have found that too much screen time can make my toddlers grouchy and difficult to deal with. So, to mix up their travel activities, I always packed a bag of screen-free travel toys for toddlers to use on the flight and during our time traveling at our destination.
In my post on airplane activities for toddlers, I explain how they will quickly cycle through all the toddler travel toys you pack for them.
Based on my experience, my best advice for how to entertain a toddler on a plane is to have a variety of activities that you can present to your toddler throughout the flight.
In this post, I focus exclusively on screen-free activities for toddlers on planes and on road trips. If you are looking to include some screen time in your toddlers travel entertainment, I recommend several apps for toddlers in the post mentioned above. In addition, I give many more screen time ideas in my lists of the best 1 year old travel toys and 2 year old travel toys.
This post contains compensated links.
Best Screen-Free Travel Toys for Toddlers
Based largely on my real-life trials and errors traveling with my toddlers, here are my favorite screen-free toddler travel toys. I’ve also included some fun DIY toddler travel toys for variety later in this post.
- Bright colors and soft design appeal to little ones
- Six buckle styles build fine-motor skills
- Clips to bags, car seats, or strollers for on-the-go play
- Durable stitching and quality fabric stand up to travel
- Some buckles may be challenging for younger toddlers
- Surface clean only (no machine wash)
- Reusable pages extend play
- Easy to pack
- Great for planes restaurants and hotel downtime
- Widely available themes and bundles
- Pages need drying time between uses
- Water pen can be misplaced without supervision
I love the LCD drawing tablets our toddlers have. I’m always amazed at how long my kids will sit and draw new pictures over and over.
These tablets may look like screen toys, but they are completely screen free. The thin, lightweight design fits easily in a carry-on, making it one of my favorite mess-free toddler airplane toys.
- Lightweight and ultra thin for travel
- Large drawing area for toddlers
- One button erase for endless doodling
- Completely screen free and mess free
- Durable enough for flights and restaurants
- Stylus can be lost without a tether
If you are bringing it on a plane, trust me and buy anti-roll crayons - otherwise you'll spend half your flight on the floor looking for your round crayons!
- Eases first flight jitters
- Simple pictures for little hands
- Pairs with crayons and sticker books
- Great gift add-on for trips
- Paper books are not reusable
Learn from my experience and pick up some anti-roll crayons before your next trip. I’ve spent more flights than I can count crawling on the floor of tight economy seats searching for round crayons that rolled off the tray - never again!
These triangular crayons from Melissa & Doug are a true travel genius. The durable plastic design won’t break easily, and the shape keeps them from rolling away while helping little ones develop a proper writing grip.
- Non-roll design is perfect for planes
- Hard plastic resists breaking
- Comes in a travel friendly case
- Age 3 plus per manufacturer
Quiet books are full of excellent screen free activities to keep toddlers busy on a plane. I love that this quiet book is soft, easy to pack, and has all the pieces sewn in so nothing gets lost. With nine interactive pages, it keeps little hands busy with zippers, buckles, and laces during flights and restaurant waits.
- Soft and foldable for easy packing
- All parts attached for no lost pieces
- Encourages fine motor skills
- Quiet and mess free travel toy
- Durable stitching and quality materials
- A bit heavier than paper activities
Whether you are looking for screen free airplane or car travel toys, this threading apple will keep toddlers happily occupied.
I love the simplicity of this toy for travel. Parents can make up stories about the caterpillar while toddlers practice threading it through the wooden apple again and again. Quiet, packable, and perfect for flights, restaurants, and hotel downtime.
- Compact and lightweight for travel
- Encourages fine motor skill development
- Durable solid wood construction
- Quiet activity for airplanes or restaurants
- Engaging pretend play with caterpillar theme
- Thread can tangle if pulled too tightly
Although they are too big to fit in a carry-on airplane bag, these super fun reusable Melissa & Doug sticker books have joined us on countless trips. They’re perfect screen free travel toys for preschoolers and toddlers to play with in hotels or apartments. The repositionable stickers create endless stories, and the flat design makes them easy to pack in a suitcase.
- Reusable stickers with bright scenes
- Flat and lightweight for suitcases
- Great screen free activity for hotels
- Encourages creativity and storytelling
- Easy cleanup and no mess
- Too large for airplane tray tables
These DUPLO construction sets are such a fun screen free travel toy for 2–5 year olds. With just the right number of big, easy-to-hold pieces, this excavator and dump truck set is perfect for rebuilding at each new stop.
I typically buy a new Lego set for each trip for each of our kids and they love them.
- Large DUPLO bricks are easy for toddlers to grip
- Encourages creative, hands-on building play
- Compact enough for hotel playtime
- Durable design ideal for repeated builds
- Takes up some space in a carry-on
There’s not many things my son would drop his Water Wow book for, but plastic animal toys are one of them! Be prepared for fun imaginative play with your toddler on the flight or in the hotel.
No matter where we go, we always pack a few little animals - perfect screen free travel toys for open-ended, creative play anywhere.
- Encourages imaginative and storytelling play
- Compact and lightweight for travel
- Includes a variety of animals for pretend scenes
- Durable and easy to clean
- Small parts require supervision for kids under 3
Magnetic toys make excellent screen free airplane travel toys for toddlers because they are quiet, small, and easy to pack.
This magnetic fishing game features colorful wooden ocean creatures that stick to the fishing rods with enclosed magnets. Toddlers love catching fish again and again, while parents appreciate how neatly it fits on an airplane tray table.
- Compact tin fits easily in carry-on or purse
- Encourages hand-eye coordination and focus
- Quiet and mess free for flights or restaurants
- Includes a variety of colorful sea animals
- Small pieces require supervision for children under 3
With the popularity of the buckle toy, now you can get the buckle toy as a busy board for toddlers. This compact screen-free toddler travel toy is easy to pack and gives some other fun activities for toddlers to try.
I love that it's foam and has plenty of buckles to master. It also has a zipper, a snap pocket and even laces to try!
- Highly packable for travel
- Built-in handle allows toddler-sized grip
- Includes several fasteners that support fine motor and cognitive skills in young children.
- Toddlers under 18 months may find the buckles too advanced
- Reusable and residue free
- Perfect for airplane windows
- Compact and lightweight
- Variety of themes available
- Pieces can fall or get lost
- Not ideal on textured surfaces
Our toddlers always love hidden picture books! This four-book set offers engaging seek-and-find puzzles that keep kids focused and entertained while traveling. Each book includes black-and-white and full-color images, word and picture clues, and fun stickers.
- Compact and easy to pack for travel
- Encourages focus and concentration
- Includes stickers for extra engagement
- Some pages may need adult help for younger toddlers
- Compact vehicles for small spaces
- Moving parts keep kids engaged
- Great for hotel room pretend play
- Not ideal on airplane trays
- Small parts advisory at age 3 plus
The Felt Memory Game is an excellent travel toy for a 3-year-old. This compact set includes 16 soft felt cards featuring easily recognizable images, designed to enhance concentration and short-term memory. Its the perfect quiet and engaging activity during family travel.
This Magnetic Building Set is an excellent travel toy for a 3-year-old. These magnetic tiles allow children to construct 2D and 3D structures, fostering creativity and enhancing fine motor skills. Their compact design and magnetic connectivity make them easy to pack and ideal for on-the-go play.
- Endless open-ended builds
- Sturdy and compatible sets
- Great multi-kid activity at destination
- High long-term play value
- Bulky and heavy for flights
For all the same reasons as the Water Wow books, my kids and I also loved these Crayola Color Wonder books. The special mess-free Color Wonder markers will not mark anything, except for the pages in the coloring book. I always rest easier knowing my toddler won't draw on anything!
- Truly mess free ink
- Built-in storage folder
- Brand trust and easy refills
- Strong character appeal
- Refills use proprietary paper
- Durable, washable fabrics
- Adult fit for parent-led stories
- Strong brand trust and support
- Multiple themed sets to rotate
- Larger than tiny finger puppets
- Bulkier in a purse or small sling
Can you tell I love these felt travel toys?? Puzzles also make good screen-free travel toys for toddlers, but this one has easy-to-grab pieces and won't take up any space in your toddler's carry-on! It's perfect for little dinosaur lovers.
Come Join Us!
We love answering questions in our Baby Can Travel Facebook group. Come ask all your baby travel related questions and share advice with other traveling parents!
Why isn’t Play-Doh on my List of Screen-Free Toddler Travel Toys?
Hey – I love Play-Doh as much as the next mom, but to be honest, I’m not a big fan of bringing Play-Doh to entertain toddlers on airplanes. My kitchen floor is always a big mess when the kids play with Play-Doh, and I’d hate to do that to an airplane, but that’s just my opinion.
How to Choose the Best Screen-Free Toddler Travel Toys?
If you are racking your brain trying to think of screen-free ways to entertain toddlers on a flight or on a road trip, I have plenty of ideas for you.
For airplane travel toys for toddlers, look for small toys that are easy to pack and don’t have a lot of small pieces that you will be constantly picking up off the floor.
If you have a long flight and, like me, also don’t like constantly picking up stuff, I recommend a Flyaway Designs inflatable toddler airplane bed. It’s the perfect solution for flying with a toddler, giving your toddler a place to play and sleep. And with the design of this airplane bed for toddlers covering the seat and floor space, all your toddlers screen-free airplane travel toys won’t end up on the floor.
For travel toys for toddlers in the car, you can go with travel toys that are a little bigger and heavier, since you don’t have to pack them in your carry on. I also like this travel tray to help keep your child’s activities together on a road trip with a toddler.
5 DIY Screen-Free Toddler Toys for Travel
If you don’t have time to order new toddler travel toys before your flight or you’d rather not spend extra money on travel toys for a flight, here are some fun Do It Yourself screen-free toddler travel toys:
1. Pipe Cleaners in a Spice Jar
This was one of my best mom travel hacks! This cute little screen-free toddler toy was so easy, yet it turned out to be one of the best toddler toys for travel I’ve ever had! Simply clean out an empty plastic spice jar and use it with cut pieces of pipe cleaners. Your toddler will have fun trying to fit the pipe cleaners back into the jar.
2. Cheerios Strung on a Piece of Yarn
Another simple but fun toy I created as a screen-free DIY travel toys for toddlers is a piece of yarn (or those pipe cleaners from above!) that your toddler can string Cheerios onto. My son was such a fan of Cheerios that we always had plenty with us anyways! Don’t forget the snack cup so they don’t end up all over the floor.
3. Use Painters Tape to Make Roads for your Matchbox Cars
It may sound funny, but one of my favorite things to pack while travelling with a toddler is painters tape. It comes in handy for so many reasons – taping curtains shut to keep room dark, making Hot Wheels race tracks on the floor of our Airbnb, etc.
Not only that, but with a little creativity, painters tape can be a great screen-free DIY toddler travel toy! Imagine all the ways to keep toddlers busy on a plane with it! You can use it to make a road across the food tray, use it as stickers, or make a ball out of it… Throw a roll of painters tape into your toddlers suitcase and you’re sure to make good use out of it!
4. Craft Pom Poms for Sorting and Counting
Our toddler LOVED pom poms! He would carry them around all the time and it became one of my favorite easy screen-free airplane activities for our 18 month old! You can have your child sort them into colors, count them or use the construction toys to pick them up! There are so many uses for them that are all non-screen time activities for toddlers on planes!
5. Small Toys from the Dollar Store
This is one of my favorite fast & easy screen-free toddler travel toys. If you have the time and energy, simply run to the dollar store and grab a bunch of small toys that you can wrap individually. These toys should all be small and easy to pack. You can keep your toddler entertained on the flight as you give them a steady stream new gifts to open throughout the flight.
Found this post useful? Share it with your friends!
This post was written & edited by:
Celine Brewer is the owner of Baby Can Travel. Not only does she have years of experience traveling with babies & toddlers, but she's helped millions of new parents travel with their babies and toddlers for over a decade. In addition to writing on her baby travel blog, she has shared her expertise on traveling with a baby or toddler by contributing to articles about traveling with a baby with the Washington Post, USA Today, the Lonely Planet magazine and Pregnancy & Newborn magazine.
Celine also writes about family travel on the site FamilyCanTravel.com, which she co-owns with her husband. Being from the Canadian Rockies, she shares her passion about her home and travel to Banff National Park and area on their site TravelBanffCanada.com.