While not having to pack a suitcase full of diapers is a certain win for us traveling parents, a vacation with a newly potty trained toddler still comes with its challenges. I know this from experience, having traveled with my potty training toddler.
It can be a struggle always needing to stay close to a toilet for those potty emergencies, especially when you are out exploring, and managing the occasional accident along the way. Having the right travel potty or portable potty seat for toddlers makes a huge difference in keeping trips calmer for everyone.
As I discuss in my post about Tips for Potty Training while Traveling, one option I really like for traveling with a recently potty trained toddler is to pack a toddler travel potty.
As a fellow traveling mom, I only recommend toddler travel essentials that are truly portable and feasible to travel with. That’s what you’ll find in this list of the best portable potties for toddlers.
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Best Toddler Travel Potties and Potty Seats
I’m a real parent, just like you, who wants to know about the best products for travel to make our lives easier and travel more fun! That’s what you’ll find here in my list of the best travel potties for toddlers.
Whether you choose the best travel potty chair for toddlers, a portable urinal for toddlers or a folding travel potty seat (don’t worry, I explain the difference!), it has to be compact and fit in your travel bag.
Potty training on-the-go is intimidating the first time you take a newly potty trained toddler out, so let’s make it easier on you! With a little planning and preparation, you’ll be packing your bags for your next holiday with a toddler!
The OXO folding potty can be used as a standalone travel potty chair or as a portable toilet seat cover for toddlers. With legs that fold in or out, you can use this folding portable potty in whichever way your toddler is most comfortable.
Fold the legs in to make it small enough to carry in your car, stroller, or a larger diaper bag, so it is perfect for travel potty emergencies and road trips. The OXO folding potty uses absorbent disposable liners that cover the whole seat and help keep things clean, and the legs lock out securely when you set it on a big toilet, which also helps keep little hands off public toilet seats.
There is a built-in splash guard, making it a reliable travel potty for boys or girls. OXO recommends it for toddlers up to 50 lb, and it folds into its travel bag for easy packing.
- Truly dual purpose as a travel potty chair and travel potty seat
- Folds flat and fits easily in a carry on or diaper bag
- Locking legs add stability on public toilets
- Splash guard helps prevent messes
- Liners make clean up quick
- Requires proprietary style liners or compatible bags
- Bulkier than a folding seat only
The Kalencom Potette Plus travel potty is another excellent 2-in-1 travel potty chair and portable toddler toilet seat. The legs fold out and lock in place to make a better-fitting toilet seat for toddlers, and they also create a standalone portable potty when you cannot reach a bathroom in time.
When folded flat, this foldable toilet seat for children fits easily in a car, suitcase, or carry on. As a travel potty chair, the rubberized feet help it stay steady on the ground, and you will want to pack liners for simple clean up.
Kalencom rates the Potette Plus travel potty for toddlers 15 months and up with a 50 lb weight limit, so it can last through most of the potty-training stage.
- Solid 2-in-1 design for travel potty and travel potty seat use
- Locks securely on most round and oval toilets
- Folds flat for packing
- Comfortable contoured seat
- Comes with starter liners and carry bag
- Needs liners when used as a standalone potty
- Slightly heavier than a folding seat only
If your toddler is comfortable using a big toilet, a folding travel potty seat is the smallest and easiest option to pack. The Jool Baby folding travel potty seat is one of the lightest travel potty seats available and folds down into a compact bag that can live in your purse, diaper bag, or carry on.
I like that it uses non-slip suction cups to stay steady on public toilets, which helps nervous toddlers feel safe and avoids the wobbly seat problem. It fits most round and oval toilets, wipes clean quickly, and is a simple way to keep potty training on the go without needing a standalone chair.
- Very lightweight and compact for travel
- Suction cups add excellent stability on public toilets
- Fits most toilet shapes
- Easy wipe clean surfaces
- Includes a travel bag
- Requires access to a toilet
- Not useful for roadside emergencies without bathrooms
This Nuby disposable travel potty is the simplest true no-clean-up option for trips. Each potty folds flat, pops open in seconds, and works as a small portable potty for toddlers when there is no bathroom nearby.
The built-in absorbent liner helps contain messes, and once your child is done, you close it up and toss it, which is exactly what I want for car rides, day trips, or long lines at attractions.
The Nuby disposable travel potty is light enough to keep a couple in your diaper bag or the car as a backup travel potty, and the seat is sized well for newly potty trained toddlers. Nuby rates it for toddlers up to about 60 lb, so it lasts longer than many disposable options.
- True disposable travel potty with zero washing
- Folds flat and takes almost no space
- Very fast setup for potty emergencies
- Absorbent liner reduces leaks and smell
- Good weight limit for extended use
- Single use creates waste
- Less sturdy than a hard travel potty chair
Though not a portable potty chair, this is the perfect product for those quick potty emergencies. For long road trips or daily outings, this portable toddler urinal is small and easy to carry, and ONEDONE makes versions for boys and girls.
The lid seals tightly to help prevent leaks once it is closed, so you can stash it in a bag until you can empty and wash it. The big thing I tell parents is to practice at home first so your toddler knows how to use it calmly when you really need it.
- Tiny and easy to keep in the car
- Sealing lid helps prevent leaks
- Great for roadside stops when no toilet is available
- Comes in boy and girl styles
- Easy rinse clean
- Works best after a little practice
- Limited capacity for older kids
I’ve seen far too many large websites with lists that include travel potties or other toddler products that no parent in their right mind would want to travel with. As a traveling parent, I know instantly when an article is written by someone who either doesn’t have children, has never traveled with children or has definitely not traveled with the products that are being recommended. Finding the right toddler travel gear, including the right potty seat for travel, should include making it more convenient and easier on the parents, not lugging large items around!
Types of Travel Potties for Toddlers
There are three main categories that the best travel potties for toddlers fall into: travel potty chairs, travel potty seats and toddler travel urinals.
Travel Potty Chair for Toddlers
A travel potty chair for toddlers is exactly what it sounds like, it’s similar to a toddler potty you use at home but it can be folded or collapsed to make it more compact for travel.
These portable potty chairs for toddlers are a great starting point for toddlers new to toilet training. Many of them come in fun colors that your toddler will love. Your toddler can get excited about their very own toilet! Another big benefit is that you won’t have to find public toilets to use one of these best portable potties.
While a travel potty chair for toddlers will take up more room in backpack diaper bag for travel, especially if flying with a toddler, you should choose a portable potty for travel that your toddler will be most comfortable using.
You can even get disposable travel potties for toddlers. While we don’t recommend a disposable travel potty for toddlers who are new to potty training, they can be a life-saver in a pinch.
These disposable travel potties are best for leaving in the car or in your diaper bag for emergencies. If your toddler is comfortable using a regular toilet but you want a back-up just in case you need to stop on the side of the road or you can’t make it to a public toilet, these are ideal.
Advantages of a Travel Potty Chair
- A portable potty chair for toddlers is easy for your toddler to use because it’s small and easy for them to sit on.
- It’s a standalone potty, so you don’t need to find a public toilet to use this foldable travel potty on.
Disadvantages of a Collapsible Potty Chair
- Toddler travel potty chairs require liners or a disposable bag, creating additional waste.
- These portable potties for toddlers are larger to pack.
Folding Travel Potty Seat for Toddlers
A foldable potty seat for toddlers works as portable toilet seat covers for toddlers. The folding potty seat, when unfolded, will sit on top of a regular toilet seat. This creates a smaller hole and makes it easier for your toddler to sit on it.
When looking for the best portable toilet seat for toddlers, look for one that will be stable on the toilet seat. The last thing you want is for it to move around or have your toddler get pinched in the folds. It should sit firmly on your toilet at home or public toilet seats.
While we love these toddler travel potty seats, keep in mind that you will need to find a public toilet to use it on. Even if your toddler is comfortable being on a big toilet with a folding travel potty seat, it’s hard to make sure you have a toilet nearby when you need it!
The other downside is that your toddler is likely to use their hands on the toilet seat to hold themselves. We recommend sanitizing the toilet seat before putting your foldable toddler toilet seat on or putting a flushable seat cover underneath. On the plus side, there’s no need to manage waste in the disposable liners!
Advantages of a Fold Up Potty Seat
- A portable folding potty seat is smaller to pack and smaller to carry for your daily outings.
- A folding potty seat for toddlers doesn’t require liners, as it’s used on a standard toilet, and doesn’t create extra waste.
Disadvantages of a Folding Toilet Seat for Toddlers
- A folding travel potty seat requires a toilet to use it, so it’s not useful for those emergency stops on the side of a road.
- Your foldable toddler potty seat needs to be stable and secure on the toilet. You also want to make sure it’s not going to pinch your toddler when they sit on it.
Portable Urinal for Toddlers
Portable urinals for toddlers are another option for emergency bathroom breaks. If you aren’t in a place where your toddler can sneak behind a tree, then this is a good option.
A toddler travel urinal is a large cup with a lid that allows your toddler to pee into it. Some brands of travel urinal for toddlers come with different tops suited to either boys or girls.
Advantages of Potty Urinal for Toddlers
- A portable urinal is small and easy to pack.
- You can use a travel urinal for toddlers in an emergency without needing a standard toilet to use it with.
Disadvantages of a Toddler Travel Urinal
- A portable urinal for toddlers is only good for peeing.
- Depending on how badly your toddler has to go or for older children, it’s possible to overfill the cup.
- Having to pee in a toddlers urinal may be difficult for your toddler and may take some practice, including standing up to pee.
How to Choose a Portable Potty for Toddlers
1. Portable Travel Potty vs. Travel Potty Seat
The first thing to consider when traveling with a newly potty trained toddler is if you want a portable travel potty or a travel toilet seat for toddlers. A folding toilet seat will be much smaller to travel with but your toddler has to be ok with using it on a big toilet. You also need to find a public toilet to use it.
If this isn’t a possibility, then choose one of the best potties for toddlers that can be used can be used anywhere with a liner.
If you can spare the space you can get a portable potty chair for toddlers that can be used standalone then on big toilets when your toddler is ready.
2. Portability & Size of Portable Potty for Toddler
When looking for the best potty for travel, the portability of the travel toilet will be key. While this BabyBjorn potty is one of the best purchases for toilet training a toddler, we would only consider it for at home, camping or possibly in the car for long road trips with a toddler.
Instead we recommend looking for a portable potty chair or a folding potty seat for toddlers that can fold up to a size that can fit in a diaper bag.
A folding travel toilet seat, like the Jool folding travel potty seat, still requires you to find a public toilet to use it on.
If you want to pack a portable toilet chair, then choose one that can be used on its own with liners or on a regular toilet seat to get the most use and value out of it.
3. Stability of Portable Toddler Potty Seat or Travel Potty
Parents familiar with toilet training a toddler know how important it is that toddlers don’t get frightened while using the toilet. It can cause them to regress from all the progress on using the toilet.
Loud automatic flush toilets, bum pinches and falling in the toilet are two things to watch out for!
Regardless if you are using a portable toilet chair or a folding toilet seat for toddlers, make sure it is stable. You want you toddler to feel comfortable using it.
Choose one of the best folding travel potty seat options listed above to avoid getting one that might pinch or isn’t as stable.
4. Ease of Cleaning Travel Potty for Toddler
You’ll have enough to manage traveling with a toddler, so choose the best travel potty seat that’s also easy to clean. And don’t forget the sanitizing wipes!
5. Waste Minimizing
A lot of the portable travel potties use disposable liners and there are even disposable potties. While we think that’s a great emergency option, we prefer to have a portable & foldable toilet seat for toddlers to help minimize the waste.
Even if you need to start out using it as a toddler potty chair, with options like the OXO Tot Potty for Travel or the Kalencom Potette 2-in-1, you can work towards your toddler using it on a big toilet (with fun toilet seat covers).
If you can, a portable folding toilet seat is the best option for the minimal amount of waste.
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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.