We’ve been traveling full-time with our toddler since he was 14 months. Now he’s finally old enough to play travel games, so we created a list of our favorite travel games for toddlers.
We have long-haul flights to Costa Rica and Portugal in the next few months, so we wanted to have some fun travel games for toddlers. Travel toys are great, but we like to play games on flights
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We’ve noticed our toddler stays focused more when interacting as a family, and games are a great way to keep your toddler entertained while flying.
Plus, I love playing board games. Growing up, I spent a lot of time playing board games with my siblings. Although our little guy doesn’t have siblings (yet), board games are a great way to bond as a family.
Read More: 10 Countries to Visit in Europe with Toddlers
Airplane Travel Games for Toddlers
We spend a lot of time flying with a toddler. One of our favorite ways to keep him from getting bored is games.
Playing games with our toddler on flights is a lot of fun and keeps the tantrums at bay (if he isn’t tired). It’s a screen-free activity that helps to pass the time, especially on long-haul flights.
These games are especially great for flying with toddlers because they do not make noise.
If you are a competitive family, I recommend only two-player games when flying. Save the competition for road trips, where you can be as loud as you want.
Related Post: 15 Fun Airplane Activities for Toddlers
Disney Matching Game
The Disney Matching Game is a fun memory game for toddlers. It’s the perfect travel game for 3-year-olds.
There are different classic Disney characters/movies to choose from, including Raya, Toy Story 4, Frozen II, Doc McStuffins, Minnie Mouse, and more.
You can control the game’s difficulty by adding or removing tiles. There are over 70 tiles to help your little one develop their memory, focus, and critical thinking skills.
The tiles are the perfect size for little toddler hands. If your little one struggles to play face-down, you can flip them face-up and still have fun.
What I love about this game is that it promotes solo play; while also being a fun game for families with kids of all ages.
Melissa & Doug Classic Card Games Set
We love everything about the Melissa & Doug brand. Our travel toy guides have at least one toy, game, or activity from their brand. From quality to variety, they get it right.
The Melissa & Doug Classic Card Games Set is a fun collection of our favorite games from childhood.
This set includes Go Fish, Old Maid, and Animal Rummy. The classic card games we loved as kids, with better illustrations.
These cards are bigger than regular playing cards, so they can be found easily when your toddler drops them on the airplane or in the car.
The surface wipes clean, so your toddler can draw on these cards with a dry-erase marker, and they will wipe clean.
If you have a rough toddler (like us), these cards can withstand being bent by your little one because the card stock is thicker than other cards.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar Card Game
Our son LOVES the very hungry caterpillar book. He asks us to read it to him twice a day, once before naptime and again before bedtime.
At this point, he knows it by heart and usually resites it to us. It is one of the few toddler books that travel the world with us.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar Card Game is a fun compliment to the popular preschool book.
It’s a fun way to reinforce numbers and help your toddler learn the days of the week.
Kids as young as three years old can play this card game. The objective is to help the caterpillar transform into a beautiful butterfly.
Up to four players can play, so get the family involved; the more players, the more fun.
Related Post: 15 Airplane Activities for Toddlers
My First Bananagrams
My First Bananagrams is a fun travel game for preschoolers that helps them develop their reading skills and vocabulary.
The tiles have lowercase letters to help reinforce reading skills. Included are combo tiles to help your little ones build words.
The step-by-step instructions make it easy for your little ones to learn the game as they progress to play the full version of Bananagrams.
Indicators on the tiles distinguish letters such as b,d,w, and m. What’s great about this game is it grows with your toddler.
As your little one’s vocabulary and reading skills develop, they can still play this game.
UNO Junior
UNO is my all-time favorite card game. Every Christmas, my mom got my siblings and me a different version of the game as a “family present.”
Things got interesting when the electronic version first came out and shot cards at you. Those are some of my best memories from my childhood because we didn’t take many vacations.
Now that I’ve walked memory lane, I’m excited to play UNO Junior with our son now that he is older.
UNO Junior is a simplified version of the game for toddlers as young as 3 years old. Even if your little one is still learning their numbers, they can match their characters from the Paw Patrol movie.
It’s a fun travel game for toddlers learning numbers and colors.
One rule remains the same. Your little one has to say “UNO” when they have one card left.
Related Post: 20 Fun Travel Toys for 4-Year-Olds
Road Trip Travel Games for Toddlers
Playing games on road trips is one of the best ways to pass the time. I am usually driving, so sometimes my wife sits in the back seat with our toddler to play some of our favorite toddler travel games.
What I love about these games is that we can be as loud as we want without disturbing anyone.
Some of these games also have small pieces we do not want to get on an airplane, but they’ll eventually be found in the backseat when we clean the car.
Related Post: Best Car Seat Travel Tray for Road Trips
Pass the Potato
One of the ways we like to give our toddler a break when taking a long trip is by having fun outdoor activities when we make a stop. Most rest areas have a grass area or picnic tables for us to release energy.
Pass the Potato is a fun road trip game for toddlers when you pull over for a break. This new and improved game of hot potato is a fun way to stretch your legs and get everyone moving.
Throw the plush toy (like the game hot potato) as fast as you can; you do not want to be the one holding it when the timer goes off.
There is a sensor inside the toy to recognize the difference between a tap, toss, and shake. These gestures prompt over 30 funny phrases.
I’m sure parents will love how easy this plush toy is to clean. All you need to do is remove the sensor and throw it in the washer.
Found It! Travel Edition
Found It! Travel Edition is a fun interactive travel game for road trips with toddlers. There are different versions for different occasions, including camping, indoor, and outdoor.
This scavenger hunt-style game lets your preschooler learn on the go. It’s the perfect way to peel your kids from their screens and focus on their surroundings.
Each player has to yell ‘found it” after they spot the object. This toddler travel game makes the time on a long road trip fly by, especially if you play as a family.
There are 50 cards, so you can keep the fun going or use it on multiple road trips without getting tired of the same clues.
Remember, the first one with seven cards wins the game, so keep your eye peeled.
Related Post: 50 Road Trip Activities for Toddlers
Connect 4 Grab and Go
Connect 4 Grab and Go isn’t a game for toddlers, but my wife and it play it all the time.
It is one of the travel games that we keep in our carry-on for long-haul flights. You can only watch so many movies or do so much work.
Our 3-year-old likes to pretend to play with us, so it’s fun he wants to get involved. Although this isn’t a game for toddlers, it can be a fun game for preschoolers or young school-age kids to play.
I Spy Dig In Game
I Spy Dig In Game is one of the best road trip games for busy toddlers. If your little one can’t sit still, this game will challenge them.
Race the clock to find the six objects on the card. It may be a little challenging because you not only need to find the object, but it has to be the right color.
If you have a competitive family or siblings close in age, this is a fun game for a long road trip.
Everything you need comes in the game, but having a clear container may make the game easier for younger toddlers.
If your little one is still learning their colors, they can look for the objects and disregard the color.
Related Post: 25 Travel Toys for 2-Year-Olds
I Spy Games
Last update on 2025-01-19 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
Storytime Card Game
Storytime Card Game is a unique toddler travel game that requires a little imagination.
The purpose of the game is to create a story using the cards. It’s a great way to develop your preschooler’s vocabulary, help their reading skills, foster creativity, and increase their vocabulary.
here are different cards to help develop the story. You can start with the character cards and then move to the scene cards before inserting object cards to make the story more interesting.
For readers, there are good manners cards to help reinforce nice words.
This story game is a great way to interact as a family and tell funny stories.
Travel Games for Toddlers at Hotels or Airports
One of the things that can quickly bring a vacation to a halt is rain, especially if you are on a beach vacation.
We’ve traveled to over ten countries, and our plans have been canceled many times because of unexpected rain.
Another unexpected, uncontrollable, annoying occurrence when traveling is delayed/ canceled flights.
Being stuck at an airport with a toddler is the worst, but having a few travel games can help the time pass and keep you from losing your mind.
Here are some of our favorite travel games for toddlers to play at your hotel, Airbnb, or during a long layover.
Related Post: Our Favorite Headphones for Toddlers
Yahtzee Jr.
Yahtzee Jr. is a preschool version of the classic game Yahtzee. There is no reading required, so it’s perfect for toddlers.
Toddlers as young as 3 years old can play this game with some help. Instead of keeping score, you can use tokens to keep track of whose winning.
All your little one needs to do is roll the dice and try to match as many Spidey friends as possible. The more characters they match, the higher the score.
If you have fond memories of playing Yahtzee with your parents or even grandparents, then this is the perfect toddler travel game to play at your hotel during a rainy vacation day.
Zingo Bingo
Zingo Bingo is a twist on the classic game Bingo. This travel game for toddlers has a rating of 4.8 out of 5 from over 25,000 reviews.
Up to six players can get in on the fun, making it perfect for a family game night.
There are different versions to help your early school-aged kids learn how to spell and recognize words. Kids of varying ages can play this game.
All you need to do is slide the Zinger, make a match, and the first to fill their card wins.
There is a reason this is one of the most popular games for preschool and early school-age kids.
Related Post: 12 Tips for Traveling with Toddlers
Monopoly Junior
Like most kids in our generation, I grew up playing Monopoly with my mom and siblings. Every few years, for Christmas, we received an upgraded version of the game.
I remember coming home from college, and there was an electronic version with debit cards instead of cash. No, thank you!!! I want the old-school version, and I am the banker.
After another stroll down memory lane, I am excited to play Monopoly Junior with my toddler.
I can tell you now; it’s going to be a fight to be the banker because he likes to hold all the money.
This version of Monopoly is simplified to help preschoolers understand the rules before playing the full version of Monopoly.
I love that this version is faster, so your little one doesn’t get bored while playing. There are up to four players, so it’s fun for the entire family.
Monopoly Junior Editions
Last update on 2025-01-19 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
Spot It! Finding Dory
Spot It! Finding Dory is a fun matching game that’s easy for toddlers to learn and play.
Our son loves playing this game. It is one of our favorite games to play on an airplane or at our Airbnb because it is quick to set up and easy to clean up.
This game has 30 unique symbols, but there is one that makes another card. The images are different sizes, but there is only one match.
It’s great because you can play again and again without getting bored.
Related Post: 10 Reasons to Travel with Toddlers
Candy Land – Unicorn Edition
Another classic game I played growing up was Candy Land. Today, there are different versions of the classic game, with Candy Land – Unicorn Edition being the most popular.
This fun travel game for preschoolers lets their imaginations run wild as they guide their unicorns to Rainbow Mountain.
No reading is required, so your little one can follow the pictures along the magical path to win the game.
Rainbow Mountain comes to life with a pop-up feature that makes the final destination 3-D.
I recommend taking this on your next family vacation, just in case there is a rainy day and you are stuck in your hotel room.
Classic Games
Last update on 2025-01-19 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
Check out our other travel toy and activity guides:
- The 25 Best Travel Toys for Babies
- 20 Toys to Keep Toddlers Busy on an Airplane
- 25 Beach Toys for Toddlers
- Our Favorite Travel Toys for 3-Year-Olds
- 15 Travel Games for Toddlers
- 20 Fun Travel Toys for 4-Year-Olds
- Our Favorite Headphones for Toddlers
- 20 Screen-Free Road Trip Toys for Toddlers
- 10 Mess-Free Travel Activities for 2-Year-Olds
- 50 Road Trip Activities for Toddlers
- LeapFrog Tablets for Toddlers to Promote Learning
- 20 Educational Travel Toys for 5-Year-Olds
- 15 Fun Airplane Activities for Toddlers
- The Best Learning Tablets for Toddlers
- 20 Snow Toys for Toddlers and Big Kids
