The Best Compact Travel Accessories for Kids (2018)

Look no further for the best compact travel accessories for kids in 2018. Traveling with kids is hard.  This list is TSA-friendly and therefore geared toward air travel with kids.  However, all these items would be great for long road trips as well.

Disclaimer: Many of the links below are affiliate links, meaning at no additional cost to you–I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase. 

Best Compact Toilet Training Seat

Are you in the midst of potty training? Did a child in your family recently transition out of diapers or pull-ups?  This potty seat is a wonderful solution for traveling families.  It even comes with a waterproof pouch to store it in.  Given this, you won’t get germs on other things in your bag. It comes in three different colors.  Furthermore it will easily fit in your diaper bag or carry on.

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Best Compact Kid’s Headphones

One of the best ways to pass time on an airplane with preschoolers is to cash in on the screen time.  Especially if you’re traveling with an infant on your lap too.  We bought these over the ear headphones for our four year old before our recent trip to Philadelphia.  Not only did he love unboxing them, they fit him well and fold up easily. 

What I appreciate so much about this pair of headphones is the cord’s durability.  My son likes to pull on and play with the cord while he listens to things. As a result, our charge cords are often damaged. This cord feels like rope. It’s not going to break anytime soon. Furthermore, it’s got room to grow with your child.  My son wears them at the smallest size, but they expand quite a ways so that even an adult can comfortably wear them.

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Best Compact Kid’s Activity

Keeping your kids busy during long flights is all about being prepared.  Besides screen time, it’s a good idea to have no-mess activities for kids.  One of my favorite activities for my kids while traveling is Melissa & Doug’s Water Wow! Reusable Color Pad. If you forgot to fill up the water pen before boarding, just wait to pull out this activity until later in the flight.  Once the flight attendants have come through the aisle with water, you can fill up the pen and your child is ready to color!

If you forgot to purchase ahead of time, that’s ok. Many airport stores sell these for around $5 a piece which is not super inflated, compared to Amazon.  That’s because they know it’s one of the best compact travel accessories for kids. So no shame in buying it at the airport! It would also be a good way to kill some time on a long layover.

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Best Compact Kids Toy

This one takes the cake for the best compact kids toy.  It’s magnetic. It comes with a pouch. It’s not super loud or flashy. This toy is not bulky or heavy. No wonder it’s one of the best compact travel accessories for kids.  When you’re not traveling, it’s a great toy to keep in the diaper bag for other scenarios where you need to keep a little kid busy.

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Best Compact Snack Container

I know it doesn’t look like a snack container. That’s because it’s a pill box. This travel hack is wonderful.  I view air travel with kids in 15 minute time intervals. If I can survive 15 minutes at a time, it feels more manageable and easier to plan for. 

This snack container is compact, but even better it will buy you time.  Your child will enjoy opening and closing each little compartment to get out one or two raisins or goldfish at a time. Which means you can enjoy about 15 minutes of rest.  That’s what makes it one of the best compact travel accessories for kids!

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Best Compact Tablet & Case

As I shared above, I’m all for screen time when it comes to traveling.  Maybe you’re not, that’s ok. We can still be friends. But I definitely need it when flying by myself with two kids.  I appreciate the tech available to let my older son watch a show or play an app that helps him learn to read. And it buys me more than 15 minutes. We have been grateful for the way our iPad mini integrates with our other Apple devices.  We use this durable kids case to protect it. I’ve also heard good things about Amazon’s Fire Kids Edition Tablet, which would be a much cheaper price point. However, I have not personally owned or tried this product so I can’t recommend it. 

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I hope these recommendations for the best compact travel accessories for kids is helpful to you. Have you traveled with your kids? What have you brought along to keep them entertained? Wherever you go, I hope you travel well! Do you like this post? Pin it to save for later: