From soft toys for babies right up to games that pit your wits against your older kids-- here's ten suggestions for toys and games for family travelers.
This play cube is soft and made out of fabric, not hard plastic, which makes it handy for travelers. A plus hand puppet (monkey or bunny) for playing peek-a-boo comes with a hiding box containing other small toys that squeak and rattle. Recommended by About's guide for Parenting Babies and Toddlers.
Another cloth toy, easily portable: cuddly farm animals of different sounds and unusual shapes fit into appropriate openings in a colorful plush barn. Toddlers love to match, sort, and stuff! They can also "play barnyard animals". Ages 12-24 months. Recommended by About's guide for Parenting Babies and Toddlers.
For a long car-ride or plane-ride, here's nifty items from Travel Tots: cute see-through backpacks stuffed with stickers, tattoos, games-- 11 to 13 different activities in each one. Two models, for two age groups: 3-5, and 6-8; each age-group has themed packs for girls and boys. Cute touch: the backpack for younger kids is shaped like a car.
Not so much a "Guide" as a survival kit, with book, games, crafts, puzzles, crosswords, mazes, plus a zippered vinyl pouch holds the supplies-- brought to you by the imaginative Klutz Press. Klutz publishes colorful, original hands-on "books" that come with neat stuff; many are geared for car trips See Activity Kids, below.
It ain't easy making a travel-sized board game: the itsy-bitsy parts just get lost too easily. This travel version of Clue Jr. is a nice mini-version of a popular board game: it's easy, fun, has good storage for the stuff you need, and even if you lose the little markers, you can still play the game! Ages 5-8.
Trouble is a fun board game for ages 5 to 8 that's been around for decades; it shrinks very well to travel-size, and comes with a nice, small price-tag too. The "pop-o-matic" part refers to how you "pop" the dice, instead of rolling them: they're enclosed in a plastic bubble, so they can't get lost.
Checkers, Chinese Checkers, Bingo, Snakes & Ladders, , Solitaire, Tic Tac Toe, chess... ten classic games. The set measures 7-1/2" x 5" and includes magnetic game pieces, dice, and instructions. You can store all the pieces in hidden compartment.
Probably more than you ever wanted to know about the gang in Springfield...
Scrabble is a great game to play with older kids! A number of nifty travel sets are available.
Mastermind is another superb game for kids nine and up. It's simple to understand, easily portable, and a brain-challenge even for parents!
