Play · Months 18 to 24
Travel toys for toddlers: two to buy, the rest from your house.
A long trip with a toddler runs on many small activities, brought out one at a time. Two things are worth buying. Most of the kit is already in your kitchen drawer.
- 2 picks, 3 skips
- Recall-checked Oct 2026
- Includes the $0 option
Independent picks. If you buy through our Amazon links we may earn a commission; as an Amazon Associate, Betteroo earns from qualifying purchases. It never decides what makes the list. How we choose
The short answer
Most of a toddler’s travel kit is free, and two things are worth buying. The Buckle Toys Buster Square is a quiet, one-piece toy with six buckles and a zipper. Indestructibles books are rip proof and wipe clean, so bring two or three. Both are in our Budget band.
Pack many small activities and bring out one at a time: painter’s tape, sticky notes, a small notebook. Leave out anything with small loose pieces; toys for children under 3 can’t contain small parts (CPSC). On October 8, 2026 we checked both picks’ live US listings, price bands and the CPSC recall database.
At a glance
Two travel toys for a toddler
Buckle Toys Buster Square
A plush square with six buckles to open and close, and a zipper pocket.
Price band: Budget Check price Why it made the list
Indestructibles: Baby Faces
A book printed on chew-proof, washable material. Bring two or three.
Price band: Budget Check price Why it made the listBefore you buy
What a travel toy has to do
A common mistake is buying one big travel toy and expecting it to last the trip. A toddler kit works better as many small things, rationed.
We assess both picks on the same things: the maker’s age rating, what it’s made of, what’s in the box, and how much it weighs.
One piece
Nothing small or loose to drop under the seat.
Quiet
No sound or lights for a plane or a train.
Cheap
Both are in our Budget band.
The picks
Why each one made the list
Buckle Toys Buster Square
A plush square with six buckles to open and close, and a zipper pocket.
Six color-coded buckles crisscross a 6.5-inch plush square, with a mix of traditional, round and square clasps, embroidered shapes and numbers, and a small zipper that opens a hidden pocket (Buckle Toys). It weighs 5 ounces. The listing adds that it clips to a stroller or a high chair; we’d keep it off the car seat itself.
Why it’s worth it
- Quiet: no sound or lights
- One piece, nothing loose to drop
- 5 oz, clips to a stroller
Key specs
- Age range
- No age given; listing says "Toddler"
- Material
- Plush, with plastic buckles
- In the box
- 1 square
- Weight
- 5 oz
From Buckle Toys’ product page, then the amazon.com listing, checked October 8, 2026.
Safety check
- No recalls found in the CPSC recall database (searched by product name, Oct 8, 2026).
- Toys for children under 3 can’t contain small parts (CPSC). If a buckle or strap comes loose, take it out of the bag.
Indestructibles: Baby Faces
A book printed on chew-proof, washable material. Bring two or three.
Indestructibles are printed on a tight-woven material that’s rip proof, waterproof, nontoxic and washable (Workman), so a snack spill on the tray wipes off. Baby Faces is 12 pages of faces with few words. The series has other titles, so two or three different ones make a few short activities.
Why it’s worth it
- Rip proof and washable (publisher)
- The lowest price on this page
- Other titles in the series to rotate
Key specs
- Age range
- 0 to 2 years
- Material
- Chew-proof woven pages
- In the box
- 1 book, 12 pages
- Weight
- Not listed
From the publisher’s page (Workman, Hachette Book Group), checked October 8, 2026.
Safety check
- No recalls found in the CPSC recall database (searched by product name, Oct 8, 2026).
Side by side
Two picks side by side
| | |
|---|---|---|
| Job | Buckles to work on | Books to chew and wipe |
| Price band | Price band: Budget | Price band: Budget |
| Age rating | No age given (listing: “Toddler”) | 0 to 2 years (Workman) |
| Material | Plush, plastic buckles | Chew-proof woven pages |
| Weight | 5 oz | Not listed |
| Sound | None | None |
Which one is yours
Start with your situation
A plane or a trainBoth. Bring one out at a time.
A child who loves the stroller bucklesThe Buster Square.
Want to spend the leastIndestructibles, two or three titles.
A child who still chews booksIndestructibles, made to be chewed.
Already own a few board booksThe Buster Square, for something new.
The $0 version
A roll of painter’s tape to stick and peel on the tray table, a pad of sticky notes, a small notebook and two chunky crayons, an empty tissue box with old cards to post into it. Wrap a few things in paper: unwrapping is an activity by itself. New to them is what matters; it doesn’t need to be new.
Tape, sticky notes, a notebook, a box to post things into.
What we would skip
Three things we’d leave on the shelf
They look made for travel. Here’s why we’d pass.
Activity kits with small pieces
Beads, tiny figures and play dough tubs end up under the seat, and toys for children under 3 can’t contain small parts (CPSC). Check the age on the box and the listing’s warning, and go with the higher age.
Toys that make noise
Lights and sound are hard on the people in the next row, and you can’t switch off a song a toddler loves. We’d pack quiet ones.
Snacks as an activity in the car while you drive
The AAP says to supervise mealtimes for young children, and a driver can’t watch the back seat. Save the snack for a stop.
What we passed on
- Melissa & Doug Water Wow! Vehicles. A top seller in Amazon’s search for travel toys for toddlers, but Melissa & Doug rates it 3 to 5 years (Melissa & Doug).
- Melissa & Doug Tape Activity Book. Also a top seller in that search, and also rated 3 to 5 years by Melissa & Doug (Melissa & Doug). A roll of painter’s tape does the same job for free.
Questions parents ask
FAQ
What are good travel toys for a 2-year-old?
Small, quiet, one-piece things, brought out one at a time: a buckle toy like the Buster Square, a few lightweight books, painter’s tape and sticky notes. Leave out small loose pieces; toys for children under 3 can’t contain small parts (CPSC).
How many activities should I pack for a flight?
More than you think, and small. We’d pack many cheap activities and ration them, rather than one expensive toy. Free ones from home count.
Are Melissa & Doug Water Wow pads good for toddlers?
Melissa & Doug rates its Water Wow! Vehicles pad for ages 3 to 5 (Melissa & Doug), so we’d keep it for later.
What age is the Buckle Toys Buster for?
Buckle Toys’ page gives no age, and the amazon.com listing describes the age range only as “Toddler”.
Why trust Worth It
How we choose
We don’t run a product lab, and we won’t pretend we do. Worth It picks are researched from makers’ instructions, retailer listings and official safety guidance, not lab-tested. Each is chosen for a specific age and a specific job, the way a friend a couple of years ahead of you would choose: a few products, each with a reason, and an honest note on what could go wrong.
We check every listing on amazon.com for a live US offer and sort it into a price band: Budget (under $30), Mid-range ($30 to $100) or Premium (over $100). We don’t print exact prices because they change daily. If you buy through our links we may earn a commission. That pays for this, and it never decides what makes the list.
For safety, we search the CPSC recall database by product name, and we note the US safety standard the maker says a product meets. Where the maker doesn’t say, we tell you what the law requires for that kind of product. The JPMA’s certification list (now run by the Baby Safety Alliance) isn’t publicly searchable, so we only mention certification when the maker states it. Specs come from the maker first, and the Amazon listing second.
Sources for this page
- Buckle Toys: Buster
- Workman (Hachette Book Group): Indestructibles: Baby Faces
- CPSC: small parts rules for children's products
- AAP: choking prevention
- Melissa & Doug: Water Wow! Vehicles
- Melissa & Doug: Tape Activity Book
- CPSC recall database, searched by product name on October 8, 2026
- Product listings on amazon.com, checked October 8, 2026
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