Best Travel Toys For 1 Year Olds 2023

Little ones love putting things in them and taking them out again. I particularly liked this caterpillar bath set from Munchkin. which is neatly stacked for hand luggage and ideal for in and out of water. We found these cups were great to play with in a bath or a pool at the destination too, making them a great multiple use travel toy for babies.

Melissa And Doug's Take Along Shape Sorter. A popular game for little hands and one that is easy to transport whilst traveling. It does have pieces which could drop, but this is useful for little ones to play with in the more secure airplane bassinet or at your destination.

Includes a padded case with 2 activity sides and a take-along handle, plus 9 shaped, textured blocks in various colours. For more information on these toys for traveling with 1 year olds see here

Sassy Ring-O-Links Teethers.A firm favourite since she was a tiny baby and she still loved them as a small toddler.  The bright colours engage and provide visual stimulation, whereas the links have different textures on which appeals to babies sense of touch.

All linked together they can be used as a rattle, or separately as a teether. Another very versatile toy. They work brilliantly on airline bassinets so are ideal to bring along as part of your airplane travel toys and are ideal for travel car seats too, making them versatile and one of the best travel baby toys. For more information see here.

My 1 year old LOVED this buckle toy whale  and it kept her so busy. So many people have sung its praises to me after purchasing it. I firmly believe it's one of the best travel toys for a 1 year old and often buy it as a travel gift for friends with little ones.

The Buckle Toy Whale has several buckles to do up and a zip mouth. The only issue is once they master the buckle, you may get asked a few times to unbuckle it, until they discover that skill.

Nonetheless, it has easily occupied her for over 30 minutes. A firm favourite on all our journeys, car included.  It's one of the best toddler toys for airplane use, because it is so quiet.

If you have an older baby or one who enjoys sensory play; creating an activity mat covered in buttons, different materials and things for them to flick, twist, scrunch and tap can be great travel toy for a 1 year old. Although time consuming to create, this can be something to keep until your little one gets older. Alternatively, a Montessori style travel activity bag like this does the trick.

Combining busy book and traditional busy board, Features over 18 learning activities that help kids build dexterity and develop learning skills for preschoolers, including zippers, gears, buttons, shoelaces, clocks, alphabet, animals, numbers, calendar learning games and more.

This machine washable soft cloth book is one of the best toys for car travel for babies or an ideal choice of toy for baby on a plane, as it is so light, portable and engaging. With activities such as buttoning, buckling, peek-a-boo, counting, matching and telling time, it helps promote sensory development, fine motor skills, color recognition, and other early learning skills.

Lots of things to spot on each page and a complete classic. Both have loved this book so much that I had to buy two copies due to over use!

Julia Donaldson 'Lift the Flap' series, (the author of the popular Gruffalo) . We love Fox's Socks, Hide and Seek Pig etc.  Again lots of things to spot and fun lifting the flaps to see who is hiding and perfect all the way through from baby to learning to read.

The pictures are by Axl Schelffler and are so engaging. It's easy to see why these books are so popular with young children. Both of mine loved them from an early age and now the older one reads it to my youngest. Win win! 

My one-year-old and four-year love Duplo. The number train is easy to pack and fun too. (We just discarded the box for easier packing). We actually bought this on one of our trips away and then kept bringing it along as it was such a success. I think it has been so popular because yuo can build towers, roll wheels and play with the characters to kind of 3 in 1. For more information and prices see here.

Pieces can obviously drop on the floor of a car or airplane, so we opted to just use a couple of pieces from this set on the plane and saved the rest for playing with at the destination. If you are staying in a hotel room, villa, or Airbnb which doesn't have any toys, bringing a few toys for moments of boredom or quiet time can prove invaluable.