Let’s be honest, traveling with kids is hard and tiring. Really, really tiring. But the key to making travel with kids easier is preparation. We have been fortunate enough to travel quite a bit with our kids and luckily, it gets easier with time. In this post, I have compiled the best items to pack in your kids travel backpack!

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With a little extra planning and organizing, it’s possible that you can save yourself a headache while making it through your flights. Sometimes my kids have surprised me and been little angels during flights. Other times, I feel like I am going to have a meltdown on the plane with them. Hopefully this list helps prevent that for you!

Click on any of the links throughout the post to shop some of the items that we use during our flights!

Backpack

While it may seem like each child having their own travel backpack is a little excessive, I have found that it helps make things considerable easier. The kids like to have their own ‘stuff’ packed away in their bags.

My favorite travel backpacks for kids are from Pottery Barn Kids. They are sturdy and have multiple pouches and cup holders. The buckled straps on the outside are great for holding blankets and neck pillows too!

We’ve been using their backpacks for years and have found them to be so worth the cost.

Blanket

We have been using these blankets for the kids since they were babies. They are thin enough to roll up and put into one of the holders on the side of the backpack but also big enough to cover them when they are sleeping. We have washed ours countless times and they hold up perfectly.

If you would prefer a blanket that comes in a pouch, this one is perfect. It comes in multiple colors. The pouch has a clip that can attach to the outside of the backpack, leaving more room for what is important, snacks. It can act as a pillow (when in the pouch) or a blanket.

Neck Pillow

For our son that loves dinosaurs, this is the neck pillow that we use. We have even washed in multiple times and it still looks brand new!

For our toddler, we use this neck pillow. It’s thin so it isn’t too big and bulky for her!

Most of the time they don’t use it around the neck but instead just use it to lay down or up against a window.

Headphones

We use these headphones for our kids when traveling. They are a great price point and you won’t lose sleep if they end up forgotten or broken.

These volume limiting headphones are worth the extra money if you have a little one that constantly like to turn the volume up.

If you are just looking for noise cancelling earmuffs to make napping easier for your child, try out these. Not only are they are life saver during nap time, they are great to bring with you if you plan on attending any loud events. We have used them at concerts, sports games, car races and even movie theaters that were too loud!

Reusable Water Bottle

We absolutely love these no spill cups and this stainless steel cup with a lid is the perfect travel cup for our toddler. The lid is great for keeping germs off of the mouthpiece.

We use this Thermos brand travel cup for our little Pokémon lover. This brand works so well for travel because it will keep the drink cold (especially important if your little one is drinking milk). I also like that the straw folds in to help prevent germs from getting all over it.

I just purchased these Contigo cups too and will report back on how well they work!

For more helpful information, check out my post 20 Tips for Traveling on Flights with Kids!

Activities

There are so many fun things to grab your childs attention during the flight. Some of our favorites for our kids travel backpack include these magnetic puzzles, a magnetic doodle board and Imagine Ink coloring books. We also pack Wikki Stix, Water Wow Books and regular coloring books and crayons.

More fun items that work for us are reusable window clings, activity books, fidget cube toy, and learning busy board.

If you’re child uses electronics, we love the Nintendo Switch and traveling case. Luckily, our son really only likes to use this when we are traveling but, the benefit of buying a Switch is that it can be used as a hand held device or hooked up to a TV. There are a ton of games to choose from, including learning games!

We also have an iPad Air (with protective travel case) for each of our children. They are an investment but we bought ours on Black Friday and saved a ton of money!

Our kids use the ABC Mouse program but we also download movies from Netflix and Disney prior to leaving on our trip!

Both of our kids also love this camera. It keeps them occupied for quite a while and it is always funny to go through the SD card to see all of the pictures that they took!

This is also a great time to pick up stuff from the dollar store!

Snacks

Sure, filling your kids bags with healthy snacks is ideal but let’s not kid ourselves, a bag of veggie straws isn’t going to stop my kid from screaming at the top of her lungs.

I don’t fill my kids backpacks with candy but I make sure to have a mix of their favorite snacks with a few special treats too. Some of our favorite items are apple sauce pouches, chocolate chip Larabar Kids, fruit snacks, Cheez-Its, and Pringles.

Another good idea is to let you child pick out a few snacks at the store prior to your trip. I find that my kids are more excited for snacks that they have been able to choose themselves.

Practical Items

We love the Honest Co. wipes because they are gentle on skin and they are so thick. Not only are they great for changing diapers, they are also great for cleaning up spills, wiping faces and so much more.

These packets of hand sanitizer are great because they aren’t too big to pass through security and won’t leak over everything in the bag.

At home we use washable face masks but when we are traveling, we always bring disposable masks with us too. It is so easy for them to get lost when traveling so having these on hand is really helpful.

I also let the kids carry a small package of bandages with them.

Hopefully this post helps alleviate some travel stress. Let me know your favorite items to pack in your kids travel backpack, comment below!