The Edit — Craft
Travel Games for Kids Compared: Cars, Planes, Trains
Seven games that fit in a bag, sorted by where they work: the back seat, a tray table, or a table on a train. Bananagrams rates highest, Kanoodle has the deepest record, and CATAN's travel game is the newest.
This guide is research-led: we have not handled these units ourselves. If you buy through our links we may earn a commission — it never changes a pick. How we choose
The 7 games are ranked by rating, then by how many owners rated them on 5 October 2026, and sorted by the trip each one suits, as How we choose describes. Nothing here was handled or played.
Best for A family at a table
Watch for Loose tiles in a car
Best for Mixed ages from 5
Watch for No tin in this edition
Best for One child, a tray table
Watch for Early puzzles are easy
Best for The back seat, 5 and up
Watch for Cards wear with use
Best for Ages 8 to 13, solo
Watch for Volume; some units fail
Best for 3 to 4 players, 10+
Watch for Newer; few ratings yet
Best for Toddlers
Watch for Pages warp; pen fails
In the car, play a game that needs no table
A moving car has no flat surface and a floor that swallows small pieces. Car Bingo uses the view instead: each child marks off things seen from the window. For a toddler in a car seat, Melissa & Doug’s Water Wow pages show colour wherever a water pen touches them, with no paint to spill.
Car Bingo Road Trip Game
742 ratings at 4.7, bingo cards of things to spot from a car window, which owners pick for ages 5 and up.
Current price shown on Amazon. We may earn a commission.
| Type | Spot-it-outside bingo |
|---|---|
| Needs | A window |
742 ratings at 4.7. Owners say it holds children’s attention for hours on long drives, like the variety of cards, and pick it for ages 5 and up. Durability splits them, so expect the cards to wear on a long holiday.
Buy it if
- A long drive with children of 5 or more
Don't buy it if
- Rough handling, which wears the cards
Melissa & Doug Water Wow! Take-Along Drawing Set
625 ratings at 4.5, colour-reveal pages painted with a water pen, which owners use to keep toddlers busy on the road.
Current price shown on Amazon. We may earn a commission.
| Type | Water-pen colour reveal |
|---|
625 ratings at 4.5. Owners use it to keep toddlers busy on road trips and like that it makes no mess. The complaints recur: pages that warp or wear out, and a pen that stops working.
Buy it if
- A 2-year-old in a car seat
Don't buy it if
- Repeated use, which warps the pages
On a plane, a 1-player puzzle fits the tray table
Kanoodle from Educational Insights is a small case of puzzle pieces with challenges that get harder as they go. With 35,243 ratings at 4.7, it has the deepest record on this page. Flipslide from Moose Games is electronic, sold for ages 8 to 13.
Educational Insights Kanoodle
35,243 ratings at 4.7, the most-rated game here, a pocket logic puzzle with graded difficulty.
Current price shown on Amazon. We may earn a commission.
| Type | Solo logic puzzle |
|---|---|
| Players | 1 |
35,243 ratings at 4.7. Owners say it challenges children and adults alike, is small enough to pack, and makes a good Christmas gift. The recurring complaint is that the first stretch of puzzles is too easy, so point an older child at the later ones.
Buy it if
- A plane tray table
Don't buy it if
- A child who finds the early puzzles too easy
Moose Games Flipslide
12,698 ratings at 4.6, a handheld electronic colour-matching puzzle sold for ages 8 to 13.
Current price shown on Amazon. We may earn a commission.
| Type | Handheld electronic puzzle |
|---|---|
| Sold for | Ages 8 to 13 |
12,698 ratings at 4.6. Owners call it fun and addictive across ages, with one family’s 5-year-old hooked. Volume splits them, and some report a unit that stopped working properly. Mute it before boarding.
Buy it if
- A child who would otherwise ask for a tablet
Don't buy it if
- A quiet carriage, unless muted
At a table, Bananagrams and Spot It! work for the whole family
A train table, a hotel room or a holiday rental changes the choice, because now everyone can play. Bananagrams is a word race played with 144 tiles, and it rates highest of the 7 at 4.9 across 26,925 ratings. Spot It! from Asmodee is a matching card game that owners say a 5-year-old can play.
Bananagrams Classic Word Game
26,925 ratings at 4.9, the best-rated game here, a fast word game of 144 tiles in a banana-shaped pouch.
Current price shown on Amazon. We may earn a commission.
| Pieces | 144 letter tiles |
|---|---|
| Needs | A flat surface |
26,925 ratings at 4.9. Owners say it is quick to learn, fast to play, good for all ages and family gatherings, and easy to pack. It needs readers who can spell, so a pre-reader is a spectator.
Buy it if
- A train table or a hotel room
Don't buy it if
- A moving car, where tiles get lost
Spot It! Classic, Pocket Eco Edition
622 ratings at 4.8, the pocket edition of a fast matching card game that owners say a 5-year-old can play.
Current price shown on Amazon. We may earn a commission.
| Type | Matching card game |
|---|---|
| Edition | 2024 pocket |
622 ratings at 4.8. Owners find it fun, easy to learn, light enough for the car bag and good for concentration. The one complaint that recurs is that this edition comes without the tin.
Buy it if
- Mixed ages from 5 up
Don't buy it if
- A buyer who wants a sturdy tin
CATAN On The Road is for older children who know CATAN
CATAN On The Road is a card version of the board game, played to 7 victory points from a deck of 120 cards. CATAN gives it as 3 to 4 players, ages 10 and up, and 15 minutes a game. Its 123 ratings at 4.6 are the fewest here.
CATAN On The Road Card Game
123 ratings at 4.6, a newer listing, a 15-minute card version of CATAN for 3 to 4 players aged 10 and up.
Current price shown on Amazon. We may earn a commission.
| Players | 3 to 4 |
|---|---|
| Ages | 10 and up |
| Length | 15 minutes |
123 ratings at 4.6: a newer listing. Owners say it keeps the spirit of the board game, plays quickly and travels well. It is too early for a settled complaint.
Buy it if
- Older children who know CATAN
Don't buy it if
- A family with a child under 10
For the smallest children on the trip, toys for 1-year-olds compares 7 by what they teach, and Toniebox or Yoto covers screen-free story players for the car. For the trip itself, the busiest Thanksgiving travel days has TSA’s figures, and stocking stuffers has more small gifts.