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Our 5-year-old daughter’s favorite activity for over a year now has been drawing. It’s impressive to see how creative she’s become with such a simple activity. And it keeps her focused and entertained at home, especially before and after school or while her brother is napping. Oftentimes, she will listen to her Toniebox or Mini Yoto player at the same time.
When we’re traveling, we don’t have space to bring all of her favorite art supplies. But over time, we’ve curated a collection of kids’ art supplies that fit in a carry-on and/or checked suitcase. There are so many “travel sets” available, but I’ve found it’s more than enough – and lightens your load – if you stick to good basics.
Below are my picks for the best travel art supplies for kids. Looking for more tips for traveling with kids? Check out Toddler Plane Travel Essentials!
Markers
When looking for travel art supplies for kids, having markers is an obvious must-have. There are a few types that have become favorites:
- Magic Stix: These are “pencil grip” washable markers, aka they’re triangle shaped and don’t roll around. They come in a slim case that’s easy to throw in any bag or suitcase.
- Crayola Clicks: These are more likely to roll off a table than above, but they don’t have caps that inevitably get lost when we’re out and about.
- Crayola Pip Squeaks: At home we have this carousel, but this smaller pack is good for travel. These are shorter markers, so they don’t take up as much space. We also have them in this pack with the carry case and paper included.
Crayons
- Crayola Triangle Crayons: These have a triangle shape that prevents them from rolling, which I find particularly convenient if your child plans to color on the plane. Also find these on Amazon.
- Crayola Twistables: These crayons don’t break and you can twist them up and down, so no sharpening or peeling of paper is needed. This 65-piece set has lots of colors and the Twistables are shorter, so you can bring more variety.
Paper
- Melissa & Doug Mini Sketch Pads (6×9”): This is a good 3-pack of smaller sized spiral-bound sketch pads that have easy to tear out pages.
- Mondo Llama 6×9” Pad of Paper: Target’s Mondo Llama line is another go-to for paper.
Stickers
I always have some sort of sticker sheet or book in the bags I carry with the kids. Here are some I’ve recently purchased (or purchased many times):
- Fashion Angels Sticker Book: These are usually under $5 for 1,000 stickers and I’ve probably purchased at least 10 of them. I throw them into gift bags, rip out a few pages at a time, and keep them in various bags and drawers.
- 1,000+ Sticker Sheet Sets: I’ve purchased these a billion times. For under $8, you get so many sheets of stickers – and these stickers are good quality for the price. They are thick, so they are easy for little fingers to get off themselves. And when they inevitably get stuck on clothes or your washing machine, they actually come off.
- A note on sticker rolls: Don’t do it! I’ve made this mistake before and wound up with a massive roll of stickers un-rolled while en route to a destination. So annoying.
Storage
- Clipboard with Storage: If you have space or expect your child will need a surface to draw on, we love this clipboard. You can put printer paper inside or any notebook, activity book, sticker sheets, etc. Sometimes I put a bag with markers inside as well.
- Pencil Cases: These ones come in lots of prints and open up nicely so kids can see whatever is inside without dumping it out.
- Pack All Zip Bags: I love these for so many things in my mom life, but one is for storing kids’ activities – mostly coloring essentials – while on the go. Sometimes I even nest them within each other to keep the paper, coloring supplies, stickers, etc. organized.
More Ideas
- Travel Marker/Crayon Sets: Depending on how you’re packing, these preassembled sets can either be helpful or take up more space than you intended. But they make for great gifts and do get lots of use when we’re traveling or out of the house. Crayola Pip-Squeaks Set | Twistables Colored Pencils | Super Tips Markers
- Color Wonder Sets: We use these more for my 2-year-old right now, but my 5-year-old plays with them as well. If you’re worried about the mess of markers and crayons while you’re on the go, try these. The markers don’t show up as anything unless they are used with the corresponding Color Wonder paper. Here is a 30-piece set that comes with a carry case.
- Paint with Water Books: These are a pack and use once you get to your destination activity. They are essentially paint-by-number books that have a set of watercolors built into each page. All you need is a cup of water to wash the brush.
