Travel Boredom Busters for Kids with Disabilities

Travel can be both amazing and challenging, and oftentimes a big challenge involves boredom during travel times. Here are some of our favorite travel boredom busters for kids with disabilities; be sure to add your favorites to our travel packing list recommendations! Also related to boredom, try to get your kids some physical exercise before you head out to encourage nap-taking when you’re on the road or in flight.

1. Kid zones

If you’re traveling by plane, take advantage of airport kid zones in order to save your packed activities for the plane. If you have access to an airline club or lounge that has a kids’ room, these spaces often have cartoons, games, and soundproofing if you need a quiet place to relax in between going through security and boarding.

2. Books

Whether downloaded or printed, books are always a great option to pass the time.

3. Audio entertainment

Audiobooks are a fantastic way to keep your child entertained during the trip—bonus points if you find an audiobook that’s interactive! You can purchase audiobooks or see if your local library offers audiobooks for loan. Podcasts are another excellent free alternative. Or if your kid loves music, set up a Spotify playlist. Be sure to download your audio materials to your device so your child can listen without an internet connection.

4. Movies or shows

Similar to audio content, download movies or shows on a tablet. If you have a DVD player in your car, pack a stack of DVDs.

5. Activity books

Coloring or sticker books are compact travel picks, and mess-free painting books can be a game changer for keeping kids tactically entertained on trips.

6. Sensory activities

Wikki Stix are a great tactile sensory activity for kids to play with on trips. Travel fidgets/sensory boards are also excellent boredom busters. You can find travel sensory boards online, or if you’re crafty, you can make one yourself.

7. Classic games

Don’t forget about old-fashioned road trip games like the license plate game or I Spy. They offer a fun way to interact as a family and with your environment without taking up any space.

8. Surprise items

Some parents keep a hidden stash of excess birthday or holiday gifts or birthday party favors. If you have a stash like this, pick a few items, or buy some small, inexpensive items and wrap them in gift paper! Surprise your kids with a wrapped item when you feel they need a distraction or morale booster.

9. Snacks

Never underestimate the power of snacks to distract a bored child! Pack some snacks that your kids don’t often get at home to make snack time more fun!

Investing in a backseat car organizer can also help keep all of your child’s road trip essentials—activities, snacks, games, and tablets—neatly organized in one place. Make sure you have a few power cords and banks on hand, too, for devices that require charging.

Check out more resources on travel and activities below. And if you need further support from Undivided—for example, help applying for public benefits or preparing for an IEP meeting and access to members-only office hours with specialists in insurance, public benefits, and special education—sign up for a free Undivided trial membership.