What to pack in the carry-on to keep little ones happy from takeoff to touchdown, without handing over the tablet before you’ve even left the gate.
Flying with a 3, 4, or 5-year-old is… a lot. But it doesn’t have to be survival mode. With the right mix of activities packed before you leave home, you can get through even a long flight with your sanity, and your fellow passengers’ goodwill, mostly intact.
After lots of traveling with our girls, here’s what actually works in the confined space of an airplane seat, on a tray table roughly the size of a hardback book.
The Golden Rule
Don’t hand everything out at once. Pack a bag, but reveal items one at a time. The novelty of “something new” buys you far more time than dumping everything out in the first 20 minutes.
Before You Board: What to Pack
Everything below fits easily in a personal item or carry-on. For preschoolers especially, familiar items help — new environments like airports and planes feel big and exciting but also overwhelming, so having things they recognize is genuinely calming.
Activity Books & Coloring
R&L Creative Activities Workbook
Our go-to for tray table time. Pages are varied enough to hold attention across different moods — tracing, coloring, simple puzzles. Pair with a small pack of crayons and you’re set for a solid stretch of quiet time.Ages 3–8 ✓
Shop R&L Creative Activities
Foil Fun Art
This feels genuinely special to preschoolers — the sparkly reveal keeps them engaged for longer than you’d expect. Mess-free and perfectly sized for a tray table. Great for that mid-flight slump.Ages 3–8 ✓
Link To Foil Fun
Puffy Sticker Books (Reusable)
Reusable sticker scenes are magic at this age. They can peel, place, rearrange, and narrate elaborate stories — totally independently. The reusable aspect means no mess and no “I’m done” after five minutes.Ages 3–8 ✓
Pirate & Dino Stickers or Princess & Mermaids
Aqua Puffs / Water Art
Color with a water pen — no ink, no mess, and the colors disappear so they can reuse the pages. Ideal for the tight space of an airplane seat. A huge hit with the 3–4 age group especially.Ages 3–8 ✓
Aqua Art
Reusable Drawing Tablet
Doodle, erase, repeat — no paper everywhere, no crayons rolling under the seat. Great for kids who just want to draw freely without a structured page to fill in.Ages 3–8 ✓
Drawing Tablet
Stickers, Notebooks & Open-Ended Play
A small notebook, a sheet of stickers, and a chunky crayon is one of the most underrated travel combos for this age. Preschoolers will make up stories, “write” lists, design their own characters, and narrate the whole thing to you. It’s lightweight, inexpensive, and endlessly reusable.
Small Notebook Link – Stickers – Crayons –Twistables
Fun idea
Tell them the notebook is their “flight journal.” They can draw what they see out the window, what they eat, and where they’re going. It becomes a little keepsake too.
Small Fidget Toys
Pop-Its or simple sensory toys are underrated for takeoff and landing — the moments when kids can’t really do an activity but need something for their hands. They’re also great during turbulence when you want calm, quiet distraction.
Yes, We Bring the Tablet Too
No judgment here. The tablet is a tool, not the enemy. We save it for:
- Takeoff and landing (when other activities aren’t practical)
- Turbulence — it’s genuinely the best distraction
- The last 30–45 minutes of a long flight when everyone is done
- Unexpected delays
Download shows and apps before you fly — don’t count on airplane WiFi.
One essential thing to pack with it: kid-sized headphones. Ones that actually stay on. Your row neighbors will thank you.Kids Headphones
Don’t Forget the Basics
Activities only work when the basics are covered. Before any of the above matters, make sure you have:
- Snacks — hunger hits fast at 30,000 feet and a hungry preschooler will undo all your careful activity planning
- Lollipops or gum for takeoff and landing — helps with ear pressure, which preschoolers often struggle to manage on their own
- A refillable water bottle — airplane air is so dry
- A change of clothes in the carry-on — spills happen. Every single time. Wet Dry Bags
- Their own backpack — giving preschoolers ownership over their “plane bag” makes them feel proud and involved, which genuinely prevents meltdowns before you even board
The Timing Rotation That Actually Works
Here’s how we typically sequence activities on a longer flight with preschoolers. The key is rotation — each new thing buys fresh attention.
| Flight Phase | Best Activity |
|---|---|
| Pre-boarding / gate wait | Sticker book or notebook — low-stakes, easy to pack away quickly |
| Takeoff | Tablet or lollipop (ear pressure) — keep it calm |
| First hour in the air | Activity book + crayons or Foil Fun on the tray table |
| Mid-flight slump | Aqua Puffs or puffy sticker book — something “new” to reveal |
| Final stretch | Tablet — earned and guilt-free |
| Landing | Pop-It or fidget toy — hands busy, no mess to pack up |
Save this post! Pin it to your travel board so it’s ready before your next trip.
Printable Carry-On Checklist
- R&L Activity Workbook
- Crayons or markers
- Foil Fun art kit
- Puffy sticker book
- Aqua Puffs / water art
- Drawing tablet
- Small notebook + stickers
- Pop-It or fidget toy
- Tablet (downloaded content)
- Kids headphones
- Snacks
- Lollipops for landing
- Water bottle
- Change of clothes
- Their own backpack
- Zip pouch to hold it all
Flying with young kids will never be completely smooth — and that’s okay. But with a little preparation and a bag full of the right things, you can get through it with some genuinely fun, sweet moments mixed in. Those in-between hours in the air are actually some of our favorite slow-down-and-just-be-together times.
Safe travels. You’ve got this. 