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The days are long and the attention spans are short. Try these products to help the time tick a little more joyfully.

Promising review: "Out of a haul of toys we purchased to keep our two very active young boys busy on a flight, this was hands-down the most loved. They are satisfyingly tactile shapes. The pieces fit neatly back into the tin, and it is so easy and compact to slip into a backpack pocket! Would absolutely recommend — awesome toy." —Alexis P

Promising review: "I bought this for our road trip, desperate for something to keep our kids entertained. This was super fun! My husband, I, and our 5-year-old had fun playing it together. My 3-year-old was trying, but is a little bit too young for it. The pictures are fun and engaging. I honestly had a great time and would recommend this to other parents looking for something to keep their kids busy!" —Heather

Promising review: "I love this thing! Not only is it great for holding your phone/iPad on flights, car rides, or anywhere, it also makes for a great toy for kids. My son used it has a 'hill' for his car for half the flight. He also would park his cars underneath it. It provided a lot of entertainment and the possibilities for what you can use it for are endless. The best part about it is it doesn’t slide around since it’s made out of a rubber/silicone-like material." —Shelby Hartzler

Price: $9.99+ (available in four versions)

Promising review: "Bought this to keep my toddler entertained during a seven-hour road trip AND IT WORKED. Easy to set up quickly, stores away flat, great size, and convenient pockets to hold the dry-erase pens and eraser (included). We did lots of coloring but also used it as a stable table to play with other toys and eat snacks. Definitely recommend getting one!" —Chloe Young

Price: $25.99+ (available in 11 designs and in a two-pack)

Promising review: "Bought three of these for a road trip for my 2-year-old, 3-year-old, and 10-year-old — should have bought five, cause man oh man were they a hit. My 1-year-old and 13-year-old kept fighting the other kids to take turns. They are super lightweight and amazing to use. The erase feature is awesome — kids treat it like magic. Was way more fun for them to draw with this than normal paper and crayons and white boards are just no fun. They came with an extra battery for the erase feature also, which is so convenient! Will be buying more of these as gifts!!!" —Allison Rangel

Price: $15.99+ (available in four sizes and six colors)

Promising review: "I was skeptical of this product given the claim of it being good for a toddler or adult. However, I was wrong! This handy sensory toy keeps our 3-year-old entertained and was a great addition to a recent airplane trip. It stimulates his brain and keeps him occupied for a while. And, it’s fun for adults to work on too." —H. Coleman

Promising review: "I bought these as an additional item to keep my kids busy on our long car ride this past summer. They were a hit with our 9-, 12-, and 16-year-olds. I'm not ashamed to admit my husband and I also both enjoyed tinkering with them. There are so many movable parts, they aren't terribly noisy when you move them either, which is good for quiet, enclosed spaces. For me, personally, I struggle with small noises, so these little fidgets were great." —Shelby B

Price: $9.99+ (available in various colors and pack sizes)

Promising review: "My boys have used this while traveling since they were 4. We have used it for long-distance air travel, car travel, and everywhere. It is lightweight and small enough to pack, the magnets allow everything to stay together so nothing is ever sliding off. This is the second one we have bought as a gift, and will continue to do so!" —Jessica Armstrong

Each set includes a five-color ink pad and a 27-page book.

Promising review: "This was a great purchase for the airplane to entertain my 3-year-old daughter. It kept her busy and did not need to worry about any mess while she was being creative." —Abbey

Price: $15.99 (clip the coupon on the product page to get it for $11.19).

Promising review: "Bought these for air travel and they did not disappoint. My son loved building towers with them and sticking them to the window of the airplane. They go back into the container easily, and you really can just rinse them with water, and they are clean and still sticky." —Suzy E.

Promising review: "Fun little game for travel! Kept the kids (and me) entertained on a long road trip. There’s plenty of puzzles to do and lots of different levels of difficulty to keep my kids (8 and 11) entertained, and even some that stumped me!" —CanyonG

Promising review: "Bought this for our 2-year-old who loves puzzles as we were going on a four-hour plane ride and spending a week in a vacation rental with minimal toys. The best feature is that the magnetic pieces stick onto the flaps of the puzzle. You can spread all the pieces out so you can see/pick without losing them in the car or plane. Our toddler liked spreading them all out and then rebuilding the puzzle over and over. An added fun feature is that you get two puzzles in a slim set up that takes up minimal space in a carry-on. Pieces are small, but after building a couple of times with mom and dad, she was able to master it herself, but the magnetic feature kept her interest." —Jake Hosler

Price: $9.49+ (available in two versions).

Promising review: "Got it for a long car trip and it was fantastic. Excellent size for traveling and different ages had a great time using it." —Amazon Customer

Promising review: "I originally bought this because I was going on a few hours-long bus trip with my 4-year-old and wanted to have some new toys packed in case she got bored on the bus. When I showed her the options, this is the first one she chose to play with. When I purchased this, I thought it was as simple as finding the hidden object on the back of the card, somewhere on the front of the same card. But after reading the enclosed directions, I learned you’re looking for a hidden picture amongst five separate cards, so it involves a little more skill and competition that entertained my daughter for a good portion of our trip. Now that we’re home, she still chooses this frequently to play on family game night!" —Tyla S.

Price: $9.99 (clip the coupon on the product page to get it for $8.99).

Promising review: "Bought this game to distract my daughter on an eight-hour plane ride. We both love playing it. Even after the trip, we still play it. It’s easy to change the sheets and start a new game. I recommend. She’s 5-years-old." —Elen Ray

Price: $12.98 (clip the coupon on the product page to get it for $12.33).

Promising review: This was perfect for a mini family road trip with my 6-year-old. It was nice to see her take a break from the tablet and let her imagination go wild. They were easy to wash off my seats since some of them lost their lids. Luckily, they still clicked into the case even without the lids." —Asia

Promising review: "Over the course of the summer we did three major road trips, each lasting minimum eight hours and I wanted to have toys/games that weren’t just on my girls' tablets. When I found these, I was very excited. The size is that of an Amazon Fire tablet — maybe a bit larger, but great slim design. It was super easy to use and engaging for both my 3-year-old and my 6-year-old. Great gift for kids in families who travel a lot, or if you're doing flights or boat trips. It’s perfect because it won’t roll around or have a bunch of extra pieces. Worth the money. I have two and love them." —Dominic Grecki

Price: $15.98 (available in three colors)

Promising reviews: "Very fun! My 7-year-old has loved using this during long car rides. We haven’t done all of the games yet, mostly because he liked the first two he tried and just keeps going back to them! But I’m sure they’re all great. The games are interesting enough that my 13-year-old daughter will play them with him. Granted, she’s also very kind and helpful with her younger siblings, but the games aren’t terrible — even in her view! It’s a good size, easy to wipe off, strong enough to write on, the markers stay in their holder, and I love that it comes with two colors so you can play the two-player games. The design was definitely thought through very well — just like everything else from Melissa & Doug!" —AdaliaMusic

Promising review: "My 15-month-old loves this. This is the second one I purchased from this company. I bought it for many reasons, but we went on a 14-hour road trip, and she would sit and play in the car seat for almost 45 minutes to an hour with this with me — handing me pieces and putting them back on. I recommend this to anyone. Especially if their kid(s) aren’t good in the car. This was the BEST distraction. I highly recommend." —Madds

Price: $18.98+ (available in seven designs)

Promising review: "Both my kids love this. They are seven years apart and rarely like the same things for long, but this has had them both excited and playing together. It was great for our road trip and just a simple game at home." —Kay

Promising review: "We bought this for a very long car trip, and it was a great addition. It kept the kids busy in the car, and because it was magnetic, there weren't pieces all over the car. Also, the perfect size for small hands." —rngirl

Price: $14.99 (also available in six other games)

My family are HUGE fans of these books — especially my 5-year-old. These are the exact same hidden pictures pages from the Highlights you'd find at the dentist's office when you were a kid, but some other kid hasn't already circled them before you could get your hands on it. If that sense of relief wasn't enough already, kids actually love these just as much today. My daughter can't find her shoes when they're two feet away, but she will spend a surprisingly long time searching for the hidden pictures in these books. I can only hope those seek-and-find skills will one day transfer to the real world and she'll actually find her shoes one of these days. 

Promising review: "Kids had a blast on the road trip — something other than technology!" —Bash

Price: $17.99+ for four books (available in four versions and a version for younger kids)

My kids are particularly fond of the fashion dress-up version of this book, and they have gotten literal years of play. They love creating new outfits and scenes in their books, and I love how low-stakes the stickers are — and I am an outspoken sticker-hater.

Promising review: "My 2-year-old daughter loves this! Perfect for long road trips or airplane rides! The adhesive is great and long-lasting." —brooke ewbank

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Plus, pet carriers, tips for traveling with a carry-on, a guide to the best luggage brands, road trip essentials, packing cubes, finds for frequent travelers and travel-friendly strollers, bathing suits, bags, pants, and perfumes.

Reviews in this post have been edited for length and clarity.

BuzzFeed Shopping is service journalism first: our writers and editors spend all day shopping so you don’t have to, vetting products, fact-checking brand claims, and surfacing what actually helps in real life. We center readers over revenue, recommend products with authenticity (using real experiences, not ad-speak), and reflect our diverse audience, inclusive of a variety of price points, people, and needs. We cut through fake deals, favor useful info over glossy fluff, and recommend both budget and splurge options with context so you can decide what’s right for you — and still have a little fun along the way.