Car activity toys for smoother journeys

Designed to keep babies entertained and parents calm while driving, the Taf Toys Koala In-Car Play Centre is an ideal travel companion, featuring a baby-safe curved mirror and three soft sensory toys, making it suitable from birth.

The play centre includes a crinkling rainbow, a rattling Kimmy the Koala, and a chime bell Scotty the Snail with an attached baby teether. These toys not only provide entertainment but also encourage babies to reach out and engage, promoting their sensory development too. The curved mirror allows parents to easily keep an eye on their rear-facing baby, offering reassurance while driving. However, some reviews suggest that the mirror's static position can make it difficult to see the baby's reflection clearly, with one mum saying “the mirror is a bit useless as it doesn’t rotate and sits static on the headrest. Also the baby's image is tiny and makes it difficult to see in the rear view mirror."

Installation is straightforward, with the play centre easily attaching to the car’s headrest using Velcro straps. The adjustable design ensures it can be tailored to fit baby's height and reach, making it a versatile choice for various car models with adjustable headrests featuring metal poles.

The VTech Baby Roar & Explore Wheel attaches easily to car seats (and pushchairs), making it perfect for keeping little ones engaged during travels. This role-play steering wheel, featuring a friendly lion and koala, offers a range of sensory experiences with its brightly coloured and textured design. It includes a horn, light-up indicators, and a key button that triggers fun phrases, two sing-along songs, and ten happy melodies. When baby turns the wheel, sound effects are activated, simulating an adventurous drive.

The Roar & Explore Wheel is designed to support sensory development, motor skills, and an understanding of cause and effect. Its colourful beads rattle when the wheel is moved, adding to the sensory stimulation. The secure strap ensures easy attachment to various car seats and pushchairs, providing versatility and convenience - it's easy to take off the car seat and attach to the pushchair once you get to your destination.

Parents loved its engaging features and quality, with one mum saying: "My little one loves looking at the little lights and hearing the noises and music." Another parent highlighted the toy's functionality across different settings, saying it’s great for pram, car, and home use.

However, one mum did mention it did have its downsides; she said: "The novelty has worn off very quickly. The Velcro strap is a little annoying as it is not very long, so you’re limited to what you can attach it to." Despite these criticisms, many parents appreciate its ability to keep their children entertained and busy.

Designed to keep children entertained and their stuff organised during travel, this multifunctional activity tray features plenty of car storage with 15 mesh pockets, a zipper pocket, and a back pocket, providing plenty of space for toys, books, snacks, and even an iPad. Its large, transparent, and erasable surface allows for easy cleaning and repeated use, ensuring the car remains tidy.

One of the standout features of the travel tray is the bonus educational drawing set, which includes five different drawing papers and six brushes. This set promotes hand-eye coordination and helps children learn letters, numbers, and colours in a fun and engaging way. The tray’s surface is waterproof and can be wiped clean with a paper towel, adding to its convenience.

Designed for portability and ease of use, the COOLJOY Travel Tray is lightweight, foldable, and equipped with adjustable straps that can be easily attached to car seats, airplane seats, and park chairs. The sturdy polyester fabric and high side walls provide a stable and safe play area for children, preventing items from falling off during travel.

Parents appreciate the tray's functionality and design, with one mum highlighting its sturdiness and the ample storage space, saying: "The sides were thick and stable. They also stayed put with the Velcro. The cup holder is a perfect size for a Chico 7oz sippy cup without the handles." Another mum noted a minor drawback: "The inclusion of whiteboard pens and activity sheets makes you assume the activity sheets are whiteboard friendly. No, they’re single use. Such a shame as otherwise a perfect product."

Designed to support the development of fine motor skills and cognitive abilities, this Busy Board book is a 6-in-1 sensory activity board that’s both a portable and practical solution to keep toddlers entertained and learning, especially during travel.

This busy board includes more than 20 interactive elements such as shoelaces, gears, a clock, zippers, buckles, buttons, and an alphabet set. These elements help simulate real-life scenarios, teaching children essential skills like tying shoelaces, fastening buttons, and recognising shapes, colours, and numbers. The board is crafted from soft felt material, ensuring it is safe, durable, and gentle on children’s skin. Each component is securely attached to prevent small parts from being torn off and swallowed.

Parents love how lightweight, compact, and portable the board is, which makes it easy to carry and use in various settings such as cars, planes, and during travel. One tester said: "This contains a good selection of 'doing' things for a toddler. Bright and cheerful carry case and very lightweight for travelling. Bought as a gift for my grandson to keep him occupied on a holiday flight." Another mum mentioned some minor drawbacks, such as stiff buttons and Velcro pieces losing stickiness over time, but still found it enjoyable for their child: "Even allowing for those teething troubles, it still gave him a lot of enjoyment."

The B. Toys Wee Jams Radio is an engaging and multifunctional sensory toy designed to entertain babies during car journeys. This portable rattle combines music, lights, and soothing teethers in a retro-style radio, making it a versatile and fun addition to your baby’s toy collection.

This musical toy features six catchy tunes, including the ABC song, reggae, and classical music, providing a variety of sounds for different moods. Babies can interact with the toy by pressing three large buttons that light up to the beat of the music, enhancing their sensory experience. The Wee Jams Radio also includes two textured teethers with rattling rings, designed to soothe gums and keep your baby engaged. The convenient clip allows the toy to be easily attached to strollers, car seats, baby gyms, or cribs, ensuring it’s always within reach for on-the-go entertainment.

Parents loved that this came with three volume settings—low, louder, and off for when you need a bit of quiet. The off mode still keeps the light show going, even when the sound is turned off. 
It’s made from 100% non-toxic and BPA-free materials, ensuring it’s safe for babies to play with.

Parents found the toy durable and engaging, with one mum reviewer saying: "this toy has been hung from baby linking rings, that are hung around one of the headrests in the car. My son (now 7 months) has happily played with this for every journey for the last couple of months. The music is different to the average baby toy and not at all annoying." Another parent highlighted its practicality, saying: "It is something that will catch their attention and they'll have fun with it. It is a good size, lights up and makes different sounds as well. It can clip on to your buggy as well, which is great."

The Taf Toys North Pole Feet Fun Car Toy offers a combination of sensory stimulation and playful interaction to make trips more enjoyable for both baby and parent. This car toy is specifically designed for rear-facing car seats and features an easy attachment system that fits adjustable headrests with metal poles. The height and angle of the toy can be adjusted using Velcro straps, ensuring that babies can easily reach and interact with it. The highlight of this toy is its foot stimulation feature, which includes a high-contrast black and white roller pad with beads. This not only keeps babies entertained but also helps develop their motor skills and teaches cause and effect as they kick and move their legs.

The toy also includes three intriguing hanging toys: a rattling penguin, a crinkling ice cream cone, and a rainbow baby-safe mirror. These toys are designed to engage babies' senses, encouraging them to reach out and play, which helps in their sensory development. The combination of visual stimulation, sounds, and textures keeps babies occupied and reduces frustration during car rides, with one parent saying: "our little one was beginning to get very upset very quickly in the car and I came across this when looking for something to entertain and distract her. So glad we got it as she loves it and gets far less upset in the car now." Another noted: "my baby kept throwing his toys in the car and becoming upset because I couldn’t get them back for him. He loves this, and I can drive safer without him becoming distressed and distracting.” One parent however found the hanging toys hung too low.

The LAMAZE Activity Spiral Baby Pram Toy is a versatile and engaging sensory toy designed for babies from birth to 6 months. It promises to make outings more enjoyable and stimulating for little ones, whether on prams, pushchairs, or car seats.

This cuddly, soft toy is made from high-quality fabrics featuring vibrant colours and patterns that are visually stimulating for babies. It includes crinkle sounds and various textures to encourage tactile and auditory development. The hanging animal characters jingle and the clacking rings offer additional sensory stimulation for sensory play. 

One of the key benefits of the LAMAZE Activity Spiral is its role in developing fine motor skills. The hanging characters are designed to encourage babies to reach, pull, and squeeze, which helps strengthen their muscles and enhance hand-eye coordination. The interactive features also provide opportunities for parents to engage with their babies, helping them learn about animal names, sounds, and colours.

Parents found it fit well on various baby gear, including prams, pushchairs, car seats, and cots. Parents find it to be a great distraction during car journeys and praise its durable construction, which ensures it can withstand regular use.

However, some reviews highlight a few downsides such as it slipping to the side, which can be frustrating. Others mention that their babies did not show much interest in the toy.