8 fun and educational apps to keep kids entertained while travelling

Are we there yet? I’m bored. What time is it? When are we going to stop? Road trips with kids can be rough when they get bored and start throwing tantrums. A tablet loaded with your kids’ favourite apps can help keep them happy, and allow mom and dad to enjoy the journey.

Below, we list our favorite apps to keep kids entertained while traveling. There is an app for every age, so hopefully you can find something suitable for your kids. We also made sure each app is usable while offline, so you can bring them on a flight or wherever without having to worry about data charges.

Moo, Baa, La La La! (ages 1 to 5)

This interactive version of Sandra Boynton’s popular board book is a hit with little ones who need a distraction. Babies delight at the animal sounds and toddlers enjoy making the book interact with their touch. Kids learning to read can practice their skills and touch the words for hints as needed.

Pacca Alpaca (ages 2 to 6)

Pacca the lovable alpaca will guide your child to attractions all over the world, from Mount Fuji in Japan to the Sydney Opera House in Australia. Each location serves as a backdrop for different activities, like using blocks to build Buckingham Palace, helping Pacca find his hat in New York City’s Times Square, or connecting dots to make the Acropolis appear.

Endless Alphabet (ages 4 and older)

A troupe of colourful monsters teaches children the alphabet in this app, which is full of humour and charm. The children will delight in forming words by dragging letters into place, before watching comical animations acting them out.

Cartoon Face animation creator (ages 6 and older)

The kids (and the parents too) can have hours of fun with this one. Cartoon caricature from your selfie photo is guaranteed to bring many giggles. Cartoon Face app allows you to apply tons of hilarious photo effects to portraits and you can share them on social media when you get to a free wifi spot.

Toca Mini (ages 6 and older)

Toca Mini is a wonderfully open-ended app from publisher Toca Boca, which gets children to create their own characters using colours, stamps and tactile touchscreen controls. It is perfect for trips, especially when parents are setting creative challenges for children to complete.

Minecraft – Pocket Edition (ages 9 and older)

Your older kids will love this one. They will explore randomly generated worlds and build amazing things, play in creative mode with unlimited resources or mine deep into the world in survival mode.

Star Wars - Force Arena (ages 10 and up)

Star Wars: Force Arena is a card-based strategic battle game. Players use characters from the Star Wars movies, cartoons, and comics to fight for dominance. But while you do use guns, explosives, and lightsabres to dispatch your enemies, there's no blood, gore, or dismemberment.

Magisto (ages 13 and up)

This movie maker and video editor app allow kids to share their completed movie on social channels. It can be a fun way to share their travels and experiences.

Happy travelling. Remember to keep the battery fully charged.

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