We just got back from our Las Vegas and Southern California road trip just last week and these are the four things I’d say are absolute travel essentials for a toddler. They’re all Amazon items. So they are affordable and offered with Prime shipping. And they saved our lives tremendously.

For my post on the maxi dresses I brought to a beach vacation, click here.

If you have a toddler, maybe she is in potty train, or already potty trained. And you’re not sure what to do about her potty situation on the road. Check out these options below. Lucy is 3 and a half. She’s at the stage where she’s potty trained, but not big enough to sit on a regular sized toilet seat. So I ordered these few things, and I have to admit, half of these 4 things are around the potty situation.

Please note that I’m somewhat a germaphobe. I’m one of those moms who do not allow my kids to walk barefoot in a hotel room, or touch a public bathroom toilet seat. So some of these things shared here may seem unnecessary to you, but absolutely helpful for us!

1. Portable travel potty and disposable bags

This is by far the best $20 item, and top on my list of toddler travel essentials! We keep this portable potty in the car, and we can use it anytime and anywhere on the road. We just pull the car over and it takes half a minute to set it up. At a public restaurant or public beach and I’d rather not deal with a public bathroom, I just come out to the car if my toddler needs a potty break.

It has 2 legs that can be folded-in flat for easy storage. It also has a splash guard on the front which is helpful for both boys and girls. And the size of the seat works perfectly for a toddler or young child.

The 2 legs can also be folded-out and placed on top of a regular toilet seat with attached locks for secure placement.

It comes with flexible flaps on the 2 legs to hold a disposable bag in place. You can use any bag as long as the opening of the bag is wide enough to cover the seat and reach the flaps. Any regular plastic grocery bag works. The potty also comes with a few disposable bags to start. And I also got a 30-pack just because I don’t know if I’ll always have a bag handy on the road.

Overall this portable potty has these pros and cons:

Pros: If you have access to a toilet, you can use this as a child seat on top of the toilet. If you don’t have a toilet, but you have privacy (like in your own vehicle), it can be used as a portable potty.

Individual disposable bags are available, or regular plastic grocery bags should also work.

Cons: The one disadvantage to this is that if you use this as a portable potty, you have to figure out a way to dispose of the used bag. You may have to hold on to it until you find somewhere to dispose.

2. Potty seat and disposable seat cover

Another portable option for potty as one of our toddler travel essentials is this under $15 foldable potty seat that sits on top of a regular toilet seat. This is to make the seat smaller for a kid. You can fold the seat into quarters and stored into a bag to bring on-the-go. Made out of plastic so it’s easy to clean. You would have to hold your toddler’s hands while they’re using it because it doesn’t have any side handles.

This works well if you’re at a hotel, or visiting at your relative’s house. Or if you travel by plane, or train, somewhere with a public bathroom and you just need a smaller seat for your kiddo.

If you are worried about your child touching the public toilet seat, I also suggest this XL disposable toilet seat cover. It’s large enough to cover the entire seat, including top of the seat and the sides of the toilet bowl. And the cover is a one-time use, so you can dispose of it when done.

Overall this potty seat has these pros and cons:

Pros: Very compact and easy to store/pack. Can be used with any bathroom, including at home. Easy to set up.

Cons: May take more work to set up if you use the toilet seat cover. You would need to get the toilet seat cover if you prefer your child not touching their legs to the sides of the public toilet bowl.

Also you may not always find an available bathroom if you’re out and about or on the road, so this potty seat doesn’t solve that problem of having a portable potty.

Between the 2 potty options above:

I have both of these options, it seems a little excessive. You can get one or the other. I have both because I love using the potty in option 1 above as a portable potty for on the road. And option 2 is to make the hotel toilet seat smaller for a child size. That way I can leave the potty in option 1 in the car, and leave the seat in option 2 at the hotel.

3. Slippers for walking in the hotel room

I have made the mistake in the past, of not packing my child any slippers for the hotel. And I cringe when she runs around the room barefoot. Putting on her sneakers is an option but it’s also more work than just sliding into some slippers. I pack my own slippers to use at the hotel (unless we stay at a fancy hotel where they give us slippers). So why not get some slippers for the kiddo too?

So this is another toddler travel essential: These $13 anti-slip home slippers are really comfortable, easy to slide in and out and they have cute designs on them that my kid loves. I have Lucy use them when we are at our hotel room. I show her my slippers and then show her that these ones are for her. When we arrive at the room or after a bath, she can put them on. When we leave the room for the day, she can wear her regular shoes. This puts my mind at ease that her feet are not touching the hotel floor directly.

Some other slipper options for kids (all under $20 from Amazon):

4. Unicorn luggage for the little one

I used to pack Lucy’s clothes together with mine, and then either my husband or I end up having to carry it. On top of everything else. Big mistake! Toddlers love having their own things, and they love helping too. So I got her this cute unicorn luggage ($35) that fits her clothes and accessories for a week trip. And it has wheels so she can help push it around. It’s certainly a travel essential for us!

I love the bright colorful design and she loves it too. She couldn’t wait to use her unicorn luggage every time we travel. And she loves pushing it around like her mommy and daddy.

It’s lightweight, comes with one large compartment, a smaller pouch on the front and a side mesh pocket for juice or water bottle. The dimensions are 12 x 5.5 x 16 inches, so it is a great carry-on item size for most airlines. Or it could even be considered a personal item (check with your airline). The front zip pocket with mesh divider makes it easy to reach smaller items like snacks or books. The retractable 13-inch handle for easy carry-on so little one can push it around too.

Some options for child luggages:

Traveling with kids could be challenging. Different ages will present different concerns and challenges for parents. Right now, since Lucy is three and a half, potty trained age, these are the things that helped us during this trip. I hope you find a thing or two useful here. I’m sure at our next trip, we will have other things to worry about. What are some things that you cannot travel without for the kiddo?

Lifestyle motherhood Toddler travel