What are the best travel gifts for Mother’s Day?
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Mother’s Day is on Sunday, May 12th! If you’re a family that loves to travel, then this is a great opportunity to provide that special Mom in your life with travel gear, tech, or accessories that’ll make those trips easier! From staying organized, to packing, to keeping the kids calm on the trip, there are tons of gifts ready to put a smile on Mom’s face. Personally, I have questioned purchasing a few things for travel that I never had when I was kid. We always survived, right? We also didn’t have a lot of these options available back then (I won’t date myself too much here….). If it makes life easier when traveling with kids and doesn’t break the bank, then why not give it a shot? Peace of mind does sometimes have a cost, and again, you aren’t spending tons of money on single-use items (for the most part). Many of these Mother’s Day travel gift ideas will work for travel by air or car, although some are only suited for travel by car due to their size.
Mother’s Day Travel Tech Gift Ideas
Travel Sound Machines:
We have to start with a piece of kid’s tech gear that has been a tremendous addition to our life not only when we travel but at home as well. That’s the Hatch Rest Sound Machine. There’s no wonder it’s a top selling item on Amazon and used by thousands of parents. It has a built-in backup battery on the off chance you lose power while traveling (or need it in the car). It partners with an app that runs off WiFi to allow you multiple sound and color settings. It also features variable program settings that are fully customizable to fit your needs. The only downside we have encountered with this is packing it into tight spaces. While it is not an overly large device, it can be a bit awkward fitting into an already full suitcase. We do make packing these for our kids a top priority whenever we travel and have founds ways to make space to take this along with us.
If you’re looking for something a little smaller without an accompanying app or available customization, then the Ollie the Owl SoundBub may be perfect for you. We snagged a couple of these a few years ago before we found the Hatch. Ollie the Owl was perfect in the car to clip on a visor, car seat handle, seatbelt, you name it and this great sound machine would clip on and help us get through nap times on the road. It is small, compact, yet powerful enough to drown out road noise or hotel noise from other rooms.
Travel Monitors:
We have been very happy with our VaVa Baby monitor whether at home or on the road. However, recent parenting reviews have bumped this particular monitor down the recommendation list. We only had to replace our base unit once, following two years of wonderful service. We still take the two cameras and base unit with us everywhere when we travel. They have held up very well after multiple trips to Southport, the OBX, Walt Disney World, Charleston, and various weekend trips to see family. All of that said, the top recommended monitor out there that’s similar to our VaVa is available from HiPP. One thing worth noting on both of these monitors is that they are not smart devices, meaning they do not have a companion app for smartphone use. You can take these camera devices with you, even if they are wall mounted at home thanks to mounting device not permanently fixing the camera unit to the wall. They are a little bulky to throw into luggage, but do not take up as much room as the larger sound machines.
If you’re looking for a top rated option with an accompanying smartphone app, then the Nanit Pro Smart Baby Monitor is one of the best available on the market. We have several friends who travel internationally with this monitor and absolutely rave over its performance and accessibility.
And while this isn’t necessarily a video monitor, Apple AirTags can really give everyone traveling their own peace of mind. For us, this came in handy when checking a bag on our most recent flight to Walt Disney World Orlando. Even though Delta has instant notifications once your bag is loaded on the airplane, we had an AirTag in our large suitcase that was tracked as soon as we were seated. We also placed one on our rental stroller while in the theme parks, and made sure other items that we would want to keep track of were within range.
Keep your tech powered!
Nobody wants to run out of power while navigating an airport, rental car lot, or foreign country while looking for your hotel. We always have two, if not three, portable power banks in our luggage and carry-on bags. One important thing to be aware of is device compatibility - will it work for your make and model of smartphone. Portable Charger Power Banks are lifesavers (especially if somewhere like Walt Disney World or Disneyland are your destinations). Make sure that your Portable Charger Power Bank comes with the necessary charging cables and don’t forget to charge the actual bank before heading out on your trip! If you’re heading to a Walt Disney World or Disneyland resort property, you’ll want to include this MagicBand+ Portable Multi-Charger.
Mother’s Day Gift Ideas: Travel gear for the kids
While these aren’t necessarily gifts directly intended for Mom, it’ll make her life so much easier knowing that this gear is traveling along to keep the kids happy while on the trip.
Keeping the kids entertained:
We are not big on putting iPads or screens in front of our kids to keep them occupied. We also understand many out there may feel differently. Where we do feel comfortable providing them an iPad or screen is on long car trips (over 1.5 hours) and flights so they are able to watch a movie or one of their favorite shows. Many of the streaming services allow the option to download shows or movies to watch while offline.
If you’re in the market for a great option that isn’t too hefty or bulky for travel, then consider the Apple iPad 9th Generation. If you aren’t adding the device to your wireless provider plan for mobile service, then you’ll need to download shows or movies from your favorite streaming services. If you already have an iPad (or other device) then you’ll need a portable mount for travel. Our favorite Amazon find to make iPad travel easier is this inexpensive mount from Fangor. Make sure you buy the right sized mount for your generation of iPad, although we found that it is pretty compatible with multiple sizes.
A non-tech option, especially for much younger travelers out there, are busy boards. This was a lifesaver on our first few trips when our kids were under 2 years old. There are multiple options out there for every kid. This Esjay Toddler Busy Board comes with varying activities to keep kids busy for a very long time! Our tip on the busy boards - don’t give them to your kids until you are either in the car or on the flight. This keeps the new gift fresh for hours of exploration while you get to your destination.
For our daughter, busy boards quickly gave way to activity books - like this animal adventure from Melissa & Doug - once she turned 3.
Keeping the kids comfortable:
One of our best purchases ever, and continues to be, this Hiccopop Inflatable Bed. It’s really two inflatable products in one - the inflatable mattress is super durable but lightweight, and the inflatable bumpers serve as a safeguard for those toddlers who turn full circles in their sleep. This comes with its own powered pump (plug into any wall outlet) and it inflates in less than 5 minutes.
If your kids aren’t quite ready for their own air mattress, you can stick with the tried and true travel pack-n-play. We went with an option from Graco for the majority of our car trips when both of the kids were younger. In full transparency, we never tried flying with our pack-n-play, however I do know that many families will bring theirs with them on flights.
We also traveled with portable blackout curtains until both kids were over the age of 3. These were essential when staying in vacation rental homes, especially at the beach, when we weren’t entirely sure how much morning sun would come into the bedrooms. One lesson learned is that some of the grommets may wear out quickly, but there are enough of them that you can continue to use the curtains until multiple fail; for us this took about a year and a half before one set wore out and needed to be replaced.
Mother’s Day Gift Ideas: Travel gear for mom
If your family is anything like ours, there is some level of “fashionable” that accompanies our travel. Many times, fashionable does not equate to sturdy, reliable, durable, or any sense of longevity with gear. A huge exception to this thought is the travel duffle bags from Vera Bradley. We have quite the space in our closet dedicated to Vera Bradley travel bags. They are reasonably priced, quite spacious, and have held up for years of travel. We also have a number of Vera Bradley travel toiletry accessory bags that were part of Taylor’s travel accessories long before we had kids.
The other staple to our travel bag inventory are the Scout Weekender Bags. These things hold up to just about anything! They are also so easy to clean. Plus, they take up minimal space in storage whenever we are at home. We normally use our Scout Bags to pack for the kids given how durable and expansive these bags truly are.
Another great Mother’s Day gift for the traveling mom is a way to stay cool while traveling during the warmer months. Taylor has found dresses by The Drop that fit that mold - and will be traveling across the southeast with us this summer.
We also cannot skip through fashion without the timeless Wayfarer Sunglasses by Ray-Ban. These are always with Taylor when at home or abroad. They feature a classic look with a comfortable fit to keep your eyes protected from UV rays.
Don’t forget that you’ll want a way to keep and treasure those travel memories for years to come. Although many pictures and videos are stored digitally, there’s always something very sentimental about creating an actual travel photo book to flip through for decades to come. My family has many travel books from the 90s that we still pull out from time to time and revisit those past vacations. Make an awesome gift for the Mom in your life with a photo book this year!