Books, play doh, sticker books, word searches, art, hit the deck, guess who?, try chess, feast, make your kids do your hair and let them play games on your electronics are some of the awesome airplane games and activities to keep your kid busy.

Are you looking for fun things to do on a airplane to entertain your children? Travelling with children on a airplane can be the worst part of any family holiday. A long flight for little ones is often boring, with boredom becoming restlessness. As the saying goes, “An idle mind is the devil’s playground.” Parents spend countless hours trying to entertain their children. The most annoying part of any flight is noisy and disruptive children; not to mention crying babies. Anyone with children however will know how hard and embarrassing it is when your little one just won’t sit still (or keep quiet).

If you are planning a family holiday and looking for some fun things to do on a plane, here are 11 airplane games and activities for children that should keep them entertained over and over. These activities will help keep them out of trouble and hopefully stop them disturbing other passengers who are not happy when their seat is repeatedly kicked or those who are not interested in your child’s quirky face-pulling antics. If you have a fear of flying yourself, keeping your mind off the flight works wonders. Maybe you will enjoy these activities too. Read on to find out what these activities are:

Read More: 11 Interesting Airplane Games for Kids

11 Airplane Activities for Kids to Keep Kids Busy

Books

Remember those days when you used to read out aloud as a kid in order to impress your elders? As self-conscious as you may feel reading “one fish, two fish, red fish, and blue fish” aloud to your fellow passengers, trust me: they’d rather hear your animated voice than your child’s screaming. Or the electronic ping of a video game. So go ahead and pack some books!

Read More: 11 Top Wrestling Games for Kids

Play doh

Trays are a good space for play doh. Just be sure to bring wet wipes to (attempt to) remove the telltale neon speckles afterwards.

Sticker books

From dressing kings and queens of the world to decorating period houses to arranging internal organs, there’s little that cannot be stuck these days. This is an activity that requires the parents’ participation because the pieces are so delicate. Still, hours of quietly passing stickers from sheet to child’s hand are better than a tantrum.

Read More: 7 Fun Card Game Ideas for Kids

Word searches

This is an excellent game that engages the brain. Ask them questions, for which the answers are actually unique words. This game will not only keep them engaged for hours, but also improve their vocabulary. It is therefore a win-win situation for both of you!

Art

Pack felt-tips and a pad of paper to nurture a budding picasso – or to play hangman.

Hit the deck

Playing cards are compact and suit a variety of games.

Guess who?

Pack post-its and play “guess who?” Everyone writes down 3 people (famous or known to your family) and puts them into a hat. Take turns being it: without looking, fix the post-it on your head, and ask the other players up to 20 yes or no questions about your person, until you can guess who it is.

Try chess

To keep children aged five to 10 entertained en route, try chess. But first, you’ll have to explain the rules. If your children manage to understand the rules, this game will keep them occupied for hours.

Feast

The picnic is the star of many a children’s story, from peppa pig to the famous five, young people just like to eat in awkward spaces – and there is no space more uncomfortable than an airplane. So pack a sandwich or salad, some fruit and a few favourite treats for the plane. Festive paper napkins will add to the sense of occasion. Make your child carry their meal themselves.

Make your kids do your hair

You may let your children do your hair on planes. Something about the parent-child role-reversal amuses them, and it’s a low-equipment endeavor: you’ll be carrying a brush, anyhow. So consider putting that to a unique use.

Let them play games on your electronics

If you have electronics, take them out and allow your kids to silently scroll through images and videos of themselves in your photo library. That should park your children for a good half hour in desperate times.

Having kids on flights can prove to be a tedious task. There can be numerous insensitive passengers, who won’t understand what you are going through or how difficult it is to manage kids along with other tasks. So these airplane games and activities will definitely keep your kid busy during the duration of the whole flight. Happy journey!