7 Best Toddler Travel Beds for 2024

Here we cover what to look for in a toddler travel bed, different types of kids portable beds, and share some of the best toddler travel bed reviews.

If you are planning a family vacation with a toddler, chances are you will be looking for a toddler travel bed.

Toddlers are often too big for travel cots but not big enough to sleep in a rollaway bed, making it tricky to find a solution. Or, if you have two toddlers or small children, you may not want to pay for adjoining rooms or for a suite large enough for two rollaway beds.

Or perhaps you are planning a vacation where you intend to stay with family or friends and they don’t have enough beds for everybody? Visiting grandma for the weekend and your toddler wants to sleep in the same room with you?

What do you do when your toddler has outgrown their travel cot?

You move on to a portable toddler bed!

In this article we cover:

• Reviews of some of the best infant travel beds on the market today.
• What to look for in a toddler travel bed.
• Different types of kids portable beds.

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a booking or purchase using one of these links, we may receive a small commission – at absolutely no extra cost to you. 

Toddler Travel Beds Comparison

Here’s a quick at-a-glance comparison chart to sum-up the options we recommend.

Shrunks Toddler Bed

We also love that the soft flocking on top of the Shrunks toddler travel bed prevents squeaking noises so often associated with a kids blow up mattress. Much better for a good night’s sleep.

This toddler air bed has guard rails on all four sides, making it extremely difficult for a child to fall out or roll off the bed. The sheet-tuck feature of the Shrunks inflatable bed means that sheets are tucked into the inner travel cot mattress, making for a snug fit as well as keeping the sheets off the floor.

At 62 x 39 x 12 inches it is among the larger beds in our selection and yet this inflatable mattress folds up small and offers easy storage in the included travel bag. 

Oversized side bumpers ensure that wriggly sleepers stay-put in the bed throughout the night and it fits standard crib sheets, so no need to buy any specially.

Unlike a lot of foldable baby beds, it folds up really small and could easily be fitted into your suitcase. When set up it is a compact size too, at just 48 x 24 x 9 inches, making it ideal for fitting into hotel rooms.

This has advantages and disadvantages. The main advantage is that it is lifted away from dirt and insects if you are using it for camping or outdoor use. It also makes it more versatile and can be used as seating for the garden or beach.

The main disadvantage is that it is less stable than a toddler travel mattress that sits on the floor so may not be as good for young toddlers not used to being in a bed yet.

Jetkids by Stokke Cloudsleeper

This innovative travel bed is lightweight and compact, weighing in at just 1.5kg (3 pounds)! It can pack away into a small bag or backpack, meaning you can take this with you even if you are doing carry-on only.

What sets this toddler travel bed apart from the rest is its built-in pump. This is hidden within the mattress and operated by hand or foot. This means it isn’t as quick as some others to set up, but you can still go from unpacking to ready-to-sleep in less than 5 minutes.

If you are travelling internationally, then this integrated pump means no need for an electric pump and all the adaptors/voltage issues this entails.

Tip: Make sure you read the instructions. The inflation valve can take some getting used to, but once you figure it out, it is quick and easy to use.

The full-length bumpers on either side of the bed mean that even the wriggliest of sleepers will stay safely snug in bed.

It comes with a breathable fitted sheet that is water-resistant and machine-washable. However, we found that this is not the most comfortable sheet and so you might want to add another sheet or sleeping bag to the bed also.

Intex Kidz Travel Bed

The Intex Kids travel bed is a large and deep children’s inflatable bed. The mattress of the Intex toddler bed sits inside the outer frame, meaning two main advantages:

Firstly, this means there are deep guard rails on all four sides of the Intex travel bed making it virtually impossible to roll out of bed. Secondly this makes it easy to tuck in sheets and keep them off the floor.

At 66 x 42 x 10 inches, the Intex inflatable toddler bed is the biggest bed in our toddler travel bed reviews. This can be a good thing if you are looking for something comfortable and that will still be good in a few years time as your child grows.

However, at a good 6 inches wider than the Shrunks inflatable toddler bed above, the Intex toddler air mattress is not ideal if you want to squeeze into a small hotel room, or if you have two portable baby beds to fit in.

The Intex toddler air bed comes with a hand pump. Inflating takes around 5 minutes of continual pumping.

While this is fine, if you are not restricted by weight allowance and especially if you are planning a road trip when you will be putting up the bed several times in one vacation, we would recommend investing in an electric pump to make this process easier.

The Intex toddler travel bed weighs just nine pounds and comes with a carry bag for storage.

Top Tip: One thing we did notice with this child air mattress is that the smell of plastic is quite strong when you first take it out of the packaging. This does go away after a little time, so we would recommend taking the Intex inflatable kids bed out and giving it an airing before using it for the first time.

It is also super lightweight at just 3.5 pounds, making it ideal for air travel or even taking with you on a day trip when you want your little one to take an afternoon nap on the go.

It comes with an electric pump to make it quick and easy to inflate, and a carry bag for storing it away when you deflate it.

The only downside we see is that your kid may not want to go back to their own bed when you get back home again!

Top Tip: One thing we did notice the smell of plastic is quite strong when you first take it out of the packaging. This does go away after a little time, so we would recommend taking it out and airing it before using it for the first time.

Top Tips for Buying a Toddler Travel Bed

Let’s take a look at what to look for and the different types of toddler travel beds to help you make an informed decision.

What to look for in a toddler travel bed

There are several points to take into consideration when choosing a kids travel bed:

• How big is it?
• How easy is it to transport?
• How easy is it to put up the kids portable bed?
• How old are your kids?
• How comfortable is the infant travel bed?

Let’s look into each of these factors in more detail.

Size and weight

When choosing a child travel bed, the size and weight of the bed is obviously important as it needs to be portable.

This is particularly true if you plan on taking the portable infant bed in your suitcase and/or on an airplane when your weight allowance is restricted. Or if you need to carry your suitcase for long distances.

If you are just looking for a portable child bed for occasional use and you are planning to put it in your car for occasional weekends away with family or friends, then the size and weight may be less important to you.

Ease of use

The best baby travel bed will be one that is easy to put up and put away. You often need to get your portable toddler travel bed ready at the end of a long travel day when everyone is tired.

Likewise, you often have to put it away again when everyone is in a hurry to get to the airport or on the road. If the baby travel bed is easy to use, it will make everybody’s lives easier and less stressful.

Age range

Most toddler travel beds are designed for kids aged 2 years old and upwards. Children younger than age 2 who are still sleeping in a cot at home would be better using a travel crib.

You can read our pick of the best travel bassinets here.

Comfort

This is usually a matter of personal preference. An inflatable toddler mattress is usually pretty comfortable although bear in mind that they can sag after a few days of use and may need pumping up again. They can also make noises when the child moves about.

A folding travel bed may be more comfortable and will give more support whilst sleeping.

Types of Portable Toddler Bed

There are two main different types of toddler travel beds: inflatable and foldable.

Let’s take a look at each type of bed in detail and why one would be a good option over the other.

Inflatable Toddler Bed

Pros:

• Can be deflated so easy to carry in a suitcase.
• Kids don’t have far to fall if they roll out of bed.
• Easy to set up and pack away.

Cons:

• Can be noisy if your child moves a lot.
• Can deflate over time and need re-pumping.
• Need to carry a pump with you, which can be heavy.

Inflatable travel beds are a great option for airplane travel or when space is an issue. A toddler air mattress can be easily pumped up when needed and deflated to a small size to be stored when not in use.

Another advantage of a toddler blow up bed is that they sit flat on the floor, so if your toddler wriggles around a lot and falls out of bed, they don’t have far to fall. Often kids blow up beds have built in bed rails or bumpers to prevent your child rolling out.

Some toddler ready beds have built in sleeping bags that can also help with this. If they don’t have built in bedding – remember you will need to pack this too!

Some kids inflatable beds come with an electric pump, some with a foot pump. Often it is a case of weighing up the weight and size of the pump for travel against ease of use.

Folding Toddler Bed

Pros:

• Can be easy to set up – if it just requires unfolding.

Cons:

• Some camping-style beds can require some construction.

A kids folding bed is usually easier to put up, as often it just means you need to unfold it. Sometimes they do require a bit more effort though, especially the kids camping bed style, which may require some construction.

(An exception to this is the Regalo MyCot Portable Travel bed below, which is super easy to put up).

The disadvantage of the foldable toddler bed type is that they will take up more room for storing. For this reason a fold up toddler bed is often a better option for car travel, staying at friends and road trips than plane travel and overseas trips.

Kids Travel Bed Reviews

We haves selected our pick of the best travel toddler beds and listed them below. We have detailed all the most important features in our toddler travel bed reviews and highlighted any advantages/disadvantages of each bed.

All of these top toddler travel beds can be bought on Amazon and delivered to your doorstep.

Don’t forget the Accessories!

Not all of these junior travel beds come with fitted sheets, so packing these or a sleeping bag is a good idea. You might also want to upgrade to an electric pump for some of the children’s inflatable mattresses. We love the following options:

Looking for more travel products to make travel with kids easier? Click here to read our guide to the best luggage for kids and click here to read our guide to the best travel booster car seats.

Pin it for Later!

Note: Mum on the Move is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com

This post contains affiliate links. If you make a booking or purchase using one of these links, we may receive a small commission – at absolutely no extra cost to you.