Whether you’re jammed into the 25^th row of a jetliner, sitting in a nice restaurant, or relaxing in your hotel room, there comes a time on every family vacation when you really need your kids to be quiet.

While it’s occasionally fine to let them watch a DVD or play on your iPhone, sometimes it’s good to offer them something a little more low-tech too (as long as it’s quiet, compact, and non-messy).  Here are some of our favorite toys for keeping the peace when traveling with kids:

1. Wikki Stix

Wax-treated pieces of colored yarn that are endlessly bendable and sculptable for hours of quiet creativity in backseats, dining rooms, and airplanes.

2.  Choose Your Own Adventure Books

Yes, they’re still around.  Buy vintage copies of these classic books that end differently every time on eBay or newer versions on Amazon and only let your kids read them when you need them to be quiet.

3.  Mad Art

From the makers of Mad Libs come these entertaining dry erase books with blank scenes and characters for your kids to decorate.  They’re great for pre-readers.  Choose from Funny Faces, At the Beach, Merry Merry, and Wacky Animals.

4.  Pipe Cleaners

There’s nothing like a huge bunch of colored pipe cleaners for lots of quiet, open ended creative play.  Kids can make funny glasses, hats, and even their own action figures, and then do it all over again.

5.  Baseball Guys

Got a sports nut in the family?  Unleash this silent set of blue and red action figure rivals (complete with field, scoreboard, and carrying case).  Also available: Soccer Guys, Football Guys, and Hockey Guys.

6.  Highlights Hidden Pictures

This will take you straight back to the dentist waiting rooms of your youth.  Either subscribe to the magazine and stockpile copies (well worth it) or print free puzzles off the HighlightsKids.com website.  Don’t forget highlighter pens.

7.  Aquadoodle Travel n’Doodle

Just add water to the included pen and your kids can happily draw on this foldable, packable mat while waiting for their dinner.  It turns dark when wet, and then dries light again.

8.  Doodles and Scribbles

These wonderful coloring books by artist Taro Gomi are good for ages 3 and up    (though younger kids will need instructions read to them).  The bones of the drawings are there and kids just follow the instructions, like “give this man a mustache” or “draw flowers in this field”.

9.  Polly Pocket

No matter what your daughter is into, there’s a Polly Pocket set to fit her interests: mermaids, puppies, boats, cars, beauty salon, and even glamping.

10. Dry Erase Boards and Pens

Before your trip, make a quick jaunt to a teacher’s supply store for a couple small white boards and dry erase pens which are endlessly fascinating to kids and can be used over and over.