We hit the road and had a blast visiting with our family a couple of weeks ago. We embarked on an eleven hour car trip, and though B is used to traveling, and is usually an awesome little travel companion, he's getting older and getting a bit antsier when we have to be in the car for a long time. We decided to travel in our Subaru hatchback, rather than my dad's SUV for this trip. We wanted to save on gas as much as possible. Taking our hatchback means that there's a little less space in the car, so we were looking to maximize the room in the back seat, while still being able to bring along enough things to keep B entertained in the car. Lucky for us, the ultimate travel organizer for kids was on its way to us, just before we embarked on our trip. 

ALEX Toys has been delighting children and families with their wonderful products since 1986 (the year my sister was born!). Since their initial launch, The ALEX brand has grown tremendously, to include wonderful award-winning products, including art supplies and craft kits, interactive toys, toys for bathtime, active play, soft toys, preschool learning products, and so much more! With over 300 awards earned thus far, ALEX is practically a household name. ALEX offers unique and creative products for infants, toddlers, preschoolers, children, and tweens.

With a big trip ahead of us, I was so excited when I was offered the opportunity to receive and review one of the best children's travel products I have ever seen, the ALEX Toys Car Valet. I didn't tell B that we were going to be receiving this item, and I knew he'd be super excited and surprised about it!

Our ALEX Toys Car Valet is here, and B can't wait to check it out!

What a colorful, fun design!

B all but flipped out once we got the actual children's car valet out of the box. He didn't even know what it was, yet, but he had a lot of fun guessing. Hmm... could it be a backpack, or a suitcase, or perhaps a superhero keeper?

We checked out the little photo in the clear plastic frame on the front of the car valet, and B shouted, 'Cool- a desk for the car!' Bingo, kiddo!

Indeed, the ALEX Toys Car Valet is an art space and activity area for kids on the go. Not only does it work like a desk or tray, it holds a ton of items, packs up easily, is lightweight, easy to carry, and easy for children to use by themselves. This product is intended for ages 3+, and since B will be turning four in just a few short months, we figured he would be the perfect tester for this ingenious product, and that our 11 hour car trip would provide plenty of testing time.

B was easger to unzip the sides and top of the Car Valet and check out the inside.

He noticed the detachable zip pouches right away, and immediately asked if he could store his toy cars in them.

The Car Valet is truly well designed. It has an adjustable Velcro strap that loops around the headrest in front of the child's seat (in the car).The front of the Valet unzips and folds down. There are adjustable strands, which allow you to adjust where the desk or tray rests in front of our on the child's lap. In our case, we adjusted the seat, so B had enough leg room, and so that the tray would rest in his lap, since he is still held securely in his carseat. We wanted to make sure that he would be able to reach the items in the Car Valet, as well as be able to play or draw in the activity space.

Once we figured out how we needed to have the seat adjusted for our trip, I headed back inside with the Car Valet, so I could start filling it up with B's must haves for our trip.

The Alex Toys Car Valet features two nifty zip pouches, which are held to the back of the valet with Velcro strips. They easily come off, and can be stuck back on by little hands, just as easily!

These thick, safe plastic zippers are easy for little hands to open, and the pouches have room to hold all sorts of fun things, like cars...

...and crayons!

The Car Valet by ALEX Toys also features two mesh open pockets...

... and a thin sleeve pocket.

I had so much fun packing B's Car Valet for our trip. He, of course helped me pack some of his favorite things, like his cars, a couple of his favorite books, his tablet, as well as coloring pages, stickers, and the special travel journal that we made before we left for our trip.

I was pleasantly surprised by how many items we were able to neatly pack into the car valet. It was a wonderful way to keep everything organized. I wish I could have bottled B's excitement and energy the morning we left for our trip. We left the house around 6:30 am, and as soon as we were on our way, B was itching to get into the car valet and to start having a fun adventure!

Getting the car valet set up was easy- we attached it to the headrest...

...pulled the string to adjust where the tray would lie...

...and that was it! Easy as pie!

Everything B could have wanted or needed during our long trip was within arm's reach. I enjoyed a very pleasant ride, sitting next to B in the back seat of the car. I was able to read, answer e-mails, and enjoy conversations with my hubby, and my dad, while B was content, playing with his cars, reading his own magazine, coloring, etc. Having the car valet also saved a lot of space. If we hadn't had this with us on the trip, all of the items that were packed into it would have been in loose bags on the floor or on the seat in between us. We wouldn't have had nearly as much space, and I would have heard, 'Mommy will you get this or that' way more often than I actually did.

Ready for an adventure, and ready to play!

We hadn't even made it out of our driveway before B was tearing into the car valet, and racing his cars along the 'racing strip.'

Another great thing about this awesome product, was that I was able to place B's snacks and juice or milk right onto the tray of the car valet. I wasn't holding a bunch of things all at once, and B could let his snack sit there while he colored or played, and eat at his leisure.

Features of the ALEX Toys Car Valet

Turn ‘Are we there yet?’ into ‘Awww…so soon?’ The Car Valet is a art space and activity area for kids on the go! Play games, create art, or just keep gear within easy reach with a portable, adjustable, play center and organizer. Lots of pockets to store art supplies and paper. Attaches securely to the rear of the front seat and folds down for easy access to supplies. Fold and zip up when finished. The perfect bag for car travel. Supplies shown not included.

$43.95

Ages 3+

ASTRA Good Toy Award.

Dr. Toy's Best Vacation Toys.

Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Seal Award.

Parents' Choice Recommended Award

When we reached our vacation destination, it was so easy to just put everything back in its place, inside of the car valet, and then zip it up, remove it from the car, and take into the house we were staying at. It's truly one of the best travel products we have ever used, and I am certain that we will get a lot more uses out of it on upcoming trips, and in the years to come. This is a product that can grow with the child, which is also wonderful! It is wipeable, and easy to clean in a jiffy.

We were already big fans of ALEX Toys, but this product truly took the cake! Along with this must-have top travel product for kids, ALEX Toys offers a lot of other great products that will keep your kiddos entertained while on trips.

Scribble & Doodle

Desk to Go

Travel Art Set

Forever Bracelets

Any of these products would be wonderful road trip gifts for the kids, to get them excited about a fun, new adventure, and to keep them entertained and creative! Summer isn't over yet, so before you head out on one last family adventure, be sure to check out these and many more awesome products from ALEX Toys!

Want It? Buy It!

Head on over to ALEX Toys to browse all of their wonderul products for children of all ages. ALEX offers a whole bunch of free printable craft ideas and activities, which you can find, here. Be sure to connect with ALEX Toys on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube to stay up to date on the latest and greatest from ALEX. You can also sign up for their e-mail newsletter.

Special thanks to our friends at ALEX Brands for allowing us to review and experience their awesome award-winning Car Valet! We truly enjoyed it, and can't wait to use it again on our next trip!