Travel Themed Nursery to Toddler Travel Bedroom

Sharing is caring!

As we’re currently in the midst of baby everything with our second child, I can’t help but look back at our first child’s nursery. I knew I wanted a travel themed nursery even before I knew the gender of the baby.  I also wanted a room that would grow with him, so that we wouldn’t constantly be redecorating. (And in the meantime, just hoping he would love travel as much as we do!)

Over 3 years later, the travel themed bedroom continues to be one of my favorite rooms in the house. We’ve been able to easily adapt it into a toddler room, and our son’s shared love for travel has only made it better.

Disclaimer: Toddling Traveler participates in Amazon Affiliates and other affiliate programs. That means we could earn a commission for qualifying purchases through our links.

Colors & Travel Wall Decor

For our travel themed nursery, I wanted the room to feel warm and opted for navy colored walls. In addition to navy, we chose gray furniture and wove in gold throughout.  I started collecting wall art and decorations prior to knowing the gender. Once I knew we were having a boy, I incorporated more gray and navy to make it more of a boys nursery. (If we had a girl, I planned to include some pops of pink instead of gray for a girls travel themed nursery.)

My favorite travel wall decor is these customized skyline prints on Etsy. We chose the place where my husband and I met (State College), where our son was born (Pittsburgh) and then our favorite cities we’ve traveled to. I put them in gold picture frames and hung above the changing table. The “Oh the Places You’ll Go” wall decal is another favorite of ours in the room. You can find it here from Etsy. Both the skyline prints and wall decal are easily personalized with the colors and style you want.

We also found a gold metal world map decoration as the centerpiece above the crib. You can find a similar world map wall hanging here. This metal map wall art is another option.  We added wooden name letters with our son’s nickname as well.

The remaining travel themed wall art, storage boxes and decor was primarily purchased from TJ Maxx and Home Goods. You can find some awesome deals on travel themed decorations at both stores if you check periodically.

Additional travel themed decor:

• Vintage Suitcase Clock
• Decorative Globe
• Leather Baby Moccasins
• Travel Photo Album
• Arrow Wall Rack with Hooks

Shark Pillow Head | Adventure Funds Piggy Bank | Model Plane | Decorative Boxes | Skyline Art Prints | Adventure Awaits Map Print | Oh the Places You’ll Go Sticker Decal

Gender Neutral Nursery Furniture

I love gray as a calming neutral, and its a good contrast to the dark navy (without being a stark white.)  Solid furniture pieces are one thing we tend to splurge on if we know we’re going to use it for a while. I’m a huge fan of Pottery Barn Kids furniture for lasting quality. It can be pricey, but you can wait for nursery furniture sales or find a Pottery Barn outlet near you.

We also added a wooden, gray washed bookshelf to coordinate with the solid gray furniture. The nursery rocker and ottoman are also a neutral color that we were able to easily transfer to the next nursery when having a girl.

• Crib: Kendall Convertible Crib in Gray
• Changing Table: Kendall Extra-Wide Dresser & Topper Set in Gray 
• Bookcase: Charlie Bookcase Cubby in Water-Based Smoked Gray 
• Nursery Rocker:  Nursery Glider Swivel Rocker Chair and Ottoman in Flax

Consistent with the travel theme, we also found a great gender neutral teepee to add to the room. You can find it here.

Note: Crib bumpers (shown below) are not recommended once the baby is rolling over, and in some US states they are prohibited. We opted not to use them for our second baby.

Gray Convertible Crib | Gray Changing Table | Nursery Glider Swivel Rocker | Nursery Rocker Ottoman | Teepee Tent

Bedding and Other Accessories

We went with navy and white crib bedding for our boy’s travel themed nursery. Our navy and white bedding set is no longer available, but this travel themed crib bedding set is a great option for little explorers.

• Crib Sheets: White & Navy Polka Dot Sheets (Similar Option)
• Crib Skirt: White With Navy Stripes
• Changing Pad Cover: White and Navy (Similar Option)
• Curtains: White and Navy Striped Blackout Curtains (Similar Option)
• Storage Basket: White & Navy Woven Basket (Similar Option)

When we transitioned to a big boy room, we found this fun kids world map bedding that worked perfectly.

Gray Washed Dresser | Oversized Bean Bag Chair | Gold Metal Globe | Name Letters | World Map Bedding

Transition from a Travel Themed Nursery to a Toddler Room

We always planned to re-use our nursery furniture for a second child. Fortunately the 3+ years between kids easily allowed us to do that. When we knew we were having another baby, we easily transitioned my son’s travel themed nursey into a travel themed kids room. The simple changes we made included:

• Replacing the nursery glider and teepee with this oversized bean bag lounger.
• Swapping the crib for a full size mattress. We have this gel memory foam mattress and love it. Prior to upgrading to the full size bed, we temporarily converted the crib to a toddler bed with our 3-in-1 crib.
• Putting this world map bedding set on the bed.
• Swapping the dresser and changing table combo for this large gray washed kids dresser.
• Adding this fun shark head pillow and decorative suitcase storage boxes like these that we already had.
• We’re also planning to add a second gray washed bookshelf and eventually a bed frame to complete the room.

Fore more baby and toddler travel resources, check out our family travel tips page.

Related Posts:

• Travel Books for Babies & Toddlers
• 12 Reasons to Travel with Children Under 2
• Kids Virtual Travel Activities

Like this post? Click on an image below to save for later.