15 Spectacular Summer Vacation Books for Kids

Gearing up for your summer vacation? Don’t miss these summer vacation books for kids! They’ll keep your kids entertained on your road trips.

Whether you’re looking for a good book to kick off your summer vacation or you’re looking for an activity book to pack in your road trip bag, the books on this list are sure to fit the bill

Keep your kids engaged (and fight boredom) with these summer vacation books!

Summer Vacation Books for Kids

Below, I’ve featured just a handful of books about summer that will help your preschoolers gear up for an amazing summer vacation.

You should be able to find them at your local library or book store. If you can’t find them locally, you can click each image cover to purchase them on Amazon.

The Night Before Summer Vacation – A little girl and her family are getting ready to go on vacation . . . or at least they are trying to. In the effort to pack everything that will be needed, there’s bound to be something overlooked, and what that is provides a funny ending to this meter-perfect “twist” on Clement Moore’s classic.

How I Spent My Summer Vacation – Some kids spend their summer vacation at camp. Some kids spend it at Grandma’s house. Wallace Bleff spent his out west…on a ride, a rope, and a roundup he’ll never forget.

The Berenstain Bears Go on Vacation – It’s summer vacation, and the Berenstain Bears are off to the seashore for sun and fun. There is so much to do—swimming, fishing, building sand castles, browsing through the general store, eating delicious dinners at Gull Island Café, and visiting Gull Island Museum. Each glorious sunrise heralds a new adventure!

The Berenstain Bears Too Much Vacation – Go on a vacation with the Bear family. Papa, Mama, Brother, and Sister are heading to the Great Grizzly Mountains for a relaxing vacation. But a messy cabin, noisy animals, a swarm of mosquitos, and a rainstorm just might dampen all of their fun.

The Night Before Summer Camp – The first day of summer camp is almost here, and one little camper doesn’t know what to expect. For a while everything is hunkydory . . . until rest time rolls around and he gets a bad case of nervous butterflies. But an unlikely friend appears out of the crowd and reassures him that the best cure for the summertime blues is tons of summertime fun!

Vacation Fun Mad Libs – Kids complete page after page of vacation theme stories by supplying the parts of speech indicated, then read the entirely silly story back and roar with laughter! Even if you’re not on vacation, you’ll love filling in the blanks and creating your own stories about “Cave Exploring” and “Driving in the Car,” among many others.

Penguin on Vacation – Penguin is tired of the snow and cold–so he decides to visit the beach! But when his favorite activities like skiing and skating don’t work so well on sand, can a new friend help Penguin learn how to have fun in the sun?

Summer Fun Mad Libs Junior – What could be better for kids in the backseat on those long car trips? Highlighting some of America’s most popular travel destinations, Summer Fun Mad Libs Junior is perfect for those long road trips.

Froggy Goes to Camp – Froggy’s off to camp! He packs a lot into one week: archery lessons, food fights, and scary stories around the campfire. But only Froggy could also manage to lose his trunks during swim class and overturn his kayak with the camp director in it. Froggy will keep his fans laughing with his latest antics.

Travel Journal for Boys – Boys will love having their very own travel and sketchbook to record their travel, whether it’s to a park across town or to cities around the world!

Summer Fun Coloring Book for Kids – This activity book for young kids will keep them busy, as they color for hours with pencils or markers.

Clifford Takes a Trip – Summer vacation means one thing–more time for Emily Elizabeth to play with Clifford! Until this summer, that is. Emily Elizabeth’s family is going far away, so far that Clifford can’t come. Or can he?

Ultimate U.S. Road Trip Atlas – This book includes easy-to-read, simple road maps of each state and Washington, D.C., and a map of the United States. State symbols, cool things to do, boredom busters, fun facts, wacky roadside attractions, and games accompany the maps and provide engaging information with stunning photographs that will keep kids engaged for hours.

Kids’ Road Atlas – The Kids’ Road Atlas features simplified yet real road maps of all 50 states, plus Washington, D.C. Extras include state-related games plus state birds, flowers, trees and capitals.

The Best Ever Back Seat Games – This book is a great way to pass time in the air, in your car, or even on a train. The book contains more than one hundred varieties of fun games and interesting facts, with a focus on community, coziness, and presence, and will help you make memories that last a lifetime.

Round Out Your Unit with These Activities

If you love using peg dogs in your imaginative play area, you don’t want to miss these eco-friendly Summer Peg Dolls decorated with hand painted summery flowers!

Storytelling is part of the learning process. Add some summer story stones to your reading and literacy centers.