15 essential items for a family beach day with young kids
Many soak up the long days of summer sprawled across the warm sand, with the sound of crashing waves on the shore filling their ears.
Heading to the beach on a warm summer day can provide hours of relaxation and fun with so much to do while enjoying time outside.
One of the most difficult things about going to the beach is carrying in all your heavy gear. For less muscle strain on your part, a beach cart can help you transport your items from the car to the sand with ease.
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Before you head to the beach for your perfect summer day, don't forget to pack these must-have items with you.
- A cooler with drinks and snacks
- Infant cabana
- Plenty of sunscreen
- UV wristbands or stickers
- Sunglasses and hats
- A fitted sheet for a sand free zone
- Portable fan
- Hooded towels
- Buckets and shovels for sand castle masterpieces
- Games
- A comfortable seat for mom and dad (plus a small chair for little ones)
- Bag for wet clothes
- First-aid kit
- A beach cart
- A speaker and a catchy beach playlist
When you're going to the beach with young children, don't forget to pack these items with you for a stress-free day. (iStock)
1. A cooler with drinks and snacks
Be sure to have plenty of drinks and snacks that are going to last you all day at the beach.
Chips and sandwiches are easy beach foods to pack. Mini-sandwiches are even more ideal, so people can snack on them throughout the day.
Plenty of water is a necessity to stay hydrated in the hot sun.
2. Infant cabana
Any parent knows that taking a baby to the beach can turn into a disastrous situation if the adults are unprepared.
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Infant cabanas take away most of the possible worries by providing ultimate protection from the sun as well as a safe place to nap.
These are relatively inexpensive and can provide much-needed shade for your little one during a day at the beach.
3. Plenty of sunscreen
Don’t forget the sunscreen for a beach day.
Spray, lotion, face sunscreen — make sure to grab it all.
You can never have enough sunscreen at the beach. Ensure you are diligent about reapplying sunscreen on your kids and yourself throughout the day. (iStock)
If you have a lip balm with SPF, throw it in your bag too, for even more protection.
4. UV wristbands or stickers
Keeping enough sunscreen on the kids throughout the day can almost take the fun out of enjoying the beach for the parents.
There are plenty of products available that can take the stress away by letting parents know when it's time to reapply the sunscreen.
UV stickers come in packs, so you can have plenty for all of your beach days. All you do is put the sticker on and watch it change color when it's time to reapply sunscreen.
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These will help you keep track of when to put sunscreen on your kids.
You can also put a sticker on yourself to make sure you are protecting your skin, too.
5. Sunglasses and hats
Sunglasses and hats provide even more protection from the sun for kids and adults.
Bucket hats are perfect for the beach.
Pack some extra pairs of sunglasses and even a few hats in your bag in case anyone you are traveling with needs one throughout the day.
Bucket hats are perfect for the beach, as they provide bountiful amounts of shade, but a baseball cap will prove helpful as well.
6. A fitted sheet for a sand free zone
The ultimate beach hack is bringing a fitted sheet to keep a sand free zone. All you have to do is place the fitted sheet upside down on the sand and put four objects on the corners to keep it open.
Then, you’ll need a small foot bath. Fill that with water from the ocean and place it outside your fitted sheet with a towel next to it.
Bring a fitted sheet to the beach to create a sand-free zone where you can enjoy your lunch. (iStock)
After collecting sand on your feet, dunk them in the water bucket, dry them off on the towel and then step into the fitted sheet, which should remain fairly sand free with this method.
Throughout the day, whenever someone wants a break from the sand, such as when it's lunchtime, follow this process to keep sand out of your sandwich.
7. Portable fan
A day at the beach can get hot.
While a dunk in the ocean will quickly cool you down, a portable fan is nice to have.
Portable handheld fans can be found on Amazon for cheap. Some even mist water for an extra cooling effect.
If you need to cool down, yet don't want to get drenched in the water, this fan will come in handy.
8. Hooded towels
It can be difficult to pull the kids away from the water at the end of the day when it’s time to head home.
There are tons of hooded towels that might help you get your kids out of the water.
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Hooded towels come in all kinds of different designs, such as land animals and sea creatures, so you are sure to find one that your child will love.
9. Buckets and shovels for sand castle masterpieces
Sand toys can keep the kids entertained for hours on end.
Take a bag of sand toys to the beach complete with plenty of shovels and buckets to build sand castles and other creations in the sand.
Give your toys a good rinse in the ocean so you don't bring mounds of hidden sand into the car with you.
Pack plenty of shovels and buckets to keep the kids entertained for hours. (iStock)
10. Beach games
Beach games provide endless fun for families.
Whether it's a game like Spikeball, or just a football or volleyball to toss around, having different activities for kids will help keep them occupied.
A set of waterproof cards is also a beach must-have for a selection of fun games without worrying about ruining your deck.
11. A comfortable seat for mom and dad (plus a small chair for little ones)
While you're probably not going to be able to sit and tan at the beach when watching after kids, it is still important to have a nice, comfy beach chair to sit in while you do have time to relax.
While they are napping, you can take a relaxing break in your comfy chair.
You can also get a cute beach chair for your child with an attached umbrella to keep kids in the shade.
12. Bag for wet clothes
You’re going to have quite a lot of wet gear after a beach day, and it can be a hassle getting it home when you don’t have a separate place for your wet and dry items.
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Make sure you pack a separate bag to throw everyone's wet clothes in after a long day in the water.
Then, when you get home, you can simply dump the contents of your wet clothes bag straight into the wash.
13. First-aid kit
Accidents happen — and you’ll want to be prepared just in case they do.
You don’t need anything fancy here — just a simple first-aid kit that can help with any minor injuries.
If you don't have a first-aid kit, throw extra Band-Aids in your bag so you have something in case you need one.
If you or your child does experience an injury at the beach, find lifeguards who can provide assistance.
14. A beach cart
Carrying all of your things to the beach can be a struggle, but a beach cart makes things a lot easier.
A beach cart makes getting items from your car to the sand a breeze. (iStock)
While there are different beach cart designs, a lot of them look similar to a wagon.
You can throw everything into one of these carts and then pull your items along with you instead of trying to carry everything with your two hands, while most likely dropping things on the way.
15. A speaker and a catchy beach playlist
You’ve got to have the beach tunes playing throughout the day.
A waterproof speaker is your best bet, so you don’t have to worry about it getting ruined.
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Just make sure not to blast your music too loud, to avoid disturbing fellow beachgoers.
Kimber Crandall contributed reporting to this article.
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