We’ve definitely learned a lot about beach trips with kids, so I wanted to share some of our must-have family beach products including games, activities, and snacks for beach days. We love going to the beach as a family, it is where we have made some of our best memories. We lived at the beach for 4 years while Kurt was in medical school, and take at least a few beach trips every year. To say that we love the beach may be an understatement.
Below I’m sharing our must-have family beach products for families and kids, as well as easy and simple snacks for the beach that will keep everyone well-fed without consuming too much sand.
My List of 10 Must-Have Family Beach Products
- The Explorer 200 inflatable raft works miracles. We ended up getting two on our trip, one for the older kids to ride in on the waves, and one for the little ones to be contained, but able to splash around and play. These provided hours of entertainment and by containing 6+ kids at a time, it was a lot more fun for the adults too. A friend of mine recommended using this non-inflatable, portable dog pool for little babies and kids at the beach. It’s such a good idea!
- The KidCo. collapsible baby chair is another great way for little ones to be entertained and contained at the beach.
- A large collapsible bag is a must for the beach. This one is amazing, has so many pockets, and can fit a ton, but is easy to store too. I’ve also heard people suggest using the large blue bags from IKEA for holding towels, which is so smart. If you have any of those definitely keep them for the beach.
- This paddle ball beach game is a favorite of ours. We love to have competitions to see who can make the longest streak. Such a fun activity for the beach.
- We also love playing Spike Ball (or the cheaper version linked here Slammo), this is such a fun game. If you haven’t heard of it, just look it up on YouTube to see this game in action.
- If you want something a little unique and fun, here’s a great set of beach toys for little ones to create their own ice cream shop.
- I had never heard of these mesh seashell collection bags before, but a friend gifted some to us right before our trip and they are awesome. As little explorers go around collecting more and more seashells they’ll collect a lot less sand with these bags. Plus they’re cheap and something special that little ones will get excited about.
8. Basic sand toys, like this set for under $5, will get you a long way at the beach. Little ones will sit and play with these for hours.
9. This Pacific Breeze tent was also a lifesaver, especially with so many babies. It provided protection from the wind and the sun, and made it a comfy spot for little ones.
10. A beach wagon is also incredible! It makes packing up each day and getting to the beach so much easier. We were in a house on the beach, but it was still a little ways from the deck to where we wanted to set up each day. We used these wagons to cart everything we needed out there without having to make multiple trips. It was so nice!
10 Healthy & Easy Snacks for Kids at the Beach (+ ideas for keeping food free of sand)
Keeping everyone well-hydrated and well-fed can make all the difference between a great day at the beach and a “I can’t believe we spent all this time getting to the beach and they’re already done” kind of day. So here are some healthy ideas for keeping tummies full and food free of sand.
- Apple sauce pouches, these are amazing for kids and adults, no matter how messy hands are this is a great snack. We love these re-usable pouches, that we use every single day, the funnel makes filling them so easy. We also love the veggie and fruit pouches either from Costco or the Parent’s Choice brand at Walmart.
- Fruit leather, our favorites are the large variety pack from Target.
- Bananas, are the best fruit for the beach. Kids can eat it with their hands all over the peel, without getting sand on what they’re actually eating. For some extra calories, and as a yummy combo, you can use a squeeze peanut butter, here’s a great option, or here’s a cheaper one. We like natural peanut butter, but it’s a lot more expensive to buy like this. You could always fill these re-usable pouches with some of your peanut butter and pack it for the beach. I do not recommend bananas, unless you’ll be bringing a cooler, otherwise they’ll get gross.
- GoGo Squeeze Yogurtz, are another pouch choice, but also have some protein for little tummies.
- String cheese, is a great source of protein and kids can keep it in the wrapper to eat it.
- Lara Bars, these are calorie dense and can keep little ones going. We particularly like the Peanut Butter Cookie ones for the beach. They don’t have any chocolate chips so they don’t melt and make a mess. Again, kids can eat these with the wrappers on, which keeps the actual food free of sand.
- Dried mango is another huge favorite in our family. We like the Great Value, organic dried mango, or the dried mango from Costco (no sugar added). They will have to use their hands for these, but they keep really well for trips to the beach. Sometimes I’ll just feed them to my kids since my hands are usually less sandy.
- Harvest Snaps Green Pea Snack Crisps, again, these wouldn’t be great if their hands are super sandy, but they’re a crunchy and yummy snack that won’t get sandy just from being at the beach.
- Hippeas Organic Chickpea Puffs, vegan white cheddar, have you tried these? They are so good and they’re another easy snack to pack for everyone. It travels well to the beach, is easy to eat there, and pretty high in protein.
- These Zip Seal Healthy Snacks Bags from Amazon are genius, and would be a great way to pack different snacks like peanuts, almonds, cheerios, etc.. They come in a pack of 125, and depending on what you fill them with, could be re-used. Kids could eat them almost like a popsicle or pushing a little into their mouths at a time. You could also make your own frozen yogurt or posicles using these, and store in a cooler at the beach.
It was such a refreshing and fun trip to have together at the beach. We loved our time there! Learning and exploring with these beautiful babes is my favorite!
Hopefully, this will give you some great ideas for the next time you and your family go on a beach vacation. These family beach products are some of our favorites and have made our days at the beach blissful. Comment below with your best tips and tricks for making beach time a win for everyone.
Sincerely,
