How to pack for a fun-filled 7 day family beach vacation
Prepare for your beach trip with the ultimate packing list. This 7 day family beach packing list has everything you need matter what beach you go to. Particularly if you stay in a place that has a kitchen.
Clothes
- 1 pair of pajamas
- 4 pairs of shorts if you plan on doing laundry/6 if you aren’t doing laundry
- 4 shirts/tanks if you plan on doing laundry/6 if aren’t doing laundry
- 1 pair of flip flops/slides: a good pair to walk on the beach and/or to the the beach
- 2 swimsuits: one for the morning and one for the afternoon swim
- 1 nice outfit for going out to dinner and go to church
Toiletries
- Shampoo and conditioner
- comb, brush, hair ties
- hair dryer
- toothpaste, toothbrush, floss
- moisturizers
Health Items
- Tylenol/Advil/Headache
- Allergy meds
- Vitamines
- Aloe
- Ear Plugs: In case it’s loud outside your condo
Condo
- Pillow
- Puzzle
- Deck of Cards
- Board games
- Books
- Electronics and their chargers
- Switch game console
- Movies
- Camera/SD cards and batteries
Rainy Day
All of the places we stayed had an assortment of books, puzzle and games. If you are okay with using what they have, then you don’t need to bring anything. If you want to bring things your family will play and doesn’t take up to much room when packing, then bring your favs.
- A puzzle
- Books
- Board games
- A list of things to in the area: Do some research ahead of time and find places that are around where you are staying. Look for free things as well as things that cost money. Outlet malls, library and movie theaters are some ideas.
Beach
Towels
towel under the beach shade
When I go to the beach, I bring two types of towels/blankets. I lay the blanket on the sand, so people can sit, if they don’t have a chair. You will want to get a size that fits with your sun shade. If you have an umbrella the 50″ x 60″ will be perfect. If you have a 6′ canopy, you will need a larger size as you want to fit the size of the cabana. Same for an 8′ foot canopy.
Oversized Turkish Beach Towel: Many Different Sizes Madison Park Pebble Beach Throw 60″x70″
personal towel
My personal preference are the microfibre towels. This is the very towel we have had for years. It folds down into the little bag you see. It dries me very well. Since it folds down into the bag, we take these everywhere.
Googles/snorkles
Snorkles are super fun for kids in the water! A definite must for hours of adventure in the ocean. I have purchased these goggles 5 times over the years. They are very reliable and don’t leak.
Bairuifu Snorkle Set Aegend 2 Pack Kids Goggles
Body Boards
My family LOVES riding the waves! We have had many body/boogie boards over the years. The things I am looking for are: a reliable wrist leash and a sturdy body. We have had boogie boards break on us. The size also matters. For smaller kids, they need smaller boards.
Ebodyboarding has a great chart on how to pick the right body board for you and your family. Check it out! You can buy your there or get yours from Amazon:
Body Boards for beach 33″/37″/41″
nets
Having a net to catch little fish in the water or chasing butterflies is a favorite past time for my kids.
sand toys
Sand toys are a MUST at the beach from the young to the old! I have two types for you. One is very much in the Montessori vain of creating and the other is perfect for quick castle building.
montessori styled sand toys…these are cool!
just fill with sand and put in place.
a big shovel
This might sound like an extra but every time we go to the beach we use this shovel. It is so helpful from securing the umbrella/canopy to make making sand castles. A definite must!
rafts
Pool noodles a great for the ocean. It’s a perfect floaty to have out past where the waves break.
kites
Flying kites is always a great evening experience on the beach. We always bring some and the family has a great time.
Butterfly Kite Large Delta Kite Mint’s Colorful Life Delta Kite
beach chairs
I like beach chairs that sit low to the ground on the beach. Especially when I sit by the water. On the back of the chair is a pocket to store things you bring down to the beach.
Coleman Utopia Breeze Beach Chair
beach shade
I have always brought an umbrella on my beach vacations. Two chairs fit very nicely under the umbrella. If it was just me and my husband, I would bring the umbrella that I have pictured below. I like this one because the umbrella has an anchor which should keep the umbrella in the sand.
If more of my family is coming, I need something more open like a canopy. Looking at reviews on Amazon and other sites, the cabana style canopy seems to be the favorite. It withstands the winds you encounter at the beach. Plus the set up and take down is super easy.
In considering which one to get, you want to think about how many people will sit under it at one time. The Beach Cabana is 6′ wide while the Coolcabanas are 8′ wide. In the picture you can see how many people can sit under each.
With the price of the Beach Cabana you can get two and still not come close to the price of one of the Coolcabanas. If you are at a crowded beach, place them one in front of the other with one in front near the water and the other behind near the buildings.
$: AMMSUN 8 Feet Large Beach Umbrella
$$: beach cabana
$$$: coolcabanas
Ammsun umbrella Cheaper Cabana tent, Expensive Coolcabanas tent
bags
Pick bags that can hold what you are bringing down to the beach. The best bags are big enough to take all your things in one trip. I usually have enough people to take everything.
cooler
A nice cool drink on a hot day is very refreshing. This can be done with a metal water bottle that so many people walk around with or a cooler. The benefit of taking a cooler is that you can bring other things like sandwiches and fruit cold. I have always brought down a medium cooler that can hold juice boxes, pop and fruit.
books
For some people, they like to sit under an umbrella and read a book. If this is you, pick a good one and bring it on your vacation.
Pool
- Towels
- Suntan lotion
- Goggles
- Pool Noodles
- Floaties: for smaller kids
- A bag to carry everything
Kitchen
- Salt/Pepper
- Ground coffee
- French press
- Wine opener
- Ziplock baggies: snack, sandwich and gallon sizes
- Plastic wrap/foil
- Paper Towels
- Dish washing soap
- Bourbon Travel Glasses
- A bottle of bourbon
- Bottles of wine
- A meal plan: You can plan all of the nights or if other adults are going they can each take one night. Knowing what you are going to eat each night, ahead of time, will take out the worry/stress of thinking about the evening meal and shopping for it. If you can afford eating out, make sure you plan for it. You can even look, ahead of time, to see what places are in the area you are staying to eat.
- Spices for the meals: Do bring the spices you will use, spices are expensive. I measure out what I need for each meal and put them in separate snack sized baggies per meal.
- A shopping list: We go shopping after we check into our Condo if the grocery store is close. If it is far away, we will stop on our way into our condo. Having this list ready with every wish each person wants to eat on vacation is on it. This will help immensely as you will go to the grocery store only once. Which means more quality time spent on the beach or at the pool.
Packing List
Print out this free packing list to make sure you bring everything. I print out two for each kid. One for them to use to pack their things to go and another for them to use to make sure they bring everything homeroom their vacation.
For an itinerary, check out my other beach post!
