The 5 Best Beach Day Hacks

Beach days are my favorite days. For me, they rival Disney trips in the suck-you-in-with-lots-of-preparation-but-the-family-time-is-worth-it kind of way. I still have the fondest memories of family beach vacations to Corpus Christi, Texas filled with boogie boarding and beach balls, sandcastles, and sunburns. As time passed (and my family has gotten accustomed to better beaches a lot closer), I realize all the work that can go into a beach day.

The toys don’t just appear. The snack fairy doesn’t make it to the water’s edge like she used to. And forgotten sunscreen has dangerous aftereffects.

As a result of our missteps, here are the best beach hacks, or tricks, that lighten our load and keep the day fun for all ages.

Carabiners.

These little guys are the unsung hero of our trip. Have a bunch of beach bags that need to get from the car to your ideal spot for the day? Clip all the handles together on it and five trips are cut down to one! If you are like me, snacks are a must for your crew. Clip the snack bag handles together to make it just hard enough for the littles to navigate and keeps the sandy hands away. On a windy day, use a carabiner to help weigh your beach tent down! Clip the handles of your heavy snack/towel/tote bag to one of the support bars, and viola! No more flyaway tent! Struggle with where to put the trash bag to help keep our beaches clean? Not anymore! A carabiner through the loops keeps it easily accessible and off the sand. Need one? Or six? Here you go!

Inflatable Pool.

The waves terrify my daughter; the sound, the pull of the water, everything. So we had to figure out a way to keep her included without derailing our beach day. A simple $10 blow-up pool is the sleeper hit for our family. A few minutes of my husband’s hot air and then a few family trips to the water’s edge are all it takes for this to be a second source of water fun. The tug of the tide and the unpredictable nature of waves can be a lot for littles. Some days, the surf is just a little too rough for our crew. The pool lets the kids get wet and play in a way they, and we, feel safe. (This was a game-changer for us throughout the toddler years.) As a large family, it also helps when wrangling kids. One parent is in the deeper surf one-on-one and the other keeps the other three happily occupied while still getting wet in the pool.

Foundation Brush.

You know the age-old question, “who’s the fairest of them all?” We are. My family is the palest bunch on the beach. I do my best to make sure we aren’t the reddest ones on the beach when we leave. Sunscreen and rash guards are a must-have for my family. Until the foundation brush hack from @mothercould came into our life, sunscreen application was the biggest fight. Now the little makeup brush that could stay in our bag and gets a dollop of sunscreen on it before massaging their little faces. I am not covered in goop, doing the palm drag across their face anymore, and they are much more complaint about skin safety.

Bath Chair

Babies and the beach are a conundrum. Do you hold them the whole time? Where can you put them down? How does this work? The simplest answer is in your bathtub. Throw the bath chair in your car on the way out for an easy place to perch them in the sand, in the pool, on a towel, WHEREVER! Your little one can see, your hands are free, and they now have a somewhat contained new view. Then grab and drink and have a mommy and baby chill spot!

The Fridge.

Finally, the coolest (literal and figurative) hack – aloe in the fridge. It is our tried-and-true way to end a beach trip the coolest way we know how. Take the natural soothing effects of the aloe to a whole new level. (And the shock and jump away on the first touch is always worth a giggle or two!)

Now then, can someone please explain the baby powder and sand removal trick to me?

I will see you at the beach!