How To Pack For A Beach Vacation

Gear and Packing

June 15, 2018

Yes, it’s that time of year, when most travelers’ thoughts turn to a white sand beach somewhere, with azure waters and palm trees. Whether you’re heading down to Costa Rica, over to the French Riviera or off to the Philippines, there are a few similar principles in packing for a beach vacation. Here are some tips for packing light – and packing smart – this summer when you hit the beach.

Pack Only Flip Flops And A Simple Pair Of Shoes

Unless you’re mixing in some hiking, you can get away a simple pair of shoes and a pair of flip-flops on your beach vacation. Just remember that there are some places that take offense to flip-flops when they’re worn indoors or at restaurants.

Keep Your Shirts, Underwear And Socks To A Minimum

You might be tempted to pack a lot of shirts, underwear and socks, given that beaches are hot and sweat inducing, but if you pack merino wool clothing instead, you won’t have an issue with sweat and smells. Not only is Merino wool sweat-wicking, meaning that it moves moisture from your body to the surface of the garment, dispersing it the air, but it’s also anti-bacterial, meaning that it fights off that odor-causing bacteria.

Make Sure You Pack Your Swim Trunks

This one is pretty self-explanatory: too many times, people forget to pack their swimwear when they head abroad, and then they’re at the mercy of local styles. If you’re in Europe, for instance, that pretty much guarantees you’ll be in a Speedo, which is fine for some, but uncomfortable for others.

Pack A Bag To Separate Wet Clothes

This can be as simple as just packing a few Ziploc bags, that way if you have to pack up your clothes before they’ve had a chance to fully dry they won’t soak the surrounding clothes or electronics. The men's merino wool clothing we offer dries very quickly, but the same can’t be said about a laptop, so it’s best to keep everything separate.

Buy Your Towel Abroad

Unless you’re the proud owner of one of those compact, quick-drying travel towels, you’re probably best off buying your towel abroad, or banking on the fact that your hotel will offer one. Just remember, most hotels don’t like you taking their towels to the beach, so you might want to purchase one for that purpose.

Pack Sunglasses And A Hat

Part of packing for a beach vacation is staying sun safe, and that starts with protecting your eyes and face with some polarized sunglasses (which reduce glare) and a hat, which keeps those UV rays off your face.

Get The Sunscreen You Need

While many experts recommend you bring at least an SPF15 sunscreen with you to the beach, for the most part a higher SPF is going to be more effective. Try researching the availability of

SPF sunscreen where you are going (Tripadvisor forums are usually good for that kind of thing) and if higher SPF sunscreen doesn’t seem to be readily available where you are going, pack it before you leave home. In some countries, particularly China or South Korea, you have to double check that you’re not getting whitening sunscreen.

Get An Underwater Camera

Some people don’t readily admit it, but beach vacations are partly about the photo opportunity. How often are you surrounded by beautiful water and sand? Make the most out of your pictures with an underwater camera, which have become relatively inexpensive in the last few years.

Bring A Warm Layer

Finally, since seaside places tend to get hit with an evening breeze, pack a long sleeve Merino t shirt and a pair of pants in addition to the t-shirts and shorts.

If you’re heading off somewhere this summer to lounge around a beach, pack correctly with these few tips. A little bit of forethought goes a long way towards ensuring that you’re not worrying while you’re away – and who wants to worry on a beach?