How To Plan The Perfect Beach Picnic

A beach picnic trip with your family and friends makes for a simple yet memorable summer activity. Picture a relaxed atmosphere, fun games, and great food and drink. This is exactly what a good beach picnic offers, but such an experience doesn’t happen by chance. Good planning and preparation are essential for a successful outing and we are here to help. Read on to discover our top tips for planning the perfect beach picnic. 

Pick Out Your Favourite Beach Picnic Spot

The very first thing that you have to do when planning your very own beach picnic trip is to determine where you’re going to hold it! This is entirely up to you - it can be a local beach that’s easy to travel to, one of particular sentimental value to you, or perhaps you’re looking for somewhere entirely new! We recommend that wherever you pick is easily accessible, with basic amenities like nearby parking and access, lifeguards, beach showers and some scenic views.

Plan Your Beach Activities

While the food and drink should be the main event of any good beach picnic, make sure you’ve planned plenty of activities to enjoy the contents of your picnic all day long! There are all kinds of things you can do on a beach picnic trip, including:

• Beach games - Frisbee, volleyball and bat and ball are all great activities for the beach and require minimal equipment so transportation should never be an issue. Just throw what you do need in your beach bag and get playing!
• Paddleboarding - If you’re looking to spend some time in or on the water during your trip, make sure you take your inflatable paddleboard with you. Maybe you’re going as part of a group, in which case consider how you can get everybody involved with a race, some SUP games or even a multi-person paddleboard. 
• Simple R&R - Sometimes, you can’t beat some simple rest and relaxation at the beach. Particularly on a quiet day, a chilled out beach trip can be a great way to unwind.

Essential Packing List

With a rough idea of how you’ll spend the day, you’ll need to make sure that you have all of the essentials needed for your beach picnic to go smoothly. These include: 

• A Red Original Microfibre Towel - You might find that you fancy having a quick dip or need to dry off after spending some time in the water when paddleboarding. This awesome towel from Red is ultra absorbent but incredibly lightweight and small, making it your best friend when you’re packing for a beach picnic and already have your food and drink taking up much of your packing and carrying space.
• Sun Protection - Protection from the sun is extremely important to avoid sunburn and reduce exposure to UV rays. Bring sunscreen, hats and sunglasses along to your beach picnic.
• Dishes And Utensils - A picnic without any plates or cutlery will certainly be a bit of a mess. Don’t forget to take some reusable dishes and utensils to eat and drink with.
• Bin Bags - Be sure to protect the beautiful natural environment by leaving no trace and taking away all of your rubbish at the end of the day. Having some bin bags to hand will let you keep it all in one easy to manage location and dispose of it quickly and safely once you’re done.
• Cool Bag - And don’t forget the most important beach picnic item - your cool bag! To host the perfect al-fresco spread, you’ll need something that keeps your chosen food and drink totally safe to enjoy. With this in mind, the Red Original Soft Cooler Bag is the perfect companion for this kind of trip. The waterproof soft cooler bag is constructed from epic Armour Tech Fabric and IPX7 diving spec zips, ensuring that everything inside is kept cool and protected from any unexpected water exposure. If you’re looking for inspiration for what kind of food you should bring, check out our previous blog on our top 8 beach picnic ideas.

We hope that this has been helpful to you in planning out your perfect beach picnic trip. If you need any more tips, you can get in touch with our expert team for advice!