If you’re taking a vacation to a hot, sunny, sandy place, then you need to pack for it.

There’s nothing more relaxing than a beach vacation. Spending time with your significant other, friends, or family under the hot sun for a week or so is a great way to reset, especially after the last couple of years we’ve had locked indoors. As long as you know what to pack for a beach vacation, little can go wrong.

Today, we’re going to make sure you and everyone you’re with is beach-ready by giving you a basic guide for beach vacation packing. You might think that going to the beach means you can take it easy when packing, but read on and you’ll see that there are some essential items that you’d be remiss to leave at home.

The Essentials

Of course, for any vacation, you’ll need travel documents and identification, your itinerary, cash, credit cards, emergency items, and any insurance cards for car rentals. If you need anything to make the flight a bit better, like a neck pillow or an eye mask, bring that as well.

In terms of clothing, you’ll need to dress for the weather, which is (hopefully) going to be warm and sunny. Bring underpants, shorts, t-shirts, activewear, casual pants, some warmer clothes, and rain gear in case the weather turns at any point.

For the beach, you should bring a beach bag that fits your swimsuit, beach sandals, towel, sunglasses, sunscreen, and hat. Once you’ve thought about the essentials, you can start thinking about the rest of your trip.

Nightlife

Are you going to be going out to restaurants for dinner or clubs for drinks and dancing? If the trip is for some special occasion, like a wedding, then you’ll need to pack your formal attire. You don’t have to go crazy here; maybe one outfit to go out in would suffice.

Electronics

Beach vacations are great for unplugging and unwinding, but you’ll probably still want to stay connected to the outside world. Surely, you won’t forget your phone, but here are a few other electronics that you might consider bringing along for the trip:

• Tablet/laptop for watching movies and TV in bed.
• A digital camera for taking pictures on the beach.
• External drives to keep movies and pictures on.
• Power packs to keep all the mobile devices charged on the beach.
• A portable speaker so you can listen to tunes on the beach.
• Any electronic appliances, like hairdryers, straighteners, curlers, or shavers.

Knowing What to Pack for a Beach Vacation…

Now that you know what to pack for a beach vacation, you can confidently pack your bags and know that nothing you need will be left behind. Even a beach vacation can be stressful if you haven’t packed well, so take these tips to heart and show up to the beach relaxed and ready for fun.

If you found this post helpful, come back again for more on travel, beauty, and technology.