Are YOU a performance beach goer?

[keiratwiceknightly]

At the beach yesterday. So many families arrived with bags and bags of stuff - some even with festival trolleys. Shelter up, double rugs on sand, windbreak, chairs, elaborate picnic. Kids into sun suits, then sun cream rubbed into all exposed bits approx every 10 mins.

40 min set up. Sit for an hour. Then dismantle and clear off.

Great spectator sport.

Not me. I turn up and then think about the buckets and spades that we left at home, and the towels that I should have brought. I usually remember to bring food but it's not an elaborate picnic, it's a sandwich and a bag of crisps each, with some fruit/veg that I eat alone because nobody else wants it.

I do love watching other people with all their stuff though. Then I wonder how they can carry it all to and from the car. And feel sorry for them because they're stuck in one place and surely the best part of any beach day is wandering along the shore with your feet in the water.

Nope. I hate the beach so avoid it mostly. Hate getting sandy, I burn very easily so a hot day at the beach is not for me. I am scared of the sea too.

I take DS on occasion but luckily we live nowhere near the coast so it's only on holidays.

How do you do going to the beach OP? Do your children just go without sun cream or toys or what

Nope, not us. Usually turn up with nothing and look enviously at the people with windbreaks while we get sand blasted.

I have a festival trolley. Plus three kids under 8. How else am I supposed to cart the kids, towels, changes of clothes, toys, food and drinks by myself?

The two-year-old ends up needing to be carried back to the car so the trolley is invaluable.

Really glad that me struggling to take my children out is a spectator sport for you. Cheers.

This will be us next week!
No trolly and probably no fancy picnics.
But as the beach is not actually my favourite place I do like to be prepared to make it as comfy and fun as possible!

We take lots of stuff (in a trolley, as chairs, windbreak and full cool bag is heavy) but we stay all day. Is that okay, OP?

Sounds like us 😂 6 little DDs means we definitely need a wagon to cart all our ‘stuff’ (DDs included!). We tend to stay for the day though, to be fair.

I have terrible beach stuff envy. I want that lovely beach sheet that the sand falls through instead of our picnic rugs that the kids step all over with wet, sandy feet. I want that extra long, sleek windbreak instead of our saggy, wooden one. Their beach tent is smarter than ours and stays upright. Bright stripy towels instead of our washed-out ones. Their chairs always look more comfy. And then they just fit it all into one large bag instead of dropping everything on the way back to the car.

Foil backed picnic blanket, bucket and spade, sandwiches and pop in a carrier bag, that's me.

There was a Spanish guy we used to see on the beach most days at the Spanish town we went to every year (until last year!) It would take him about half an hour to set up. Ground sheet, deck chairs, gazebo type thing, folding table, cool box full of beer and food. God knows how he carried it all. I used to watch him from my sun bed (with my one bag containing towel, kindle, sun cream - bare minimum!) He'd sit there for around an hour and then do the whole thing in reverse. Ahhhh, I miss that guy ☹️

I don't even know what a festival trolley is.

We're pretty crap at beach going. We get bored. We went to Thailand and did hill trekking and what not. Quite hard work, we spent the whole hill trekking looking forward to the beach bit, but, amazing as it was, we were just bored with it, and booked ourselves onto some day trip elsewhere.

I think the only way to enjoy the beach with children is to go fully armed. Folding chairs, a shelter, mats, parasols, toys, cooler bag of drinks and sandwiches, sun cream...

So what if some parents don't care about carrying loads of gear to make everyone more comfortable? Granted I couldn't be arsed to do it for an hour, but if I'm setting up camp for the best part of the day it feels worthwhile.

What IS a festival trolley? I want one 🤣 would save me carrying a squawking five year old up the flipping beach.
My parents used to take loads of stuff to the beach, deck chairs, loungers, wind breaker, blanket, amazing picnic, picnic table, surf board, fishing rod, bucket and spade, string and a shower curtain for changing. We were there all day though 11am-7pm!
I just take one bag of towels, clothes, sandwiches, crisps, water and some toys

That's just people struggling though isn't it? Which you seem to find amusing.

Nice.

@Suzi888

What IS a festival trolley? I want one 🤣 would save me carrying a squawking five year old up the flipping beach. My parents used to take loads of stuff to the beach, deck chairs, loungers, wind breaker, blanket, amazing picnic, picnic table, surf board, fishing rod, bucket and spade, string and a shower curtain for changing. We were there all day though 11am-7pm! I just take one bag of towels, clothes, sandwiches, crisps, water and some toys

One of these! Worth its weight in gold!

www.costco.co.uk/Camping-Sports-Spas-Leisure/Camping/Camping-Equipment/Coleman-Outdoor-Wagon/p/314920

Bit like this ??

Festival trolley here too, camp chairs, towels, blankets,parasol, picnic, cool bag with drinks, soft and alcoholic. On the beach from 11am to 9.30 pm, weather permitting. Bloody fabulous.

I've just returned from a holiday with my sister and her family and we had a couple of beach days. I arrive with 1 cool bag of snacks, 1 bag with towels and a change of clothes for ds and a rug. Dsis arrives with the clothes they stand up in, a dog and a dog towel. Dog walks all over my blanket wet and sandy, and dsis, dp and I squeeze on it while she laughs about being so unprepared. Her kids go in the sea in their clothes and her dp in his undies. Then I have to find drinks for her kids from my bag.They share the dog towel to get dry and then wear my towels to go home in. My ds is nice and cosy in his clean clothes. We can then go for fish and chips while they go back naked apart from my towels. She is the most disorganised person I know but they are great fun.

No chairs. Parasol, beach tent, blanket, towels, cool bag, buckets and spades etc though. I'm quite proud of my ability to get it all into two bags and a backpack, so I can carry it over the dunes and back easily, and when I'm on my own with the kids and expertly put it all up and down with no stress. I've fucking WORKED at that so spectate away We stay for the day for the day though generally

This will be us next week!! I bloody hate the beach so anything I can do to make it bearable I’m going to do!

I don't remember ever going to the beach as a kid for more than an hour or two, and I don't think I've ever taken my kids (10, 15) to the beach. They don't like to swim and if you don't swim, what's the point?

The beach never quite lives up to my expectations so I'm a sucker for that just one more bit of kit that will make our beach trip feel like an Instagram photo shoot. So yes, this is me, except after all that effort I stay as long as possible.

We turned up today with towels and sun cream but then after five minutes of uncomfortably sitting on them said why didn't we bring those chairs from the caravan. Kids made sandcastles using a plastic takeaway cup from a drink we bought en-route. I do wish I was more organised.

Comfort is king.