Clever Beach Toys for Little Kids includes some great ideas for your family. The beach does not have to be a stressful place when you have young children. Let them enjoy the sand and surf while you relax by packing a few of these smart beach toys in your bag.
Prepare for the Sand
Playing in the sand is a great option for toddlers and smaller kids.
Many children in this age bracket can play independently in the sand if they have a few toys to play with.
Always keep a watchful eye on your children when they are anywhere near the water! Even if they are “just playing in the sand.”
It only takes a split-second for them to wander off.
If you have a bucket and few sturdy digging toys, your kids can play for hours in the sand.
They can make sandcastles or dig themselves a great big hole if that’s what they are into.
Caring for a Full Arm Cast at the Beach
If you’re curious about the cast cover in the photo above, we used this plastic waterproof cast cover when we were playing in the sand because it was much more comfortable.
But when we got in the water (ocean OR pool), we used a latex cast cover that has a bulb syringe that you can use to pump out all the air for fully waterproof protection.
It worked really well and we only had one incident where water got into the cover during some rough-housing in the pool with the older kids.
The only downside was that it was pretty tight on his upper arm. I used a pair of scissors to snip off about 1/2-inch of the opening and that helped loosen it up a bit.
Protect from the Sun
For smaller kids, the long-sleeved sun protection swimsuits are a great option to protect their delicate skin.
No, they won’t get too hot in them.
No, people or other kids will not look at them funny.
Sun hats and sunglasses are also super important for kids.
You can also bring umbrellas and even full-sized tents like you would use for tailgating.
Sun protection, including high-SPF sunscreen, is serious business and it’s important to protect your skin from damage.
You can still get a tan without burning your skin. If you start to feel hot, it’s time to reapply the sunscreen.
Play in the Water
Kids love jumping into the waves in the ocean, but that’s not the only way you can incorporate water play into a beach day.
You can also use water squirters or squirt guns.
Fill up a bucket or a kiddie pool with ocean water and let the kids go to town.
You can refill it as many times as needed.
If you are getting into the ocean, it’s a good idea to put a life jacket, Puddle Jumper, or swim vest, on small children.
Again, you should always watch kids when they are in the water but it can be an extra layer of protection for them and give you a little more peace of mind.
Be sure to check out our list of Beach Essentials for Families for more details on how to have an easy and relaxing beach vacation.
Save these Clever Beach Toys for Little Kids to your Family Vacay board or your Beach Trip board.
Clever Beach Toys for Little Kids
With a little bit of advanced planning, the whole family can have fun at the beach.
We're sharing clever beach toys that will keep your kids entertained for hours.
These tried and true beach toys are designed to give your children enough options so that they will never get bored.
Kids love to play with these water squirters!
Collect a bucket or pool of water and show them how to suck up and squirt out the water.
Make a rule that you can only shoot it toward the ocean and not toward people so that everyone can have a fun afternoon.
Sea creature water toys are a fun option for boys or girls who love animals.
They can cake their fishies swimming in the ocean or give them a bath in a bucket of water.
You can even use the water toys to talk about all the fish you see in the ocean.
It's a great way for kids to learn about their surroundings and all of God's creations while they are exploring their natural environment.
One of our favorite beach toys is a simple sturdy plastic bucket.
Make sure it's a large size to hold plenty of sand and water.
And you might want more than one -one for water, one for sand, one for shells, one for crabs.
You can never have enough sturdy buckets. You can also find collapsible buckets if you are low on space.
While not exactly a toy, your youngsters will have a lot more fun at the beach if their toes are protected.
Hot sand and sharp shells can be rough on sensitive little feet.
It's especially important if you have to walk across a wide expanse of sand to reach the water's edge.
What kid wouldn't love to wear a pair of super cute water shoes?
Beach balls are a fun and colorful toy that will capture the attention of a child at the beach.
They are fun to kick around or toss back and forth.
They are inflatable which makes them easy to pack and carry in your bag.
For smaller children, look for a miniature beach ball set that is perfect for smaller hands.
Swim goggles are a must for youngsters who are going to go for a dip in the ocean.
The salty water can be harsh on little eyes and cause a lot of burning and stinging.
A sturdy pair of goggles will help make the time in the water more enjoyable.
Your little one might even get to see some fishes swimming in the ocean right under their nose!
Colorful pool noodles are great for kids that need a little extra support in the water.
They are not a safety flotation device! But they can be fun to splash around with in the water.
If your beach house or hotel has a pool, it can perform double-duty there too.
If you're at the beach after dark, don't miss the opportunity to go hunting for sand crabs.
You will need a small net, a flashlight, and a bucket with tall sides. <
Use the light to find the crabs then scoop them up with the small net and place them into the bucket.
Look for miniature flashlights, but make sure they are extra bright.
You don't have to go all the way down to the water to find crabs.
Walk slowly across the sand and you will see the little creatures scurry away from your light.
They like to dig down into the sand to get away so be ready with your net!
A fun headlamp is a great option for a crab hunting light source.
Put the headlamp on the kiddos so that they can light the way.
Everywhere they look will be illuminated. This is a great option for kids who would have a hard time keeping up with a handheld flashlight.
If you want to watch your crabs for a while, you're going to need a terrarium with a lid to house them.
If you leave the crabs in the bucket, there is a good chance that they will eventually climb out.
A terrarium with a lid is a great option to allow your children to observe the crabs from a safe distance without the possibility of getting pinched.
Then when you get done watching them, you can easily release them back onto the sand and watch them scurry away. Super fun.
When your kids need a little time out of the sand, a kid-sized folding chair is a great option.
You will appreciate a child-sized folding chair when it's time for your little one to have a snack.
Look for a chair that has a cup holder so that they can sit and have a refreshing drink with their snack.
Sand molds are a fun option for even young kiddos.
They will be delighted with all the shapes that they can make with sand.
You can even find mold sets that you can use to build a fancy sandcastle.
Who doesn't love to build a sandcastle at the beach?
One of my best tips is to pick up a large mesh bag to carry and store all your sand toys.
A mesh bag will allow the sand to fall right out of it so that you won't carry a car load of sand home with you.
These bags can get wet so it's easy to rinse all the sand out of the toys without removing them from the mesh bag.
Melissa and Doug has several sand playsets where your little one can turn the beach into an outdoor bakeshop.
I love this cupcake playset because you can easily unmold your sand treats for more imaginative play.
There is also an ice cream set that is super cute! Who doesn't love ice cream cones at the beach?
Sturdy digging toys are a must for imaginative sand play.
You can use scoops or shovels, big and small.
Makesure they have chubby handles that are easy for little hands to hold.
This is a must-have toy in our beach bag!
For the littlest babes, a portable pop-up playpen is a great option for a beach trip.
Kids have protection from the sun as well as the sand. They can play with their toys or even take a nap while listening to the gentle waves.
Look for one that has a sun-protection tent over the top and is easy to set up and take down.
A small inflatable pool is perfect for toddlers at the beach.
Use a pail to fill it with a few inches of water for the kids to play in.
They can sit in it or play alongside it with the sand toys.
An inflatable pool is a perfect solution to keep your child from running toward the water every two seconds.
We used this at the beach recently and had so many people come up to ask us about the pool.
They all wanted one for their kids.
BONUS - The water in the pool is great for washing the sand off all the toys before putting them back into the mesh bag for storage.