Ultimate Beach Kit: Chairs, Tables, and More

Key Points

• Packing for a beach day includes finding the right outdoor furniture and equipment, such as seating, tables, grills, fire pits, and more.
• Bonfires on the beach are a fun and functional way to stay warm and cook a meal, but heed any local weather warnings or restrictions on contained burning.

A day at the beach is one of those core summer memories almost everyone has. For most of us in the US, the image conjured in our minds is a sea of striped umbrellas and beach towels stretched out on the sand as far as the eye can see. Others picture craggly coastlines with sheer cliffs and plenty of pebbles to skip along the water’s surface. Across the ocean in Japan, people bring entire tents to the beach! (We promise this is true; one of our editors lived there for years.) Spending time on the beach doesn’t always equate to roughing it. For this year’s beach trip, spend your time seaside in the lap of luxury. Pack up a trip to the beach that everyone in your family will remember with our beach kit guide! Let’s see all the ways IWAE can make your next trip to the beach the best it can be.

Packing for the Beach

When you think of a day at the beach, what do you picture? For those along the northeast coast, it’s likely the grayscale pebbled beaches and white sand of Maine. The coastline along the southern half of the country on both the east and west coasts boasts miles of traditional sandy beaches with out-of-towners floating in the waves. In landlocked states like the Midwest, a summer beach day is more likely a dip in a nearby lake or river than a swim in the ocean.

Regardless of what type of beach you’re planning to visit, figuring out where to buy beach furniture for your outing is just as important as laying out your swimsuit the night before and packing extra sunscreen. Each climate calls for unique packing needs, especially regarding wardrobe and weather accommodations. Lucky for you, the search for portable furniture to use outside just got a lot easier with IWAE’s catalog of grills, outdoor furniture, and fire pits!

Grill the Beach Day Away

You love burgers and brats by the poolside, so it’s easy to see the appeal behind hot dogs on the beach. To figure out the best beach grill for your day on the coast, it’s important to take into account how you’re getting to your destination. If you’re driving up to a parking lot feet from the sand or shoreline, the Blaze Kamado charcoal grill is exactly what you want. Kamado grills sport an effortlessly portable design, while the stainless steel construction of Blaze’s grill ensures the durability to withstand the harsh conditions of salty beach air. Since Blaze Kamado grills support multiple accessories that tailor your meal options to your preferences, they’re a great option for diverse cuisines and cooking methods. Pack a cooler full of your favorite seaside flavors and enjoy a day in the sun with delicious food and great company.

If you’re still wondering what the best portable grill is for the beach when that coast is a hike and a half to get to, the US Stove Caribou backpacker stove is the ideal solution. Thanks to the smart design of US Stove’s portable camp stove, the unit can break down to fit neatly in a carrying case that streamlines transportation when the car is miles away from the lakeside. The adjustable legs are easy to stab into the sand to ensure a level cooking surface that won’t get jostled by wind and waves. Cook up fresh fish you caught in the water or pack some supplies ahead of time; either way, you’ll be able to set up and break down your grill with ease.

Did you know? We’re sharing some of our biggest crowd-pleasers to make your beach day a rousing success in the Ultimate Beach Recipe Guide!

Portable Furniture for Fun in the Sun

Step one is done now that you have the perfect portable grill picked out! It’s time for step two: determining what the best portable furniture for the beach is to complement your summertime plans. We polled the team for what beach furniture they’d bring along for a day in the sun with the family, and the results are in! They were also shockingly consistent:

Pro tip: These color combinations are our team’s favorites, but Buck Stove has additional color options in its Buck USA line to pick from!

Pop-Up Fire Pits for Beach Bonfires

First and foremost, you should always check whether or not contained burning is allowed on the beach you’re planning to visit before bringing the fuel and tools to light a beach bonfire. If there aren’t any restrictions keeping you from seaside s’mores to wind down a day at the beach, the rest is smooth sailing! US Stove offers different sizes of collapsible fire pits that make starting a fire effortless anywhere:

• 12" US Stove Collapsible Fire Pit
• 15” US Stove Collapsible Fire Pit
• 30" US Stove Triangular Collapsible Fire Pit

In terms of basic function, all three of these US Stove collapsible fire pits are great for on-the-go warmth. Our recommendation is to use a triangular pit on uneven ground like pebble beaches and hilly terrain, as its design is more stable, leaving you less worried when the fire’s roaring.

How to Start a Beach Bonfire

Before we get to the fun, a word of warning: Do not build a fire during dry conditions or fire weather warnings under any circumstances. This is not only dangerous for you and those in your group, but also for other beachgoers and any nearby wildlife. Only you can prevent wildfires.

Keeping your loved ones cozy on the beach may not be a concern while the summer sun beats down on your group during the day, but nighttime poses unique threats to your comfort during a beach day. Portable fire pits like those mentioned above may eliminate the need to dig a pit or build a special structure for the fire, but there are some guidelines everyone should follow when building a bonfire on the beach. Keep in mind that some public beaches may not allow you to build a fire outside of designated areas, like fire rings. If that’s the case, leave the fire pit behind! No matter how you’re building a beachside bonfire, here are steps that’ll make it safe and easy:

1. Check wind and weather conditions before you decide whether or not to plan for a fire on the beach. Excessively windy days make bonfires difficult and dangerous, so plan accordingly when wind speeds exceed 15 mph.
2. Pick the perfect location for your beach day bonfire. If the location has preset fire rings, find one that’s unoccupied. For unrestricted areas, find somewhere away from vegetation and other naturally flammable structures without subjecting the wood to crashing waves.
3. Collect fuel and materials to burn in the fire. Bear in mind that, just like any outdoor fire, you want to minimize your impact on the local ecosystem. Bring compostable logs with you or source locally; just avoid driftwood due to the amount of salt absorbed.
4. Set up the logs and kindling for a fire that won’t be put out by windy coastal conditions. Form a structure that thrives with the oxygen blowing through the logs, rather than one too dense to work well near the breezy shoreline.
5. Put out the fire completely and clean up any debris once you’re done. Properly extinguishing the flames and disposing of any ashes or other remnants is crucial for wildlife and beachgoers. Be sure there are no embers left before handling the ashes.

Make the Most of Your Day at the Beach

At the end of the day, making the most of your day at the beach comes down to what you and your family enjoy. My wife and I laugh about how different our favorite childhood memories are often, but nothing showcases the difference quite like our best summer vacation beach stories.

My wife can talk day in and day out about her time on the coastline of the Pacific Northwest. Her family spent many summers there, where her parents would relax inside while she and her sister wasted away the long days on the beach with their cousins at her grandparents’ place. If you ask her, the perfect beach day is a pebbly beach on an overcast day where there are few people to interrupt. She’ll tell you to bring wakeboards, build a fire pit, and enjoy the company.

When I was young, my parents took my siblings and me to Florida for a week of fun in the sun. If it hadn’t been for their insistence on sunblock and meal breaks, I think we all would have been miserable little prunes who refused to leave the water. It’s why, if you ask for my perfect beach day plans, they boil down to: barbecue, super soakers, and burying the most annoying family member up to the neck in the sand just before lighting up the bonfire.

Get Ready for the Beach with IWAE

Planning your next day at the beach is a breeze when you prepare with IWAE. Between durable outdoor furniture that lets you lounge outside in style and portable cooking options that can come with you to the beach, you won’t have to leave any part of your beach day at the mercy of Mother Nature. If you’re not sure where to start your preparations or you need the support of someone with the knowledge and skills to lighten your mental load, reach out to our team. We’ll get you equipped with all the beach day furniture and equipment you need so your day at the beach is as easy as everyone says it should be.