When packing for a family vacation you always want to make sure you're not forgetting anything. My family spent 9 days on the island of Maui and while there I noticed there were a few things I was missing. Here are a few things that I missed that you should add to your family vacation packing list. Don't make the same mistakes I did!
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What I wish I brought to Hawaii
More bathing suits for myself:
I brought 4 bathing suits for each kid knowing we would be at the beach a lot and they love to play in the sand. I wanted to make sure they always had something clean to wear and that I wouldn’t have to do a lot of laundry. Somehow for me, I only packed two. Probably because I have been pregnant for 3 out of the last 4 years so those are literally the only ones that fit me. I don’t know why I underestimated the amount of times we would be at the beach! Sounds dumb I know! It’s Hawaii that’s the whole point right? I wish I would have brought at least 2 more bathing suits because I got really tired of wearing the same ones so often!
Here is one that I have loved using while in Hawaii. Since it is a long sleeve it saved me from getting burned which I normally do. It was also helpful for breastfeeding since I could just zip it up and down. I'm going to have to order more!
Bug spray
At our very first stop, my husband was already feeling the bugs. Mosquitos love my family's blood! And I was not able to find bug spray anywhere!!!! I thought that would be something I could pick up there but I was not able to find it. Next time I will bring bug spray and ointment after bug bites. My legs are still itching as I write this.
Small cooler like a soft yeti or hydro flask one
After doing our stop at Costco we had an hour drive to our condo and then about another hour before we could check-in. While the family spent a little time at a playground and touching the water. My mother-in-law went across the street for a small foam cooler. Two liquor stores and nothing! They said 2 blocks down there should be some. So two blocks of sun and rain and no they don’t have them either. The only coolers I saw while shopping around that week were small soft ones that could fit probably 4 water bottles max and probably keep them cold for 2.5 minutes!
Next time I go I will make sure to pack a GOOD SMALL COOLER!! The fact that we didn’t have a cooler made it difficult to bring certain snacks or just make sure you have some cold water and not burning hot tea while you're on the beach!
Here is the one I bought after the trip. Everything stays cold for 36 hours, it's easy to clean and waterproof!
My husband wanted some good flippers
I get supper claustrophobic so snorkeling is not for me! But my husband and the rest of the family really enjoyed it and were able to see a lot of fish turtles and other sea animals. He wanted to find some good swimming flippers but wasn’t able to find any in his size that were comfortable. This is something we will need to make sure to invest in for our next trip!
Good water shoes
Our water shoes sucked! I wanted to save money last year on our trip to Yosemite and Tahoe so I bought some shoes that were on sale for $5 at dicks sporting goods. And yea we don’t have them anymore. My husbands' fell apart. Literally, the whole bottom came off of both and he was left with a sock. While at Wailea Beach the sand was scorching hot! And I needed my water shoes to walk through because with sandals the sand still burned really bad. But when I was swimming it just felt like I was being pulled down and they were just filling with water. I’m already not a super strong swimmer so feeling like I’m being pulled down by my shoes is not a good feeling!!
Look how cute these ones are!! I never would have thought I would say that about water shoes!! The reviews on these are amazing and they are actually not ugly!
Check out my full family vacation packing list here! Where I have everything you will need for you and your little ones in Maui!
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