Renting a Beach House? Don’t Forget to Bring These Along!

We are going back to Florida this summer for the first time in five years! Our son was adopted there, so it is important for us to go back occasionally to reconnect to his roots. This year, we are staying in a tiny house for the first time ever (more on that to come) and I’m super excited about it. Since renting a house is a bit different than staying in a hotel, though, I’ve been doing quite a bit of preparation around here, just making sure I don’t forget to pack everything we need.

The whole reason we are staying in the tiny house, as well as the reason we are driving from Pennsylvania to Florida, is to try to make this vacation as affordable as possible. So, I was thrilled when P&G reached out to tell me that so many of the products we needed to take on vacation were now available at Big Lots. 

This is my “We leave for vacation soon!” face. 

After all the prep work I’ve been doing, and with the help of P&G, I’m happy to share 5 things I always try to remember to pack for any beach house (tiny or otherwise). Of course, you already know what kind of clothes to put in your suitcase. These are 5 important extras that can be easy to overlook, but you will miss them if they aren’t there. 

5 Things Not To Forget on Your Vacation

1. Laundry detergent. I’m not sure if laundry will be available in our tiny house, but I know there are machines at the resort. Traveling with kids means going through clothes (and spills and stains) like crazy. Plus, I like the idea of doing a load or two while we are there so I don’t have to bring several suitcases full of dirty laundry home. I’ve told you before that Tide is the only kind of laundry detergent I can buy since I’m allergic to most other brands, so I need to bring it with me. 
2. Dish detergent. I will share with you soon all of the small things we are doing to make this week-long trip more affordable for our family. I bet you won’t be surprised to learn that one of them is cooking many of our meals ourselves to avoid big restaurant bills. I’m bringing some Dawn along with us. 
3. Extra towels. Sheets and towels are provided by the resort where we are staying (although you should always check, because sometimes they aren’t). But it’s important to bring extra towels along. That way you don’t have to use hotel bath towels at the pool or the beach. 
4. Toilet Paper and paper towels. I always throw a roll of paper towels and extra toilet paper in my bag. If my kids melt a popsicle or spill chocolate milk, I don’t want to be cleaning the mess with a good towel. And you just never know what the quality of the toilet tissue will be when you’re traveling. Plus, when the whole family travels together we can go through it pretty quickly.   
5. Headphones. We are driving with several kids in the car for 16 hours. Headphones are a necessity. They can plug in to their individual electronics and listen to music, audiobooks, watch videos, or play games without bothering each other…or me. If you have one tablet, but more than one child, packing a headphone splitter is also a good idea.  

I could go on forever (my pillow, a good book, etc), but I feel like you probably have some ideas of your own. 

What do you like to bring along to a vacation house? 

Pop over to Big Lots to grab whatever you need before you head out on your own road trip this summer. The P&G brands will be available, and all of these products are featured in June:

This post was sponsored by P&G. All opinions are my own.