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Pack your sunscreen and swimsuit to head for the coast! The beach is a great place to spend a long summer day, but you may want to enjoy it while also being comfy. Check out our TFG’s picks for best foldable and backpack beach chairs!
The Best Beach Chair
Written By: Laura Pulling
Table Of Contents
We all love a lazy day on the beach of sunbathing, eating a picnic, and making sandcastles with the family. But sitting on the sand all day can be uncomfortable after a while (not to mention that sand gets EVERYWHERE!). Even if you put down a towel or a mat, after a while you may want something more sturdy to sit on.
Taking your own foldable or even a lightweight backpack chair is easy and saves you the charges of being rented an overpriced lounger in some destinations.
Chair designs have evolved making them easily portable, so carrying them with you is a breeze. They can be similar to camping chairs, but beach specific designs will often be designed to work better on the soft sand. Some also have great additions, such as built-in coolers or canopies to keep the heat off.
We’ve explored them all and have amassed a list of the best portable and adjustable beach chair for any beach getaway!
Best Folding Beach Chair
Shop: Amazon
RIO Beach Chair With Cooler
The RIO chair with a cooler and dry storage pouch is a nice alternative to a previous Nautica beach chair model that was similar. It comes in two shades of fun blue shades to cheer up the dullest day! This aluminum beach chair can recline in five positions to maximize a full beach day.
The cooler is mounted on the seat back, along with drink and mobile phone holders, and it has a removable headrest for napping for that late afternoon beach nap!
The chair supports 250 lbs of weight and is only about 9 lbs when folded up.
Shop: Amazon
CLIQ Compact Portable Beach Chairs
This CLIQ portable beach chair is lightweight, packable, and foldable. It comes in its own carry case and has a deep seat that gives support to the lower back. It’s only 3.5 lbs, so light enough to take on your next beach adventure and supports a weight capacity of up to 300 lbs. The Cliq foldable chair is almost the size of your drink bottle, making them great folding chairs for outside, as you can take them anywhere conveniently.
Users love this compact beach chair, with one sharing “Small enough to leave in the car without filling up your trunk so you have them on a spur of the moment trip to the park. So many kid events/practices don’t have parental seating! They are light enough one person can carry several.”
Shop: Amazon
Coleman Utopia Breeze Sling Beach Chair
The low-to-ground design of this Coleman beach chair allows you to enjoy the beach in comfort. it’s low enough to the ground so you can help the kids make sandcastles, while still enjoying the support of a chair. This powder-coated steel frame weighs 5.3 lbs which supports the weight of a 250 lbs adult and folds into a small carry case.
Reviewers like these low beach chairs, with one sharing, “Used these at the beach this past summer. They were comfortable and lightweight. Really enjoyed having a real chair for beach lounging.” However, they do say they can be tricky to get out of as they are so low!
Neso Folding Beach Chairs
This Neso foldable beach chair is perfect for lazy days, the frame is rustproof aluminum and the water-resistant canvas seat means it won’t corrode or be ruined if splashed. It folds flat and has a carry strap for easy transportation. The seat is low to the ground and holds a 220 lbs adult. The frame is padded for comfort and it also has pockets for your beach essentials!
One user shares, “The chair is perfect—small, light, and super comfortable! Doesn’t take up much room in the car either.”
Shop: Amazon | Academy Sports
GCI Outdoor Rocking Beach Chair
Why sit on the beach, when you can rock!? This CGI collapsible beach chair has a rocker function for ultimate relaxation. It’s a bit heavier than the other options, coming in at 10 lbs (and supports up to 250 lbs), but for the weight difference, you get a smooth rocking ride that will let you feel super relaxed; as if you were bobbing on the ocean itself.
This easy folding chair has a mesh backrest to stay cool and padded armrests, a cupholder, and a carry handle.
Get ready to plan your beach vacation with this quick checklist!
Best Backpack Beach Chair
Tommy Bahama Beach Chairs
Brighten up any beach day with this Tommy Bahama backpack beach chair with cooler. This design is well known, simply fold flat and slip over your shoulders with the padded straps for an easy-to-carry. It holds up to 250 lbs of weight and has a ton of features, including an adjustable pillow, many storage pouches, an insulated cooler pocket, and a folding towel bar.
Plus this bad boy is a 5 position beach chair, including lying entirely flat so you can sunbathe any way you want to! One user explains, “Great chair for quality. Great mini cooler and storage on the back and easy to carry. Highly recommend.” But others warn this Tommy Bahama beach chair can be low to get up out of, so be careful!
Shop: Amazon
Rio Backpack Beach Chair
This Rio beach chair is another beach-goers favorite as it has backpack straps for easy transportation. Its classic blue shade mirrors the ocean waves and lace sides and nautical styling and flexibility.
It has a cup holder, storage pouches, a pillow, and a 4-point reclining system. At 11 inches off the ground, it is also higher than other beach chairs, making it easier to get in and out of.
Users rate this backpack camping chair high, with one sharing, “Was perfect during my week’s stay at the beach. Easy to carry, easy to fold; would ride my bike down to the beach with the chair easily carried on my back. No problems at all.”
Ostrich ‘On Your Back’ Beach Chair Backpack
This Ostrich beach chair is a folding, portable seat, but with one feature that’s great for sunbathers—a cushioned face window for when you lie face down! This chair can recline to a fully flat position and reviewers explain that although it doesn’t have the pockets and the backpack straps are not as padded or easy to carry as the well known Tommy Bahama backpack beach chairs, this chair makes up for it in seat comfort. If you don’t have to take it too far, it would be awesome!
Shop: Amazon
Rio Gear Folding Backpack Chair
Rio’s backpack folding chair is more like a sunlounger, you have many adjustable options, including reclining it totally flat. It has a large back storage pocket for keeping your essentials close by and padded backpack straps for carrying it with ease.
Some reviews say that this Rio Gear beach chair seems a little flimsy, but others rave about the quality and that it’s still going strong after over a year of consistent use. One owner of this lay flat beach chair explains, “I’ve been careful to not flop down on it or put undue pressure in concentrated areas so that maybe the trick. I love the fabric it’s made of! It’s not plastic so it doesn’t make you feel all sticky and sweaty… The breezes come right through it and help you stay cool in the sun!”
Here are five unexpected packing essentials for beach family getaways!
Best Reclining Beach Chair
Shop: Amazon
GCI Outdoor Big Surf Shaded Beach Chair
Rest easy during an afternoon beach nap in this GCI reclining canopy beach chair. The 4-position backrest moves however you like it and the adjustable (and removable) sun shade covers you with UPF 50+ protection.
It has a sliding table to keep your drinks and bits and bobs nearby and a padded headrest for extra luxury. It’s a bit heavy, at 10 lbs, 9 oz but supports up to 250 lbs of weight.
One user shares, “Love that these reclining beach chairs can adjust to multiple positions and the sliding tray is perfect! Wish that it were able to be carried backpack style but otherwise is a great chair.”
Shop: Amazon
Helinox Playa High Beach Chairs
The Helinox beach chair is a bit pricer, but users love them. The splayed out legs make them stable even on the softest of sand, and the high back and wide seating area gives you ample room to stretch and lounge.
It’s lightweight, at 4.2 lbs, and can support up to 320 lbs of weight. The chair and carry sack is made from a weather strong polyester that stands up to wind, rain, and UV rays.
One high back beach chair owner explains, “It’s the perfect chair for the beach, camping, the park, hanging out on roofs! You name it. It’s really easy to assemble—takes a minute to figure out the first time, but once you understand how convenient the bars are strung together, it takes a few seconds.”
We’ve got the best beach towels for travel!
Best Kid Beach Chair
Shop: Amazon
Redmon Children Beach Chairs With Canopy
When going to the beach as a family, everyone wants their own place to sit, and for kids, it’s especially important that they have a spot that’s shaded from the sun. This Redmon baby beach chair allows you to have a chair with its own shady built-in parasol! It sets up in seconds and is great for toddlers and little ones.
One mother explains, “Very happy with the child beach chair! It’s easy to get it in and out of the carrying bag. I was nervous that the umbrella was not going to stay up since it looked like it just sat in a little pocket. I never needed to readjust it, the umbrella stayed up the whole time. The cup holder was a nice touch!”
If you want other colors, check out the full Redmon category here.
Shop: Amazon
Kelsyus Canopied Beach Chairs
This awning-covered Kelsyus kids beach chair is great for keeping out of the beating sun. It folds up and down with ease and gives a UPF 50+ protection. Designed to hold kids and adults up to 250 lbs (but reviews do say it’s for SMALL kids), it also has backpack straps which are cleverly made from the canopy, to carry it with ease.
One user says, “Very cute and love the covering to keep the sun away. The picture is a little deceiving though. It looks like a much older child can fit in it with ease. Once we opened it up we realized my granddaughter would soon grow out of it.”
Best Blow Up Beach Chair
Mockins Inflatable Beach Chair
For a super lightweight and alternative option to beach lounge chairs- check out these inflatable Mockins sofas! They are huge bags that fill with air that you catch from the breeze and seal shut. It inflates for a few hours and has side pockets and is able to be staked to the ground so it won’t fly away.
One user says, “Took these to the beach. Took a few tries to inflate the first time, but once I got the hang of it, it was easy after that. Love that it has pockets on the side.”
What do you think is the best backpack chair? Share your picks below!
For more beach tips, please read:
- Beach Vacation Packing List
- Shop the Best Beach Bags and Totes for Summer Vacation
- Best Beach Towels for Travel
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