In December when we were first looking at St George Island real estate for a family beach house something that stood out to us in the home we ultimately purchased was the absence of fun. I realize that’s an odd thing to say about the home that we now love so much, but it’s true.
Even though the home had been a beachside rental house on St George Island with a private pool, there wasn’t a single sand bucket for shell collecting, not a single shovel for castle building. Where were the beach chairs to laze in the sun? Except for the magnificent gulf views from every room there was no indication that the home was literally just steps from the beach.
“Home isn’t a place, its a feeling.” ~Cecelia Ahern
An SGI beach house without a single beach chair or toy?
We thought this was so weird (and a bit sad), and agreed one of our first upgrades would be to build a beach toy shed and the stock it with beach stuff. Injecting the carefree spirit of fun we all expect at the beach has to be a priority for any beach rental. Right?! When we visit the beach we want to grab some refreshments and a beach chair and go. We wouldn’t want the expense or hassle of setting up beach chair rentals, and neither would our guests.
So we put off touching up the paint on baseboards (blech) and called our favorite Eastpoint contractor and planned it out. The toy shed was just finished and is twice the size it started out being (thanks to Steven’s dreams and future plans for kayaks, paddle boards and beach bikes).
The ‘toy shed’ is born
With our first guests arriving at the end of the month, we’ve already purchased aluminum beach chairs (we bought both the backpack beach chair and the beach chair with carrying strap variety). We decided on 2 styles to give people options.
Side note – notice the genius chair platform our contractor built? No need to lift chairs on the hooks, and they can drain easily after use. That and the surprise “pool noodle holder” got a squeal out of me when they were revealed.
We also purchased a beach umbrella, because the sun ☀️ Is bright and hot and some of us need shade. We also bought a beach cart. You can thank Steven for that practical buy. People love a beach cart to tote chairs, coolers and fishing gear over sand. Our beach house rental is on St George Island across from the beach, so you only have steps to walk, but a loaded cooler is heavy no matter how far you have to go!
Then there are the beach toys that put the “toy” in toy shed. So far we have boogie boards, frisbees, a water shooter, kites, and of course a big pink beach bucket and a blue sand shovel. We’ll add more beach gear and games in time as we get suggestions and requests from people who vacation on St. George Island. And for the private pool we added a few pairs of goggles and some pool noodles.
SGI Beach Chair & Toy Shed
While I’m on the topic, I’ve referred to the ‘toy shed’ a few times but it really has no official name yet.
Some names we’ve tossed around are:
- Toy Shed
- Beach Toy Shed
- Toy Closet
See… we need help!
Then there’s:
- The Toy Box
- Beach Gear
Ugh. We won’t be engraving a name on anything until the creative juices start flowing. If you have a great idea for one please share them with me here in a comment, or email me!
Best Beach Chair & Best Beach Cart
If you’re searching for the best beach chairs consider material, comfort, weight and price.
Aluminum beach chairs are the only ones to consider if you want to use them more than one season, other metals like steel will rust immediately.
Be sure the beach chair you choose is a good height and provides support. Also choose a backpack beach chair, or one with straps so you can carry it hands-free. Aluminum beach chairs are lighter, steel is heavier. When you’re carrying a chair along with your beach bag and cooler the weight will matter. Aluminum chairs cost a little more, but should last a lot longer which is why we chose these for our St George Island home.
I chose these:
- 5 Position Lay Flat Folding Aluminum Beach Chairs (see link for info)
- 4 Position Folding Backpack Aluminum Beach Chair (see link for info)
For the beach cart we looked at many of the same factors, read tons of reviews, and then got a recommendation from our property manager who’s been in the business for years. You want big pneumatic wheels, and we opted for a fishing cart style that also holds a big cooler.
This was the best beach cart we found after lots of research: Sea Strike Deluxe Pneumatic Beach Cart (see link for info)
For the beach umbrella we went for a beach umbrella (see link for info) with tilt that provides UV 50+ protection. It’s highly rated and has a built in sand anchor and comes with a carry bag.
It’s a big investment when you’re purchasing these items all at once, but it’s worth the expense to save ourselves and our guests rental fees from Vaykgear and other beach chair rental companies on St George Island. We don’t have bikes yet, but you can rent bikes on SGI from Island Dog Outdoors.
If you’re staying at our St George Island rental with private pool – we’ve named her Beach, Love & Happiness – you’re welcome to borrow any of these things while you’re here! And be sure to tell us what else you’d love us to add for your next visit!