Not every towel is suitable for use on the beach. In order to meet all needs and not to let the beach day end in frustration, a towel should be specially made for this purpose.

In the following buying guide, We will tell you what conditions a good beach towel must meet and how you can recognize it.

What you need to consider when buying a beach towel

When choosing the best beach towel, you should pay attention to the following characteristics:

• material
• size
• thickness
• design
• price

The material of beach towels

The material of a beach towel is of great importance as it affects numerous factors. So it has a big impact on:

• the weight
• the comfort of the feeling on the skin
• the absorbency

The most common materials used for beach towels are:

1. Cotton, also in the form of terrycloth and velor.
2. or microfiber.

Cotton towel: the classic?

Cotton is the traditional towel fabric, and for a good reason. Some great pros and cons of cotton beach towels include:

Pros

• Good absorbency
• longevity
• Good feeling on the skin
• Machine washable

Cons

• Take up a lot of space during transport
• Take a long time to dry

Terrycloth, in particular, is extremely soft and fluffy. It also has a high level of absorption, as it absorbs a lot of moisture. This makes it perfect for drying off the body.

Velor is usually a little less absorbent. But it is tightly woven and hardly lets sand through. That makes it the ideal pad on the beach.

The disadvantage of cotton towels is their large size. When packing the beach bag, They take up a lot of space. Cotton also takes a long time to dry, even in the sun. As a result, you may have to lie on a wet towel on the beach.

Microfiber towels: the all-rounders?

The alternative to cotton towels are beach towels made of microfiber:

Pros

• Small pack size
• Dries quickly
• Sand repellent

Cons

• Less durable
• Mostly only suitable for hand washing
• Not as comfortable on the skin as cotton

Microfiber towels are very light and compact so that they hardly carry weight in the beach bag. Nevertheless, they have a relatively high suction power. Afterward, they dry within a very short time.

On the other hand, microfiber is less durable than cotton and often not suitable for the washing machine. Beach towels made from this material also lack the typical fluffy towel feeling.

Pro tip: watch out for hypoallergenic fabrics

Regardless of which material you choose: If you have sensitive skin or allergies, make sure that the towel fabric does not trigger allergies. Most of the time, manufacturers state that their product is made of hypoallergenic fabric and that this has been independently tested.

The right beach towel size

Beach towels are available in different sizes. Which one is best for you depends on what you plan to use the beach towel for.

A smaller towel is sufficient for simply drying off on the beach. If, on the other hand, it is to be used as a beach blanket, possibly even for several people, you will need a significantly larger model.

You can use the following dimensions as a guide:

Usage                                                                                                                                             size

Towel to dry off                                                                                                                         75 x 150 cm

XXL beach towel for sitting/lying down for 2 people or several children                                  150 x 200 cm

Beach towels for the whole family                                                                                            360 x 360 cm

Pro tip

The larger the blanket, the heavier and more difficult it is usually to transport. If you want to go to the beach with the whole family, it may therefore be more practical to bring several smaller beach towels with you.

The right beach towel thickness

The thickness of a beach towel plays a role in two factors:

1. Transport and
2. Comfort.

The right thickness for easy portability

The thinner the beach towel, the smaller it can be folded up and transported accordingly.

Why is that important?

This is important because many other things are usually taken to the beach. You don’t want to burden yourself with a heavy and bulky towel.

The solution

In this point, products made of microfiber are particularly leading, as they are very thin and extremely light.

The right thickness for maximum comfort

How thick a towel is determining how comfortable it is when drying off and sitting on the beach towel. This is where thinner materials have a disadvantage.

Why are thin beach towels less comfortable?

As a base, they protect less against hard surfaces and are not as soft on the skin.

Conclusion on the right beach towel thickness

Since both thick and thin beach towels have advantages and disadvantages, it ultimately depends on your personal preferences:

• If you are only a short walk from the beach and you value comfort, We recommend a thicker towel, such as a cotton towel.
• However, if you have to wear the beach towel over long distances, you are better off using a lightweight microfiber product.

Pro tip: Use beach towel clips

Since thin and light fabrics fly away quickly, they can be attached to the sun lounger with colorful beach towel clips.

What design should the beach towel have?

What the beach towel should look like depends largely on your personal preferences. A large selection of different shapes, colors, and patterns is available to you here.

However, We recommend keeping a few points in mind when choosing a design:

Lighter colors stay cooler

Of course, a beach towel doesn’t have to be one color. Many towels are provided with patterns or motifs, which are often inspired by the sea. Of course, there are no limits to your imagination.

Beach towels with flamingo motifs or Indian mandalas are also very popular among beach towels for women. Beach towels for men, on the other hand, are usually designed more discreetly and are kept in darker colors.

The right pattern

Of course, a beach towel doesn’t have to be one color. Many towels are provided with patterns or motifs, which are often inspired by the sea. Of course, there are no limits to your imagination.

Beach towels with flamingo motifs or Indian mandalas are also very popular among beach towels for women. Beach towels for men, on the other hand, are usually designed more discreetly and are kept in darker colors.

Round or rectangular?

Classic beach towels are rectangular. However, there are now also round models. These look very aesthetic and are also very popular as beach towels to tie on.

However, round beach towels offer less space than rectangular ones. If your beach towel is to serve as a base for several people, a rectangular shape is, therefore, more advantageous.

What should the beach towel cost?

The price depends primarily on the size, manufacturer, and quality of the beach towel. The material is also important.

What is the relationship between price and quality?

In fact, in most cases, the price of a beach towel is an indicator of its quality. That doesn’t mean that cheaper beach towels are necessarily inferior, but they almost always have fewer features or are less durable than expensive branded models.

Beach towels for children

There are also special beach towels for children. These differ mainly in their smaller size. In many cases, they are printed with child-friendly motifs, for example, with characters from well-known children’s films or comics.

Most children’s beach towels are made of terry because this material is particularly soft and comfortable on the skin.

Important: Children’s beach towels must be color-fast

With a beach towel for children, it is particularly important that it does not contain any harmful substances and is color-fast. After all, it can quickly happen that the child sticks a corner of the beach towel in their mouth and chews on it.

Therefore, make sure that the products have been tested for harmful substances and have been declared harmless.

Tie beach towels — this is how it works!

Many beach towels are not only suitable as a base for sunbathing or for drying off. They can also be used as an improvised dress or skirt to be dressed appropriately for going to the beach restaurant in no time.

With the right beach towel, you can conjure up a wide variety of items of clothing:

• a mini skirt
• a long wrap skirt
• a beach dress
• a top

The exact techniques for tying the beach towel may vary, but in most cases, it is either original or folded in a triangle and placed around the body, and tied at the ends.

We explain the technique of wrapping a dress from a beach towel using an example:

• Place the beach towel around the body from behind
• Cross the two ends on top in front of the body and twist
• Bring the ends around the neck from one side and tie them together at the nape of the neck

Pro tip: the thinner the beach towel, the easier it is to convert it into a dress or skirt.

Conclusion

Beach towels are versatile companions on the beach that are suitable as a comfortable pad, as a towel, or as a chic beach dress.

No matter how you want to use your beach towel, with this buying guide, you will find the right model for your next beach vacation.