Has anyone taken a sun shade tent for toddler abroad?

(14 Posts)
HelloBear Sat 02-Jun-12 20:59:08

Hi - going to Sicily next week and just looked at weather forecast and it is going to be hot! We intend to spend the whole time on beach, but I am panicking about DD not having shade, so wondered if anyone has taken one of those fold down tent thingys abroad with them?

Any recommendations? Is it worth the effort/space in luggage? Or should we just fork out for the umbrellas on beach?

Many thanks

LynnCSchreiber Sat 02-Jun-12 21:03:06

I wouldn't bother.

Go into a shop and buy a cheap beach umbrella (with pointy thing for sticking in sand) or get the ones on the beach.

Avoid beach from 11 to 2ish and you will be fine.

The tent things are useless, imo, as they get so hot and trying to make a toddler stay in them is almost impossible.

AKMD Sat 02-Jun-12 21:07:10

Definitely worth taking one if you're planning a lot of beach time. We've got one like this which is fantastic. We've also got a smaller baby one - I wouldn't bother as there isn't enough room to make it worthwhile.

Whatever you do, don't get a yellow one! Insects love yellow.

AKMD Sat 02-Jun-12 21:08:09

X-post. I totally agree that there's no point getting an enclosed tent-type one.

candr Sat 02-Jun-12 21:08:49

I second the cheap brolly idea, the tents stop them getting air and are really stuffy. They also give you false sense of security as you start leaving things in them as you wander around the beach which then get nicked (never done this ehem!) Get an empty drinks bottle and put brolly in then some stones and bury it so it keeps brolly still and less likely to blow away in breeze.

ClaireAll Sat 02-Jun-12 21:38:08

We have. Not sure what the problem is.

Celerychampagne Sat 02-Jun-12 21:42:38

We bought one that folds into itself, iyswim, very lightweight, easy to use. Very handy for baby (and me as I'm of pale skin and fear the sun burn) we have used it this summer in the garden as the plastic pegs work fine in lawn as in sand. So after two beach holidays it's reliving life as garden tent/den. I would recommend one. Look out for one that has uv sun protection too. Enjoy your hold and the sunshine!

Celerychampagne Sat 02-Jun-12 21:43:07

* holiday

We had a chepo popup tent like one (from Decathlon I think) which was fab for BFing and snoozes, but you have No Chance of keeping a toddler who is keen on exploring in them.
Get sunprotection t-shirt or suit, sun block, avoid midday sun, and you'll all be fine.

mumat39 Sat 02-Jun-12 23:37:58

We've got a lightspeed pop up tent and I think it's brilliant. DP isn't so convinced by it as I think he gets embarrassed.

We took it to the South of France as the beach where we were staying had no shelter or loungers or anything. I think it was brilliant. The kids had their milk in them, out of the sun, ate their lunch in it, and I was able to stay out of the sun too. DP burns very easily and even he sat in it. It was also handy for keeping our things in, out of the sun, esp the coolbag.

Where we stayed there were no beach shops nearby selling umbrellas etc so I'm really glad we took one.

We have also used it in cornwall and it was a good windbreak from the cooler breeze.

I got mine from ebay but costco also sell it. It has mesh windows on the 3 sides with covers that could be closed and these helped keep the shelter cool, but it would get hot if there was no breeze, but then you'd get hot in the sun and probably burnt too so I'd rather the tent.

The one we have doesn't have a uv coating but I would definitely try and get one with that next time. Also, there is a flap that can be closed for privacy so if you need to change or breastfeed its a good feature. Also when the sun is lower in teh sky so earlier in the day or later in the day, the tent creates a shadow that is also perfect for the kids to play in when out of the tent.

We also use sun suits and hats and suncream for the kids as you can never be too safe.

noramum Mon 04-Jun-12 11:43:25

No, we had an umbrella but even that was useless as DD wanted to play with the wet sand not the dry one.

I dressed her into a UV 50 suit and a floppy hat. We also only went either before 11am or after 4 pm.

I have a pop up one and one with poles and I wouldn't recommend either. They are a pain to carry about, hard to put down (even the pop up one) and unstable if it's the slightest bit windy.
Umbrellas, yes. Cost you 7 or 8 Euros at a local beach shop.

HelloBear Tue 05-Jun-12 20:37:39

Thanks everyone for the reply. Decided not to bother, I see the pluses but I think it is going to be too hot to spend the day on beach, so it is going to be a morning job then back to the AC for lunch then out again in the PM. I also know that the local beach has brollys you can hire and figure we will try that until we realise it is a waist of money because dd wont stay still.

RissaC2011 Tue 01-Oct-13 21:56:40

I recently took a Babymoov Anti UV tent abroad and found it brilliant! We used it every day around the pool and at the beach. I run a product review blog and we reviewed it thoroughly on the blog if you'd like to take a look you can check out the full post http://www.littlerascalreviews.com/reviews/travel/babymoov-anti-uv-tent/

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