Kites

Nets to get crabs and small fish

Headlamps for looking for for crabs at night

Snorkel may be cool for the 4 y/o

This is all stuff you can pick up at any store near a beach

I'm a beach guy, and really it's the beach, dude. It's its own fun.

Digging will be the main activity at that age. Bucket and a spade - don't worry about sieves and moulds and all that other stuff.

If you have boys, cars/construction vehicles/monster trucks are a must.

We shuffle around in a loop and make a racetrack. The kids (same age) will push their trucks around it or just run in circles until they drop.

If you wanna earn that World's Greatest Dad mug, then add some ramps and pools of water on the course.

It's the beach. I'd just plan to play in the water and sand. Not come up with organized ideas

I'd always just go and get smacked around by waves. I think its called "body boarding" or something but, yeah, its just going out and getting smacked around by waves.

Volleyball, cards, tennis, football, swimming, digging, basically doing anything that comes to your mind

Dig big ass hole. It's the only game you need

scrabble

Sand castle competition, sand writing contest, races, shell hunt, trash pickup ! Maybe print out some pages to identify shells and types of rocks? If you have magnifying glasses or binoculars, you can totally have a science day!

No, a plastic plate will not work as a frisbee. You could probably get a frisbee or a volleyball or beach ball if you post in Buy Nothing. If you're driving to the beach, you could probably also ask around to borrow a spike ball or cornhole set.

Take some random kitchen stuff and have a sand castle building contest

If the beach has lots of shells, rocks, bits of wood, you can make temporary artwork that'll get washed away with the next high tide.

So. I can't tell if they're still active, but Hilton Head at least used to have a non-profit called Finnegan's Sharing Shack. It is/was essentially a way-station for beach goers leaving the island to leave behind beach toys and accessories they didn't want to transport home and for new arrivals to come take these items for their own use. Their aim was to reduce waste (those boogies boards don't fly well and also don't need to end up in landfill).

Maybe see if the beach you're going to has something similar? You obviously won't know what they have (if they exist) until you arrive, but it could add some variety.

Go to Blackies Beach at Newport Pier. Waves are small and gentle and the water usually pretty shallow depending on the tide. There are lots other school age kids there to, as well as, cheap places to eat, bike rentals, beach supplies, and….we always finish the day with ice cream.

From Orange, it’s an easy drive down the 55 fwy. If you go there on a weekend, I would get there before 10 a.m., parking is pretty tight.

Newport Dunes does movies on the beach at sundown, and they are geared towards kids movies. Fridays and Saturdays. I’d make a day of i: go to Newport Dunes, make sure you have lawn chairs, paddleboard, etc. And around 8pm move to the movies on beach and make sure you have a pizza and beers to enjoy during the movie. Again, make sure to have lawn chairs and blankets for this part. It can get chilly.

There is a Laguna beach trolley that you can catch in Irvine that will take you to downtown Laguna Beach. From there, you can enjoy the sand and water and also walk to nice shops and restaurants. One of my favorite beaches is 24th street beach in Newport. Can’t really put my finger on why. It’s just really clean and beautiful. It’s also near some shops and restaurants and there’s a small farmers market nearby on Sundays that you could enjoy. 

Marina Park on the peninsula has a pretty cool playground and very kid-friendly sandy area where your kids will feel safe.

Since you’ll be in Orange, you could visit the circle in Old Towne. Not beachy of course but it is a nice area to explore on foot. There’s also Santiago Oaks Regional Park and Oak Canyon Nature Center for some kid-friendly hiking/nature exploring. Santiago Oaks has a small dam area where you can see turtles swimming or sitting on logs, ducks, and you may come across a snake or two. Irvine Regional is also a great park with ducks, geese, turtles, fish and bike rentals. 

Laguna Beach is absolutely packed and can be hard to navigate and close-to-impossible to park, not sure why everyone is recommending to non-locals. Additionally, as an advanced surfer and swimmer (born and raised at the beach), the tides and rip currents at Laguna can be absolutely insane and incredibly dangerous - especially in August. Life guards actively patrol the beaches in Laguna and make folks get out if they are not strong/advanced swimmers because of it. Seal Beach is a way better option - easier tides, easier parking, a playground on the beach, plenty of cute shops/restaurants. Long Beach is next door and there is a lot to do at The Pike. Reminder that whatever beach you visit, you MUST do the stingray shuffle.

Another vote for Dana Point, but I am biased as a longtime resident.

I won’t even go into Laguna Beach in the summer as the traffic is terrible.

Doheny and Baby Beach are great suggestions, as is whale watching. There are a ton of great beaches here.

We also have a summer trolley that goes all over town.

Regardless, you will have a great time !

Azul should be pretty sand and water friendly for the most part.

Hive! The heavy tiles are impervious to sand, water, and wind.

Hive

Twilight Imperium.

Try Seaside. It was designed to be played on the beach.

Baby powder is a life saver on the beach when sand sticks to your skin. Rub some powder on it and the sand is gone right away. I like reading books on the beach. Playing card games with your family/friends can be really fun. Bring a ball to play volleyball on the beach or in the water. You can also collect pretty shells or other knickknacks you find. I love brining a jar and filling it up with sand and ocean water to have at home, especially if you’re traveling, it’s a unique souvenir. You can also try knitting, drawing, writing… The ocean can be an amazing inspiration for creative work. Hope I helped and that you’ll at least respect the beach if you can’t love it

You have pretty much everything but the entertainment part in the Outerbanks and other NC beaches. If you really need the entertainment factor I’d look at Ocean City MD, Wildwood, NJ or Myrtle Beach. NC beaches are more of a place you go just for the beach.

South Carolina would accommodate you better :)

Emerald Isle comes to mind. Stuff for the kids, Aquarium, good places to eat, nice beaches and water, not so crazy as Myrtle Beach.

We have kiddos about the same age and we spend a week out at Atlantic Beach every year. We get an AirBnB that is right next to the beach with a pool. Lots of restaurants and things to do for the whole family in the area.

Depends on your budget and vibe. Personally I'd recommend North Topsail. They have some pretty big semi resorts that would be perfect a quick trip for a family. They also will do less than week long rentals. Which might be your speed depending on price and PTO. As other people have said the closest beach with stuff to do might be North Myrtle or Virginia Beach

OP, your country has tons of options for beach holidays. Please wait a few more months before you decide to travel internationally. We are getting close to the end of this nightmare, why make it worse and why risk spreading infections to the poorer people in the Caribbean.

Please.

How about Maui or the Big Island? There are direct flights from DFW. We did the Big Island in December and there was so much to see and do. We loved it. Swimming with the manta rays at sunset just south of Kona was one of the coolest things we've ever experienced. Absolutely unforgettable. Did Maui a couple of years ago and loved it too. Haleakala at sunset and the black sand beach on the Road to Hana were amazing.

BTW, we felt very safe since everyone on the plane had already tested negative and Hawaii is doing a very good job with covid.

Have you checked out:

https://www.cheapcaribbean.com Or https://www.travelzoo.com/

Atlantis! Great water parks, amazing hospitality. Check out the website. We stay in the lower end room, and enjoy all the amenities. There are 3-4 waterparks, and a dolphin sanctuary on property. (and a casino) Check it out.

Orchard is our favourite, along with Der Schwarze Pirate. I came here to say Haba Games are the best!!

Don't break the ice is perfect for teaching turn-taking and patience. It's a favorite with my 3 & 5 year olds

Agree, check out the Haba site. Lots of different games perfect for kids. We just got Here, Fishy, Fishy for our 2 year old. She doesn't understand playing yet so we use it for motor skills and color identification but we look forward to when she can grasp game play.

I think that's one of the nice things about the Haba games is that they are designed for more than one way to play. Hope you had luck finding something fun to play with your kid!

Peaceable Kingdom is great because they are cooperative games that are interesting for adults as well. Hoot Owl Hoot and Race to the treasure are favorites.

🤯That is BRILLIANT! My husbands family reunion is coming up and I need this for ME, let alone the kids.

My 3 year old loves Monkey Around! PSA: your library may have some games to check out.

Mine also love this game!

We love gnomes at night because it’s such a great game for only two people. So many games so you can play them with two players, but they aren’t as much fun.

But have you tried Star Wars Uno? Sometimes we split the table and pick sides. Two players represent the Empire, and the other two represent the Rebellion. We alternate Empire, Rebellion, Empire, Rebellion. It makes the game a little more interesting as we silently work together to communicate and take down the opposing team.

100% this. My kids are too old for them now but these games were always fun. You used to be able to get them at target? The company was also good about replacing pieces.
At that age most kids need to be playing with an adult or supervised. Also, I am not sure if they are still crazy expensive, but magna tiles were great.