Must-Have Items When Packing For Your Kid's Swim Meet

As parents, you inevitably take on the roll of packing swim bags for your kids—whether it’s for practice or a swim meet. Many of you might see it as a mundane task, but packing for a swim meet actually requires a little bit of thought. Since it is typically an all-day event, you want to make sure you have ample food and drinks, items to set up a comfortable rest area and all of the essential gear to ensure your swimmer has a successful day.  

Of course, what you pack will vary by swim meet and there are a lot of factors to consider, especially if it is an out-of-town, multiple-day swim meet. If that is the case, you will obviously want to pack extra towels, nutrition and clothes.

Today we’re going to dive in to the basics. A swim meet starter-pack, if you will.

Assuming your child already has a large swim bag, the first thing you’ll want to pack is a couple of towels. We suggest packing three if they have a jam-packed schedule with multiple events lined up. Never underestimate the importance of a dry towel as it often doubles as a pillow or blanket (but you may want to consider bringing those, too)!

Second, you should make sure they have an extra pair of goggles, a spare competition swimsuit, a warm-up suit and at least one extra swim cap on hand—better safe than sorry!

Once you have the necessities, you can start planning out what they will need for the duration of the day.

You’ll likely pack a cooler full of food and drinks for the entire family, but we recommend adding a couple of quick and healthy snacks, like energy bars or trail mix, to your kiddo's swim bag. This will help resist the urge to buy sugary gummy worms from the meet snack bar.

Since they will be in and out of the pool all day long, you’ll want to pack plenty of sunscreen with a reliable SPF, a hat or sunglasses, lip balm, shampoo and conditioner for a quick rinse after the meet and a comb or hair brush (and a handful of hair-ties for the girls).

Depending on weather conditions, make sure they have a parka, socks, flip flops, a tee shirt and shorts, pants and a sweatshirt. You’ll also want to pack a spare change of clothes, in addition to the gear that they wore to the pool, as most teams go out to dinner after the swim meet is over.

Lastly, they’ll need some sort of entertainment to keep them busy in between events. For today’s generation, a cell phone with apps and games would probably suffice, but it’s worth throwing in a deck of cards, a reading book, a coloring book and some markers, headphones for music, and sharpies (because we all know swimmers like to write on each other).

Our last piece of advice? Pack the night before the meet. There’s nothing worse than rushing out the door at 5 o’clock in the morning with a half-asleep, grumpy kid and a half-packed bag.