5 games to pack for a trip to the beach to make your day in the sun complete

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In your beach bag, sunscreen, a towel, sunglasses and plenty of snacks are essentials. 

While some people can easily spend the whole day lying in the sun with a good book in hand, others enjoy more of an activity-filled day. 

This is where beach games come into play. 

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There are so many different games that your family, friends or significant other can enjoy during your day in the sand. 

The key to beach games is finding activities that you can bring with ease, since you are going to have lots of other gear with you. You'll also want to find games that aren't going to be disruptive to fellow beach goers. 

While for some a good book is plenty to keep them entertained at the beach, others like to pack games for an activity-filled day. (Finnbarr Webster/Getty Images)

Below are five games to consider for your next tropical trip.

1. Waterproof playing cards
2. Giant UNO
3. Spikeball
4. Checkers rug
5. Portable cornhole

1. Waterproof playing cards

Playing cards are a must at the beach. They're so easy to slip into your bag and can provide hours of fun with all the games you can play with just a single deck. 

Go Fish, Rummy and Crazy Eights are just a few of many easy games to play during your beach day. 

While bringing a traditional deck of cards to the beach is fine, your best off bringing a waterproof deck. 

These cards are ideal for the beach to avoid them getting ruined by the water. If they get sandy, they can be rinsed off for an easy clean. 

2. Giant UNO

Things can easily get lost at the beach, but not these enormous cards. 

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There are numerous variations of UNO cards, but these are ideal for the beach for a couple of reasons. 

First, the cards have more weight to them than that of a normal deck, so they are less likely to fly away on your beach day.

Variations of UNO include the classic game with giant cards as well as waterproof cards. Both of these are ideal for a beach trip. (Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Second, you don't have to worry about losing cards in your bag or in the sand. These are plenty big enough to keep track of. 

Last but not least, these cards add a fun twist to a classic game. The game is played the exact same way as traditional UNO. The only difference is that playing with giant cards adds a layer of comedic appeal to the game. 

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If you want to play UNO with regular cards at the beach, you can also get a waterproof version of this card game to take with you. 

3. Spikeball

There are a ton of games similar to Spikeball to bring to the beach, but a lot of them require a large amount of space. 

On a busy beach day, you most likely won't find a spot big enough to set up your game. Plus, you don't want to worry about injuring another beach visitor relaxing nearby. 

What's great about Spikeball is you really don't need too much space to play. Spikeball, which actually gained traction after appearing on "Shark Tank" in 2015, has become an extremely popular beach game. 

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Spikeball is made up of two physical elements - a small rubber ball and a round circular net that sits at around ankle level of the players. The net serves as a trampoline of sorts in the game. 

Spikeball is traditionally played in teams of two. If you have more people that want to play, have everyone choose a partner and set up a tournament.

On a trip to the beach, you're likely to see numerous competitive games of Spikeball happening. (John Fredricks/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

In Spikeball, players will hit the ball onto the circular net in a way intended to make it difficult for the opposite team to return the ball. Each team has up to three alternating touches to return the ball to the net.

This game can get intense, with players diving on the ground to save the ball. The good thing about the beach is that the sand makes a nice and soft place to land. 

You may even make some new friends by bringing Spikeball to the beach, with others wanting to join in on the fun. 

4. Checkers rug

If you aren't up for the strenuous game of Spikeball and want more of a relaxing activity to take part in, a checkers rug is for you. 

One of these can be bought right on Amazon. On one side of the portable rug is a checkers board and on the other are two Tic Tac Toe boards. 

All you need to do is roll up your rug, grab your chips, put it all neatly in your bag and head off to your beach day. 

5. Portable cornhole

As previously mentioned, when playing games at the beach, you want to be considerate to those around you. 

With games like cornhole and Spikeball, you'll also want to look into beach policies before you go. Every beach has different rules for what guests can bring with them, so make sure the beach allows you to play these types of games before packing them with you.

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If the beach is terribly busy, leave this game in the car. But, if you have a lot of space around you and the beach has no policies prohibiting it, cornhole is a great game to bring.  

Similar to Spikeball, if you have a lot of people traveling with you to the beach, have everyone choose a partner and set up tournament play, so everyone gets a chance to compete in the game. 

Most cornhole boards, like the one pictured here, have hard surfaces, making them difficult to travel with. For the beach, get one that is collapsible for easy transport. (Fred Kfoury III/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Many cornhole boards have hard surfaces, which make them less than ideal to travel with. 

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Instead, opt for collapsible cornhole boards for the beach. These fold neatly right into a small bag, so you can easily get them from your car to your spot on the sand.