Beach Pants

Beach Pants

What Are Beach Pants?

Beach pants are lightweight, loose pants meant for the shore and the hours around it: walking on the sand, sitting at a seaside cafe or heading back to the hotel. Most share an easy pull-on or drawstring waist, a relaxed leg that lets the breeze through, and a fabric light enough to roll into a beach bag.

Retailers and travelers call them by several names, including resort pants, cabana pants and cover-up pants. The common thread is the shape rather than one fabric. Palazzo pants and other wide legs float away from the body and dry quickly in the sun; capri pants keep hems out of wet sand; tie-waist and drawstring styles adjust as the day warms up.

Linen is the fabric most people picture, and linen blends are popular for their airiness, but cotton gauze, rayon and crinkled weaves serve just as well. Fabric content and lining differ between styles, so the description is worth a read before you buy. The best pants for the beach are the ones you can pull on over damp skin without a struggle.

They also earn a place in the suitcase beyond the beach itself: at a lakeside cabin, on a cruise deck or for an afternoon in a coastal town. For hot days inland, our summer pants cover the same breezy idea with more office-friendly lengths.

Beach Pants as a Cover-Up

Worn over a swimsuit, beach pants solve the walk from the water to everywhere else. They cover the legs for lunch at a beach club, shield the skin from midday sun on a walk, and look more put together than a towel tied at the waist.

A few details make them easier to wear this way. An elastic or drawstring waist goes on in one step over a wet suit. A wide leg or a split at the hem lets you wade into the shallows without the fabric clinging. And a dark or printed pair hides the damp patch a swimsuit leaves behind, a point worth weighing before choosing pale colors.

For many women in their 50s and 60s, beach pants over a swimsuit or tankini have replaced the sarong as the cover-up of choice: they stay in place, cover the knees and work for an evening stroll too. Choose a high waist that sits above the swimsuit bottom, so the two lines meet neatly instead of crossing at an awkward spot.

What Tops to Wear With Beach Pants?

Balance is the guide. Wide beach pants pair best with a top that is closer to the body or shorter, such as a fitted tank, a cropped tee or a bikini top under an open shirt. Slimmer pants can take a looser, flowing top.

The easiest beach outfit is a matching or tonal set: a white top with white pants, or a print picked up in a solid top of one of its colors. A lightweight button-down shirt, worn open over a swimsuit or knotted at the waist, adds sun protection for the shoulders and doubles as a cover-up on its own.

Shoes stay simple: flat sandals, espadrilles or slides. Hem length matters here, since a full-length pair dragging over sand collects it at every step; cropped and ankle lengths stay cleaner. For dinner after the beach, swap the tank for a soft blouse, and the same pants go from day to evening.

White Beach Pants

White is the classic beach color, reflecting the sun and pairing with every swimsuit print. The concern is sheerness once it gets wet. Before relying on a white pair at the water's edge, wet a corner of the fabric and hold it to the light; if your hand shows clearly through it, wear them only on dry land, or choose a pair that is lined or double layered.

Sand and salt are the other issues. Turn white pants inside out and shake them before folding, and rinse them in fresh water after a day near the sea, since salt and sunscreen leave yellow marks if left to dry. Off-white, ivory and pale beige forgive those marks better than bright white while giving the same fresh look in photos.

For more on keeping pale colors opaque, see our white pants page, and for a fuller leg, our white wide leg pants. Packing for a longer trip? Our travel pants guide covers rolling, packing and how many pairs to bring.