10 Essential Items to Pack in Your Picnic Basket

Picnics are a lot of fun, and a wholesome way to share a meal and spend time with your friends, family, and loved ones. However, to ensure that you have the best picnic ever, there are a few essential items that need to be accounted for in your picnic basket. Here our 10 key items that we recommend ticking off your list for your next picnic…

1. Outdoor Friendly Crockery

Transporting crockery from your home to your picnic location, and enjoying food with it outdoors, can be dangerous for your breakable plates and bowls. That’s why we always package some durable and easy to clean crockery, to make our picnic experience as smooth as possible. Melamine crockery is our go-to when it comes to dining outdoors and even eating with little ones. Melamine is one of the most durable and cleanable materials to use for plates and bowls of various sizes and shapes, and even looks like real ceramic or stoneware crockery.

2. Plastic Glassware

Another important element to include in your picnic basket is durable glassware. It can be tricky to enjoy all of your favourite beverages outdoors without the risk of breaking or damaging your good quality glassware. That’s why we always ensure that we pack some poly-carbonate wine glasses, tumblers, hi balls, cocktail glasses, or more. Poly-carb drinkware is some of the most durable and cleanable glasses that are a great replica of your finest crystal glass. Make sure you only pack what you need though, as you will want plenty of space in your basket for a number of other items.

3. Cutlery

A lot of picnic food can be enjoyed with your hands, but there are just some picnic favourites that require a knife, fork, or spoon. Whether you are enjoying a salad, or a cheeseboard, being prepared with cutlery will make a world of difference at your next picnic. Just make sure you don’t pack your best cutlery, but rather some pieces you won’t mind getting transported around and used in an outdoor setting.

4. Napkins

Picnics can definitely be a breeze when you have something to clean up the small messes that come along the way. That’s why adding a sufficient number of napkins to your picnic basket can be a really handy. Whether you prefer paper disposable napkins, or reusable cloth napkins, each guest will be grateful to have something to keep themselves tidy whilst they are eating and having fun.

5. Containers & Storage

Another thing to consider is what you will be carrying your food in! If you are anything like us, we love bringing some home cooked foods to share with our guests at a picnic. Using storage containers or weck jars can make it really easy to transport your food, but also keep your food organised in your picnic basket. Not to mention, containers can also assist in fitting all the food you need into the basket. Fill your containers or jars with fruits, salads, veggies, snacks, and more, and graze easily at your next picnic!

6. Drink bottles

It’s important to stay hydrated, especially when you are outdoors, and that is why bringing 1 or more drink bottles can be helpful. Fill your drink bottles up with water or your chosen beverage and ensure you keep hydrated at your picnic. One of our favourite hacks is freezing one of the drink bottles and placing it in a water-resistant picnic basket to keep all the food cool. Throughout the picnic, watch as the frozen drink bottle melts and gives you a nice top up of ice-cold water.

7. Other Beverages

Picnics are meant to be some fun, so why not bring your favourite beverages along? Depending on your occasion, you could bring a variety of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages to enjoy. We personally love to pair a picnic cheeseboard with some wine, or even sip some lemonade on a hot day. Whatever beverages you enjoy, we recommend throwing a bottle of it in your basket for your next picnic, and keep it cool with ice blocks.

8. Food

Now it’s time to talk about the star of the show of any picnic… the food! There are so many different foods that are great for enjoying at your next picnic. Some of our favourites include:

• Sandwiches, Rolls, or Wraps
• Fruit Salad
• Cheeseboard & Crackers
• BBQ Foods (if you have a bbq available)
• Green Salad
• Pasta Salad
• Chips & Dip
• Quiche
• Croissants
• Vegemite Scrolls
• Veggie Sticks

When planning what food to bring, make sure you consider what everyone likes and pack enough to share with others. Due to limited space in your basket, you may not be able to bring every type of food on the above list, but choose some of your favourites and try some different options for more picnics ahead.

9. Dessert

It wouldn’t be a picnic without bringing something a little sweet to snack on. Bringing along a tasty dessert can be a great way to bring your whole picnic together. Here are some of our favourite desserts to bring on a picnic:

• Muffins or Cupcakes
• Cookies and Biscuits
• Donuts
• Cinnamon Buns
• Sweet Slices
• Lollies
• Chocolate
• Banana Bread

Whatever dessert you bring, make sure that you bring something that will last in your picnic basket until the end of your picnic. Packing desserts that don’t need full refrigeration and can last in an insulated picnic basket will ensure you are enjoying only the best quality food on your next picnic.

10. Outdoor Game

Now that your picnic basket is almost full, make sure you have a little room left to bring along a fun game to play. Some of the easy classic games to transport to your picnic include a deck of playing cards, ring toss, tic tac toe, bocce boules, yatzy, or Finnish throwing game. Bringing a game to a picnic could easily transform your experience from enjoyable to memorable!