What to Bring to a Picnic

Sorting out what to bring to a picnic can be easy if you have a little help. We’ll go over the essential picnic supplies, picnic food ideas, the best picnic snacks to buy (and how to earn more Fetch points) and more so that you can have a perfect picnic.

New to Fetch? Download our rewards app today to turn your picnic food list into free gift cards!

How to earn the most Fetch Points on picnic supplies

We’ve got a few different lists of what to bring to a picnic, and we want to make sure you get the most bang for your buck. Here’s how to earn the most Fetch points on picnic supplies:

• Shop Your Offers: Even if you have a favorite brand, it’s worth checking out how many more points you can earn for trying something new. Fetch Offers reward you for buying a certain type and amount of a product.
• Buy Boosted Brands: Follow the brands with a flame on them, they’re Boosted! The bigger the flame, the bigger the Boost in Fetch points when you snap that receipt.

Essential picnic supplies

First: the food. We’ll get into that more in a bit. In order to ensure your picnic goes off without a hitch, you’ll need to know what else to bring to a picnic. Now, you won’t always need all of these, but if you skip any of these essential picnic supplies without thinking about it, you’ll regret it. 

• Picnic basket or canvas tote bag
• Cooler (with ice)
• Picnic blanket
• Plates
• Utensils
• Napkins or paper towels
• Cups
• Bottle opener
• Cutting board and knife
• Condiments (Sir Kensington’s is a great start)
• Containers for leftovers
• Trash bags
• Bluetooth speaker
• Frisbee
• Sunscreen 
• First aid kit
• Hand sanitizer 

So, these may not all be on your list of what to pack for a picnic every time. You might not need to pack a picnic blanket if you know you’ll have tables, for example, but it’s good to keep these picnic supplies near your picnic basket. 

Our printable picnic supplies list (so you don’t forget anything!)

Best picnic food ideas

You can and should make your picnic your own, but that doesn’t mean you need to think of all the best picnic food ideas on your own. From appetizers to dessert, we’ve got you covered with a mix of store bought and homemade picnic food ideas. 

Picnic appetizer ideas

• Deviled eggs
• Caprese skewers
• Homemade bread
• Tostitos tortilla chips and salsa
• Veggies, pita and Sabra hummus
• Charcuterie board fixings

Picnic sandwich ideas

• Caprese
• Chickpea salad
• Tomato, basil and artichoke
• Chicken salad
• Club (vegetarian and traditional)
• Tuna salad
• Heirloom tomato
• Egg salad

Picnic side dish ideas

• Pasta salad
• Three-bean salad
• Potato salad
• Orzo salad
• Tomato couscous salad
• Traditional vegetable salads with leafy greens
• Coleslaw

Picnic dessert ideas

• Freshly cut fruit
• Brownies
• Chips Ahoy! cookies
• Oreos
• Chocolate zucchini bread
• Lemon bars
• Peach or blueberry crumb bars
• Mini s’mores

Best picnic snacks to buy

You don’t need to make your full spread from scratch. Here are some of the best picnic snacks to buy so you can be sure everyone has enough to eat. (Pro tip: Many of these also double as great road trip snacks the next time you’re headed out of town!)

• Bare real fruit and coconut snacks
• Pop Works popcorn
• Brownie Brittle
• Welch’s fruit snacks
• Chex Mix or Gardetto’s
• Larabar and Nature Valley bars
• Smucker’s Uncrustables
• Lunchables

When it comes to what to pack for a picnic, it’s a good idea to have at least a few snacks like these in your basket.

Best picnic drinks

There are picnic drinks and then there are picnic drinks. If you’re packing a bottle opener, you probably have an idea of what kinds of picnic drinks to pack, so we want to give you a list of what else to include at your family-friendly picnic.

• Peet’s iced coffee
• Culture Pop soda
• Bubbly sparkling water
• Ocean Spray juices
• Vita Coco
• Pure Leaf iced tea
• Simply Lemonade
• Stubborn Soda

Check the Fetch App for offers on picnic supplies

Offers are the secret to racking up those points, so open up your Fetch app, check what offers are available on picnic supplies, food and snacks, and start making your shopping list. Don’t forget to look for Boosted brands to earn even more points.

Now that you know what to take on a picnic, remember not to do it alone. Tell a friend to bring plates or drinks, and if it’s more than just a few people, make a potluck out of it.