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Sit in the sun, smell the salt air, and—you guessed it—crack open an icy cold one.

I've been thinking about where to spend my summer vacation. Knowing I’m an introvert, my friend suggested London, the most solo-travel-friendly tourist-y city, full of “civilized” Britons who are so polite they’re just plain rude, where I’ll tire myself for a week of walking, metro, and phone screen time. Or, I could just bring some twist into an old flame, i.e., a few days at a beach nearest to me. The plan includes finding the coconut tree that casts the largest shadow, then settling down there with a beach towel, a rocking chair, some ice-cold drinks, and an unruffled mindset. The twist being a beach cooler, which keeps the ice-cold drinks ice-cold, and by extension, my beach time flawless.

I’d go as far as to say, the beach cooler should be inducted alongside sunscreen, sunglasses, and swim trunk as canon to the experience. It promises a well-insulted chill on whatever icy beverage you bring for extended periods of time. Water, beer, seltzer, even ice cream, yogurt—dare we assume that they’ll taste better and curb the heat more when you gulp them down cold, instead of parched?

The following 11 handsome beach coolers all deliver on that promise, in styles ranging from the classic to wheeled to ultra-portable carry. Some keep it cool for hours, some do it for days, and some even permanently. So take a look at these 11 best beach coolers before you're on the shore, all hot and bothered with nothing cold to drink.

Let's start with something as stylish as it is functional. Cans and bottles will carry easier on your back, and IceMule makes one of the best cooler backpacks, keeping nine cans plus ice cold for up to 48 hours. It'll free up your hands to carry all the other beach day crap. And the colors? They scream summer.

Capacity: Up to 9 cans or 3 bottles Cold insulation: Up to 48 hours

It doesn't get much colder, tougher, or stylistically cooler than a Yeti, that's why you'll see quite a few Yetis down the list. This thick-walled Tundra 35 is as good as a hard-shell cooler can be, holding ice plus 20 cans. It's not exactly mobility-friendly—you kinda have to transport it via a vehicle most of the time—but one person can carry it as long as they haven't forsaken arm day.

Capacity: Up to 20 cans Cold insulation: N/A (user reviews indicate up to 36 hours)

Wheeled coolers are a godsend, and a classic. The wheels lighten the load significantly, especially when you have to traverse that interminable stretch of parking lot concrete and rocky pre-beach before you can find your spot. And Yeti's Tundra Haul wheeled cooler comes with better toughness and insulation to help you log that extra mileage.

Capacity: Up to 45 cans Cold insulation: N/A (user reviews indicate up to 8 days)

This is the proto-cooler, practically. Your dad probably still has the basic Coleman he bought back in '83, and that's as solid an endorsement as any for a similar cooler in 2022. Then again, this new burly "Xtreme" wheeled Coleman can weather a storm. That, or five days without a fresh ice refill—for all 95 cans involved.

Capacity: Up to 95 cans Cold insulation: Up to 5 days

Hydro Flask's soft-sided tote will only keep food and drinks cold for four hours, but it'll double as your regular-use tote for all those child-chaperoning, grocery-carrying moments in between beach days. 'Course, you can always add more ice for more cold time.

Capacity: 35L Cold insulation: Up to 4 hours

Rugged, sleek, and so many pockets—just like a pro bodybuilder's gym bag. It leverages an airtight build to keep the inside cool for hours, but the cooler part is that the insulated layer is actually removable.

Capacity: 25L Cold insulation: N/A (hours)

RTIC's design is meant to be transported, with a lunch-box handle and straps along the lid to hold down the stuff that might otherwise hog up your other hand—a water bottle, a beach towel, the like. It'll make the process feel less like lugging and more like teleporting. Coupled that with a capacity to hold anywhere from eight to 40 cans for up to a day, it's a real clutch.

Capacity: Up to eight or 40 cans Cold insulation: Up to 24 hours

Igloo does unexpected cold-beverage-container collabs, and loads of them: National Parks, NASCAR, Marvel, Star Wars, Toy Story, The Simpsons, even with NFL teams—take a deep dive, there's got to be one your heart desires. They're often small, barely going above 16 quarts in capacity, but they sure know how to keep it cool.

Capacity: Varies, up to 36 cans Cold insulation: N/A (user reviews indicate up to 12 hours)

Pelican's heavier-duty, duffle-style cooler was made with fishermen in mind—fishermen who might like to bring along a day's worth of beer and wine. Hooking marlin off the Florida coast does technically count as a beach day.

Capacity: Up to 12 cans or 4 bottles Cold insulation: Up to 12 hours

When all else fails, bring a fridge! Or the next best thing: A fridge cooler that runs on car outlet as well as solar power to bring temperatures to an absolute zero. It's a splurge, but saves you loads of ice, melting, and cleanup. Plus, it does make ice, in case you want to chill your sips even more when you imbibe.

Capacity: Up to 83 cans or up to 113 cans Cold insulation: Indefinite, so long it's powered on

This one is actually two things: a strapping waterproof cooler bag and a stainless steel bottle opener. Because what good does a cooler stacked with cans that are ready to pop do if you can't manage to crack open a cold one?

Capacity: Up to 24 cans or 8 bottles Cold insulation: Up to 14 hours