Hot tubs are a great place for family time, and most kids love bringing their toys along. Just like in the bath and the pool, there are some toys that are great for the hot tub and some that are … not so great.

To make the best of your spa time with your family, we have some suggestions for the best toys to bring to the spa. Remember that for their safety, children should be tall enough to stand in the spa with their heads completely out of the water. It’s also important to always supervise children in spas and be sure to limit their soak time to around 10-15 minutes.

Rubber floating toys

We explain the rules to a fun hot tub game, Ducky Dodge, here, and we’re sure you can come up with plenty of other fun games to play using ping pong balls, or any floating toy. When you make up games that the whole family can take part in, you’ll make family time in your hot tub even more special.

Floating tabletop games

Your local pool store will have a lot of fun water game options. We really like floating mini-tabletop tennis. These games come with a small-sized floating tennis table that’s perfectly sized for your spa. Players can sit on opposite ends of the spa and battle it out.

We also have fun with floating checkers boards, game tables, and waterproof playing cards so you can bring all your favorite games outside to the spa.

Squirt Toys

These toys make great giveaways at hot tub parties or some quick fun entertainment during family night. There’s everything from water guns to plastic toys that squirt water out of their mouths. We’d say these are just for kids, but you’d be surprised how many grown-ups like to surprise each other with a splash of water!

Floating colorful lights

Your hot tub from AquaRest Spas comes with a backlit waterfall that lets you set your light color settings to illuminate your soak into the night. Add more fun to your nighttime soak with floating, colorful hot tub lights. Pool stores carry a variety of fun floating light choices. You can find small ones shaped like flowers or animals, light-up water toys, and there are even solar-powered options that can charge during the day and light up the night.

Waterproof speakers

Bring the music out to the spa for even more fun games. A waterproof speaker can sit right on the edge of your spa without any worry about it getting wet. Try a game like hot tub musical chairs, where everyone circles around inside the spa until the music stops. When it stops, everyone has to find a seat with jets. The person (or people) who couldn’t find a seat with jets loses. This is a simple and fun game that’s great for kids and parents.

Keep it safe.

When kids are getting in the hot tub, there are some extra considerations for their safety that we covered in our post on Hot Tub Safety. There are some toys we don’t recommend kids bring into the hot tub — for their health and for the performance of your hot tub plumbing and parts.

Mommy Goes Green has recommendations on BPA, PVC, and phthalate-free water toy brands that you can easily find at your local big box stores.

Another consideration when choosing hot tub toys is whether it has parts small enough to get caught in the plumbing. Your spa’s filtration system is designed to clean foreign contaminants out of the water, and it can’t tell the difference between a leaf and Barbie’s shoe. Small toy parts could damage your spa’s inner-workings if they get sucked into the filtration system. The same will go for any toys with fluff, fur, hair, or any textured parts that could come apart in the water.

With these tips, you can bring even more fun to your outdoor entertainment area. Your whole family enjoys using the hot tub, and with the right toys, your kids will love it even more!