12 Water Toys And Pools For Cooling Down The Kids When It Gets Hot

Give the kiddos the best pool day ever with these water blasters, gator floats and other cool toys.

It’s a hot summer day and the last thing you want to do is rewatch Frozen indoors for the millionth time. Instead of a movie day, you and the fam can take the fun outdoors with water toys. From gator floats to water blasters, here are some pool essentials that’ll keep them entertained for hours on end.

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1
A gator pool float
Hop on this squishy reptile and glide across the pool with your little ones.

Promising review: "We've been using 'Allie' regularly for the past two years. She's gone with us to many lakes and now lives in the backyard pool this summer. She's been flipped, jumped on and manhandled like crazy and yet she's still in one piece. We're careful about how she's treated on land, but in the water is fair game. She's big enough that both kids (ages 9 and 11) can fit on her together, or I can kick them off and lay on her myself! But packs up really small, so she's easy to bring along to the lake." — Amazon Customer

Get it from Amazon for $19.98.
2
A splash pond water table
Buckets, spinning wheels and duck and froggy squirt toys will show your tiny tots how to "make it rain" on hot days.

Promising review: "This water table has the most activities and parts of ALL the water tables we looked at. It does 'rain' from the top, pours down into spouts and moving parts, includes a toy frog flipper, a water wheel, cups and buckets for pouring. I don't think there is a table my child would enjoy more. I even enjoy playing with the chain reaction and flinging the included toys. I definitely recommend this for any child who enjoys pouring and splashing and water in general, lots of fun!" — Miller Family

Get it from Amazon for $55.99.
3
A "Max Liquidator" water blaster
Your kiddos will adore these water blasters that can get anyone soaked within 30 feet and be used at a beach or pool.

Promising review: "I got these for my kids to play in the pool with and they most certainly didn't disappoint. The maximum range on these (around 30 feet with a little elbow grease put into it) surpasses any Super-Soaker that I've ever tried, and they're extremely easy to use. Granted they have no water reservoir, so you have to use them in the pool, lake, ocean etc. for them to be effective, but aside from that, they are a fantastic water toy. Plus, they're brightly colored and float on the surface of the water so almost impossible to lose." — Amazon Customer

Get a 6-pack from Amazon for $17.31.
4
A "Louie Lobster" pool toy
Teach your little one how to "catch and release" with this crustacean cutie that'll help boost their dexterity.

Promising review: "My 3-year-old is obsessed with this toy. LOL worth every penny!" — Target Reviewer

Get it from Target for $9.59.
5
An outdoor water sprinkler
Bring the water park to your home with this twirling turtle that'll easily fit on a hose and spray water up to eight feet.

Promising review: "Pretty powerful little sprinkler! I wasn’t expecting it to reach as far as it does (you could set this up for A LOT of kids!) and actually needed to turn the hose down so my three year old nephew would approach it. Once we had the water pressure set he had a blast.I love that the water flings around from the colored tubes and the center of the turtle shell. It’s super easy to attach to the hose and is absolutely perfect for a blazing hot day. And at this price point, I’ll keep it in mind for future gifts." — Lisa

Get it from Amazon for $12.69.
6
A multi-functional wading pool
This three-in-one sprinkler, splash pad and wading pool will teach toddlers about animals and the alphabet while they cool off.

Promising review: "My kids have found a new favorite way to cool down on these hot summer days. The setup was very easy, all I had to do was take it out of the box, unfold it, connect the hose and the fun began, there is no inflation needed, the water fills up the rim around the splash pad and then the water comes out like a sprinkler around the rim through the holes. This is small enough and easy to store, yet big enough for my 2- and 4-year-olds to play in and have enough fun for hours all while cooling down from the heat. I am hoping this splash pad will be durable enough to last through the summer." — Danielle

Get it from Amazon for $17.97.
7
A splashy T-ball set
When it's really hot out, you can play baseball with the kids and stay cool at the same time. It has three modes: T-Ball, pop-up launcher and splash T-ball!

Promising review: "This is my 5-year-old's favorite toy! He loves it with and without the water. Saves me from having to pitch all the time. :)" — CRM

Get it from Target for $30.99.
8
A Zuru X-Shot fast-fill water blaster
The entire fam will have a blast with this water toy that's easy to fill up and has a spray distance of 30+ feet.

Promising review: "I don’t know why no one else thought of this design sooner, brilliant. Fills quick easy to use for both my 2-year-old and 6-year-old." — Target reviewer

Get it from Target for $9.99.
9
A inflatable wave rider
Jet Skis are not happening yet, but this inflatable pool toy comes pretty close with a comfy seat and grip handle for a fun ride.

Promising review: "My kids love this compared to standard pool floaties like tubes or mats. The toy looks like a real Jet Ski, has two inflatable compartments, a handle on the front and a little flag on the rear. Fun pool toy, I highly recommend it!" — TJ

Get it from Amazon for $17.30.
10
A pack of water balloons
They're self-sealing, so you don't have to worry about filling them up and trying to tie them when it's time for a water balloon fight outdoors.

Promising review: "I work with kids. This is a time-saver of the highest order. Having to frustratingly stretch each individual balloon over a faucet, fill and tie used to take an exceedingly long time—over thirty minutes for maybe twenty to forty balloons that would get used up within ten minutes, if that. When this product first appeared I immediately became a huge fan." — Amazon Customer

Get a 12-pack from Amazon for $29.99.
11
A mini waterpark table
It has a crank-turn Ferris wheel that'll scoop and drop balls and it squirts water, making it the ultimate summer toy.

Promising review: "In less than 15 minutes everything was opened, assembled and the water was in place! My 1-year-old and 2-year-old both love this water table. They were able to play with it for about 20 minutes. And that's good for my kids! It's pretty sturdy too, considering my 30+ pound two-year-old was able to get in it without breaking anything or tumbling out of it. It was so easy to set up, they were so excited to play with it and the different activity stations are ideal for most any toddler development. Great for social (cooperative play), physical (fine motor skills), intellectual (cause and effect)-just to name a few!" — Amazon customer

Get it from Amazon for $44.99.
12
And a whale-shaped beach tent
Your little one can safely relax in the shade in this comfy and squishy whale-shaped shelter.

Promising review: "We loved this baby pool/tent. It was much bigger than expected so that was a plus. My baby loved it. We use it in the yard for a swimming pool. We use it in the pool to float on. We also used it for him to nap in. It was perfect." — W.w.

Get it from Amazon for $24.99.

Some reviews have been edited for length and/or clarity.

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