13 stylish and functional picnic bags to buy now as the warmer weather creeps in

Thinking of the best picnic baskets conjures images of luxury Fortnum and Mason picnic hampers and alfresco meals at Ascot. For the majority of us, the reality of such an affair is much more akin to a crowd of friends huddled around a tiny picnic blanket, nibbling on sausage rolls and supermarket rosé. After almost two years of outdoor socialising, however, we’ve all upped our outdoor entertaining game, and long gone are the subpar picnics of years gone by.

In the absence of dinner parties and meeting friends at the pub, a lazy picnic in the park felt like a pretty great substitute. As well as ensuring you have a bottle of vino from your wine subscription, more snacks than you could realistically eat, and the perfect people-watching spot, one thing we’ve taken away from our restriction-laden summers: it’s absolutely worth investing in some outdoor dining basics to make your meal on the ground more enjoyable. 

A stylish picnic blanket is a must, and there are some great picnic accessories to elevate your day out. But we can’t recommend investing in an actual picnic basket enough. Because there’s nothing worse than your Sainsbury packet spilling all your contents mid-way to the park when you’ve tried to add just one more bottle of fizz to your load.

Besides being a much more practical way to transport your hummus and crisps to your picnic spot, picnic baskets are often insulated – meaning your drinks stay chilled and your snacks fresh. And fret not, there’s not a tacky print to be seen in our edit of the best picnic bags – think understated neutrals, pastels and natural willow wicker that will look perfectly at home on your grid (because you know we’ll all be posting our #picnicviews).

Our round-up includes inexpensive picnic bags perfect for just the essentials (yes, chocolate cake is essential) like this Selfridges cooler bag as well as more structured wicker numbers like this bag from Etsy; it’s pricey, but it’ll last for summers to come and it’s complete with a cheese board – what more could you want? And if you want to get fancy for your next park picnic, we’ve also included a Fortnum’s hamper that includes a picnic blanket. Pass the scotch eggs.

Want more outdoor inspo? Head over to our roundup of the best garden furniture (including sun loungers, garden parasols and inflatable pools), here for the best patio heaters and in this direction for fire pits for a Love Island-style garden makeover. Don’t forget al fresco dining is soon to be big, so invest in the best pizza ovens and impress guests with your culinary skills.

Scroll down for the best picnic baskets that you’ll use from now until the end of summer.