Travel and Leisure: The 15 Best Sarongs for Your Next Tropical Vacation

 Shop the featured Painted Paisley Sarong and use code VACA for 25% off!  

These sarongs will keep you looking and feeling fabulous on your next trip.

You might be familiar with sarongs as stylish swimsuit cover-ups, but they actually offer supreme versatility for travelers and have a long, rich cultural history. As early as the 15th century in Southeast Asia, notably Indonesia, both men and women would wrap these rectangular pieces of fabric around their bodies in a skirt-like fashion. In some countries like Tahiti and Fiji, the garment is made from larger pieces of fabric and is known as a pareo, which can be fashioned as a skirt, shawl, or even a dress.

Fashion brands in the West tend to use “sarong” and “pareo” synonymously, especially in terms of swimsuit cover-ups. In this article, we will do the same when referring to this type of garment, which can take on a number of different styles and uses, depending on the size of the fabric and how you prefer to drape, twist, tie, and fashion it.

Sarongs are easy to wear and even easier to pack. Here are 15 of our favorites, with versatile uses ranging from wearing as a skirt or dress to using as a picnic blanket, travel blanket, or shawl in a pinch.

 Shop the featured Painted Paisley Sarong and use code VACA for 25% off!  

"Sara Joy's patterned fabrics are so gorgeous, they're worthy of being hung on a wall." 

 Shop the featured Painted Paisley Sarong and use code VACA for 25% off!