A good bikini, cared for correctly, should last two or three summers. Most don't make it through one because the care gets skipped at the wrong moments.
Rinse in cold water after every use. Salt, sunscreen, and chlorine all break down elastane, and the damage is cumulative. The first few sessions feel fine and the suit starts to stretch out two months later. Rinsing takes twenty seconds.
Hand wash instead of machine wash. Even a gentle cycle has enough agitation and spin to deform the fabric. A little gentle detergent, lukewarm water, your hands. Rinse until the water runs clear.
Dry flat, in the shade. Wringing breaks the elastic fibers. Laying it flat on a towel is better than hanging, since hanging pulls the weight of the wet fabric through the straps. Direct sun on a wet suit fades color faster than almost anything else.
Two things damage bikinis faster than people expect: sitting on rough surfaces while wearing the suit (pool ledges, stone tiles, wooden decks) and applying sunscreen directly onto the fabric before it absorbs into your skin. Both degrade the material in ways that don't show up right away.
Chlorine accumulates regardless of how carefully you wash. If you swim in a pool several days a week, a separate pool suit makes sense. The beach suit stays for the beach and lasts longer.
Melancia fabric is 82% polyamide, 18% elastane, made for saltwater and sun. The routine still applies.
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