Imagine you have all the free time you wish to think about food and get groceries and plan out your meals. Sounds like a dream, right? Well, real life can often look very different and sometimes we are just happy we can rest and eat anything we have after a busy day at work or with kids. But how about when we travel? When you know you will sleep in a new unknown city or a village and you are unfamiliar with your surroundings and life can throw various circumstances at you which can make it challenging to stick to your optimal eating plans. Whether you decided to have a short getaway, longer holiday or just visiting a new place for a conference in a different city and staying in a hotel, don’t worry, I have a few practical tips for you how to stick to what you know makes you feel your best and have your favorite whole foods at your disposal even in tough circumstances where it would be easy to eat whatever comes your way.
Tip nr. 1: Pack your food as you pack your clothes
When travelling by car for a little getaway, think of your top favorite whole foods that you can bring with you in a cooling bag meant to store food (for example a camping food bag). This applies to situations where you are staying in a hotel as well. Treat your food just like you treat your clothes. Take with you anything you need in case you don’t have many options in your immediate surroundings. For my last trip I took a full camping food bag with me even to the hotel room itself and it was full of bananas, apples, home-made hummus, smoothie from AH, nuts, rice crackers and also my favorite BOL protein shake, gluten free bread and some more vegetable spreads. This way even if you are out exploring the world, you know you will never be hungry because you are well-prepared! You can take some food with you when exploring the city/ nature and some you can just leave in your hotel and when you get back from a stroll you have your food waiting for you!
In case you are just going for a shorter 1-2 day stay, always take a smaller lunch bag with you and apply the same as described above just in a more appropriate quantity. Practical healthy foods to take with you other than fruits: NAKD bars, BOL protein shake, new AH fruit bars (like NAKD but a bit cheaper), zonnatura spreads, corn/rice crackers.
Tip nr. 2.: Find a hotel which provides whole foods
Besides having your food in your car/ lunch bag, before travelling make an approximate plan for the places around your destination and ask for vegan whole food options at the hotel you are staying. This especially applies if you go away for a small winter holidays where you have an all inclusive package or at least there is breakfast and dinner provided. Nowadays, it is noticeable when you travel many hotels (3* and above) do their best with providing a great variety of foods. Germany especially takes their menus very seriously and the food is of high quality. So do your research before making a decision about which hotel you will stay at. Treat it at something not negotiable. Do not compromise with regard to access to good quality food. There are many hotels that meet whole food requirements nowadays.
Tip nr. 3.: Stay at an Airbnb and explore local markets & cuisine
If your hotel options are limited, you can always choose to stay at an Airbnb with a small kitchen which offers space to prepare your own meals and have full control of what you eat. You can shop also beforehand but also search for food at your new destination. Maybe you enjoy organic farmer’s markets and love to be creative with food and explore the local fruits and create new dishes. The beauty of this is that you get to explore local culture and nature, maybe you find new organic stores and the whole holiday gets to a whole new level. I do personally love to stay at Airbnbs, exploring local culture, including new local fruits and veggies and the life as it is there. And even here applies, always pack enough food with you so you do not depend on expensive fancy restaurants. Sometimes tiniest local stores offer the most – pleasant small discussions and local foods and products. You get the taste of the culture (food and people) and you also support small businesses, which very much needed in today’s modern economy with multinationals in the lead.
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