Grocery Store Tourism: Explore Local Culture, Take Home Treats, and Save Money

A pack of sweet sesame balls, a bag of crispy plantain chips, a tin of tender Greek olives. These are delicious snacks for travelers, but they’re more than that. These snacks are unforgettable souvenirs and an experience of local culture. And they’re not found at tourist traps — they’re available at everyday grocery stores.

Grocery store tourism, as it’s called, has recently gained popularity through the efforts of TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram influencers. While some travel trends on social media are worth avoiding, this one is worth embracing. Because beyond the monuments, museums, beaches, and parks that garner most of the attention, grocery stores offer a unique cultural experience that tourist spots simply can’t provide.

Read on to learn more about what grocery store tourism is and how you can enjoy supermarket visits on your next adventure.

What Is Grocery Store Tourism?

You may be asking yourself: What is grocery store tourism?

Grocery store tourism is the exploration of a culture through its stores and supermarkets. It sounds ordinary, and that’s the point. Strolling through a grocery store offers an unfiltered insight into local life, providing:

• Cultural immersion: Shopping at a local market offers an authentic glimpse into the spirit of the community and how folks go about their daily life. You’ll see preferences, habits, indulgences, and more.
• Foodie travel: Buy and try local delicacies and regional specialties. You may find a sauce that you’ll use for a lifetime!
• Souvenir hunting: Bring home snacks and drinks that aren’t available in your home country, or even items such as a tea set or hot pot cooker.
• Budget-friendly experience: What you spend is up to you, versus having to pay ticket prices at tourist spots. You can also make local meals at your lodging instead of spending tons of money at restaurants.
• Greater connection to the community: You’ll shop alongside locals, see what they make for dinner on a typical weekday, and feel a part of the environment.

Grocery store tourism may not offer incredible views or feature iconic artifacts, but the activity offers a window into local culture and cuisine that popular tourist spots can’t. It’s an underrated, deeply satisfying experience that every traveler should put on their itinerary.

Below, we’ll explore more about grocery store tourism, from its beginnings to modern ways you can engage in it. We hope that you’ll take time to explore local stores and supermarkets the next time you travel.

Is Grocery Store Tourism a New Thing?

Kind of.

Travel sites like Food and Wine and TimeOut have all reported on the modern grocery store tourism trend. Across TikTok and YouTube, you’ll find countless videos of content creators opening up and trying snacks, food, and drinks from locations around the world.

Indeed, social media and mainstream media outlets have ignited interest in grocery store tourism. However, this travel activity has been around for as long as people have traveled, since the beginning of human agriculture and civilization.

Early “grocery store tourism” arose out of need as ancient civilizations traded food and materials. Even in prehistoric times, as early as 11,000 BCE, people were trading farm products and animals. From as early as 4000 BCE, the Mesopotamians traded their surpluses of grain and fish for resources such as metals and wood. For 1,500+ years, the Silk Roads have facilitated the movement of all sorts of products, including food, spices, tea, and more.

In short, people have been traveling to buy food from foreign markets for tens of thousands of years.

Now, modern grocery store tourism is obviously much different. Rather than need, travelers are visiting grocery stores out of curiosity and a desire to learn more about another culture. As an article on the topic in Skift states, the grocery store has become a “cultural theater” that offers “a mix of the familiar and the surprising” and a “delightful moment of cultural connection”.

Grocery Store Tourism: Finding Joy and Lessons in the Everyday

Whether it’s grabbing a seafood snack from 7-Eleven in Hong Kong, coffee from MegaSuper in Costa Rica, or Bret’s chips from Carrefour in France, a grocery store trip turns a seemingly everyday errand into a memorable experience.

A grocery store trip while traveling brings more than the joy of new foods and flavors. The experience provides lessons about the place you’re visiting, such as:

• Design preferences: When I made my first supermarket stop while living in Chengdu, China, I found the design of the Hainan Yeshu Coconut Milk fascinating. And, yes, I bought a pack, and they were refreshingly delicious!
• Economic realities: You can compare price differences to your home country, compare affordability between fresh and processed foods, and understand why certain items are cheaper or more expensive. Even things such as the checkout lines and methods of payment can tell you a lot about a place.
• Cultural priorities: See which types of foods are spotlighted in the store. For example, in Italy, you may find many locals prefer going to specific shops for pasta, fruits and veggies, meats, and more. Notice what times the stores are open, as it can tell a lot about a place. For instance, many local shops in Spain close for afternoon siesta, but stay open late.
• Daily habits: Are they people buying in bulk or just items for that day? Do folks shop at a leisurely or fast pace? Are they shopping as a family? At the grocery store, people are going about their everyday lives. Nobody is in performance mode, and that fact makes a grocery store trip an authentic travel experience.

So, while a trip to a major tourist spot, such as Zócalo in the heart of Mexico City, can teach you a lot about a country’s history, you won’t get a picture of what daily life is like. Going beyond such attractions and shopping at a local market — one that caters to locals and not tourists — will enable you to better experience how people there shop, eat, and live.

How to Do Grocery Store Tourism Right

Grocery store tourism doesn’t require much preparation, but the right mindset can make the experience more memorable:

• Have a budget: You want to keep your travel budget intact. Have a general budget and stick to it.
• Do NOT make a shopping list: A grocery store trip while traveling abroad is about surprises and spontaneity. Ditch the shopping list and follow what catches your eye.
• Buy a souvenir or two: Grocery stores are great places to find local snacks, foods, and products that would make great souvenirs or gifts for friends and family.
• Prep for a meal at your accommodation: If you like cooking, use the grocery store trip as a way to gather ingredients to make a local dish at your vacation rental.
• Visit more than one store: Try supermarket chains, local markets, specialty shops, and more. You never know where you’ll find your next favorite snack or drink.

Most importantly, be present during your stroll through the supermarket. Local culture is happening right in front of you. Immerse yourself in the action.

Enjoying the Grocery Store & Other Authentic Experiences While Traveling

We hope this article has inspired you to make a supermarket stop during your next trip abroad. No matter where you’re traveling, grocery store tourism is available. From the bustling fish markets of Cape Town to the busy aisles of Ito-Yokado in Japan, you’ll find one-of-a-kind food shopping experiences wherever you roam.

To learn about even more authentic travel experiences, read our other guides about unique ways to travel and unique things to do:

• How to Find the Real Spots Only Locals Know
• The Art of Aimless Travel
• Best Destinations for Night Fun
• Off-the-Beaten-Path Places to Travel
• Foodie Travel

Do you have any thoughts or stories about grocery store tourism? Leave a comment on Facebook and start the conversation.

About the Author

Nick Callos has always had a passion for reading, writing, and discovering the new and unknown. Originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, Nick holds a Bachelor’s Degree in English from Boston College. He currently splits his time between his hometown, Chengdu, China, and the open road. A full-time travel writer, Nick hopes his work can inspire others to explore the world more deeply and enjoy the digital nomad lifestyle.

Featured image by Vije Vijendranath on Unsplash