Saving Money by Grocery Shopping on Vacations

Buying groceries on a trip instead of always eating out can save you hundreds of dollars.

Something I have come to do while on vacation is get food from the grocery store instead of eating out every meal. One because my parents would do it on trips, and two because Vince and I are not as into eating out as we are into the experiences we share on our trips. I want to share my insights about the benefits of doing this and what to do with the leftovers at the end of the week. :)

One major reason why I like to buy food from the grocery store during trips is because of the money it saves. On each of my trips in 2019, we picked up food at the beginning of the week. I researched, and a vacationer spends on average $42 a day on eating out. Doing the math for two people on a five-day vacation that is $420. Looking back, Vince and I spent about $110 for five days on groceries and ate out a few times for a total of $230 spent on food on our trip. This is $200 saved on groceries, and we even ate out a few times! Don't get me wrong, I love trying food from the places I am visiting, but not for every meal. I think this is the best of both worlds, because you still save a lot of money, but also get to try the local food.

Another big reason I like getting groceries is because I can eat healthier. I don't know about you, but I really dislike the feeling of coming home from a weeklong vacation and being so sick of greasy food from eating out. It just feels like I was unhealthy, and I think buying food for the week on trips helps this feeling.

Tips to buying groceries on trips:

1. Find a hotel that has a full kitchen where you can use a stove/microwave and also has a big fridge to store all of your food. (I really like Hyatt Houses because they have full kitchens as seen in this picture)

2. Try to plan out your meals each day before you go shopping so you don’t over buy. (I usually get lettuce for a small salad and bread/lunch meat and eat that for my lunch every day)

3. If you plan on being out and about all day or traveling on the road, pick up a throw-away cooler from the grocery store while you are getting the rest of your goodies. (I fill up my cooler with ice from the hotel every morning)

So, to me this is the best part of grocery shopping on my trips… At the end of our first trip last year, Vince and I had wayyyy too much leftover food, and we said, "what do we do with all this?" and instantly, I thought what about all the homeless people we saw throughout the week? We bought plastic zip-lock bags and made little packages of food for the homeless. Seeing the reactions on people’s faces is one of my favorite memories of all time. We did it on the next two trips too. I highly, highly recommend trying it out on your next trip.

“We bought plastic Zip-lock bags and made little packages of food for the homeless. Seeing the reactions on people's faces is one of my favorite memories of all time.”

What is your experience with grocery shopping for a vacation? Reach out if you have any tips or tricks on buying groceries on vacation!