'Supermarket Safari': Why Travellers Are Ditching Restaurants for Grocery Aisles

News outlets have actually flagged it as one of the defining travel trends of 2026, driven by grocery-store-hopping travellers who want a real taste of local life rather than a menu translated for tourists.

We wanted to know exactly what that curiosity is worth. So our team at Holidu compared the price of a mid-range restaurant meal for two against a supermarket-assembled picnic spread in 117 cities across the world.

The gap is bigger than most people would guess. In some cities, dining out costs over six times more than shopping like a local. In one, the trend actually backfires.

Grocery Store Travel: Why the Supermarket Is the Best Bit of the Trip

Here’s the thing about a supermarket safari: it was never really about the money. It’s a treasure hunt.

Every country hides its personality on the supermarket shelf – you just have to know where to look.

Chocolate with a flavour you’ve never heard of. A whole aisle of something that doesn’t exist back home. A fruit so strange-looking you have to buy it to see what it tastes like.
That’s the real appeal of the “safari” part of a supermarket safari: it’s not shopping, it’s discovery, and the prize is finding out what a place actually eats when nobody’s watching.

And it’s caught on in a big way.

“Grocery store travel” is its own corner of the internet now, with well over 50 million posts on TikTok showing travellers wheeling trolleys around foreign aisles like they’ve stumbled into a museum exhibit.

Time Out’s Laura Hall put it best when she described the appeal as “a peek inside someone’s cupboards, a viewing of their habits” – the kind of cultural experience you just don’t get from a guided tour.

And unlike most things on a travel itinerary, it costs nothing to try. There’s no entry fee, no queue, no timed ticket to book weeks in advance. You just walk in, basket in hand, and see what’s on the shelves. The worst that can happen is you buy a snack you don’t like – and honestly, that’s part of the fun too.

None of it is designed for tourists – and that’s exactly why it’s interesting.

For UK travellers, this is also where the “safari” and the “savings” start to overlap. While you browse the shelves out of curiosity, you’re already halfway to building the picnic that saves you £46.17 on average against a restaurant meal.

Which Country’s Snacks Are People Most Curious About?

If grocery store travel is a treasure hunt, some countries have a bigger reputation as treasure chests than others.

Euronews this year reported that 89% of Millennials and Gen Z surveyed said it’s important to enjoy local snacks while abroad.

So, we found out which nations’ supermarket shelves people are most curious about before they’ve even booked a flight, looking at global Google search volume for “[country] snacks”.

Japan wins by a landslide. “Japanese snacks” is searched 35,000 times a month worldwide – nearly 60% more than the nearest competitor – and it’s not hard to see why.

Between kawaii packaging, wildly specific seasonal flavours and a snack aisle that changes with the calendar, Japan has built an entire subculture around the humble convenience store haul.

The 10 countries people are most curious about, by global search volume:

1. 1. Japan – 35,000 searches/month. Think matcha Kit Kats, melon-flavoured Fanta and an ever-rotating cast of limited editions that make every konbini trip feel like a lucky dip.
   2. USA – 23,000 searches/month. From giant cereal aisles to region-specific chip flavours, American snacks are a genre unto themselves – and one the rest of the world can’t stop searching for.
   3. Mexico – 22,000 searches/month. Chilli-dusted mango, tamarind candy and a spice game that puts most other countries’ snack aisles to shame.
   4. China – 12,000 searches/month. A snack culture vast enough that most travellers only ever scratch the surface, from spicy rabbit heads to endlessly inventive instant noodle flavours.
   5. Australia – 8,400 searches/month. Home turf of the Tim Tam, plus Vegemite, Golden Gaytimes and enough chocolate biscuit variations to fill a return suitcase.
   6. Canada – 7,800 searches/month. Ketchup crisps, maple everything, and a soft spot for a candy bar the rest of the world has never heard of.
   7. United Kingdom – 7,700 searches/month. Proof that Brits abroad get just as curious about home comforts as everyone else does about visiting them.
   8. Italy – 5,800 searches/month. Biscotti, Baci chocolates and an espresso-adjacent snack culture that rewards slowing down and actually reading the packaging.
   9. Germany – 4,400 searches/month. Gummy bears are just the beginning – Germany’s supermarket confectionery aisle is a genuinely underrated stop on any Central European trip.
   10. Spain – 3,900 searches/month. Jamón crisps, turrón and a supermarket wine selection that alone justifies the detour.

   It’s a reminder that grocery store travel is driven by curiosity as much as anything else – people want to know what’s on the shelf before they’ve even booked the flight.

   And here’s the good news: choosing a loaf of bread, a wedge of local cheese and a bottle of wine from the nearest supermarket isn’t just a great way to experience local culture. It’s also one of the smartest ways to save money on your trip.

   Here’s exactly how much, city by city.

The 5 Cities Where a Supermarket Safari Saves You the Most

#1 Zurich, Switzerland

Zurich tops the list by a wide margin. A mid-range meal for two here costs £129.66 once you add wine and water, against just £27.62 for a picnic including bread, cheese, fruit, tomatoes and a bottle of wine from a local shop. That’s a saving of £102.04 – enough to cover a second night’s accommodation in plenty of cheaper cities on this list.

Switzerland’s high restaurant prices are well known, and Zurich’s neighbour Geneva isn’t far behind in second place, with a saving of £91.60. Between them, the two Swiss cities prove that in the world’s most expensive countries, the supermarket safari isn’t a nice-to-have – it’s the only way the numbers add up.

#2 Geneva, Switzerland

Geneva’s mid-range meal for two comes in at £116.55, compared to £24.95 for the equivalent picnic. The £91.60 saving puts Geneva second globally, and confirms that Switzerland’s two biggest cities are also its most expensive for dining out – a useful thing to know before booking a table.

#3 Bruges, Belgium

Bruges is the surprise entry in the global top five. A mid-range meal for two costs £100.04, against £16.12 for a picnic – a saving of £83.93. Bruges also posts one of the highest percentage mark-ups in the study, at 520.79%, meaning restaurant prices here are over six times the picnic equivalent, closer to Dubrovnik’s extreme than to its Western European neighbours.

#4 Lucerne, Switzerland

A third Swiss city makes the top five. Lucerne’s mid-range meal for two costs £110.40, against a £26.59 picnic – a saving of £83.81. With three of the world’s five biggest savers all Swiss, the message for anyone travelling to Switzerland this year is clear: book self-catering accommodation with a kitchen, and stock up at Migros or Coop rather than booking a table.

#5 New York, United States

The only non-European city in the global top five, New York’s mid-range meal for two costs £114.07, compared to £30.66 for a picnic – a saving of £83.42. It’s a reminder that the supermarket safari isn’t just a European habit. Anyone staying in a self-catering rental near Central Park could put that £83 towards a Broadway ticket instead.

UK Highlights: Where the Supermarket Safari Pays Off at Home

You don’t need a flight to make the most of this trend. 

All six UK cities in the study – Liverpool, Edinburgh, Manchester, Bath, London and York – deliver savings of over £56 per meal when you shop like a local instead of booking a table.

1. Liverpool – save £71.57 (473.84% mark-up). A mid-range meal for two in Liverpool costs £86.68 once you factor in wine and water, against £15.11 for a picnic. That’s the biggest UK saving in the study, and one of the steepest mark-ups anywhere in Europe.
2. Edinburgh – save £70.24 (401.59% mark-up). Restaurant dining costs £87.73, against £17.49 for a picnic – Scotland’s capital ranks second among UK cities for how much you keep in your pocket by shopping local.
3. Bath – save £64.72 (372.29% mark-up). A mid-range meal for two costs £82.11 in Bath, compared to £17.39 for a picnic. Roman baths aside, it’s the Georgian city’s supermarket aisles that offer the better value.
4. London – save £67.28 (330.62% mark-up). Despite its reputation for expensive dining, London’s £87.63 mid-range meal is still only 3.3 times the £20.35 picnic cost – a smaller mark-up than every other UK city bar York.
5. Manchester – save £60.39 (379.70% mark-up). Dining out costs £76.30 against a £15.91 picnic, making Manchester the cheapest UK city overall for both options.
6. York – save £56.67 (330.08% mark-up). The smallest UK saving in the study, but still comfortably over £56 – and York has the joint-lowest mark-up percentage of any UK city, at 330.08%.

The pattern holds across every UK city we looked at: even in the most affordable destinations, a restaurant meal for two costs at least three and a half times more than the ingredients for a picnic bought a few streets away.

The World’s Cheapest Supermarket Picnic Baskets

While Zurich wins on cash saved, it’s not near the cheapest place to actually build a picnic. That title goes to Dubrovnik, where a full spread of bread, cheese, fruit, tomatoes and wine costs just £10.83 – the lowest of any of the 117 cities studied.

1. Dubrovnik, Croatia – £10.83. Croatia’s Adriatic coast combines low supermarket prices with some of the highest restaurant mark-ups in the study, making it the single best destination for a budget-conscious picnic.
2. Valencia, Spain – £11.76. Spain’s third-largest city offers a picnic basket for just under £12, alongside a still-substantial £47.15 saving on restaurant dining.
3. Chengdu, China – £12.02. The only Asian city in the world’s three cheapest picnic destinations, though Chengdu’s restaurant mark-up (22.48%) is far lower than its European counterparts.
4. Porto, Portugal – £12.25. Porto backs up its reputation as one of Europe’s best-value city break destinations, with restaurant dining still costing almost three times more than a picnic.
5. Buenos Aires, Argentina – £12.41. The only South American entry in the top five, Buenos Aires pairs a cheap picnic basket with one of the largest percentage mark-ups outside Europe, at 369.39%.

When the Trend Backfires: Chiang Mai

Every rule has an exception, and in this study, it is Chiang Mai. The northern Thai city is the only destination among the 117 studied where a supermarket picnic actually costs more than eating out.

A mid-range restaurant meal for two in Chiang Mai comes to £15.73. The picnic equivalent – bread, cheese, fruit, tomatoes and a bottle of wine – costs £20.81, a £5.07 loss for anyone who tries the trend here. The reason comes down to import tariffs on wine and cheese, two ingredients that are cheap to produce locally in much of Europe but expensive to bring into Thailand.

It’s a useful reminder that the supermarket safari isn’t a universal rule – it’s worth checking local prices before assuming a picnic will always be the cheaper option, particularly in destinations where dairy and wine aren’t produced locally.

FAQ: Supermarket Safari Holidays

What is a “supermarket safari”?

It’s a travel trend where holidaymakers explore local supermarkets as part of their trip, buying regional produce, snacks and drinks instead of – or alongside – eating out at restaurants. Editorial coverage from outlets including Euronews and the EU’s tourism platform has named it one of the standout travel trends of 2026.

What are the cheapest cities to eat out in?

Based on the smallest percentage mark-up between restaurant and supermarket prices, Hanoi, Hangzhou and Ho Chi Minh City come out cheapest for dining out relative to shopping local – restaurant meals there cost under 10% more than a picnic, against a 253.88% average across all 117 cities studied. If you’re after the cheapest holiday destinations for food overall, look at total picnic cost rather than the mark-up: Dubrovnik (£10.83), Valencia (£11.76) and Chengdu (£12.02) have the lowest supermarket basket prices in the study.

How much more expensive is it to eat out abroad than to shop like a local?

On average, 253.88% more – a mid-range restaurant meal for two costs 3.5 times what the same ingredients would cost from a local supermarket. The gap is far wider in some cities: Dubrovnik’s restaurant prices run at 537.35% above supermarket cost, while Zurich’s is 369.45%. It’s a good reminder to check both options before assuming a restaurant is the only way to eat well on a city break.

Are restaurant prices really that different from supermarket prices on holiday?

Yes – across all 117 cities in this study, restaurants were more expensive than supermarkets in every single case but one. The only exception was Chiang Mai, Thailand, where import tariffs on wine and cheese make a supermarket picnic (£20.81) more expensive than the equivalent restaurant meal (£15.73).

How can I keep food costs down on a budget trip?

The simplest way is to build at least one meal a day around supermarket shopping rather than restaurant dining – this study shows it saves £46.17 per meal on average across 117 cities worldwide. Booking accommodation with a kitchen, even a basic one, makes this far easier to manage on longer trips, since you’re not relying on a single picnic bench for every self-catered meal.

Which UK city is cheapest for a food-focused city break?

Manchester has the lowest total costs for both dining out (£76.30) and a supermarket picnic (£15.91) of the six UK cities studied. Liverpool offers the biggest saving from switching to a supermarket picnic, at £71.57 per meal, making it the best choice if the goal is maximum savings rather than the lowest starting prices.

How much could I save by booking a self-catering holiday rental instead of eating out?

Based on this study, self-catering could save you anywhere from £56.67 per meal in York up to £102.04 per meal in Zurich, depending on the destination. Over a week-long trip with even a few home-cooked meals, that adds up to a significant chunk of the overall holiday budget – money that can go towards flights, activities or a nicer place to stay.

Do I need a full kitchen to make the most of this trend?

No – a fridge and some basic prep space is enough for a proper picnic. But self-catering accommodation with a real kitchen makes it much easier to store and prepare supermarket finds across a longer stay, and lets you cook proper meals with them rather than just assembling a spread each time.

Planning a Budget-Friendly Holiday

The maths in this study makes a strong case for booking self-catering accommodation on your next trip. A kitchen – even a small one – means you’re not stuck choosing between restaurant prices and a picnic on a park bench every night.

At Holidu, we compare holiday rentals across Liverpool, Edinburgh, Manchester, Bath, London and York, so you can find somewhere with a proper kitchen rather than a kettle and a microwave.

Booking a rental with cooking facilities doesn’t mean giving up eating out altogether – it just means you get to choose when. Save the restaurant budget for the meal you actually want to remember, and let the local supermarket cover the rest.

Methodology

We compared the cost of dining out against the cost of assembling a picnic in 117 cities worldwide.

• Meal for two at a mid-range restaurant: the average price of a three-course meal for two at a mid-range restaurant, excluding drinks.
• Restaurant extras: the average price of a bottle of wine and bottled water at a mid-range restaurant, added to the meal cost to reach a total “night out” figure.
• Picnic basket: the combined cost of bread, local cheese, oranges, tomatoes, bottled water and a mid-range bottle of wine, all bought at a local supermarket.
• Saving and mark-up: the difference and percentage increase between the total mid-range restaurant cost and the picnic basket cost for each city.

All prices are shown in GBP. Data is correct as of August 2026.

Snack search interest: ranked using global monthly search volume for “[country] snacks” keywords, pulled via Ahrefs. Data correct as of August 2026.