Why Travellers Are Skipping Souvenir Shops and Heading Straight to Grocery Stores
Image: HT Media
Introduction: Aisles Over Attractions
Some travellers plan holidays around iconic monuments. Others chase Michelin-starred meals or viral cafés. But a quieter, more intimate travel trend is taking shape—one that replaces souvenir magnets with snack aisles and postcards with pantry finds.
From spotless Japanese convenience stores to sprawling Middle Eastern hypermarkets, grocery stores are emerging as an unexpected window into local life. In the age of grocery tourism, supermarket aisles are becoming just as revealing as museums, offering travellers a raw, everyday glimpse into how people actually live, eat, and celebrate food.
What Is Grocery Tourism?
Grocery tourism is exactly what it sounds like: exploring local supermarkets, convenience stores, and neighbourhood food shops while travelling. It is not about luxury dining or curated food trails, but about observing everyday habits—what people snack on, what fills their fridges, what is seasonal, affordable, indulgent, or trending.
For many travellers today, grocery shopping abroad has become as essential as sightseeing. It offers authenticity without performance, allowing visitors to experience destinations beyond tourist filters.
Why This Trend Is Growing
The rise of grocery tourism reflects a larger shift in how people travel. Modern travellers, especially millennials and Gen Z, increasingly seek connection over consumption. They value experiences that feel real, practical, and emotionally lasting.
Chef and baker Shivesh Bhatia admits grocery runs are non-negotiable when he travels. On a recent trip to Japan, it was not temples or sushi bars that stayed with him the most—it was repeated visits to 7-Eleven. Chilled cheesecakes, seasonal Kit Kats, and neatly packed rice balls became his most vivid memories of the trip.
For him, grocery stores offered something restaurants could not: insight into what people actually enjoy eating on an everyday basis.
Numbers That Tell a Bigger Story
This shift from souvenir shops to supermarket aisles is supported by data. Skyscanner’s Travel Trends 2026 report identifies a rise in “Shelf Discovery,” where travellers intentionally explore grocery stores to experience destinations.
Closer to home, Skyscanner’s Snack Transit pop-ups in Delhi and Mumbai showcased over 3,000 snacks from 16 countries, highlighting Indian travellers’ growing curiosity about global pantry culture.
Similarly, Booking.com’s Travel Predictions 2026 introduced the concept of “Shelfie Souvenirs,” noting that grocery finds are increasingly replacing traditional keepsakes. According to the report, 84 percent of Indian travellers are open to buying design-led kitchen or pantry items, while 79 percent would consider choosing destinations known for distinctive grocery experiences.
Travelling Like a Local
For Mumbai-based marketing professional Alisha Patel, grocery stores are often the highlight of her holidays. In Thailand, she and her husband spent hours exploring 7-Eleven outlets daily. Dubai trips, she says, mean long detours through Carrefour and Waitrose.
They stock up on spices, sauces, and pantry items unavailable back home. Cooking with these ingredients later brings the trip back to life, making grocery shopping both practical and deeply emotional.
Bangalore-based marketing professional Deepika Maheshwar echoes the sentiment. For her, wandering through massive grocery stores has become part of her travel narrative. While monuments are checked off the list, the real joy lies in observing what people buy, what is trending, and which everyday items define local culture.
Industry Experts Are Taking Note
Travel planners are seeing this shift across age groups. Nassira Sennoue, a travel coordinator at Sun Trails, says travellers increasingly want souvenirs that feel useful and authentic.
Spices, olive oil, tea, biscuits, or even breakfast cereal offer an honest snapshot of daily life. The focus is moving away from luxury alone toward connection and memory-making.
Unlike restaurants or guided food tours, grocery stores provide an unfiltered view. They show what is affordable, what is aspirational, and what is deeply ordinary—making them powerful cultural storytellers.
The Emotional Pull of Grocery Aisles
Content creator Anmol Sachar describes grocery store visits as one of the most wholesome parts of travel. For her, finding a nearby supermarket is often the first thing she does after checking in.
These visits ground travellers in a place. They reveal rhythms of daily life and offer comfort through familiarity, even in unfamiliar cities.
Internet-Famous Grocery Stores Travellers Love
Certain grocery chains have become destinations in their own right. Japan’s 7-Eleven is celebrated for fresh egg sandwiches, bento boxes, and limited-edition Kit Kats. Don Quijote (Donki) in Japan and Singapore is known for novelty snacks and viral finds.
In South Korea, Emart and GS25 dominate social media for their dried seaweed, pouch drinks, and trending flavours. The US cult favourite Trader Joe’s draws crowds for its frozen meals and snack innovations, while the UK’s Marks and Spencer is cherished for classic biscuits and seasonal treats.
Conclusion: The Beauty of Everyday Life
Grocery tourism is not about chasing trends—it is about slowing down. In supermarket aisles, travellers witness daily rituals rather than curated experiences. They see what is normal, comforting, and culturally significant.
As travel continues to evolve, grocery stores are quietly becoming one of the most honest ways to understand a place—one shopping basket at a time.
Final Thoughts from TheTrendingPeople
Grocery tourism proves that the most meaningful travel experiences are often the simplest ones. In a world of filters and highlights, supermarket aisles offer truth—what people eat, save, splurge on, and return to every day. Sometimes, understanding a place begins not at its landmarks, but between shelves of snacks and spices.
