Why travellers are obsessed with foreign supermarkets

From Tokyo egg sandwiches to Greek dairy aisles, supermarket aisles are becoming one of travel's most revealing and beloved experiences. It's 10:00 in a Tokyo 7-Eleven, and I am standing shoulder to shoulder with a dozen tourists, all clutching baskets loaded with the same things: fluffy egg mayo sandwiches, katsu curry buns, matcha Kit Kats and warm cans of Boss coffee pulled from heated shelves. Behind me, someone photographs their haul before they've even reached the till. Every few seconds, the familiar convenience-store chime announces another arrival. Nobody is here because they have run out of toothpaste. We are all, quite openly, shopping for the experience. It is a travel ritual I've found myself repeating across the globe. I once spent an unreasonable portion of a sweltering Barcelona afternoon navigating the crowded aisles of a basement Mercadona, hunting down jars of pistachio cream. In a chaotic Miami Trader Joe's, I bypassed the groceries entirely and bought six jars of Everything But the Bagel seasoning, then repacked my suitcase around them before flying home. What began as a holiday necessity has gradually become one of my favourite parts of travelling, anticipated

Aug 13, 2026 → Aug 13, 2026