For over 10 years years I have been following a Vegan Diet additionally I was pretty much on the road all this time. Traveling to USA, Poland, Israel and all Europe. I learned how to eat vegan , how to eat cheap while sleeping in the hotels, apartments with poorly equipped kitchen or simply on the road camping. I passed all this and I learned a lot.
GO AHEAD AND SEE WHY YOU SHOULD TRY A VEGAN DIET IN THIS BLOG POST.
1. Organization. By far most important is preparation. Each trip even the one of 2 hours in the car or few hours in the train equals no access to fresh food. That is why my biggest advise is TAKE WITH YOU : energy bars (best home made : https://www.wearesovegan.com/homemade-energy-bars/ https://www.wearesovegan.com/plant-powered-protein-bites-3-ways/ , dry fruits, nuts, sandwiches or smoothies in the Jar.
Gas station are introducing more Vegan Options like Vegan Burgers, Hot Dogs, Fresh Juices, Even hot meals Labeled Vegan. It’s growing tremendously each year and it is going to get easier and easier to find good food on the gas stations.
2. Take your kitchen essentials with you. Blender, cutlery, bowl, cutting board and spices. For me it is a big help to have those with me and it doesn’t take much space in the suitcase either. There are fold-able bowls or handy blenders. I notices when having my own tools I spend less money on eating outside and when staying in the hotel for a few days it pretty much means eating outside each meal which is pricey. It is good to mention at the hotel reception that you are vegan and if it is possible to eat a vegan breakfast. Contrary to appearance I have many great memories including the owner of the agriculture in Italy organized for me vegan chocolate croissant, soy milk if I wish to drink coffee and in the evening I could eat a Pizza with a Vegan Cheese. Most hotel owners want your stay to be pleasant so they often like to make the effort.
3. Buy food in the shop instead of going to a restaurant.
Point 2 combines with point 3. Having your knife, bowl and chopping board allows you to make a delicious salad, shake or eat cornflakes for breakfast for a penny. After arriving in a new town I immediately look for a nearby grocery store and buy products that can be in a hotel room like fruits, vegetables, bread spreads for sandwiches and if I have a fridge I keep that in mind to store vegan cheese, yogurt. Many times when I ate breakfast in the hotel the only option of a vegan breakfast was bread with jam and when going to a restaurant near by all I could eat was a salad based on lettuce, cucumbers and tomatoes and I paid for it 10x more than doing it myself in the room. :-/ Of course, I’m not talking only about people on a Vegan Diet, but also about people who do not want to eat white bread or fried scrambled eggs in the morning, drink coffee from a vending machine, etc. In most hotels where I slept healthy breakfasts were not an option and in many breakfasts were served on plastic plates, cutlery and cups, which landed in the trash shortly after. I don’t like this type of plastic consumption.
4. Rent a flat rather than a hotel room to have access to the kitchen. Now, as a mother, I practice it more often than when I traveled alone. Without a kitchen, it’s really hard to get healthy meals throughout your stay. A year ago I was with my husband and my 2 yo son in Miami for 2 weeks in a hotel. We bought a blender, bowls and made green shakes, salads and sandwiches. We managed, but it would be much easier for us in the apartment. The Airbnb app has many apartments or rooms for rent. This is a nice option to have an access to the kitchen on vacations.
5. Use the Happy Cow application, which shows you restaurants, shops with Vegetarian, Vegan food near by. The Veggie app shows where, in which store you can find vegan, not tested on animals products or at http://www.veggie-hotels.com you’ll find hotels with healthier food options
Traveling in your own country: by car, by train. In my opinion, the easiest way to travel because we know where to find cheap healthy products in our country. From green stores to cool stores like Rossmann in Europe or a higher level market like Whole Foods in USA which has a lot of nice healthy snacks. Traveling in your own country is the easiest as you just know the local prices and know which restaurant serves cheap meals and which has exorbitant prices.
Traveling abroad: Each country is different. In one hotel there will be breakfast for everyone, including soy milk for Vegans and freshly cut fruits and in the other only instant products “Pour the boiling water on instant porridge or eat croissant with jam and coffee from the machine” It is worth paying attention while booking a room in a hotel. Opinions are the key here.
Transatlantic connections when staying at the airport and on the plane are sometimes even 30 hours long. Every year for 5 years I have been flying to Miami or Hawaii and these trips have taught me a lot. First of all, it recognizes one principle. My hand luggage is always full of food. From energy bars, to nuts, dried fruit, sandwiches, boxed fruits and vegetables, or a stew made at home. Airlines have really poor options for Vegans even for those on a standard animal diet. We all know that eating on a plane is not the tastiest. Polish Lines introduced Vegan Lasagna which is great 
Many airlines like Turkish, United, Lufthansa has many great options for Vegans. But anyway I always try to prepare and take food for as long as possible on such long journeys. At the airport I am looking for stands with fresh juices. Prices are usually very high but I prefer to spend money on fresh juice than later on medication against cold caught during such a long trip or just not get sick thanks to a fresh dose of greens at the airport.
It is also worth buying food containers, jars, bamboo cutlery, which never get old, take up little space, so good for the environment and always with you. This way you will avoid paper or plastic cups, plates and cutlery.
There is not much to say – eating on the go is quite difficult. Even if our budget is unlimited, it’s still hard to find healthy places to eat in every city. I have been traveling for several years and I have always tried to do what I can to have access to fresh vegetables and fruits at the same time not concentrate only on food but just to relax if it’s vacation time. These are my 5 basic ways to eat healthy but also cheap and I hope they are helpful. If you have other ways, please share. Any hints are welcome. 😉
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Betty The Traveler