South America Travel Advice Applies to Veggies Travelling Anywhere

A couple days ago, Stephen Bishop, from the blog Volunteer Latin America ^[1] sent me a link to his recent vegan travel tips article.

This is a long and excellent article. .Stephen is articulate and doesn’t skimp on details - so I’ve lifted the intro and short versions of the first three tips just to get you started.

What struck me most on reading this article: If you take out the words ‘in South America’, ‘foreign country’ or other geographical references, these tips could apply to vegetarians or vegans travelling anywhere. For instance, they closely resemble what we did for food ^[2] on a recent trip to California. To us, CA is a foreign country!

“For many vegans, travel can be something of a challenge. If you’re worried about vegan travel in South America, you’ll be surprised at how easy it can be if you are prepared and go to the right spots. Basically, it’s about doing your homework and learning how to keep up your vegan lifestyle while travelling.”

“It may seem difficult at first, especially when in a foreign country, but you can master travelling as a vegan in the same way you mastered being a vegan at home. Here are a few tips to point you in the right direction before you pack your bags and hit the road.”

“Use these tips and you’ll find it’s not hard to maintain a vegan diet while travelling in South America. The more exciting things may be harder to come by but the healthy, whole food options are always available.”

“If after reading these tips you have any doubts about vegan travel in South America, let us assure you it’s possible. It does take a little extra planning and preparation but it’s worth it, not just for you but for the animals.”

1. Do Your Research

Get online and search for vegan restaurants and health food stores. One of the best places to start is Happy Cow ^[3], an online directory of restaurants and health food stores with vegan and vegetarian options.

Search Happy Cow ^[3] for any city or address (like your hostel or hotel) and it will return a list of vegan/vegan-friendly restaurants nearby.

Happy Cow also returns a list of health food stores that carry vegan foods or vegan products. Whenever you would like a vegan meal or snack for your hotel room, lengthy bus trip, or souvenirs to take home with you, a visit to one of these international health food stores is a nice convenience.

2. Connect with Other Vegans

To find possible places to eat you could ask local vegans for recommendations. They’ll know which bakeries have vegan treats and which cafes serve the best weekend brunch. Online resources can only get you so far. The best knowledge is local knowledge.

To find local vegans, or get recommendations from vegans who have recently visited the city, start with a Google search. You can usually find them by Googling the city name and ‘vegan.’ With this approach, you’re likely to find a blog by a local vegan or reviews by vegan visitors.

You can also connect with vegans on Twitter and Facebook, by searching for the city name and ‘vegan.’ There are also online and offline communities, like the Vegan Around the World Network ^[4] and Vegan Meet up Groups ^[5], that help connect vegans in faraway places.

3. Carry Snacks

It’s very important to pack food when travelling as a vegan. At the very least, don’t leave home without some snacks for the airplane, bus, train or car ride. You never know when unexpected delays will leave you in a place where vegan options are scarce. Pack easy snacks like apples, bananas, nuts, seeds, homemade sandwiches, granola bars, carrot sticks, bread, pitas, nuts, crackers, peanut butter or hummus.

Related Posts

^[6]Travel: Cheap Healthy Vegan Diet on the Road ^[6]

^[7]Eating A Healthy Vegetarian Diet On The Road ^[7]

^[8]Healthy Eating: Restaurant Survival Skills ^[8]

^[9]Savvy Veg Eats Her Way To California and Back ^[9]