20+ Vegan Travel Tips: How to Travel as a Vegan (2026)

Are you wondering if it’s hard to travel as a vegan in 2026? Luckily, the world has come a long way! Veganism is growing more than ever before with vegan restaurants, cafes and local options popping up all over the world. It has honestly never been easier to travel as a vegan. We’re so excited to share these vegan travel tips with you!

The answer to ‘Is it hard to travel as a vegan?’ will change depending on where you visit in the world. Countries in Western Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United States are guaranteed to have vegan options in most of their restaurants.

However, the concept of veganism is only known in some countries. For example in Japan, the word ‘vegan’ doesn’t actually exist. That doesn’t mean you can’t find vegan food, it just means it’s a little harder to travel as a vegan.

But don’t worry, there are countries around the world that are filled with incredible options from India to Taiwan and Mexico to South Korea. You’ll find dishes naturally vegan and an array of vegan-friendly foods, especially with the help of our vegan travel tips.

In 2017, we made the happy choice to switch to a vegetarian diet, which then transitioned to veganism. We absolutely love writing vegan guides on this site and sharing the best places to find incredible local food worldwide.

Now we can finally share our easy vegan travel tips with you and help others to travel as a vegan.

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20+ Vegan Travel Tips: How to Travel as a Vegan

Here’s our top vegan travel tips and tried and tested ways that we travel the world as vegans!

Every country will be different, but we truly believe it’s possible to eat anywhere, even if things get a little inconvenient.

1. Use the Happy Cow App

This has to be at the top of our list. When travelling as a vegan we use Happy Cow almost every day. It’s saved us so many times and it’s all down to other people who are vegan travelling the world just like us.

Happy Cow is a growing online platform filled with recommendations from vegans all around the world. It’s been running since 1999 with staff who are vegetarian and vegan themselves. We’re always adding reviews to places we find along the way and creating new ones too!

Our favourite moment was when we searched Penang, Malaysia and our Happy Cow app exploded with green and purple signs. We’ve never seen so many options in a small city!

2. Always bring snacks

This may seem like one of the more obvious vegan travel tips, however, it’s easy to get comfortable with what you know and then forget to be prepared when visiting a new city or country. Here’s a list of some of the easiest snacks to pack when travelling for a day:

• Flapjack
• Mixed nuts
• Cereal bars
• Fruit (bananas are the best)!
• Sandwiches & wraps
• Dark chocolate or vegan cakes as a sweet snack

3. Join Vegan Facebook Groups

Along with Happy Cow, Facebook is another great way to find out about recommendations from other vegan travellers. We’re in multiple vegan groups.

There’s even a Vegan Travel Facebook page! If you search for the name of the location you’re visiting, you may be able to find old posts with a list of options.

There’s also specific vegan groups for cities and countries all around the world. For example, London Vegans is amazing for finding all the best spots in the city. Sometimes Happy Cow can be a little overwhelming in big cities! Here’s an example of some vegan groups that you can find.

• Vegan Travel
• London Vegans
• Vancouver Vegans
• Vegan Japan
• Vegan Romania

Speaking of London, we have a guide to finding vegan food at Borough Market and the best vegan bakeries in London!

4. Use the Scan option on Google Translate

The scan option on Google Translate has saved us so many times in countries where we don’t know the language. In South Korea, we scanned almost every ramen packet in the convenience stores trying to find a vegan-friendly version.

Simply open up the Google Translate app and use your camera to scan the ingredients. It’s best to take a photo and scan all the writing. This trick comes in handy when you haven’t familiarised yourself with the local language.

5. Learn a few local food phrases

Google Translate will only get you so far when travelling as a vegan. Plus, it’s so much easier to know a few local phrases. Learning the classic thank you, yes, no, hello and good morning are good to know! Here are a few vegan phrases to learn in a new language:

• I’m a vegan
• Is this vegan
• I don’t eat meat
• I don’t eat dairy
• I don’t eat fish
• I don’t eat eggs

6. Research the place you’re visiting before you arrive

When learning how to travel as a vegan, there’s a few extra steps you need to do so that you can have a relaxing trip. Research the location you’re visiting before you arrive. This will help you know what to pack and what you can expect from the cuisine and food options.

After you’ve read all of these vegan travel tips, you’ll have a better idea of what to research before your trip. It’s always best to be prepared in advance and even check out menus online!

7. Search Instagram for Inspiration such as #VeganLondon

Using Instagram is another way we travel being vegan! There are vegans from all over the world who post about the great vegan options they’ve found at restaurants, street markets and cafes.

By simply using the hashtag feature #veganLondon or searching ‘vegan London’ you may be able to come across some of those accounts! We’ve found some amazing food this way and it’s great for ideas of what to order!

8. Search for Vegan Travel Guides

We love creating vegan travel guides after we’ve visited a country, town, city or island. There are also other vegan travel bloggers like us who create amazing vegan guides with recommendations on where to eat and what to eat. Here are a few of our vegan travel guides and we can’t wait to add more!

• Vegan in Athens Guide, Greece
• Vegan in South Korea Guide
• Top 20 Vegan Restaurants in Edinburgh, Scotland
• Best Vegan Restaurants in Koh Lanta, Thailand
• Vegan Restaurants in Phuket, Thailand
• Best Vegan Restaurants in Vancouver, Canada
• Vegan in Krakow Guide, Poland

9. Stay in Accommodation with Kitchen Access

If you’re really worried about some of the options at a place you’re visiting, book somewhere that has kitchen access. This way you can buy groceries to cook and not have to worry about finding vegan options when you’re out (it’s also better for the budget).

Even if the accommodation doesn’t have a kitchen, there are many things to prepare in a room such as peanut butter, rice cakes, bread and bananas! Most places come with a mini fridge anyway, we usually put soy milk in these to have breakfast.

10. Mark all vegan options on Google Maps for a stress-free visit

When travelling as a vegan, finding food becomes a little trickier, but much more exciting! Search the word ‘vegan’ on Google Maps and mark all of the vegan options that pop up.

Also add the recommendations you’ve found from Facebook groups, Happy Cow or Instagram! Then when you’re travelling, you have a list of pre-researched vegan options.

11. Bring any vegan vitamins or items from home

Sometimes when you’re heading on a trip, it’s easy to think ‘Oh I’ll just pick it up when I arrive‘ but that may not be the case for some specific vegan items.

Before your trip, make sure you have everything you need. Bring anything you wouldn’t want to risk not finding vegan. Some examples are suncream, vitamins, medicine, clothing and beauty products! It’s pretty hard to pack a lot of liquids when only travelling with a carry-on, but it is possible thanks to mini bottles!

• Vegan Suncream
• Vegan Shampoo Bar
• Vegan Multi-Vitamins
• Eco Friendly Toothpaste
• Vegan Mascara
• Eco-Friendly Deodorant

12. Bring some easy cooking ingredients from home

Another helpful tip is to bring vegan cooking essentials from home when travelling.

On a recent trip, we packed spices, nutritional yeast, oats and pasta. This was a mix of convenience and travelling on a budget. Oats are a great breakfast for anyone and if you have the extra space, why not pack a few home comforts?

13. Look for Vegan Hotels

There’s a large range of veggie and vegan hotels around the world! To stay in a fully vegan hotel is a dream when travelling as a vegan. They definitely feel more luxurious, but it’s such a relief to be served vegan breakfast and have vegan toiletries! Here are a few vegan hotels around the world:

• Niki Athens Hotel – Located in Athens, Greece, this vegan hotel is perfect for a city break! They serve vegan pancakes for breakfast and are attached to a fully vegan restaurant.
• Mod Santorini – Another Greek vegan hotel is located on the popular Santorini
• Vegan Hotel La Vimea – A beautiful vegan hotel in Northern Italy.
• The Farm at San Benito – An incredible wellness resort, located in the Philippines.
• Vegan Sailing in Croatia – Explore the islands on a sailing boat serving fully vegan food!
• Kings Camp (Safari) – Head on a vegan Safari experience in South Africa.
• Also, check out vegan-friendly resorts in Playa Del Carmen.

14. Visit Vegan-Friendly countries

Another easy way to travel being vegan is to visit countries that are known as being vegan-friendly. For example, the UK is amazing for vegan food and you’ll find options everywhere! This will make it a lot easier to travel without worrying about food.

We’re not saying that you shouldn’t travel to countries that aren’t known for having vegan options! But, if you have the opportunity to visit somewhere vegan-friendly, it may help when travelling as a vegan!

Countries such as Taiwan, India, Sri Lanka, Canada, Germany, Israel and Ethiopia are all great options when choosing a vegan-friendly country to visit. We’ve created a full guide on some of the best vegan-friendly cities in Europe! The world is getting better every day, we are always surprised at the great options we find around the world.

15. Tell tour guides & excursions in advance

Another essential thing to do when travelling as a vegan is to let staff or tour guides know that you have a dietary preference. The staff won’t know what to prepare in advance if you don’t tell them!

When we were visiting the Philippines, on an island-hopping tour, the staff couldn’t believe we just wanted vegetables and rice.

We were the only vegans (which is usually the case when travelling) and the staff prepared us a separate vegetable dish away from all of the fish. We were so thankful and lucky that the staff accommodated us otherwise we would have had bananas, pineapple and rice for lunch.

16. Bring backup food with you to the airport

When travelling as a vegan, we’ve sadly noticed that airports can be pretty bad for vegans. If it’s a long flight or during a meal time and you know you’ll be hungry, bring snacks to the airport!

One major tip is to request a Vegan Meal in advance if a meal is included with your flight ticket. VGML or VVML is the code for vegan meal but, sometimes it’s called Vegetarian meal. Make sure you pick the get one and don’t leave it til the last minute!

17. Visit restaurants that have a vegan-friendly cuisine

Another one of our vegan travel tips is to visit restaurants that commonly have vegan friendly food on the menu. This trick has saved us so many times and you’d be surprised what type of cuisines you can find all over the world!

An example of this would be an Indian or Middle Eastern restaurant as they will always have vegan friendly options such as vegetable curries or falafel, hummus and pita.

18. Go on a Vegan Food Tour

If you’re lucky, you’ll find some destinations around the world have vegan food tours.

We discovered a Vegan Food Tour of Athens which is perfect for those who don’t want to research or use Google Maps to find each vegan spot!

There are many great cities in Europe offering vegan food tours by different companies. They will take you to unique plant-based restaurants, cafes or markets to find the best vegan food.

We also came across a Vegan Food Tour in Singapore and there’s also some in India!

19. Speak to the staff about any options

This tip is useful when visiting any restaurants, cafes or even street food markets. Even though a menu has nothing listed as vegan or you can’t see anything vegan-friendly – it’s always best to ask!

Some chefs will happily whip up an adaptation of a meal or take something out to make it vegan. Usually, we see sandwiches in cafes that all have cheese in them or rice or noodle dishes with eggs.

It’s very simple to just not add these into the dish to make them vegan-friendly. You don’t need to travel as a vegan to test this trick out too!

20. You may have to go out of your way for Vegan Food

When travelling as a vegan, there’s a few choices to make when it comes to time, money and experience. Food is a big part of why we love travelling so much and sometimes we go out of our way to find the best vegan food.

There have been many times when we’ve travelled an hour out of the way to try a vegan restaurant as there weren’t any vegan places in the destination. Personally, we think it’s worth it, but when travelling with non-vegans, it gets a little complicated.

After reading these vegan travel tips, the best thing to do is be prepared. It’s up to you to decide if it’s worth walking an extra 30 minutes to try that vegan croissant instead of settling for a casual option. Travelling as a vegan makes food 1000% better!

Here’s our list of the Best Vegan Friendly Cities in Europe for some of the best cities to travel to as a vegan in Europe!

Is it hard to travel as a vegan?

The truth is, it can be hard to travel as a vegan if you don’t prepare in advance. Some countries don’t have as many vegan options or they’re simply not marked. Almost every destination around the world has fresh vegan food, it just may not be traditional to eat ‘vegan food’ as we know it.

When you’re really stuck, head to the grocery stores and find your own food, this is why it’s a great tip to have access to a kitchen. We also recommend using Happy Cow!

How to eat vegan while travelling?

By using all of these vegan travel tips, we hope that you’ve found a few ideas on how to travel as a vegan.

• Research restaurants before your trip
• Use Google Translate to scan ingredients in shops
• Bring your favourite vegan snacks from home
• Learn a few local phrases when ordering food at a restaurant
• Use recommendations from vegans on Instagram, Facebook, Happy Cow & Google Maps

What snacks to pack when travelling as a vegan

It’s important to have accessible vegan food and the best way to do that is to bring your own! We’ve briefly mentioned a few snacks to pack when travelling as a vegan, but here are a few more:

• Mixed nuts & dried Fruit
• Cereal bars
• Fruit
• Hummus & crackers
• Sandwiches & wraps
• Dark chocolate

Don’t forget about Travel Insurance! – SafetyWing Nomad Insurance

SafetyWing is a flexible monthly-rolling travel insurance to help you stay safe anywhere in the world.

Some of our favourite Travel Essentials

• Stainless Steel Water Bottle – Fill up your bottle from taps to filtered water stations!
• Worldwide Travel Adaptor – The best travel plug with USB slots.
• Amazon Basics Packing Cubes – Use packing cubes for your backpack or suitcase!
• Anker Power Bank – Charge your phone on the go, whilst travelling as a vegan!
• Rain Mac in a Bag – We also have a backpack cover to protect our backpacks.
• Joby GorillaPod 3K Pro Kit – The best lightweight tripod that can fit in your day bag. We pair our Joby GorillaPod with our Sony A6000. There’s also a Joby Phone Tripod!

More Vegan guides:

• 15+ Best Vegan Friendly Cities in Europe
• Vegan in Athens Guide
• Vegan in South Korea Guide
• Vegan in Edinburgh Guide
• Vegan in Koh Lanta Guide
• Vegan in Phuket Guide
• Vegan in Vancouver Guide
• Vegan in Krakow Guide
• Vegan in Istanbul Guide

We also have more vegan guides from Thailand, South Korea, Poland and Canada.

That’s the end of our 20+ Vegan Travel Tips: How to Travel as a Vegan (2026)! Have fun travelling as a vegan and let us know if you have any questions! Send us a message on Instagram (@thesunrisedreamers) or leave a comment below!

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