How to Find Vegan Food Anywhere (On the Road)

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Whether you’re traveling with non-vegans or simply traveling to an area that isn’t very vegan friendly, it can be stressful trying to find vegan food that’s not only satisfying but also tastes good, while you’re on the road. It doesn’t have to be overwhelming though—there are actually a lot of easy ways to get a decent vegan meal when you’re traveling and far from the comforts of home.

Hotel Breakfast

Breakfast doesn’t have to be intimidating! If you’re staying in a hotel or motel, those big breakfast buffets that pop up in the morning can be a little scary since not everything has the ingredients listed. You can rest assured, though, that most hotels will have some sort of fresh fruit (even if it’s simply apples and bananas), and some sort of plain tea or coffee for that morning caffeine fix! Don’t be afraid to ask if the hotel has any dairy-free milk or organic sugar—if you’re somewhere other than the middle of nowhere, especially in areas closer to cities, there’s a chance they’ll have these items in their kitchen! Most hotels also have either some pre-made oatmeal or instant oatmeal packets. If they have instant, just choose the unflavored one to make with hot water, and you can be sure it’s vegan! Just top with whatever fruit may be available, nuts, and organic sugar if they have it—I’ve even stayed in motels that had coconut shreds to top my oats with! The same toppings work for the pre-made oats, but double check that the oatmeal was made with water and not milk before you serve yourself!

You Can Get Something Vegan Anywhere!

Restaurants can be hard to gauge and while they normally have salads on their lunch and dinner menus, oftentimes the salads come served with meat or a dairy-based dressing. Especially if you’re in an area where veganism is a new idea, politely explain your dietary restrictions to your server, no matter how much you don’t want to be “that vegan” who seemingly makes things difficult. You’re not making things difficult—everyone needs to eat, and plenty of people can’t eat animal products for health reasons, so don’t worry about asking them to let the kitchen know that you can’t have any animal products.

There is also a Vegan Passport that you can download online that explains veganism in other languages if you’re traveling overseas. It should be fairly simple to modify a salad to contain no meat, and just make sure you ask to replace the dressing with a balsamic vinaigrette if you’re not sure about the ingredients of the dressing that comes on it! If salads just seem like the worst thing ever, don’t be afraid to ask if there’s anything else on the menu that could be modified for you, and be sure to ask if the bread is vegan, because who doesn’t love bread! Some smaller towns also do have hidden restaurants with vegan menus, so be sure to check apps like Happy Cow and Vanilla Bean to see if there’s anywhere that can satisfy the needs of everyone in your travel squad!

If you’re road-tripping, it’s also good to know what types of snacks might be available at gas stations and convenience stores, so keep an eye out for vegan brands! Larabar, SkinnyPop Popcorn, Bare Snacks, and even some Kombucha brands like Kevita have been spotted in gas stations I’ve stopped at on the West Coast!

Just in case things are especially difficult, here are some essentials that I always bring on road trips and planes:

• Energy Bars or Granola Bars. (My favorite is the peanut butter chocolate chip Larabar!)

• Dried fruit (figs, raisins, cranberries), and hardy fruits like apples

• Maple Syrup/Agave (not suitable for airplanes)

• Trail mix and nuts

If grocery shopping and making your own food is an option too, then go for it, so you can be sure you’re getting a good meal every time, and it might be fun to cook with your whole travel group anyway (and more affordable)! While it can be intimidating to go into a trip not knowing what will be available to eat, rest assured that it is totally possible to make a vegan meal out of anything, even at a restaurant with no vegan options.