The Rise of Grocery Tourism

10 days ago

The author has been practicing 'grocery tourism' since her youth, long before it became a named trend in 2026, as a way to explore cultures through supermarket aisles.
Working as a checkout clerk at Coles provided insights into human lives and needs through purchased items, viewing it as anthropology.
An early trip to America was disappointing due to a lack of supermarket visits, despite excitement over rumored cereal aisles and unique products like Pop-Tarts.
In Japan, the author experienced grocery tourism through diverse products like flavored KitKats and bottled teas, feeling reverence similar to viewing art.
Different countries reveal cultural quirks in supermarkets: Finland's Moomins, Singapore's salted fish skin, Sweden's fermented herring, and the Netherlands' extensive licorice varieties.
Unusual products like Vietnam's snake wine, South Korea's canned silkworm pupae, and America's spray-can cheese challenge travelers' perceptions.
Social media has turned grocery tourism into content, with places like Erewhon in Los Angeles becoming celebrity shrines for expensive, curated items.
Supermarkets offer an uncurated, ordinary view of a destination, revealing daily habits, economic choices, and private lives unlike manicured tourist spots.
Grocery tourism is democratic, allowing souvenirs like mustard or tea that are accessible and capture memories of foreign experiences.
The author values supermarket souvenirs as trophies that connect to local culture, emphasizing paying attention to details as an art form.

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The Rise of Grocery Tourism