Packing (food) for the Trip

Discussion in Travel started by Zyni • Oct 1, 2014.

  1. Zyni

    ZyniWell-Known Member

    Joined:
    Sep 25, 2014
    Threads:
    436
    Messages:
    1,722
    Likes Received:
    558
    I know that we'll go out to eat quite a bit when we go on a trip, but I also pack snacks and drinks to take along. Yes, it does help save money, but it's also because there isn't always a good place to stop if you're driving. The airplane food might leave something to be desired if you're flying. The free breakfast at the hotel might mean just cold cereal. We might want a snack outside or regular meal times and not feel like running somewhere right then. I feel better knowing that I have something decent Handy if we get hungry.
     
  2. xTinx

    xTinxWell-Known Member

    Joined:
    Sep 30, 2014
    Threads:
    8
    Messages:
    1,793
    Likes Received:
    191
    I can actually relate to this. I'm a frequent backpacker so I don't mind bringing snack items with me for emergency purposes. I mean, God forbid, but you never know what happens when you're on a trip, right? Also, since it was a backpacker trip, I was mindful of my budget. I even brought a cup noodle with me once on a trip to Singapore. I also booked a bedspace at a hostel that served breakfast. Singapore's a small city so you can actually cover a lot of ground in a single day. Snacks were necessary because we walked for most of the time.
     
  3. pennylane

    pennylaneActive Member

    Joined:
    Sep 10, 2014
    Threads:
    30
    Messages:
    456
    Likes Received:
    3
    I always try to pack snacks for road trips. A lot of road side food is bad or really unhealthy. I find that you can save a lot of money that way. I also try to bring my own sandwiches on airplanes...these days they don't serve you anymore unless you're on a really long flight. Even if you do get food it's often less than good. I like the snack food boxes some airlines serve but they are also pricey.
     
  4. DancingLady

    DancingLadyActive Member

    Joined:
    Sep 2, 2014
    Threads:
    78
    Messages:
    867
    Likes Received:
    47
    My family used to pack as much of our food as we possibly could to save on restaurant costs. We usually checked with the hotel to see what they were going to serve for breakfast and brought things like yogurt and bananas if we thought they might not serve enough good food. I think it's a great idea to bring as much of your food as you can because restaurant meals add up so fast, even if you go to the lower cost ones. We don't eat fast food, so we would be spending around $5 per meal at a restaurant or more.
     
  5. Danyel72

    Danyel72Active Member

    Joined:
    Sep 15, 2014
    Threads:
    3
    Messages:
    238
    Likes Received:
    1
    I always pack food when we travel... I have 4 kids and they always get hungry. It would be quite expensive if we had to stop and purchase snacks and drinks all of the time. It would take forever too! I normally pack crackers, granola bars, cookies and dry cereal in a bag for the kids to eat when they get hungry. I also bring bottled water or juice boxes depending how were traveling.

    I'm all into saving money so if I can do these simple things I certainly will !!

    Danyel :)
     
  6. chiofthenorns

    chiofthenornsActive Member

    Joined:
    Sep 1, 2014
    Threads:
    171
    Messages:
    834
    Likes Received:
    25
    Packing different kinds of food is always a must when I travel. I usually have candies and protein bars with me to avoid being hungry especially when I am on a long trip. Aside from food I also bring water. I avoid juices, sodas, and other sugary drinks because those will only make me more thirsty or hungry.
     
  7. prettycolors

    prettycolorsActive Member

    Joined:
    Mar 4, 2014
    Threads:
    109
    Messages:
    731
    Likes Received:
    17
    Yup, packing food before the trip tends to cut the costs quite a bit. And when that food runs out you can stop in a city, find a supermarket, buy more and prepare it. Obviously, when I write prepare it I mean quick stuff like sandwiches, I don't mean fully fledged cooking on the side of the road. Also, this works well only traveling with your car, no train or plane will stop for you to buy food :p
     
  8. Muraki

    MurakiNew Member

    Joined:
    Oct 4, 2014
    Threads:
    2
    Messages:
    8
    Likes Received:
    0
    I agree totally on this one.

    If your trip is going to be over a longer period of time it is, in my opinion, just logical to pack food for the way. However, even if your just traveling a bit over the day but are unsure if you're going to be able to take a break for food, it surely won't harm to take a homemade sandwich with you. In my experience there were just too many cases in witch I found myself yearning for a real meal so I decided to be prepared from now on.

    Since then I actually improved my energy and overall health.
     
  9. dizzykitsune

    dizzykitsuneActive Member

    Joined:
    Sep 9, 2014
    Threads:
    13
    Messages:
    156
    Likes Received:
    3
    If you have complaining kids in the backseat with hungry, growling tummies right after making a gas pit stop on a long trip- then yes, snacks are DEFINITELY a good thing to have on hand! I always keep something that wouldn't melt easily in my purse just in case I'm caught waiting somewhere and don't have time to stop to get something to eat. At the very least it's a good treat to hold off my hunger until I'm able to get a proper meal.
     
  10. sidney

    sidneyWell-Known Member

    Joined:
    Sep 14, 2012
    Threads:
    110
    Messages:
    5,621
    Likes Received:
    378
    Yeah you can always pack your snacks while on a trip, but over here I don't see anything pack-able and desirable to eat, so my next best bet would be to just buy from the nearest convenience store to alleviate hunger during the trip.
     
  11. H.C. Heartland

    H.C. HeartlandActive Member

    Joined:
    May 8, 2014
    Threads:
    246
    Messages:
    874
    Likes Received:
    148
    Top 10 foods to pack on a road trip

    (These are my personal favorites combined with some research of what people like)
    10. Nuts and or popcorn
    9. Water and or Juice
    8. Fruit dried or fresh
    7. Granola or granola bars
    6. Carrot sticks or like veggies (celery and peanut butter is a winner)
    5. String cheese
    4. home-ade protein bars
    3. yogurt
    2. crackers and hummus
    1. pre-made sandwiches
     
  12. valiantx

    valiantxActive Member

    Joined:
    Oct 1, 2014
    Threads:
    12
    Messages:
    520
    Likes Received:
    27
    Snacks are always required for me in any trips outside of the city I live in. Saves time, money, and a a great safety precaution to practice, in case one's mean of transport breaks down and there's no other human help for miles around. Also, having snacks helps to pass the time and restore energy I am using while moving my property from point A to point B.
     
  13. 003

    003Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Apr 23, 2014
    Threads:
    174
    Messages:
    1,148
    Likes Received:
    36
    I also pack a lot of foods with me when I am going for a trip because I often find it unpredictable when hunger would strike me and my peers, relatives, my friends, whoever I am with during the trip. When it strikes any of us, out trips get to stop and go sideline looking for a place where we can buy food and eat, say in a restaurant. This just doesn't increase the total spending, but also consumes a lot of time. So to avoid this, and make the most of what we've planned, we do all the possible measures to avoid things that we have not planned. It includes having urgent need to get by somewhere to fill our stomachs.
     
  14. DrRipley

    DrRipleyExpert

    Joined:
    Mar 29, 2012
    Threads:
    740
    Messages:
    4,313
    Likes Received:
    315
    I agree, it's a good practice. My family usually brings along spam sandwiches or ham sandwiches whenever we are going for a long trip. It's much better than having to wait for the next restaurant because you never know if you'll get stuck in traffic for some reason and sometimes it's just not practical to keep stopping for food since it only delays your trip.