Spill the beans... self-catering on holiday tips

Barryfan

We always go self catering when we go abroad and I usually take coffee (emptied from the jar into a strong plastic bag) and tbags with me (just to get me started when I arrive). What I do is put £20 a week into a savings account so that I have spare money to draw out and take as "housekeeping". This means I don't have to take out a large amount from my bank account when we go away, and if I'm thrifty during our holiday we can have a slap up meal on our last night!

jonsue

Best tip we can give? Visiting Las Vegas? Pack a small travelling kettle and an adapter. Save a FORTUNE on tea and coffee! You can't get a decent cup of tea in America anyway. p.s. Don't forget your teabags and coffee though. Although you can buy english in some supermarkets(at a price!)

MTDancer

If holidaying in the UK I take a meal that was cooked the night before to heat through.
Always take Lock n lock boxes to store things in along with foil and bake in the bag oven bags

AD30A

Been self catering in Europe for many years.
OUR essentials are MARMITE (good for sauces etc) (usually £5-10 jar abroad) any NUTS you eat (WALNUTS in Spain are £7 per 100g £70 kilo!!) TEA BAGS and COFFEE (£4 to £7 pack/jar)
Avoid British brands and British brand shops unless you're desperate as it will probably be cheaper to eat out!
VEGETARIANS (one of us is) take SOYA to Spain, however it is freely available in Portugal. Dont buy Linda Mccartney or Quorn products (unless you pre-arranged a bank loan - 4 quorn burgers £7 in Spain £6 in Portugal etc etc!!) Found local soya products like escalopes etc in Continente Supermarkets in Portugal at good price(£3ish).
One other thing, ladies if you are likely to need your lady products in the Canary Islands take them with you - they are horrendously expensive - don't know why?.
Hope this saves some money for you

jolfc

sad as my partner and i are we take,

tinopener,
sharp knife,
small whisk,
egg flipping thing ( could be called a spatula, )

food stuff we like to take

packet sauce mixes,
cup a soup,
jellies,
curry sauce mix ( mayflower, just like a chinese)
pasta and sauce,
savoury rice,
coffee,
oxos,
gravy granules.

all light in the cases, we have a 22kg allowance with jet2. we shop at the mercadona in tenerife very cheap compared to smaller supermarkets and a stones throw from the apartment.
as my partner had a heart op we stay in more now to eat as he does not like to sit in a bar knowing he can only have a pint due to medication. we have many different meals and i only have 2 cooking rings to make them on, :rotfl:

i wish i could take my frying pan as theirs is always rubbish, but i think that would be pushing it.

Taplledraw

If going to Lanzarote take sandwich bags so you can make your own sandwichs to take out as they are Very expensive there, I take extras for my SIL who lives there.
I always take stock cubes as you are not going to need a full packet, sugar,salt and pepper sachets not used from trips to ikea,service stations etc and any herbs I cant manage without. Gluten free stuff for me is a must and its the only time I will consider smash. Also a small amount of flour to make sauces as you only need a bit of it and then you dont have the urge to bring a packet back rather than wasting it. I pack them in a tupperware type box and then can bring foreign allowable things such as cheese back so it doesnt smell or squash.

Greenqueen_2

We have our own place in Spain that is equipped to the same level as home here so we don`t ever need to worry about tin opener, frying pan,whisk, potato peeler etc. The house has supply of teabags/coffee/sugar and a water filter so drinks are not a problem.
As somebody else mentioned above, the local Mercadona is shut on a Sunday so if we are planning to arrive then I always put a packet soup mix in the bag. Depending on what we have left over at home I will take some bread to eat with it.
I also take packets of Angel delight, biscuits(without chocolate) and enough weetabix to get through the first couple of days-can be eaten without milk at a push.

Gloomendoom

Coolbags for getting refrigerated and frozen food home from the shops in hot climates.

GlynD

All of this sounds like too much trouble. It's a holiday for goodness sake. Travel light and only buy basics when you're there. There is a line which it seems some have crossed here when it ceases to be a holiday and starts to be a job of work. If you can't afford to go then stay at home - like us!

Gloomendoom

jonsue wrote: »

Best tip we can give? Visiting Las Vegas? Pack a small travelling kettle and an adapter. Save a FORTUNE on tea and coffee! You can't get a decent cup of tea in America anyway. p.s. Don't forget your teabags and coffee though. Although you can buy english in some supermarkets(at a price!)

Good tip but remember US mains voltage is half-arsed so be prepared for it to take about two days to boil.