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

FirstMate

Do your research on the internet before you go. The website of your holiday resort will have information on local supermarkets.
For example, Lidl have many stores abroad. On our recent trip to Mallorca I did most of my shopping in the Lidl in Cala Millor, much cheaper than the little Spar Supermarkets.

I you are flying to Zurich, there is a large supermarket by the railway station below the airport, very handy for initial supplies.

gunnyandbob

If you are booking a holiday cottage ask if a welcome pack can be provided 'please', especially if you are arriving when shops are shut.
Some owners provide one anyway.

mancmum

Hot countries: Peanut butter - doesn't go off
Salt/herbs/curry powder anything you will only use a little of.
Tea bags. Foil sachets of decent curry sauces. Nuts. Dried fruit. sometimes depending on country flour - pancakes always go down well.

Boring countries: some tabasco


Norway: As much drink as you can smuggle past Ryanair....ha ha ha Michael Leary...just because a bag is small it doesn't mean it's light. 3 bottles of wine and not a whiff of a surcharge.

Do forage while you are there....we got samphire in Coatia and it was brill. Husband spotted it when putting rubbish out. Herbs in Greece. Mussels.

Get up early go to local market. Bream 20 p each out of the back of a white van in croatia.

gingernut352000

We drive to france a lot so have a box in the spare room into which gets put 1/2 empty bottles of every thing the idea being we take it an bin it when finished so it doesn't come back. e.h olive oil, mustard, vinegar, tom sauce, washing up liquid etc.

On holiday truth web site there is a packing list which we have also tailored to our needs as reminders especially as driving to ensure we have V5, mot, insurance cets for the car. And my wifes medication as she is diabetic.

We have also added a basics shoping list to this so we ensure we buy things on our first visit to the supermarket.

We have found in france do as the french an lunch then snack at night. many places do fab 3 course meals for 15€ like other researching before your go.

like others we take knives, spatulas, choping boards never fancy some we have seen before at some places. also we bought a cheap kettle as often found the ones over there are manky.

As other a 4 or 6 gang ext lead and one adapter is good idea.

it takes time but with a bit of planning you can save a fortune

davidlizard

Soft drinks can be quite expensive if there are 4 of you drinking several cans/500ml bottles each day for a week.

We usually get the big 2 or 3 litre bottles from the local supermarkets and refill the smaller bottles from these. Also we drink more water if thirsty rather than fizzy pop.

As someone else said - find where the locals do their shopping - they do not do their weekly shops in the local mini-mart. We travel with large rucksacks so we take these along to the shop and fill them so we only have to make the journey once a week!

We went to one supermarket which turned out to be a warehouse full of cardboard boxes - a bit like a cash and carry place but almost as cheap as Tescos back here.

VT82

Just got back from 10 days SC in Spain,

gunnyandbob wrote: »

If you are booking a holiday cottage ask if a welcome pack can be provided 'please', especially if you are arriving when shops are shut.
Some owners provide one anyway.

Definitely agree with this. Last year we had a welcome pack with tea, coffee, sugar, wine, bread, spread, apples, milk, cold meat etc - i.e. enough to make our first meal, and some stuff to last all holiday.

I assumed it would be the same this time. WRONG! Arrived at 1am and all there was was a few tea bags and a bit of sugar. Had to beg the person who gave us the keys for some milk to tide us over, then had to trek into town before breakfast on the first day.

So definitely find out beforehand if anything will be provided.

Also...

chrisjw37 wrote: »

• Beware of idiot boy racers (BMW & AUDI usually)

made me LOL. Just as true in Spain as it is here!

Sarahcat

We holiday sc abroad for the sun!! Usually a villa out of season with a pool.
But you should see some of the kitchen equipment it's often years old and worn out.
So I always take the items everyone else has mentioned-sharp knife, spatula, various sized cooking spoons and even two sets of cutlery after needing to buy new several years ago. Plus plastic bags & tupperware in which I store stuff to take.
Some kitchens have been fabulous with lots of previous renters left overs-sugar, tea, salt, pepper, herbs and spices, olive oil etc.-so it's not all bad!!
Food wise I need decaf coffee and some fruit tea bags, individual packets of pasta/soup/cappacinno/dried milk/sweeteners are always useful if flying in late as well as biscuits, mints and a few bags of nuts and jelly babies!
Best item-wet wipes-ideal for all eventualities!!
We're off to Portugal in the Autumn and there are always discount stores as well as the larger supermarkets with bargains.
Happy holidays!

taxspider

Sarahcat wrote: »

Food wise I need decaf coffee

I take my own decaf as I'm dead fussy about which brand I use but your post reminded me of one of the few times I went to Spain. We only had cabin baggage and I had a small jar of decaf in my case, which was opened and looked at by security. When we arrived at our destination and I went to unpack my case I found it was scattered with coffee granules as the lovely security lady at E Mids airport hadn't screwed the top back on properly.

I carefully took out all my stuff and then scooped up what I could to put back in the jar, but it certainly taught me that it's a good idea to double-check that the airport security staff aren't bored and looking for a bit of a laugh at the sight that might greet you on unpacking!

poohbear59

I have a holiday cottage in the UK which I let. It is as well equipped as our house with the exception of some bulkier items like a slow cooker or actifry but I always tell people to ask if they would like to borrow something to make cooking easier/cheaper and they often do. I would suggest that if you are going to a cottage and would like to have the use of something to make life a bit easier then ask. You never know, you might be lucky.

troubrs

taxspider wrote: »

I used to take lots of food - pasta, cereals, tins etc - on my SC hols but as I only ever holiday in the UK I now take very little, unless I know we will be in the middle of nowhere.

The things I take are mostly non-food:
A sharp knife with a sheath on the blade (you can get them cheap in TK Maxx and they are bright coloured so if camping you won't lose them in the grass and if SC in a cottage you will know the coloured one is yours. The sheath means you don't cut yourself or your stuff when packing)
A sample size bottle of washing up liquid (enough to last a week and TBH most cottages provide it these days so a small bottle isn't such wasted space)
A few dishwasher tabs in case there aren't any
Some colour wash in a small bottle (colour wash = ok for whites but white wash liquid will strip out your colours)
One toilet roll and one kitchen roll just in case, tho again these days most cottages provide plenty of each

I take some herbs/oxos/seasoning in a couple of those free plastic containers you get with chinese takeaways these days. They then double up as picnic boxes and you don't mind leaving them behind at the end of the week.

I do take some basics such as bread, marg and so on but t'internet tells you exactly where the nearest shop is to your destination and what time it is open so unless you are likely to arrive in the middle of the night you should be able to sort something out. My son only drinks soya milk so like those with medical issues then it makes sense for me to take a carton to tide us over, but I like to shop locally to try the local produce. Booths supermarkets in the NW and Lake District are fab at stocking local produce for example. Even Tesco stocks local stuff in each of their stores but that probably wouldn't be available on your online shop so you might miss out on regional delicacies.

We're off to the Gower this year so I'm looking forward to seeing what Welsh Tescos, Asdas and all the rest have to offer

Do remember that supermarkets in Wales charge for bags, so take some with you!