Once you discover that millions cross oceans just to taste a snack they can’t buy at home, you’ll never look at your humble supermarket crisps the same way again.
Why Snack Tourism Is Overtaking Souvenir Shopping
More than half of today’s holidaymakers now dedicate part of their travel itinerary to hunting down unique snacks. This isn’t just about filling empty suitcases with sweets for the trip home. According to Skyscanner’s Travel Trends 2026 report, a quarter of people deliberately pack light so they can haul back their favorite foreign nibbles. The act of touring supermarkets abroad, once a quirky afterthought, has become a full-fledged travel ritual. The appeal? A blend of nostalgia, novelty, and the undeniable thrill of discovering how the same brands can taste wildly different from one country to the next.
The rise of snack tourism reflects a shift in how travelers collect memories. Instead of keychains or postcards, they bring home tastes—Cheetos dusted fingers, a bottle of Fanta Limón, or a crinkly bag of Lay’s Classic from a distant shelf. These snacks become edible souvenirs, each with a story that’s unique to the country of origin yet instantly shared through social media and group chats back home.
The Top 10 Snacks Tourists Are Willing to Travel For
Cheetos stand out as the undisputed champion of global snacking. Best known for their Flamin’ Hot flavor, they dominate cheese snack aisles in over 36 countries. Brits, who see them as a distant cousin to Wotsits, crown them their favorite snack abroad. Lay’s Classic comes in second—familiar in taste yet different in composition from Walker’s crisps, thanks to a blend of sunflower, corn, and canola oil. Fanta Limón, third on the list, conjures memories of sun-drenched Spanish holidays, its lemony fizz a taste that’s hard to find outside Europe and, occasionally, import shops.
Coca-Cola Vanilla, in fourth place, is a flavor-chameleon—readily available in the US, Canada, and Asia. Matcha KitKats, hailing from Japan, are another cult favorite. Launched in 2004 with premium green tea from Uji, these KitKats have since become symbolic of Japanese snack innovation and are now trickling into Western markets. Italian Canestrelli biscuits, flower-shaped and dusted with powdered sugar, offer a delicate counterpoint, their heritage rooted in the Piedmont and Liguria regions and tied to special occasions.
Seaweed Pringles and the Power of the Unusual Snack
Seaweed-flavored Pringles might surprise casual snackers, but this flavor is a staple in parts of Asia, especially China and Japan. Pringles Seaweed isn’t just a novelty—it’s a snapshot of how local tastes shape even the most global of brands. The Chinese version is a standard on supermarket shelves, while Japan experiments with limited editions that layer wasabi or other bold tastes atop the original seaweed base. Such flavors rarely cross into Western markets, making them a true prize for snack tourists eager to try something unavailable at home.
For American travelers, Fanta Grape is a nostalgic find, and Jolly Rancher Fruit Chews represent a bite of home that’s often imported for those abroad. Meanwhile, Australians proudly offer up Tim Tams, a chocolate biscuit with a fervent fanbase and a growing list of flavors. Each of these snacks isn’t just food—it’s a passport stamp, a conversation starter, and sometimes, the reason for the trip itself.
As the lines blur between travel, nostalgia, and culinary adventure, snack tourism shows no sign of slowing. Globalization may have made the world smaller, but the thrill of a rare snack—whether it’s a neon-orange Cheeto or a green tea KitKat—still sparks genuine joy. For many, that joy is reason enough to book the next flight or, at the very least, to show up early at the next pop-up. The world’s best snacks are calling, and now, you don’t even need a boarding pass to answer.