From Aldi hauls to egg refrigeration debates, Gen Z travelers are skipping monuments for snack aisles – and turning supermarket trips into viral, culturally curious adventures on TikTok and YouTube.
“If you teleported me to a foreign city… I’d pick the supermarket every time,” said a friend to me once – who I deemed crazy – when you could be seeing things like the Colosseum, the Brandenburg Gate, or whatever else they had to offer.
But now, grocery stores are being considered as vibrant cultural snapshots and modern “museums of daily life.”
YouTube and TikTok creators are treating supermarkets like must-see tourist destinations.
Retail trend expert and food supply chain specialist Amrita Bhasin shared with us:
“Grocery stores are free, accessible, and fun to film – perfect for global travelers looking for authentic, artsy content.”
Snacks over souvenirs
Gen Z is now uncovering nuances like why eggs are not refrigerated in Europe, due to different salmonella management strategies
Japan has bizarre Kitkat flavours like wasabi, sake, and sweet potato.
Mexican sodas are perceived to be more natural and fizzy due to their usage of cane sugar.
Many Asian countries sell fresh produce and meats daily with little refrigeration in markets, versus frozen and refrigerated products common in Western supermarkets.
Travelers are swapping museums for snack aisles and sharing everything online, with social platforms (TikTok, Reels, YouTube Shorts) as key drivers.
@caroluzitus Traveling with people who view grocery stores abroad as a cultural experience > #travel #grocery #abroad #france #vanlife #fy ♬ Another Day in Paradise - aino!
Viral trips start here
This trend is cheap, cultural, and ultra-shareable as travel is now about authentic, offbeat experiences, not just monuments.
Supermarkets offer a cultural window into daily life and low-cost novelty and nostalgia.
Americans on TikTok marvelled at Aldi’s compact stores and minimalist selection in Europe.
With a store like Aldi, people can be in and out quickly... this makes people come purchase more frequently than they would at a bigger grocery store,” shared Bhasin.
Supermarkets also offer an unfiltered look at what people actually eat, with no curation or pretence that you might find in restaurants.
Short videos reviewing foreign snacks or just walking through the aisles are highly engaging.
One example is challenges that shoppers set, like spending less than five British pounds – just over 300 Egyptian pounds – in a supermarket as a cultural quirk.
@therealagnew__ #fyp #foryoupage #agnew ♬ original sound - agnew
“Grocery store diary video series do well on short-form content platforms like TikTok and can spur tourism and travel as a result,” offered Bhasin.
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