Holidaymakers have declared that trying foreign crisps is one of the best parts of going abroad, with six in 10 more likely to sample new flavours when overseas than at home. A poll of 2,000 adults revealed that 39% enjoy tasting crisps unavailable in the UK, while 27% love expanding their culinary horizons on holiday.
Brits Seek Out Unusual Crisp Flavours Abroad
More than a quarter (26%) say trying unusual or unexpected flavours is a fun part of travelling, and 29% even like attempting to decipher flavours they cannot translate or understand. Nearly a third (30%) admitted they get 'weirdly excited' when visiting other countries' supermarkets on holiday, and 12% claim their favourite part of going abroad is discovering crisp flavours.
Popular flavours to seek out include paprika, pesto, and ham (often labelled as jamón). Others enjoy cheese and chilli, teriyaki, or spicy lobster crisps while sunbathing.
Top European Destinations for Crisp Lovers
The research, commissioned by online travel agent loveholidays, found that Spain, Italy, and France are considered to have the best crisp flavours in Europe. To celebrate, loveholidays has launched a 'Crisps From Abroad' pop-up in Peter Street, Soho, featuring more than 4,600 bags and 68 flavours from 19 countries. The pop-up challenges passers-by to identify popular foreign crisp flavours through a mystery taste test.
Al Murray, chief marketing officer at loveholidays, said: "Everyone has that one crisp flavour they can't stop talking about after a holiday. We've created Crisps From Abroad to bring some of those iconic flavours together under one roof and invite people to put their tastebuds to the test."
Crisp Connoisseur Puts Taste Buds to the Test
One eager participant was Joe Manning, a 27-year-old sports shop manager from Littleport, Cambridgeshire, known online as the Crisp Connoisseur. Manning took part in a mystery taste test at the pop-up to see how many flavours he could identify. He recalls early memories of having Jambon Lays crisps on family holidays and often bringing them back in his suitcase.
According to the poll, more than two thirds (70%) of holidaymakers have brought food back from abroad, including crisps (25%). Manning said: "Whenever I'm on holiday, my first port of call is always to find a local supermarket and buy a load of crisps. Lays are always a winner, even the salted variety beats salted crisps at home and herb flavoured crisps such as oregano are also a top hit." His favourites include bacon flavoured Ruffles and rib Doritos.
Top 30 Crisp Flavours to Try Abroad
The top 30 crisp flavours to try abroad, according to holidaymakers, are: garlic and herbs, sour cream and onion, barbeque, grilled bacon, paprika, cheese and chilli, original/salted, mac and cheese, Thai red curry, jamón, honey butter, tomato, chilli lemon, cheese fondue, teriyaki, mushroom, green onion, spicy lobster, pesto, jalapeno, shrimp, oregano, ketchup, seaweed, fromage, truffle, wasabi, fried egg, kimchi, and chilli squid.
