Updated: July 18, 2023
First, before I detail my favorite quick and easy hotel room meals, I wanted to remind you of our goal here at Astonished Abroad. We want to share our favorite travel tips with a focus on health and wellness. The meals I am sharing within this post check both boxes. They are easy, quick, and (mostly) healthy, all in line with our goals.
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The shopping list and quick meals included in this post are for those staying in a hotel room with only a refrigerator and microwave. Having a full kitchen and traveling with a cooler of food from home is great! Access to a full kitchen will undoubtedly open up many options but here I will assume this is not the case. While these meals are not Michelin Star quality, they will keep you nourished while away from home 🙂
Next, I would also add that when traveling somewhere new and exciting, I am all about tasting the local cuisine! I’ve found that balancing fresh meals featuring real food alongside a meal out is more healthy and also cost-effective. Before arriving at my destination, I research the closest grocery or market and complete my shopping soon after getting settled into my room.
Food Prep Essentials
While I do most of my shopping once I reach my destination, there are a few essentials I pack from home. The essentials on this list surely won’t take up much room in your luggage and they include:
- Travel utensils with case
- Collapsible bowl with lid
- Olive oil packets
- A large piece of aluminum foil
- Homemade granola or nuts and seeds
Clearly, you’ll want to be mindful of food and agricultural guidelines when traveling abroad to ensure you don’t break any rules or have your food confiscated. When in doubt, purchase all food items at your destination.
Travel Day Meal Plan
Equally important as creating healthy meals once you reach your destination, is sticking to your travel day plan. With the exception of a bocadillo in a Spanish train station, it is typically pretty damn difficult to find decent food in airports, train stations, etc. I am not that picky when it comes to food however, airport food often isn’t that exciting. And not to mention, it can be very difficult to find something healthy that also tastes good.
I feel that travel days are the toughest for me to stay on track with my wellness routine. With that said, it does help to at least have a plan of action on travel days. Staying on top of my exercise regimen is another thing that took me a bit of time perfect. See our post about exercising while traveling for our favorite ways to stay active when away from home.
Planning Ahead is Crucial
Below is an example of my schedule on a recent travel day. For perspective, this flight was 3 hours and 25 minutes nonstop. While this is not a long-haul flight by any means, the travel to and from the airports makes it just long enough that meal planning comes into play.
- 7 am: have breakfast, yogurt with homemade granola and blueberries before leaving home, brew a coffee for the road
- 8 am: Arrive at the airport/park
- 8:15 am: Through security, thanks to pre-check and clear, fill my water bottle, and head to the gate. I was able to get some work done before boarding.
- 9:20 am: Flight boards and we depart by 9:50 am
- 11:20 am: Eat my packed lunch onboard (chickpea salad, hummus, sugar snap peas)
- 1 pm: arrive at my hotel room at my destination
- 1:30 pm: Grocery shop for the week
- 2:30 pm: Head to the hotel gym
- 5 pm: Dinner in my hotel room
- 7:30 pm: Snack of walnuts and a bit of dark chocolate with tea
If I hadn’t planned for this travel day, I certainly would have spent at least $50 on coffee, water, breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Money aside, I wasn’t stuck having subpar, likely unhealthy, food. So onto my shopping list! I have not added portions here as this will be determined by how long your day will be and how many people are traveling with you.
Have Your Shopping List Prepared
This list is a starting point for the meals listed below. The pictures above show slight variations of this list on two different trips.
- Fresh Fruit (I like blueberries, raspberries, pomegranate seeds, and fresh figs when in season)
- Spring mix or baby spinach
- Lemon
- Yogurt
- Celery sticks or baby carrots
- Chives or scallions
- Hard-boiled eggs
- Shredded cheese
- Mozzarella pearls
- Onion and bell pepper (many groceries sell these chopped already)
- Hummus or guacamole
- Cream or milk for coffee/tea
- Condiments: mayo, olive oil, hot sauce, relish packets (check the prepared foods section of the grocery for these or bring from home)
- Tuna fish (be sure to purchase pouches or cans with easy-open tops)
- Can of chickpeas (again be sure to buy the easy-open can)
- Wraps or bread
- Granola (I like to make my own and bring it with me, the recipe is below!)
So with that, here are my tried and true quick and easy hotel room meals!
My Favorite Quick and Easy Hotel Room Meals
Fresh Fruit, Granola & Yogurt
One of my favorite ways to start the day whether at home or when traveling. Quick, easy, and portable, can’t go wrong here. For some extra crunch and healthy fats, I’ll add in a handful of homemade granola but store-bought would also work.
I love this granola recipe from thebigmansworld.com. I double the recipe to have enough for two weeks and add about 2 tbsp. of chia/flax seed mix and often add 2 tbsp. of Droste cocoa powder.
Tuna Salad Wrap or Salad
Drain the tuna can and add optional plain yogurt or mayo, relish, or lemon juice and enjoy over a salad or as a wrap. This is one of my favorite work-day lunches as well, super simple and won’t leave you dragging your feet all afternoon like greasy fast food.
Veggie Quesadilla
So this is where things get interesting. Maybe you have seen people cook using a clothing iron before? This was news to me but it does actually work! Be sure to pack a large piece of aluminum foil in your luggage for this one. Take a folded tortilla and fill it with your choice of vegetables, shredded cheese, and optional prepared protein. Then fold the aluminum foil around the tortilla and use the iron to do the work cooking until the tortilla is browned and the cheese is melted. This one is easy and super adaptable. Top your quesadilla with guacamole and enjoy some salad on the side and you have yourself an easy hotel meal!
Chickpea Wrap
Another fast yet wholesome hotel room meal. Simply drain and rinse the chickpeas. I like smashing some of the chickpeas with a fork and leaving some whole and then mixing in lemon juice, hot sauce, and either plain yogurt or olive oil. Add the chickpeas and some fresh vegetables such as spinach and tomato to a wrap or tortilla and enjoy.
Egg Salad Wrap or Salad
For the egg salad, buy hard-boiled eggs and simply mash with a fork adding in lemon juice, pepper, chopped celery (optional), and plain yogurt or mayo. Fill a wrap with the egg salad or top a green salad.
Caprese Salad
My take on a Caprese salad includes a bowl of baby spinach, mozzarella pearls, and cherry tomato. With a squeeze of lemon, a touch of olive oil, and a sprinkle of sea salt, this salad will make an easy, yet satisfying hotel meal. For another variation, you can pack a small container of balsamic vinegar or balsamic glaze for a sweeter version of this salad.
Fruit and Walnut Salad
In a cup, mix a tbsp. of plain yogurt, a squeeze of lemon juice, and some blueberries or fruit of choice. Top a green salad with this mixture, add some walnuts, and enjoy!
Padma’s Chickpea Salad
If it is good enough for Padma Lakshmi, it is good enough for me! This super simple salad keeps for several days and is filling and delicious. It makes a great main course but also goes nicely with soup or half of a sandwich too!
Have a Tapas Party!
If you know me, you know I love all things Spain, and tapas are no exception. Tapas typically involve high-quality ingredients that are prepared simply to highlight the product. They are also great for hotel room meals since some of my favorites don’t require any cooking whatsoever.
Let’s start with pan con tomate or bread with tomato. Simply take a baguette and slice it into small pieces. Take your garlic and rub it onto the bread. Next, slice a tomato and remove the flesh of the tomato onto the garlic bread. Top with olive oil and a bit of salt. Seriously delicious and so simple. If you have a toaster or oven, toast the bread before adding the garlic but in a pinch, this will do. 🙂
Using the same baguette slices, spread a jar of high-quality tuna packed in oil, over the bread. Top with sliced hard-boiled eggs, and if you can find them, guindilla peppers. You can sometimes find these at Whole Foods or specialty groceries.
You can also skip the baguette entirely and stuff some piquillo peppers with that same high-quality tuna. These are one of my favorite peppers, so sweet!
Don’t like fish or tuna? Try stuffing the piquillo peppers with Manchego cheese instead. You really can’t go wrong either way!
Don’t want to stuff or assemble anything at all? Grab some jamon and/or chorizo, Spanish cheese, olives, and radish with olive oil and salt and you have yourself a super easy and delicious hotel room meal, tapas style.
Breakfast Ideas
If you are lucky enough to have a kitchen and stovetop, having a hot breakfast at your hotel or Airbnb is a great way to start the day. You will also likely save some money rather than eating out for every meal. Keep in mind, some hotels offer a free breakfast so be sure to ask! If you don’t have access to a kitchen, you can’t go wrong with fresh fruit and yogurt as mentioned above.
Snacks
These are easy and require no prep!
- veggies with hummus or guacamole
- mixed nuts with dark chocolate
- fresh fruit
- hard-boiled egg
My Favorite Quick and Easy Hotel Room Meals
- Fresh fruit, yogurt, and optional homemade granola recipe
- Veggie quesadilla
- Chickpea Wrap
- Tuna salad wrap or salad
- Egg salad wrap or salad
- Caprese Salad
- Fruit and Walnut Salad
- Chickpea Salad
- Tapas Party
- Breakfast Ideas
- Snacks: veggies with guacamole or hummus, nuts, chocolate chips, hard-boiled egg
Finally, feeling good by nourishing your body well will absolutely help you wake up energized and make the most of your day while exploring a new location. I hope you enjoyed my favorite quick and easy hotel room meals! Let us know in the comments what your favorite hotel meal is and be sure to follow us on social media for regular travel and wellness content. Safe and healthy travels!