9 easy tips for eating keto while on vacation (2024)

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Do your research and plan ahead.

If you want to make being keto on vacation as easy as possible, you should definitely do a bit of pre-trip research.

Check the online menu of your hotel’s restaurant for keto-appropriate options before you check in. Select a few eateries around town that offer keto foods and suggest them to your group. Find out if there’s a farmer’s market nearby where you can pick up local kept-friendly specialties on a budget.

If you’re traveling abroad, research the local cuisine so that you have a rough idea which regional delicacies fit into your eating plan. Browse online forums to find out what brands and foods keto dieters in your destination country recommend. You can even call ahead if you know where you're going, suggested Ketoevenglist.

"If you know where you’re going far enough in advance, you can contact your resort or vacation destination and explain your dietary needs with an employee," they wrote. "The vast majority of destinations, including ours, are opening up their menus to try and make them more friendly to those with food allergies and special dietary needs. While keto/low carb aren’t always on those special menus, the fact that they have special menus at all shows that vacation spots recognize that there are a lot of different dietary needs and are willing to help people who can’t or won’t eat the standard fare."

With a bit of planning, you can make your diet work on vacation.

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Eat well before your trip.

There’s no quicker way to sabotage your good diet intentions than to arrive hungry and cranky at your destination. Or worse: the airport.

Diet Doctor recommends that if you plan on sticking to a keto diet while on vacation, you should start off on the right foot.

"Fill up on your low-carb favorites before you leave. Home is the easiest place to eat right. Don’t rush – start your journey nourished and satisfied."

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Opt for accommodation that offers a kitchen.

It’s so much easier to be in control of your diet when you know exactly what’s going in your food. Having the option to prepare your own meals gives you peace of mind and could even cut down on your food expenditure.

"Once you have a kitchen, you have control over what you purchase and what you eat," Addison Johnson wrote on Dietingwell. "An added benefit of this style of travel, other than the fact that you can stick to your keto diet effectively, is that you get to experience the local side of life. Going to grocery stores, choosing from local ingredients, and cooking for yourself will help make you feel like you’re a part of the culture, instead of only a visitor."

If you’re able to stay somewhere with access to a stove, fridge, and prep space, your diet will thank you.

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Learn how to navigate restaurant menus.

You can eat within your diet even at restaurants that don’t offer obvious ketogenic choices. Simple tweaks could shave carbs off your entree and keep you satisfied at the same time.

"Making choices in restaurants can be as easy as a roasted pork shoulder, a steak with butter, or a simple chicken salad," according to Ruled.me. "But, if you know what to look for and don’t mind asking what ingredients are used – you should haveno problemeating your favorite foods."

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Make meals ahead of time.

If you don’t want to be bothered with hunting down the perfect ketogenic restaurant meal, then you might want to simply load up on food storage containers and prepare your own meals.

If your accommodation has a kitchen, do a grocery run and prepare your food for the day before setting out to explore in the morning. Consider making easy-to-pack meals like hard-boiled eggs and bacon, sliced deli meat and cheese, or grilled tuna salad with keto-friendly dressing.

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Stick to low-carb alcohol.

Having fun on vacation doesn’t mean you have to wreck your carb count. There are plenty of relatively keto-friendly alcoholic drinks you can indulge in.

According to the USDA, a serving of pinot noir has about four grams of carbs, while Diet Doctor reports that a flute of champagne contains just one gram of carbs.

If mixed drinks are your thing, ask for a gin and soda rather than a gin and tonic, a Cuba Libre with diet cola, or a low-carb mojito using diet-lemon lime soda.

Just stay away from drinks that contain high amounts of sugary mix-ins such as orange juice, milk, or soda if you’re looking to keep your carb count in check.

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Always carry snacks to guard against temptation or lack of options.

When you’re four hours into an eight-hour flight and the flight attendant comes around with complimentary cookies, you don’t want to be caught with a growling stomach.

Keto- and travel-friendly snacks include tasty bites like peeled hard-boiled eggs, jerky, parmesan cheese crisps, packaged mozzarella cheese, nuts, and leftovers from last night’s kept dinner, according to Dietdoctor. Just remember to make sure your food is plane-friendly and won’t give you any trouble at airport security.

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Be flexible but stay focused on your goals.

It’s important to remember that you’re on vacation and bending the rules a little bit is okay. However, that doesn’t mean you should take a holiday from your goals.

Don’t feel guilty about splurging on a sugary dessert or sampling a plate of fresh pasta at a great restaurant. A few indulgences won’t derail your weight loss or health goals in the long run, but being flexible with your diet on vacation may leave you feeling recharged and refocused when you get back home.

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