A recent poll of 2,000 British adults has revealed a strong appetite for international crisp flavours, with 39% of respondents saying they enjoy trying crisps that are not available in the UK. The survey, commissioned by online travel agent loveholidays, found that six in 10 holidaymakers are more likely to try new crisp flavours when abroad than at home.
Holidaymakers' Favourite Snack Discovery
According to the poll, 27% of adults love expanding their culinary horizons on holiday through crisps, and more than a quarter (26%) say trying unusual or unexpected flavours is a fun part of travelling. Nearly a third (30%) admitted they get 'weirdly excited' when visiting supermarkets in other countries, while 12% said discovering crisp flavours is their favourite part of going abroad.
Among the most sought-after foreign crisp flavours are paprika, pesto, ham (often labelled as jamón on bags), cheese and chilli, teriyaki, and spicy lobster. The research also identified Spain, Italy, and France as the European countries with the best crisp flavours, according to British travellers.
Loveholidays Launches Pop-Up in Soho
To celebrate this trend, loveholidays has opened a 'Crisps From Abroad' pop-up shop on Peter Street in Soho, London. The pop-up features more than 4,600 bags of crisps representing 68 flavours from 19 countries. Visitors are challenged 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."
Murray added: "From familiar favourites to flavours people may never have seen before, this pop-up is all about reliving your favourite holiday memories and discovering new tastes. We think it's going to spark plenty of debate about which destination does crisps best."
Crisp Connoisseur Puts Knowledge to the Test
One of the first to try the pop-up was self-proclaimed 'crisp superfan' 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 to see how many flavours he could confidently recognise.
Manning recalled early memories of having Jambon Lays crisps on family holidays and often bringing them back in his suitcase. He is not alone: the poll found that more than two-thirds (70%) of Brits have brought food back from a holiday abroad, including crisps (25%).
"Whenever I'm on holiday, my first port of call is always to find a local supermarket and buy a load of crisps," Manning said. "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 personal favourites include bacon-flavoured Ruffles and rib Doritos.
Top 30 Crisp Flavours to Try Abroad
Loveholidays compiled a list of the top 30 crisp flavours that holidaymakers recommend trying abroad, based on the poll. The list includes: 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, jalapeño, shrimp, oregano, ketchup, seaweed, fromage, truffle, wasabi, fried egg, kimchi, and chilli squid.
