Message Forums

Hi

We're off to France camping in three weeks time and I'm wondering whether its worth taking some basic groceries with me or just buy in the French supermarkets ?

We're fairly adventurous eaters so we'll be exploring the supermarkets but debating taking the basics like cereal, baked beans, tomato ketchup, pasta, jam, tea, coffee, cartons of fruit juice, squash etc

What do you do ?

Are the supermarkets cheaper or more expensive at the mo ?

Any advice appreciated

Thanks

Jen 

Jen

I would suggest tea and instant coffee if you like particular brands. We used to buy  Carte Noir to bring back from France but its now much cheaper in Waitrose! Kellogs cereals are usually available as are those made by Nestle others you would be best taking with you. Other than that you will find most things you want in French supermarkets and much more beside. There is no doubt that French supermarkets are not as cheap as they once were but we did not think they were excessively expensive compared to our previous trip a year ago.

David

Similar response from me.

We take basics such as pasta, rice (basically for no other reason than to finish them off as we would at home)! We also take a couple of emergency meals (indeed have on every French trip since 1960). We also take a few 'stir-in' sauces to use with locally bought chicken pieces etc). We take tea, coffee, salt , pepper  etc again not because you can't stuff them in France but because you can take a measured amount from your normal home supply, rather then being faced with buying 100 teabags whilst in France!

We also buy corn flakes in France but you can take them if you wish. We buy jam in France (or better still Switzerland where Black cherry jam is mean and popular) because its really nice.

Baked beans are a pretty British thing, so you need to take thos eif you need to have them. Also you would need to take things like Marmite.

Hi

We went to france for 6 weeks 2 years ago and the main thing we couldn't find like sandra said was fruit squash like robinsons, we tried lots of different bottles but they where horrid, it was a real problem with our son as he wont drink water on its own, so this year we will be taking plenty of bottles with us.

Have a great holiday

I live here, and I have a wish list.......on hand.

Tetley T bags, Marmite, Birds custard Powder, HP Brown Sauce, Heinz Tomato Sauce, Mint Sauce, Cadbury's Chocolate, Blue Dragon packet stir in sauces, Malt Vinegar, Hendersons Relish, Heinz Baked Beans, Danish Bacon, Jacobs Cream Crackers selection pack,any packs of sweet Biscuits, a very Mature Chedder Cheese, asda Jelly's,

We can get them, every big supermarket does the English section, but at a price.

Christmas I go back to the UK, with Jams, Cheeses, Pate, Bottles of Pineau, Red and White wines,

Shopping over the last 2 years I havn't noticed a vast difference in the prices, but with the exchange rate now, well yes, your not going to get as much for your money,

http://finance.yahoo.com/currency-converter?amt=650&from=EUR&to=GBP&submit=Convert#from=GBP;to=EUR;amt=1

 Dilute pop, we use William Sirop, but I have to agree just can't match the old Robinsons.

My kids like grenadine syrup so we get that there...

otherwise I take some baked beans (the French ones are nothing like ours), t-bags, hot chocolate and a couple of packets of tesco value rice with vegetables in.  If we have room I shove in some cook-in sauces that I know the kids like - but everything else we buy when we get there as we don't have space.

Recently most of the 'squash' brands have started to have concentrate ones so the bottles are much smaller, so I guess we might take a bottle with us this year as the grenadine tends to come in glass bottles and I prefer plastic.

Christine

Pataks curry paste, fresh chillis.

Everything else I buy there