Health

7 Ways to Stay Healthy on Vacation

Last modified on November 3, 2025

Vacations are a major challenge for people who are trying to live a healthy lifestyle. When you’re on vacation, you’re supposed to relax and pretend that work, family problems, and all the other nagging stressors of your daily life don’t exist. If you’re like most people, the last thing you want to do on vacation is track calories or forgo sleeping in to fit in your usual morning cardio routine. Contrary to popular belief, you don’t have to make a choice between vacationing and staying healthy. If you want to maintain your healthy lifestyle on vacation, you can’t ignore your diet and fitness routine completely. However, you also shouldn’t let your healthy habits make you feel restricted or put limitations on your fun and relaxation. Whether you’re headed to a foreign country or a weekend spa getaway, there are many ways to strike a balance that lets you stay healthy and enjoy your vacation to the fullest at the same time.

1. Make Health an Adventure

One of the most exciting parts of travelling on vacation is exploring new places and trying new things in the process. Incorporating healthy activities into your vacation as fun, adventures is a great way to keep yourself on-track with your fitness without ruining your trip. If you’re visiting a foreign country, check out a local farmer’s market. Pick out fresh fruits, vegetables, and other healthy snacks that help you indulge in the culture of your vacation destination without breaking your diet. Before you leave home, do some research on activities that will get you moving while you’re out of town. Schedule a seaside horseback ride, a mountain rock-climbing lesson, or any other appropriate physical activity depending on your destination.

2. Focus on Portions

The food you eat while on vacation in restaurants, hotels, and airports tends to be extremely rich in sugar, fat, and calories and served in huge portions. Many people end up consuming way more than their recommended amount of calories every day while travelling, even if they stick to the same number of meals they eat at home. Rather than trying to say no to indulging in all the delicious dishes on the menu, a simpler way to avoid breaking your diet while on vacation is actively monitoring your portion sizes. Instead of counting calories, listen to your body. Don’t restrict yourself from eating pastas or desserts, but stop eating after you feel full no matter how much you’re enjoying your dish. An effective way to limit your portions is splitting a meal with someone else, instead of ordering something off the menu for yourself.

3. Use Your Resources

It’s easy to get thrown off from your normal fitness routine while on vacation even if you have every intention to maintain it while you’re out of town. When you’re not home, you don’t have the resources you’re used to that make healthy habits convenient and more bearable. When you’re on vacation, use the resources you have around you to establish new healthy habits that you can maintain in your current surroundings until you get back home. If you usually run three miles on the treadmill every morning, find out if your hotel has a gym and use it. If you keep your calories under control by cooking a healthy meal every night, visit a local grocery store and whip up a simple, nutritious homemade dinner in the beach condo you’re renting. Staying healthy on vacation is all about making good use of the resources you have in an unfamiliar environment.

4. Pack Wisely

One of the biggest mistakes people make when they go on vacation is failing to bring any food with them. If you’re not well-prepared with pre-packed foods, you’ll be forced to stop at a drive-thru, go out to a restaurant, or order room service every time you get hungry. Pack plastic baggies of dried fruit, nuts, cheese sticks, and other hearty, nutritious snacks before you leave your house. Keep the snacks in a separate food bag and carry it with you at all times. Use it to help tide you over during airport layovers or long car rides between travel destinations. Before you check into your hotel, make a grocery store run and up on healthy snacks. Eat them when you’re tempted to splurge on fast food every time you feel a hunger pang.

5. Watch Your Alcohol Intake

Most people tend to consume much more alcohol while on vacation than they do on a regular basis at home. Unfortunately, most alcoholic drinks are packed full of sugar and hundreds of calories each. Lower the empty calories you consume through alcohol by carefully considering what drinks you order. Instead of downing three sugary pink drinks in a row, stick with a glass or two of red wine. If you’re really set on feeling a major buzz, stick to straight hard alcohol with minimal mix-ins or chasers.

6. Stick to a Schedule

You are much more likely to gain weight on vacation if you eat erratically instead of on a regular schedule. Don’t obsess over the foods that you eat. Just make sure that you eat your snacks and meals at around the same times when you eat at home. Sticking to your normal eating schedule helps keep your digestive system on track and prevents excessive weight gain.

7. Know Yourself

You’re probably not going to gain ten pounds by breaking your diet for a weekend. However, if you let your healthy habits slip while you’re on vacation, it can be hard to get back on track when you return home. Some people are confident that they can completely forget their regular fitness routine on a weekend getaway but snap right back to it come Monday morning. If this applies to you, cut yourself some slack on vacation. On the other hand, put more dietary restrictions on yourself while you’re out of town if you know that eating whatever you want for five days will send you into a spiral of binging that lasts past the day you get home. A tropical vacation doesn’t have to be a death sentence for your healthy habits. Developing and sticking to a healthy diet and exercise plan takes work. Don’t let a weekend by the beach destroy all of the progress you’ve made toward your fitness goals. Sustainable healthy habits are adaptable; they should not be valid only in one place. Before you embark on your next vacation, take some time to consider your trip itinerary. Plan ahead to make sure you can keep up with at least a few regular healthy habits without feeling like you’re missing out on the fun of your travels.

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