Self Catering Abroad - things to take with me.

[Cwtches123]

Getting ready to go to Spain for our 2-week family holiday! We are self-catering in a villa, I love to cook and it suits us to eat in as one dc has special needs.
What are your top tips for things to take with me? (we have a generous luggage allowance).
Good knife already top of my list!

Extra tea towels, those collapsible mesh food covers things and fly spray.

We’ve just come back from a SC week in France (they do things slightly differently it seems from when we’ve done it in other places). But I definitely recommend extra bin bags, tea towels and my mum always packs tea bags. I took a couple of pan scourers took.have a great holiday.

One of those prefilled pepper grinders and a couple of Nando’s rubs for bbqs

I usually plan to do one wash of underwear and t shirts halfway through a two week holiday, and don't want to buy a whole box of detergent just for that. So I always take a laundry detergent in tablet form, just enough for one or two washes.

We only take tea bags because if you can get UK brands out there, they are expensive and a few dishwasher tablets to avoid buying a whole box.

Everything else we buy out there and if you're there for a couple of weeks and cooking a lot for a family, you'll probably be able to use up most things.

Only other things I might take would be any spices you think you might not be able to get or any specific foods/brands that will be hard to get or expensive, especially if anyone 'has' to have that brand etc.

I would make sure you take all the suncream you think you'll need as it's expensive out there - we actually paid for an extra small case in the hold (Ryanair so only £24 return) so we could take more suncream, which was a good thing, as it was 15-20 euro a bottle even in supermarkets in Fuengirola and we had a few £4 bottles of Boots own brand at home.

Also leave space in your suitcase to bring things home! We usually bring back chorizo, turron, thick hot chocolate powder, pinchito spice, saffron and some other things I can't remember now.

I always take a spatula as there usually isn't one. We take our tea bags and coffee as we like very specific ones which aren't available. If I've got loads of space I might takea very small non stick pan for eggs as the ones there are often pretty well worn. Washing tablets,a few dishwasher tabs, and basically odd bits you don't want to buy a whole thing of for one or two uses. I take a scented candle too if I have room, incense sticks if I don't . Our TV gizmos to plug in the flat screen TV so we can still get Netflix etc.

I use the space left to bring home my favourite things from wherever I am. We are usually away for a month at a time so we like our home comforts.

Have a great holiday.

This is my kit-
Decanted olive oil
Dish washing tablets
Anti bac wipes
2 tea towels
Decanted fairy liquid
Dish sponge
Marmite
Earl grey tea
Peanut butter
Small Pepper grinder
Maldon salt
Tin foil
Chilli flakes

Tongs and oven gloves might be something else useful to take.

Otherwise you end up trying to turn bacon with a fork while not scratching a flimsy non stick pan, or taking trays out of the oven protected by the only teatowel in the apartment.

Small bottle of washing up liquid - we've filled a bottle out of a set designed to decant toiletries into to comply with the 100 ml liquids rule.

Bin bags is a good call - always seem to end up buying a roll! Tea towels added to the list too, they always leave the thinnest tea towels in the world!!!

Definitely won't be taking Marmite!!!!

I have travelled extensively and often with dc so a lot of self catering in apartments and I have never lugged any of this stuff around with me.
Half of the fun is exploring new markets / supermarkets etc and trying new things.

If we're away short term (anything up to 2 weeks) I don't tend to cook at all in the apartment apart from breakfast, usually cereal / toast, coffee and juice type of affair.

But if we away longer I would prepare very simple meals as it gets boring and tiresome eating out every single night. But it might be things like prepared lasagne in the oven with salad and garlic bread and wine, lots of wine etc

What do you like to cook? Take what you need for that.
We are currently staying in self catering and have decided we need measuring cups, a whisk and potato masher next time.

Why would you take olive oil to Greece?!!
Taking coals to Newcastle
Funniest thing ever

Anyway I’m going close to there and I’m taking t bags, tomato ketchup and cereal. If I wasn’t staying in my own place a sharp knife and t towels would also me on my list.

If you are nervous of local shops - no judgement some people just are - then go to the Euro supermarkets like euro max and carrefour.

Bring olive oil back here just well wrap in cling and backs. We always bring back bottles so much cheaper - if I bought the same quality here it would £10 bottle plus.

freezer ice blocks and a little cool bag for taking out

I take a knife, salt and pepper, Italian mixed herbs, tea bags, cafetière (admittedly I've always driven!), ketchup and the (teenage) kids pack instant noodles because they are obsessed and one is veggie aka almost impossible to feed in France! We eat out most nights but the kids took to staying in from about 14.

I always take a packet of paper plates !

Plastic bendy chopping board (light and easy to pack).
Foil
Sandwich bags

a sharp knife, decent tea towel, couple of dishwasher blocks, couple of tablet form washing powder blocks, brillo pad. With a generous luggage allowance I'd be tempted to take a cheap ikea frying pan and leave it there, there are never decent pans. However if you only want to fry fish you can use baking paper and plenty of oil (tip I was given on a cooking course, it works). A few plastic containers if you want to take food out and a freezer bag to bring food home. You dont need an ice pack, freeze a bottle of water. .

Apart from that I'd only take anything we really liked that I feared I might not be able to get there.

Caperplips- you must have missed the bit of the OP where she says she has a child with SN. If the OP's child is anything like mine, she does self catering because her child won't try new things.

I take: a variety cereal pack and kitchen essentials which, after my last holiday, will include a corkscrew!

Thanks for the tips I've added a few items onto my list. There are plenty of cheap household shops in the area so I can always buy a frying pan if the one supplied is poor! Last few years the pots and pans have been very good.
I will be taking my kitchen scale, stick blender, small grater, roasting bags and some thick non-stick baking sheets which can be used on the bbq or in the oven. As far as cooking goes I will be making pizza, pasta dishes, bbq meats, marinated roast chicken, coleslaw and salads. Eating well is part of the holiday for me!
There is a cold bag and ice packs supplied so we are ok for picnics!

As for Spain - i'd take nothing. All the lovely food is there waiting for you.

We have gone SC many times abroad. If driving I always take my own pillow. It makes a huge difference if you can sleep well. If flying I take a loo roll (we have had occasions where there is insufficient left and no open shops) and small decanted bottles of handwash, dishwashing liquid and clothes handwash liquid. I also take a roll of gaffer tape or double sided sticky as I arrived in one far flung place and found the mesh over the shower window was coming away and letting nasty bitey little insects in so I take tape for running repairs. As an engineer I also take a "Leatherman" (small portable tool kit like a plus size swiss army knife).

I'm intrigued at your list, OP. I have never taken any of those things with me, nor needed them. Are oyu really going to be roasting and baking things? What's the blender for?

Pillow is a good idea, but not toilet roll. We've found to our cost that Spanish plumbing and lovely thick toilet paper can be incompatible - we bulk buy from costco and were in the habit of chucking a couple of rolls in the suitcase if there was room, but stopped when we realised that was why the toilet kept blocking up.

What's the blender for

Soups etc I would imagine, or smoothies etc.

Friend who worked in a Spanish estate agency said that one of the most common complaints from Spanish renters was about the lack of a blender, which they needed to make their Gazpacho without lots of tedious chopping of tomatoes.