9 of the Best Foodie Destinations for Vegans

Forget tired stereotypes about British food: The UK has some seriously great places to eat. In England, London has one of the best vegan restaurants worldwide, and while you’ll find vegan versions of everything from Sunday roast to fish and chips, international vegan cuisine is where London really shines, owing to the city’s diverse population and global influences.

Try the tasty Caribbean fare at All Nations Vegan House or head to hip Shoreditch and Spitalfields for plant-based Chinese cuisine at Tofu Vegan. For a bit of everything, take a vegan food tour in the Camden Market area, where you’ll find all sorts of plant-based delights.

Not long ago, it was a struggle to find decent vegetarian food in France, much less vegan cuisine in Paris. While vegan travelers of yore were once limited to baguettes and carrot salad—or maybe a wrap from Marais tourist favorite L’As du Falafel—a serious uptick in plant-based living has transformed the City of Light into one of Europe’s most vegan friendly cities.

These days, you’ll find everything from chain boulangeries such as Land&Monkeys selling plant-based versions of croissants and quiches to dedicated vegan sections in neighborhood supermarkets. For fancy, plant-based takes on French classics paired with gorgeous aperitifs, head to Présent, in the 11th arrondissement. For a well-rounded introduction to the city’s vegan scene, consider a vegan street food tour.

Insider tip: In France, the anglicized word végan is now widely understood, and is more commonly used than the original French word for vegan: végétalien.

Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, may not be the most obvious choice of vegan travel destinations, but it’s truly a great spot for plant-based travel. While the city is best known for its hodgepodge of architectural styles (think Orthodox churches and Soviet brutalist buildings), its steaming sulphur baths, and its funky flea markets, it’s also celebrated for great food and wine.

While many Georgian dishes go heavy on meat and cheese, there are also loads of traditional dishes that are perfect for both vegans and Orthodox Christians who abstain from animal products when fasting. Must-tries include pkhali, a spread of spinach or eggplant and crushed walnuts, and lobio, a traditional bean stew. And don’t leave before trying Georgian wine, most of which is unfined and, therefore, vegan.

Addis Ababa may be the world’s easiest capital city for vegans, thanks largely to the country’s majority Orthodox population and the prevalence of fasting. Most meals in Ethiopia are served with injera, a fermented flatbread traditionally made from the staple grain teff. Injera typically comes with any number of meat, lentil, and vegetable dishes—just ask for the fasting version, and you’ll be good to go.

For the best vegan lunch in town, head to the Taitu Hotel—the oldest hotel in the country—for their daily all-vegan lunch buffet. Alternatively, sign up for a cooking class and learn how to make your own delicious spread.

Insider tip: As the birthplace of coffee, don’t leave Ethiopia or Addis Ababa without participating in a traditional coffee ceremony.

When it comes to cuisine, Portland, Oregon, consistently punches well above its weight, with a culinary scene that matches those of considerably larger cities such as Los Angeles and New York City. Portland also ranks as one of the best vegan cities in the United States, thanks to its abundance of both plant-based restaurants and food carts, along with vegan options at local restaurants.

Treat yourself to a fine-dining experience made from Oregon-grown, farm-fresh produce at ASTERA, or sample Sri Lankan vegan cuisine at worker-owned cooperative restaurant Mirisata. If you have a sweet tooth, mosey over to North Mississippi Avenue for a treat from dairy-free scoop shop Kate’s Ice Cream.

Mexico City is beloved by many for its gorgeous architecture, interesting archaeological attractions, and massive museums. It's also a huge hit among culinary-minded travelers, and while its world-famous street food scene does go heavy on the meat, there’s no shortage of options for vegan visitors.

The best way to get familiar with what’s on offer is by joining a vegan and vegetarian street food tour and letting an in-the-know guide show you the ropes. If you’d rather stay in one place and gorge yourself on tacos, make a beeline to Por Siempre Vegana Taqueria to try plant-based versions of popular favorites, from barbacoa to pastor.

Related: See 13 Vegan Food Tours and Experiences Worth Traveling For.

While plenty of visitors to Trinidad quickly pass through Port of Spain en route to birding destinations such as the Asa Wright Nature Centre, the street food tasting opportunities alone make a longer stay in the capital worthwhile. Trinidadian cuisine is heavily influenced by Indian culinary traditions, with plenty of vegetarian delights that blend South Asian cooking styles with Afro-Caribbean flavors.

The quintessential Trinidadian snack is doubles, small disks of deep-fried flatbread covered with chickpea curry and smothered with sweet and spicy chutneys and sauces. Other popular and vegan-by-default snacks include pholourie (split pea fritters) and saheena (spinach or taro leaf fritters).

Traveling as a vegan in Thailand can be tricky, as many seemingly vegan dishes can end up containing fish or oyster sauce. However, finding Thai food is easy in Phuket, especially if you visit during the annual Vegetarian Festival (also known as the Nine Emperor Gods Festival). Typically held in September or October, this annual celebration honors the gods through purification rituals and austerities that famously include ritual body piercing. Because devotees are expected to abstain from meat during this holy time, vegetarian food stalls abound.

Of course, even if you don’t make it to Phuket during festival time, you’ll still find plenty of great vegan restaurants around town, along with cooking classes where you can learn to whip up your own vegetarian meal.

While India has a large vegetarian population, along with plenty of people who abstain from meat at least once a week, it’s not always the easiest place for vegans. A lot of traditional dishes, snacks, and sweets are laden with dairy in the form of butter, cream, ghee (clarified butter), and khoya (milk solids).

That said, India’s vegan scene is growing, especially in big cities such as Mumbai, where you can sample great Indian and international vegan food at local hotspots such as Rare Earth and Earth Café. If you want to try your hand at whipping up your own vegan Indian meal, consider a private vegan cooking class.