Eating out in the US means big portions, sweet bread and sauces, and a bill with tax and tip on top. A hotel kitchen is the easy way round it, and the US is where hotel kitchens are best: 87% of the 300 US stays we list have a full kitchen. The harder part is the shopping, so we mapped the supermarkets and markets around them.
| United States | Europe | |
|---|---|---|
| Stays mapped | 165 | 349 |
| Supermarket within 500 m | 58% | 89% |
| Median distance to a supermarket | 390 m | 210 m |
| Fresh-food shop within 500 m | 21% | 73% |
| Full kitchen | 87% | 57% |
The trade-off is plain: US stays have the better kitchens, European stays the better shopping on foot. Butchers, greengrocers and daily markets are rare in American cities, so the supermarket does all the work. More in fresh food near your stay.
How often each chain is the nearest supermarket to the US stays we mapped:
Whole Foods, Trader Joe's and Sprouts all sell fresh produce, whole grains and ready-to-cook food, and together they are the nearest supermarket 43 times, against 13 for Walmart, Target and Aldi, which are cheaper.
US cities with at least 6 stays mapped, ranked by the share with a supermarket within 500 m.
| City | Mapped | Supermarket ≤ 500 m | Median distance | Most often nearest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Honolulu | 9 | 89% | 360 m | – |
| New York City Area | 14 | 86% | 240 m | Whole Foods Market |
| Miami | 17 | 82% | 350 m | Publix |
| Atlanta | 7 | 71% | 450 m | Publix |
| Philadelphia | 10 | 70% | 400 m | Trader Joe's |
| Seattle | 6 | 67% | 380 m | – |
| Reno | 7 | 57% | 340 m | Sprouts Farmers Market |
| Los Angeles Area | 9 | 56% | 370 m | – |
| Denver | 13 | 54% | 490 m | Whole Foods Market |
| Nashville | 7 | 43% | 410 m | Kroger and its banners |
| San Francisco Bay Area | 10 | 40% | 380 m | Albertsons and its banners |
| Dallas / Fort Worth Area | 6 | 33% | 350 m | Albertsons and its banners |
| San Diego | 10 | 30% | 560 m | Trader Joe's |
| Austin | 8 | 25% | 650 m | Whole Foods Market |
| Las Vegas | 8 | 13% | 670 m | Target |
Which US cities have the best kitchens? See the best US cities for hotels with full kitchens and where to find a dishwasher, oven or stove.
The median distance is 390 m in a straight line across the US stays we mapped, against 210 m in Europe. 58% of US stays have a supermarket within 500 m, against 89% in Europe.
Among the US stays we mapped, the nearest supermarket is most often Whole Foods Market (26), Trader Joe's (12), Publix (12).
Read the Nutrition Facts label: US labels list added sugars on their own line. Bread, yoghurt, sauces, cereals and dressings are the usual surprises. Buying whole ingredients and cooking them yourself is the simplest way round it.
Less often than markets in Europe: 22% of the US stays we mapped have a market within 1 km, and many US farmers markets run one or two days a week. The USDA keeps a directory of farmers markets by area.
Distances are straight lines from each stay to the nearest shop mapped in OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), for stays with a precise location.
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