Veganism is growing in popularity. Gone are the days where vegan travellers are relegated to a sad heap of lettuce (without dressing) and side of chips as their meal on the road. These days, vegan restaurants all around the world are popping up, doling out everything from comfort foods to innovative cuisines. Wondering where to go? These are the best vegan cities to visit this year.
HappyCow, an app that helps travellers locate vegan restaurants all around the world, has recently launched their top 10 list of the best cities for vegans. Fortunately, many of these cities are already some of the most popular cities for Australian travellers to visit and may already be on your radar.
To make their top 10 list, HappyCow looked at factors like the number of fully vegan restaurants within 10 kilometres from the city center, the total number of vegan businesses, the number of vegan businesses per capita, and other harder-to-measure elements like how active their vegan community is.
What are the best cities for vegans?
| Ranking | City | Country |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | London | England |
| 2 | Berlin | Germany |
| 3 | New York City | USA |
| 4 | Melbourne | Australia |
| 5 | Singapore | Singapore |
| 6 | Los Angeles | USA |
| 7 | Bangkok | Thailand |
| 8 | Amsterdam | Netherlands |
| 9 | Warsaw | Poland |
| 10 | Barcelona | Spain |
Contrary to popular belief, vegan and plant-based are two different things. A vegan omits all animal products from their diet and lifestyle. Plant-based refers to a diet that omits animal products and focuses on plant foods.
1. London
Foodies often claim you can eat your way around the world in London, and this is quickly becoming true for vegans. From American-style burgers to plates of Ethiopian fare to Japanese ramen, vegans certainly can travel the globe meal by meal here. In 2022, London was the first city to log over 200 fully vegan restaurants and over 400 vegan businesses in the city on HappyCow.
Wondering where to dine first? For breakfast, grab a sweet and doughy delight and coffee from Crosstown Doughnuts Vegan. For lunch, head Rudy’s Dirty Vegan Diner for hearty burgers, macaroni and cheese, hot dogs, and milkshakes–all vegan. Come dinnertime, there’s Itadakizen, a Japanese restaurant with sushi, noodles and tofu cooked many ways. Stock your hotel mini fridge with cheeses from La Fauxmagerie and snacks from the Pipoca Zero Waste Vegan Store.
2. Melbourne, Victoria
You don’t have to travel far to enjoy one of the best vegan cities in the world. Melbourne has long been the de facto culinary capital of Australia, and recently, it’s become quite the city for travellers powered by plants, too. With accessible public transport, zero waste shops, and a thriving vegan community, it’s a great city to visit (and live) for those who are conscious of their carbon footprint.
When it comes to dining, there are hundreds of restaurants to discover. There are over 1,300 restaurants listed on HappyCow, 130 of which are fully vegan. Don’t leave the city without trying the loaded fries and burgers from Lord of the Fries (a perfect meal for a big night out). There’s also a vegan buffet at Vegie Tribe, plates of Thai noodles and curry at Cookatoo Kitchen, and Cheeky Scoop for alcoholic gelato. You’re on holiday, after all!
3. Singapore
Sling it on over to Singapore for Southeast Asia’s take on vegan living and dining. The island nation has longtime been an innovative hub when it comes to cuisine thanks to its multicultural influence. In the past few years, though, Singapore’s number of fully vegan establishments have nearly doubled according to HappyCow’s data. There are 185 fully vegan establishments, and over 800 with plant-based offerings.
If you feel like dressing up, head to Mallow, where a six-course vegan degustation menu awaits. For something a little more low-key, there’s the hawker’s markets with stalls like Lotus Vegetarian Kitchen and Xi Shi Fu Vegetarian doling out piping hot noodles and spicy soups in spades. A few other delicious things to add to your can’t miss list – bubble tea from Mong Cha Cha Cafe, traditional Chinese pancakes at Granny’s Pancake, and vegan cheeses from Cultivate Cafe.
FAQs about the best cities for vegans
Melbourne, Sydney and Sunshine Coast are the best destinations in Australia for vegans. Each have a variety of vegan restaurants, grocery stores and shops.
Sydney has no shortage of amazing vegan restaurants. Some of the best include Vegie Tribe, Funghi E Tartufo, Lord of the Fries, Madame K’s Vegan and Union.
Travelling as a vegan is becoming easier and easier as more restaurants and shops cater to vegans, often offering goods and foods free from animal products. Thanks to the abundance of information online, it’s easy to travel as a vegan to most destinations with a bit of research in advance.
Want to read more?
- Learn about small switches you can make to make flying greener
- Want to cut down your waste? Read our best zero waste travel tips
- Hoping to take an ultra-long holiday? Here’s where to go for long-term travel
