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For the ladies--Grocery Story Items (wink)

Posted by (VA) on

Hi all! I'll be traveling all over western Europe for 2.5 months this summer. Just trying to plan for what items I might should take with me versus what is easily found across most of Europe.

  1. feminine products--Obviously, they would have these. But, for those who have purchased them in various countries, are they similar to products we are accustomed to in the U.S.? For example, here many of our needed feminine products are plastic. Is that similar in Europe or are they cardboard? Also, are daily liners and pads a commonly found item as they are here?

  2. water flavor packets--Might sound ridiculous, but here we are. I don't particularly care for plain water. Though I plan to try many beverages during my travels, water will still be the main drink. Are water flavoring packets (think Crystal Light lemonade) available in local grocery stores in most of Europe?

Thanks!

Posted by
1675 posts

Trigger warning for guys. Seventeen years ago I bought pads and tampons at a Rome grocery store. I think the tampons were plastic. It’s possible they only use cardboard now.

Posted by
2610 posts

  1. You’ll find these products in grocery stores and drug stores. Pads and liners are most common. For tampons, it is common that there are no applicators. Finding those with applicators (plastic or cardboard) is less common.

  2. I have never looked for these specifically, but I recall people asking about these and them not being readily available. Europe is much more strict about dyes & artificial sweeteners. For example, they have banned Gatorade because of the dyes. You may be able to find Crystal Light in a large supermarket in the American aisle, along with a variety of junk food & candy that is common here, but not in Europe. But I wouldn’t count on it. If you bring your own, put it in your checked bag. It will certainly be cause for inspection, as it will look like explosives.

Posted by
141 posts

You can get most of the same brands here for feminine products as the US- e.g. Tampax and Always. I've never had a problem finding plastic applicators (in major cities) in western Europe. The best place to source these would be the chain supermarkets (e.g. Carrefour, Sainsbury's). No need to bring many with you if you are concerned about luggage space as you can very easily get them here.

I'm not sure about water flavouring packets as I've never looked- I would bring those with you. And I'd be a bit surprised if they got flagged as explosives (!) in an airport scanner. Good luck and safe travels!

Posted by
865 posts

In UK supermarkets you will find a product called Twinings Cold Infuse, and there are little individual squeezy packs of Robinson’s squash (fruit flavoured drink that you add to water.)

I’m ten years out of date with feminine hygiene products but even then most of the applicator tampons I used were cardboard.

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