Canada & USA: Energy Drink Journey

First, to Canada

This time, I first went to Vancouver, Canada. The immigration process was almost fully automated with kiosks, and I breezed through with just a couple of questions, setting a new personal speed record. Since the airport is very close to downtown, I highly recommend Vancouver for beginners in international travel.

During my stay in Canada, the theme was to relax on the beach while enjoying the sunset, feeling the Canadian summer, and having a laid-back hotel stay. Since the time there was short, I planned to gather everything in one go.

Shopping Rush!

Let’s head to the shopping street first! I entered each store along the way, checking prices and stock status. Then, I went back along the same path and picked up the items I needed from the stores I had identified.

First up, Punch Monster Mango Loco. This is a new release in Canada, and it’s being featured a lot. The design is striking, and it’s delicious, so that’s to be expected (*´艸｀*)

Next, we have the mixed set sales. With Monster, NOS, Full Throttle, 444-550ml products, you get a discount on the set regardless of size. JAVA, Hydro, and imports seem to be better purchased this way. Also, for every four cans purchased, you get a Monster Energy cooler bag that holds six 473ml cans (the quality is questionable).

Here’s what the cooler bag looks like. It’s so flimsy that I’m sure the strap would break if I put six cans in it w
I ended up getting three of these before returning home ( ´∀｀)b

Rockstar is also on sale—two cans for $4, or four cans for $7. I secured eight cans here. In Canada, Rockstar Super Sours’ two new flavors had spread across the country, so I was finally able to buy them after about six months of release during this summer.

I also secured the Red Bull Organics, which are available worldwide in all four flavors. Red Bull is expensive (*´ｪ`*), but I still enjoy buying it this way w

Without any official announcement from Rockstar, the Rockstar Revolt - Blue Camouflage was released exclusively at Canadian 7-Elevens. The blue camouflage pattern and the big star design are just too cool! I’m so glad I was able to experience the release of this world-first new flavor while I was in Canada (●´ω｀●)

I also happened to find the Mutant Deadpool 2 set, so I grabbed it. After visiting various stores, I noticed they were becoming scarce, so the overall stock seems to be low. It’s been about three months since the release, and while I don’t think Mutant is selling that well, it’s still cool to see.

I moved to another area, dropped by the hotel to store my bags, then went back to the lounge to snack and rest before going out again—this process repeated itself w

In between hunting for energy drinks, I also enjoyed meals and other activities. By the end, I had gathered more than 80% of the energy drinks I wanted to buy. Recently, I’ve been getting most of them at once and then picking up missing items or new finds while I continue sightseeing.

Even in a new country or city, going on a hunt like this helps you get familiar with the area, making subsequent trips for food or shopping much smoother.

Buying in Between Sightseeing

I enjoyed summer in Canada by going shopping, visiting forests, and going to the beach. In between, I picked up anything I missed by stopping by stores along the way.

I managed to secure both the 250ml and 355ml cans of the 2018 Red Bull Summer Edition Coconut flavor, which somehow was sold out everywhere else. I had to visit several stores to find them. Though I bought one of each separately, the unit price was quite high. But well, it can’t be helped.

Other items like the Rockstar 710ml Tattoo Artist cans, both Original and Punch flavors, were still available, so they aren’t “phantoms” just yet (becoming a term in the energy drink world). When I visited Vancouver in January 2017, they were sold out everywhere, but now they’re always in stock, so it’s no longer a problem.

Some stores have started carrying the regular Big Star design, so it seems there’s a chance the Tattoo cans will be phased out next year.

On the last day, I found the soon-to-be-discontinued Monster Energy Punch Ripper at a convenience store before heading to the beach. This store had plenty in stock, so there’s a good chance others still do as well. If you don’t have any, I recommend picking some up soon (as of August 2018).

Although most stores close at night except for clubs and bars, convenience stores are open 24 hours, so I was buying about 20 cans each night. I wouldn’t recommend walking around the nightlife area late at night due to the risk of crime or trouble, but as I don’t sleep much during trips, I often went out early morning or at night, bags full of drinks (^_^;)

In Canada, I enjoyed sunsets and beer at the beach and bar, stayed in the best hotel room, received a free coupon for an upscale bar in the hotel, and took advantage of late check-out to fully enjoy my stay. Thanks to the hotel’s thoughtful arrangements, my goal of staying in style was perfectly realized v(´∀｀*v)

I truly realized what a great feature Vancouver has—its proximity to both the city and nature. I had a wonderful time (*´ｪ`*)

Next up, I’ll be heading to the USA!

Heading to America!

This time, I planned my return trip with a layover in America on purpose, so I can enjoy America before heading back home ((o(´∀｀)o))

It was a little over a 3-hour flight starting early in the morning. It's about the same distance as the Tokyo-Guam route. Despite it being such a short flight, I was in business class this time, so I was able to have a proper meal. It’s very appreciated to have a meal served during travel time.

Since my entry into America was completed at the Canadian side, I headed straight to the hotel after leaving the airport. I arrived just after 9 a.m., but was able to check in early and was shown to the best room available, haha! I use hotels under the same group every year, so I can always check in quickly, take my time to check out, and get upgraded to the best room if one is available. For travelers like Drin, who don’t have much time, this is super helpful ε-(´∀｀*)ﾎｯ

So now that I’m all set, it’s time for the American hunting to begin!

Surprised at how Bang is everywhere

If you're into fitness or if you've been to America before, you probably know that Bang wasn’t a mainstream product and wasn’t always available at convenience stores or supermarkets. If you wanted to buy it, you'd typically go to GNC (a very famous supplement store).

However, I was surprised to find Bang available everywhere when I came to LA after 9 months. (I didn’t notice this as much 3 months ago in San Francisco...)

I knew Bang had been expanding its market by collaborating with fitness and model influencers, and establishing its own unique position, but I honestly didn’t think they’d be so successful at expanding distribution.

As I mentioned in the news about Rockstar’s new Xdurance flavors, I completely understand why Rockstar is targeting Bang now.

Look at this display! Can you guess which chain this is from... haha. This is a brand that wasn’t even displayed like this before!

Also, the price isn’t ridiculously high anymore. You can buy it at a normal price. There are an insane number of flavors available, and the speed at which new products are released is beyond imagination.

It feels incredibly luxurious to visit different areas and enjoy the atmosphere of energy drinks, and there’s so much to learn and enjoy. It almost makes me think I should make this my job!

Bang is now available at convenience stores as well, but GNC is still the best. I bought 20 different types, including new releases and design revamps, for only $2 each (*´艸｀*)

Buying energy drinks cheaply

Since I didn’t have much time, I narrowed down the stores I visited. I went into a store I had never been to before, and was able to find Monster singles for $2, and Hydro for a fixed price of $2. Muscle Bottle was $3, but it’s convenient when you don’t have time to buy in sets! It’s especially useful for buying the more expensive JAVA. If you don’t have time to hunt, finding stores like this will help you save time.

Also, I forgot to take a picture, but Kickstart was only $1. That’s cheap. I was able to get the redesigned products and two new ones here. I’ll probably stop by this store again when I’m in LA next time.

Here’s another store. Big bottles of Hydro were $3 for two, or $2.99 for a single bottle. I don’t get why there’s such a small price difference. This is ridiculously cheap. It’s great that you can combine Hydro with Gatorade, too. However, since I was hunting in both Canada and America, I passed on buying unnecessary things, but if I was only in America, I might have bought more of these (；´∀｀)

Buying Limited Editions

Let’s collect the limited edition Monster and Rockstar cans available in America!

Both Monster and Rockstar limited edition cans had just been released, so they weren’t yet available everywhere, which was a bit disappointing.

That being said, Monster was gradually showing up in stores. They had the Low Carb ones, but the Abs Zero was the normal version. By the way, this store lets you combine Monster and Rockstar products for set discounts. Pretty nice~ (*´ｪ`*)

24oz only had the original version. Well, it’s understandable right after a product release. By the way, I didn’t see any of the new Rockstar Destiny 2 cans. Guess I wasn’t lucky this time…

By the way, I mentioned last year that I found Rockstar’s Pure Zero Mandarin Orange in Los Angeles as the first release, but that was actually a mistake. I had realized this after some time, but I thought it’d be better to confirm it in person before writing it. So I’m correcting it now. This “Mandarin Orange” black top is the current product (August 2018). The previous release was the silver top, and even earlier, the “Orange Mandarin” came with both silver and black tops. It's a bit confusing, haha (^_^;)

At the time, I think the second release had just started appearing in stores, so only first releases were available in most stores. That’s why I ended up grabbing the Mandarin Orange with the black top first… I apologize for the confusion!

By August 2018, five different designs of Mandarin Orange had been released. It’s rare for such a product to have so many different designs in such a short time. If you happen to spot these, make sure to compare the designs!

Anyway, I got a little off-topic there.

I headed back to the hotel to drop off my energy drinks. I bought quite a lot, haha!

From here on, the intense hunting is over, and I switched to enjoying my usual LA time. If I happen to find anything I don’t have while shopping, I’ll pick it up.

There was a new Plus Red flavor, but I felt like I had bought enough already, so I’ll get it next time... This can is always so stylish!

Went into a supermarket.

Went into a convenience store.

I also spent some time in the hotel pool (which had a nice vacation-style design), went to a bar, ate some junk food... and really enjoyed America (●´ω｀●) Even though it was a short trip, I feel like I made the most of my time in North America.

When you’re bound by restrictions or conditions, figuring out how to enjoy your trip to the fullest makes it even more fun. I really felt that this time.

So, even though my hunting was pretty fast this time, I hope you still enjoyed the energy drink traveler vibe! ( ´∀｀)bｸﾞｯ!