Sustainable healthy food consumption in tourism yields reciprocal benefits for tourists, food service providers, local communities, and the environment. However, its complex determinants call for a new practice-based conceptual framework to explore how such consumption occurs and evolves during self-catering holidays. Unlike all-inclusive tours, self-catering holidays uniquely mirror ‘normal’ home living, engaging tourists in the entire food consumption journey. Thematic analysis of 28 in-depth interviews reveals how holiday dynamics, conceptualized as holiday appropriation steps, influence the evolution of sustainable healthy self-catering practices. ‘Nesting’ within the self-catering setting encourages convenient meal preparation and adherence to dietary preferences, both of which require sufficient cooking skills and suitable kitchen facilities. ‘Investigating’ the destination’s food environment enables sustainable healthy choices when options are accessible, affordable, and aligned with self-caterers’ preferences and waste management expectations. Finally, ‘stamping’ through shared experiences and cultural immersion can embed local elements into tourists’ sustainable healthy self-catering practices.