How does gluten free dining work on embarkation day?

Recently diagnosed with non-celiac gluten sensitivity and already notified HAL of my need for a Gluten Free diet now I'm curious how does it work on embarkation day on the Oosterdam for both lunch and dinner?

I would contact the "special needs" dept. prior to sailing, and once onboard, introduce yourself to the head waiter or, if in the buffet, ask to see the manager...they can direct you to the proper foods.

The fresh pasta station on the Lido has the gluten free options for all meals.

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Learning more about accuracy of gluten-sensitivity testing: https://www.beyondceliac.org/celiac-disease/non-celiac-gluten-sensitivity/gluten-sensitivity-testing/

Embarkation days can be the rough.

How soon is your cruise? If it is 60 days out -- HAL should contact you as you sen them an e-mail.

If I were you, I would call Ship Services on Tuesday (Monday is a holiday) and notify them personally.

1-800-541-1576

In the MDR for dinner, the 'always available' dishes can be prepared gluten free for dinner. The Pinnacle Grill would also be able to accommodate you.

My wife has non-celiac gluten sensitivity and has had the steak and salmon on the first night.

I cruised on the Oosterdam a couple of weeks ago with a friend who has Celiac disease. We boarded after the MDR was closed but the culinary manager, (I think he was called) told us to ask for the lido manager(cook with the taller white hat) and he could direct us. We did not seek him out as we found it quite easy to find things for her to eat. Salad, roast meat, steamed fish, etc. She did ask about a few things and the staff seemed to have a good idea of whether or not things were prepared with flour, wheat or other gluten containing ingredients. She did have some worries about cross contamination, but did not have any adverse reactions the entire cruise. We ate all breakfasts and lunches in the lido and all dinners in the MDR. The Dinners were handled very well, our waiter and assistant were wonderful. Each evening they reviewed the next days menu with my friend and assisted her in making GF selections or modifications as appropriate. I would say, if you have a good idea of what you can eat and make them aware of your restrictions, you will find they are very good at accommodating you.

Embarkation day is new and exciting for the new passengers. But there are always some passengers that stay on the ship. The staff deal with one ship load of passengers for breakfast and then by dinner a new group is on board. Every group has some with allergies. We just got off a 28 day cruise. Whenever the staff serving us introduced themselves they always asked about allergies and sensitivity.

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I would think that avoiding gluten should be relatively easy. Fruit, vegetables, meat, seafood, dairy, and beans (nuts) are readily available on a cruise ship. Are you seeking gluten substitutes, like GF bread and pasta?

Embarkation day we always go straight to dining room for lunch. Waitstaff will guide your menu choice to make sure you are okay and GF. At dinner the first might you may be limited to the chicken, fish or steak and salad and baked potato. Keep an open mind. Then at the end of the meal you will choose your next night's meal so it will be GF. Lido has GF choice, and lately on Koningsdam a stayion of GF breads, cookies, desserts, etc which was fantastic! Make sure you contact ship's services n advance so the know you require GF meals. HAL is very good with GF knowledge and cooperation.