Cruising vegan

Going on my first cruise as a vegan and first RC cruise. Any advice or help would be great. How easy will it be and should I bring some stuff with me ? Hoping it won't be too hard to find stuff to eat in the dining room and buffet. Thanks

Heya, I've got a friend who runs a website called http://www.vegancruiser.co.uk which might be useful for you.

She's never had any problem on cruise ships, the food looks so yummy! I think you'll be just fine :)

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Heya, I've got a friend who runs a website called http://www.vegancruiser.co.uk which might be useful for you.

 

She's never had any problem on cruise ships, the food looks so yummy! I think you'll be just fine :)

 

 

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Thank you. I will check it out.

Going on my first cruise as a vegan and first RC cruise. Any advice or help would be great. How easy will it be and should I bring some stuff with me ? Hoping it won't be too hard to find stuff to eat in the dining room and buffet. Thanks

I'm vegan and not had an issue with eating. Biggest thing is to tell them the first night in the dining room.

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You don't eat meat...so don't eat meat! If you do the "special needs" thing in advance, they can direct you to foods that have no meat products in them.

DW is vegetarian, so she had a somewhat broader selection of options than you might. I third the "talk to the head waiter/let your needs be known ahead of time" advice; most lines can adjust/adapt/modify many dishes to vegan standards or provide alternatives. Good luck, and let the rest of us know how your choice of lines stood up to your expectations and needs.

(pssst...cb at sea...vegetarians don't eat fish, meat and some animal-related products. Vegans do not eat any animal-related products, including dairy, eggs, honey, or other similar things. A wee bit more difficult to deal with on a cruise.)

You don't eat meat...so don't eat meat! If you do the "special needs" thing in advance, they can direct you to foods that have no meat products in them.

Did you know that the op can't have croutons?. Did you know pretty much every salad dressing except oil and vinegar have dairy in it? Good luck with the salads. Definitely can't have Caesar.... eggs, fish, cheese. Did you know they also can't have any cakes, cookies, pudding, any any dessert of any kind on the ship besides just fruit?. Better make sure that fruit doesn't have whipped cream on it. Also no gelato. And no protein bars. And some of the granola has dairy in it too. Did you know that everything but the purest of dark chocolate has milk in it? Even some dark chocolate itself.

Being vegan isn't just not eating meat. My doctor has me on a dairy free diet right now and you wouldn't believe where hidden dairy lies.

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I was pescatarian on my last cruise and that was hard but not as hard as dairy free will be. I always make it work so I'm sure a cruise will be no different. I've always heard the kitchen will pretty much make anything you want, especially if you have dietary restrictions I'm sure they're even more accepting. If you start off in the main dining room on your first day and talk to the maitre d and as long as you're in the same dining room every night I bet will take care of you by request and put something together for you.

Also indian night will be very easy! That's one of my favorites already but now it really will lol.

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Thank you. So many people think vegan and vegetarian are the same thing but they are wrong. I have cruise three other times as a vegetarian. Easy peasy. But it is much harder to avoid dairy because it is hidden in everything. Even stuff that makes no sense for it to be in. Glad to get some helpful advice from the more informed cruisers. Just trying to figure it all out.

Just got back from the freedom. The MDR was rubbish unless you want Indian all bar one night. That said Lido was good and we were never hungry. We did chefs table which they made vegan and it was amazing and I will have a full review up

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Don't assume anything is vegan- especially at the buffet, where you should always ask a chef to show you which items are OK for vegans.

On Allure (one of Oasis' sister ships), the head chef at the buffet told me that none of the pasta or pasta sauces on the ship were vegan, all of the vegetables at the buffet had butter, the rice had butter, and there was only one bread on the ship (a plain roll) which was vegan. He offered to make me a dish whenever I came to the buffet- sautéed glass noodles, tofu, and vegetables of my choosing- whenever I came to the buffet (it was delicious). That, with some raw veggies and fruit, made for a very filling meal.

I also enjoyed vegan sushi at Izumi- but I made sure to go at an off hour, when I could explain my needs, including that they use a separate knife and mat to prepare my food. They also told me which other items on their menu were vegan.

An occasional treat was sorbet at the ice cream parlor, but you have to clarify that it is actually sorbet.

Sometimes, on some of RCI's ships, on one or two nights of the cruise, there is a vegan entree on the MDR menu- one is vegan meatball, and the other sweet and sour vegan chicken. They aren't bad, especially after several days of not having a hearty main course.

I used to be a very vocal cheerleader for cruising vegan on RCI, but then had a bad experience on Rhapsody on a Med cruise. That was preceded by a couple of cruises on Explorer which were a bit of a struggle for the first few days, but then were great, especially in the MDR. So now I say that vegans may find their food experience varies by ship, including how the dining staff responds to any issues you are encountering.

Echo the especially in the MDR sentiment

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How do you know if someone is a vegan? Don't worry they will tell you

How do you know if someone is a vegan? Don't worry they will tell you

Hey welcome to our thread where we went to talk without bugging all you flesh eaters with our lifestyle.

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How do you know if someone is a vegan? Don't worry they will tell you

I'm going to hope that you are vegan and you did this ironically. Haha. Otherwise why did you feel the need to click on this link.

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Actually that is so not true and so stupid when people say that. Many people I am around have no idea I am. Unless you are going out to eat with me or inviting me out to dinner I don't randomly tell people. Comments like that just make you look stupid since you went out of your way to click on this to say that.

Posted my chef's table experience in the Carnival forum

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Just wanted to pop in and thank everybody who responded to the question i was about to ask! Nice to see other vegan cruisers making this more mainstream, too!

So my husband and I are now going on a cruise in 37 days! Never booked one so last minute or without children before. So I have two cruises booked! The one in 37 days is a carnival so doing more research on them for vegan eating. Cruised once on them as a vegetarian. I think over the year vegan options will be popping up more.

My wife is vegan and we sail Royal often---the best bet is the windjammer---many nights they have a choose your ingredient stir fry station-----also soy milk is usually available at the drink stations (have to ask)---the main dining room tries real ahrd but unless your at a table for two you can really hold up some other folks dinner

we're actually doing an all vegan cruise this fall---vegan chefs, speakers, toiletries, all vegan buffet and main dining room---also vegan speciality restaurant

hope this helps

Paul

My wife is vegan and we sail Royal often---the best bet is the windjammer---many nights they have a choose your ingredient stir fry station-----also soy milk is usually available at the drink stations (have to ask)---the main dining room tries real ahrd but unless your at a table for two you can really hold up some other folks dinner

we're actually doing an all vegan cruise this fall---vegan chefs, speakers, toiletries, all vegan buffet and main dining room---also vegan speciality restaurant

 

hope this helps

Paul

I'll do that all vegan cruise one day

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In the past I have either given up being vegan entirely (eaten fish one cruise, and meat the next) or been vegetarian for the length of the cruise. I'm getting a bit apprehensive about this next cruise because it's a B2B on Carnival- that's 15 straight days with my 18 year old. It gets a little lonely, just a little. He does his own thing and I do a lot of reading and tanning and sleeping and hanging out. But the dairy laden food sort of calls to me. The Danish, the breakfast burritos (egg), the cheesecake. It's just a long time to be away. My plan on this next cruise is to start out vegan and if I crack and go vegetarian, so be it. I'm at a place in my life where there is no way I would go back to meat or fish, no way. Zero. But baked goods- I can see it happening,

Just jumped on here for some moral support and ideas- thanks-

But baked goods- I can see it happening,

 

Just jumped on here for some moral support and ideas- thanks-

Loads of moral support, and some suggestions, too :-)

- One thing you can do is bring some vegan snacks on board with you, so that if you find yourself on the verge of caving in but would prefer not to, you can reach for something from your stash instead of one of the ship's danishes. I haven't been to a Whole Foods in a couple of years, but they had a nice selection of vegan baked goods. I enjoyed their donuts and danishes very much, and usually found some yummy treats in their refrigerated bakery area, too. (If you run out during the first cruise, you can use turnaround day to restock :-)).

- Try finding some vegan treats in ports. If you are cruising the Caribbean, it can be a fresh fruit smoothie with a coconut milk base. Or a fruit you don't see in your local area. Use your veganism as a reason to do some exploring and talking to locals, in a quest to find unique vegan treats. Use the website happycow.net to find vegan and vegetarian restaurants and stores in your ports of call. Or go into a bakery or small restaurant and ask if they have anything vegan.

- I've found Carnival to be especially vegan friendly, and although I never tried it, some vegan cruisers have reported that the chef made them terrific vegan desserts. When they bring you the next night's menu, ask if it would be possible to get a baked dessert.

But most of all, eat what makes you most comfortable and indulgent. Maybe spend the first couple of days on the ship, before your cravings hit, to discover what sweet options are available, so that when you want to indulge you are prepared with several treats to chose from.

HTH!

Ruth

Loads of moral support, and some suggestions, too :-)

 

- One thing you can do is bring some vegan snacks on board with you, so that if you find yourself on the verge of caving in but would prefer not to, you can reach for something from your stash instead of one of the ship's danishes. I haven't been to a Whole Foods in a couple of years, but they had a nice selection of vegan baked goods. I enjoyed their donuts and danishes very much, and usually found some yummy treats in their refrigerated bakery area, too. (If you run out during the first cruise, you can use turnaround day to restock :-)).

 

- Try finding some vegan treats in ports. If you are cruising the Caribbean, it can be a fresh fruit smoothie with a coconut milk base. Or a fruit you don't see in your local area. Use your veganism as a reason to do some exploring and talking to locals, in a quest to find unique vegan treats. Use the website happycow.net to find vegan and vegetarian restaurants and stores in your ports of call. Or go into a bakery or small restaurant and ask if they have anything vegan.

 

- I've found Carnival to be especially vegan friendly, and although I never tried it, some vegan cruisers have reported that the chef made them terrific vegan desserts. When they bring you the next night's menu, ask if it would be possible to get a baked dessert.

 

But most of all, eat what makes you most comfortable and indulgent. Maybe spend the first couple of days on the ship, before your cravings hit, to discover what sweet options are available, so that when you want to indulge you are prepared with several treats to chose from.

 

HTH!

 

Ruth

Thank you! Don't forget, I'm on a Carnival ship for 15 days. The point is not what snacks I can bring, it's will I survive? 😂😂😂

I'm sure I'll be ok. Vegan is my strong goal but I can live with a little dairy. Things tend to change when I've been at sea for a while, plans change, rigid rules fall by the wayside.

Thank you! Don't forget, I'm on a Carnival ship for 15 days. The point is not what snacks I can bring, it's will I survive? 😂😂😂

I did the Breeze transatlantic a few years ago; I think it was 16 days. We had a few ports in Spain and the Canaries before heading across the Atlantic, with almost week at sea with no ports to pick up vegan snacks or food. Not only did I do fine, I did GREAT. Not just in regards to food (but, OMG I was so well fed!!! And the entire food services staff shipwide, in every dining venue including every station at the buffet, was vegan knowledgeable and vegan friendly), but also in terms of incredible customer service all around. You'll not only survive, they'll have to drag you off the ship at the end because you will not want to leave. Each of my Carnival cruises has been great (and I've cruised several lines, including getting to Diamond status n RCI, so I've 'been around' ;)).