Worried about food allergies.

We will be sailing on the NA soon. I thought I had looked at menus when considering cruise lines but apparently I didn't look at this line, and this is where we wended up. We can not eat shellfish, fish, pork, or nuts. This seems to eliminate 95% of what is served in the Main Dining Room. Will they accommodate us with something simple like steak/potatoes/veggies or chicken/potatoes/veggies (this would make us happy)? Everything on the dessert menu seems to contain nuts. Will they even have desserts for us?

Has anyone safely dined with food allergies on the NA? Too late to turn back now, so we will have to make do.

At least we won't have to worry about gaining weight on this cruise!

Make sure you notify in advance and they should easily accommodate that

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Make sure you notify in advance and they should easily accommodate that

 

 

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Thanks. I did mark it in our reservation (one of the advantages of being our own travel agent!). So we will be able to order food "off menu"? We do like the atmosphere of a Main Dining Room but we can't eat most of what's on the NA menu. We've sailed Disney Cruise Line and their menu had very little seafood or pork or nuts or there were just more options that we liked, so this just wasn't an issue before.

Grenouille21, I think that you'll find this link very useful: https://www.hollandamerica.com/blog/topics/food-beverage/special-dietary-needs-its-easy-to-cruise-with-holland-america-line/ Do phone the number provided.

In my experience, I'd say that those items comprise less than 25% of your menu choices on any given day, and you'll have lots of other offerings from which to pick.

Grenouille21, I think that you'll find this link very useful: https://www.hollandamerica.com/blog/topics/food-beverage/special-dietary-needs-its-easy-to-cruise-with-holland-america-line/ Do phone the number provided.

 

In my experience, I'd say that those items comprise less than 25% of your menu choices on any given day, and you'll have lots of other offerings from which to pick.

Thanks! I'll call them.

Hmmm, 4/5 desserts on any given night contain nuts, and at least half the appetizers and entrees contain seafood, nuts, or pork, so I think your "less than 25%" estimate is a bit off. At least on the 7 MDR menus from the NA I have seen. Also all 3 of us will have to be airlifted to the hospital if my daughter ingests even one bite of a nut, so we can't really just "pick them out" or "push them to the side" as some people might suggest. We need them to be nowhere near our food. But thanks for the phone number. Hopefully they can put my mind at ease.

Thanks! I'll call them.

 

Hmmm, 4/5 desserts on any given night contain nuts, and at least half the appetizers and entrees contain seafood, nuts, or pork, so I think your "less than 25%" estimate is a bit off. At least on the 7 MDR menus from the NA I have seen. Also all 3 of us will have to be airlifted to the hospital if my daughter ingests even one bite of a nut, so we can't really just "pick them out" or "push them to the side" as some people might suggest. We need them to be nowhere near our food. But thanks for the phone number. Hopefully they can put my mind at ease.

There is a fruit crisp served every night that has no nuts in it. There is a soufflé at least one night. Balsamic strawberries another night. Ice cream sundaes are served without nuts. I have not seen the menus you are looking at, but I have at least one dessert every night (sometimes two, but who is counting/looking?) and none have ever contained nuts. Having said that, I would never go on a cruise if one bite of a nut would mean that I would have to be airlifted to a hospital. If time is of the essence, that sounds like a death sentence.

As for the main courses, I do not eat seafood and can't remember ever ordering pork, so I'm pretty sure I have had plenty of choices on our 25 or so HAL cruises. I have had steak, duck breast, mushroom risotto, bucatini, lamb, vegetable curry and prime rib. (On surf and turf night you can easily order turf and turf)

For the appetizers, there are soups and salads galore -- goat cheese/tomato tarts, brie in phyllo, etc. etc. etc.

There is a fruit crisp served every night that has no nuts in it. There is a soufflé at least one night. Balsamic strawberries another night. Ice cream sundaes are served without nuts. I have not seen the menus you are looking at, but I have at least one dessert every night (sometimes two, but who is counting/looking?) and none have ever contained nuts. Having said that, I would never go on a cruise if one bite of a nut would mean that I would have to be airlifted to a hospital. If time is of the essence, that sounds like a death sentence.

 

As for the main courses, I do not eat seafood and can't remember ever ordering pork, so I'm pretty sure I have had plenty of choices on our 25 or so HAL cruises. I have had steak, duck breast, mushroom risotto, bucatini, lamb, vegetable curry and prime rib. (On surf and turf night you can easily order turf and turf)

 

For the appetizers, there are soups and salads galore -- goat cheese/tomato tarts, brie in phyllo, etc. etc. etc.

We've been on 2 ships and dined at countless resorts and restaurants without incident so it is 100% possible to be safe with food allergies. Anyone can develop a life-threatening food allergy at any time. At least we are smart enough to carry life-saving medicine on us. I worry more for the people who are caught by surprise by an allergy after their 40th shrimp or nut dish and have to rush to the hospital since they don't carry an epi-pen.

It sounds like we will be able to order food that suits our needs, despite the seafood and nut-heavy menus on our sailing.

[quote name=

Also all 3 of us will have to be airlifted to the hospital if my daughter ingests even one bite of a nut,ease.[/quote]

What about being around people eating nuts, or people that have nuts in your next door cabin?

We often travel with a bag of nuts.

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OP: I find your descriptions of HAL menus inconsistent with what we have personally experienced on board. Best that you ratchet back your exaggerated concerns in order to work reasonably with HAL who will want to meet your needs, as best they can. Or pick another controlled environment vacation option where you don't have to worry about needing a threesome medical evacuation should you find a single offending food source in your proximal vicinity.

OP, here's a collection from a 2018 14-day Alaska cruise: http://www.rogerjett-photography.com/specialty-2/specifc-cruise-lido-and-mdr-menus/hal-alaska14-day-2018-menus

I haven't gone through every single menu, but there is a lot of choice avoiding those foods to which your family has allergies. In the MDR, there's also an "available very day" selection that includes a soup, a salad and two mains (chicken and steak). There is only one item (fish) that you couldn't order.

We were on NA three months ago for Caribbean cruise. I did not eat shellfish, pork in MDR by choice, and don't recall eating anything with nuts. No food allergies here. I don't recall desserts with nuts...there was a good range of choices. Menu might have been different from summer routes.

We are not required to eat in MDR. You might feel better about eating at Lido Market cafeteria, where you can see the foods. Some nights we wish we had, as the MDR did not impress us.

OP, the menus change nightly, did you not see anything you would order for dinner on ANY menu? What do you do when you stay in a hotel and must rely upon various restaurants?

Every night, the dinner menu has a steak, Vegetarian offering and almost always some thing chicken

OP - It's not enough to "mark it" on your reservation. You need to fill in the special form that HAL supplies. I have severe nut allergies, and HAL accommodates me the best of all lines I have sailed. When I arrive in my suite, there is a letter acknowledging my concerns, and I take time to meet with the Maitre D'. Meals are pre-selected from menus, and I understand that there is a section of the galley which prepares these special meals. I always take my epipens, but, with that minimal amount of caution, I have never had to use them.

Take the time to complete the forms!

Sorry wrong post

I was just on the Zuiderdam in April, and I told HAL before cruising that I had a shellfish allergy. (Also same on NCL a year ago). On first night waiter asked again about allergy. Every night from that night on, he gave me the menu for the following night, and I picked what I wanted. My meal came after the rest of my table had been served, so I presume that my food was cooked or checked separately.

It was done in an unobtrusive way, and I never felt singled out. In the Lido, I went to the pasta station several days, and ordered what I wanted on my pasta, and asked that my mushrooms be sautéed in a clean pan, since shrimp was an offering for serving with the pasta. Very simple, and even on one occasion, the lady in front of me ordered gluten free pasta. If I was uncertain about anything in the Lido, I just asked and always got a friendly, helpful answer.

On the night that surf and turf was served, I ordered it with an emphasis of no lobster. Imagine my surprise when I got two filets!

I cannot see any problem with desserts. There is always ice cream, and always some sort of crisp. For appetizers, I usually had one of the chilled soups (one of my favorites on HAL), but I felt there was plenty from which to choose I and I don’t remember an abundance of nut type dishes.

Talk to the special needs department and I am sure that you will feel that HAL is more than willing to accommodate you.

We will be sailing on the NA soon. I thought I had looked at menus when considering cruise lines but apparently I didn't look at this line, and this is where we wended up. We can not eat shellfish, fish, pork, or nuts. This seems to eliminate 95% of what is served in the Main Dining Room. Will they accommodate us with something simple like steak/potatoes/veggies or chicken/potatoes/veggies (this would make us happy)? Everything on the dessert menu seems to contain nuts. Will they even have desserts for us?

 

 

 

Has anyone safely dined with food allergies on the NA? Too late to turn back now, so we will have to make do.

 

 

 

At least we won't have to worry about gaining weight on this cruise!

I cruised NA with a nut allergy. I’d listed it in the special form prior to embarking, and also gave the head waiter or and waiter a written list with that and a few other preferences. They give you the next days menu to fill out for breakfast and lunch. I even asked them to do things like removing the nuts from the sundae, etc. some dishes were beyond them, like sauce with nuts already mixed in. Or no banana bread, due to the nuts.

Rotterdam and noordam even sent us a menu to our cabin a few times, but not NA. On our b2b, the first waiter did much better than the waiter on the second leg. All wait until the end of the meal to bring the menu.

In Club Class dining on the Emerald Princess, the head waiter handled my allergies, by bringing (much to our delight) the menus at the beginning of the meal. But got to be careful, we had a hazelnut dish, that we were told had walnuts.

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We were a family of 14 on the Rotterdam, 7 adults and 7 children. In our group we had 3 lactose intolerant ( they order mashed potatoes every night). One person with a citrus allergy, and one anaphylactic to all legumes, all nut and peanut, and shell fish, fresh water and salt water fish. No problems with food at all. Everyone left the table well fed.

Not all desserts contain. If you do see something that you really like they will make it for you, just make sure you pick your evening meal by 9 a.m. Make sure you call Special Services 1-800-541-1576

I cruised NA with a nut allergy. I’d listed it in the special form prior to embarking, and also gave the head waiter or and waiter a written list with that and a few other preferences. They give you the next days menu to fill out for breakfast and lunch. I even asked them to do things like removing the nuts from the sundae, etc. some dishes were beyond them, like sauce with nuts already mixed in. Or no banana bread, due to the nuts.

 

Rotterdam and noordam even sent us a menu to our cabin a few times, but not NA. On our b2b, the first waiter did much better than the waiter on the second leg. All wait until the end of the meal to bring the menu.

 

In Club Class dining on the Emerald Princess, the head waiter handled my allergies, by bringing (much to our delight) the menus at the beginning of the meal. But got to be careful, we had a hazelnut dish, that we were told had walnuts.

 

 

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We were a family of 14 on the Rotterdam, 7 adults and 7 children. In our group we had 3 lactose intolerant ( they order mashed potatoes every night). One person with a citrus allergy, and one anaphylactic to all legumes, all nut and peanut, and shell fish, fresh water and salt water fish. No problems with food at all. Everyone left the table well fed.

Not all desserts contain. If you do see something that you really like they will make it for you, just make sure you pick your evening meal by 9 a.m. Make sure you call Special Services 1-800-541-1576

Thank you to everyone above who posted helpful information! Where is this special form for allergies? Is it on the HAL website?

Thank you to everyone above who posted helpful information! Where is this special form for allergies? Is it on the HAL website?

Here you go: https://book.hollandamerica.com/specialServices/login.action

Here you go: https://book.hollandamerica.com/specialServices/login.action

Thanks!

We were a family of 14 on the Rotterdam, 7 adults and 7 children. In our group we had 3 lactose intolerant ( they order mashed potatoes every night). One person with a citrus allergy, and one anaphylactic to all legumes, all nut and peanut, and shell fish, fresh water and salt water fish. No problems with food at all. Everyone left the table well fed.

Not all desserts contain. If you do see something that you really like they will make it for you, just make sure you pick your evening meal by 9 a.m. Make sure you call Special Services 1-800-541-1576

EXCELLent post.

HAL serves tens of thousands o f meals a day, day after day and are so experienced and motivated in the care given to food allergies and medical restrictions. THEy get an overwhelming A + in his area , IMO ONe must always be careful and aware despite the fine care and attention HAL provides.

I have cruised with HAL for over 30 years, and I have always had my allergies complied with. I of course had my Travel Agent send a list of my allergies to HAL prior to my boarding the ship, spoke to the Concierge to make sure they knew about them when I boarded and also asked the waiter if they were aware of my allergies. I also wear a Medic Alert bracelet. I hope that you enjoy your cruise.

Thanks. I've filled out the form online, and it is still noted in our cruise reservation through HAL. I'll call the phone number when they are open, and of course I know to talk to the servers in the restaurants. I am feeling better about it today. Just wanted to make sure they are as accommodating as other cruise lines, restaurants, and resorts, and it sounds like they are.

Thanks. I've filled out the form online, and it is still noted in our cruise reservation through HAL. I'll call the phone number when they are open, and of course I know to talk to the servers in the restaurants. I am feeling better about it today. Just wanted to make sure they are as accommodating as other cruise lines, restaurants, and resorts, and it sounds like they are.

Your concern is quite understandable. One of the huge benefits of Cruise Critic is that you can get the information and reassurance that isn't always easily obtained from a cruise line unless you know where to turn. I hope you have a safe and enjoyable cruise!

No food allergies in my family but my son is vegan which can present challenges when traveling. In addition to filling out the form I would suggest speaking to the Maitre' D upon embarkation. We are always provided with menus a day in advance and my son is able to order the night before. I have found it also helps to have fixed seating as your waiter will be familiar with your restrictions.