Gluten Free

[Ralph Landis]

Has any one sailed with HAL that needs a Gluten free diet???

My wife can not eat any wheat products.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

HAL has a Gluten Free menu -- you can call Ship Services at 1-800-541-1576 and ask them to send you the menu.

[luv2cruisenz]

In the Lido at breakfast there are toasters designated for GF breads only. I know they have GF bread & english muffins as well.

[northernphoenix]

We met our newest BFF's on the Baltic Rotterdam in 2011. DW had a gluten intolerance and the staff took very good care of her...even gave her a personal breakfast cereal box to bring to the Lido

 

 

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[KirkNC]

Welcome to Cruise Critic!

[cruisinjudy]

I haven't done my gluten free on HAL yet, only on Princess.I am wondering how the gluten free food is on HAL. On Princess I got great pasta and some good desserts but the bread, not so much.

[AlohaPride]

Make sure to try the flourless chocolate cake!! It's sooooo good!!

[cruisinjudy]

Thanks, Mary, I will!

[Miss Moe]

Hi, I have not sailed with HAL before. My daughter and I will be going on the Alaska Cruise Sept 8th. She too is strict gluten free. I was told when booking that her meal would be planned accordingly. I am sure you have requested this for her, but if not I would call them and let them know. I am not sure how that will work on the buffets though. If your cruise is after ours, I will let you know how it works out.

[specialdiet]

We've done gluten free on HAL, it went mostly ok, and we never actually ended up ingesting gluten-containing food.

 

A few things to note:

 

1. Good thing you told them in advance. But in practice, that doesn't mean a lot once you get onboard.

 

2. First thing once you get onboard, talk to the Maitre d' and explain your exact dietary needs and how important it is (i.e. how sensitive you are to exposure). They'll talk to you about pre-ordering your meals, and provide you info on products they have available and where to ask for them.

 

3. At the buffet, ask to talk to the head chef, who will walk you through things; get him/her to explain about cross-contamination.

 

4. We found on HAL more than other lines we sailed that staff knowledge about gluten free diets varied considerably, and though most of the staff were pretty good, some of the staff (a) didn't know certain things, (b) knew things that were wrong, or © treated gluten free diets as an annoyance to them, rather than something real.

 

5. Be vigilant with food you're given, ask questions, and be prepared to send things back if wrong. Discuss any mistakes, particularly repeat mistakes, with supervisors. Several times we had incorrectly prepared dishes presented to us.

[Mumsysailor]

Welcome to Cruise Critic! :) Ralph Landis and Miss Moe!

I'm sure as long as you let HAL know in advance and do as Specialdiet recommended you'll be fine.

 

Enjoy your respective cruises.

 

Mumsy.