Food Allergies Questions

[hennaLisa]

I am hoping someone here has some experience cruising with kids with numerous dietary restrictions and can give me some advice. Please, if you just want to be rude, don't comment. If you haven't lived with these issues, you just can't understand what it is like.

 

My kids have numerous major food allergies and eat a restricted diet as a result. I make most everything for them from scratch, including things like gluten free, grain free, dairy free, sugar free baked goods. They can eat normal meat, vegetables, nuts, and fruit, but won't be able to eat any of the grains or desserts that the cruise provides. When we've gone to resorts, I could just use the microwave to cook them their special things so they don't feel left out. But on the cruise, I realize we won't have access to cook anything. 

 

Having children with special needs and dietary restrictions can easily consume all my and my husband's time and energy. I need some suggestions about how we can make the dietary stuff go as smoothly and easily as possible. I've spent hours with the cruise line and talked with the access department and I've gotten such varied responses. "All food must be prepackaged and non-perishable." "Bring your baking mix and the chefs will prepare the children's baked goods." "Prepared food must be pre-cooked and frozen so we just warm it up for you." "There are microwaves located at the buffet." "There are no microwaves on the ship, even in the kitchens." The answers I get are all over the place.

 

In my ideal world, I could bring some of my kids' special foods already cooked, such as papadam crackers and chocolate muffins. I'd have them in a small cooler and just give them to my kids as needed. Secondly, I would bring some ingredients to make simple things. For instance, they can drink Bai drinks, which come in 18 fl. oz. bottles. I would bring a few flavors to let them split a drink once in a while and I would bring little zipcicle bags to make icepop-type frozen treats. I'd fill the bags with Bai drinks and put them in the freezer or maybe I could put them in a small cooler with a lot of ice overnight to freeze into a slushy texture? I could bring So Delicious dairy free sugar free ice cream if the cruise would let us keep it frozen. I could also bring my baking mix if I could give the cooks instructions (1 cup mix, 4 eggs, 1/4 cup oil, 1/4 cup coconut milk, can be made into pancakes, waffles, etc.). Would this work?

 

Thanks for any ideas or suggestions.

 

[sararebekahquinn]

I am not sure about bringing food/having them cook, since I do not have experience with that. 

 

I do have shellfish, tree nut, and strawberry allergy. I have been on 3 Carnival cruises with these allergies. I have never had a problem with my allergies. When I get aboard the ship, I go to the dining room to meet with the maitre d. They go through the menu and help me make choices for that night's dinner. Then, every night at dinner, the waiter takes my order for breakfast and dinner the next day. They are available to answer questions, etc. 

My recommendation is not getting anytime dining, so that the waiters are familiar with your kids dietary needs. 

Hope this helps. 

[hennaLisa]

Thanks for the info. When we signed up, the only time available was anytime dining, so that is what we have. I was thinking it would have been nice to have the same waiters so they would get to know us.

 

[sararebekahquinn]

I would call Carnival and explain. It is worth a try, and maybe they will change your dinner seating. 

[Mrs.C05]

1 hour ago, hennaLisa said:

I am hoping someone here has some experience cruising with kids with numerous dietary restrictions and can give me some advice. Please, if you just want to be rude, don't comment. If you haven't lived with these issues, you just can't understand what it is like.

 

My kids have numerous major food allergies and eat a restricted diet as a result. I make most everything for them from scratch, including things like gluten free, grain free, dairy free, sugar free baked goods. They can eat normal meat, vegetables, nuts, and fruit, but won't be able to eat any of the grains or desserts that the cruise provides. When we've gone to resorts, I could just use the microwave to cook them their special things so they don't feel left out. But on the cruise, I realize we won't have access to cook anything. 

 

Having children with special needs and dietary restrictions can easily consume all my and my husband's time and energy. I need some suggestions about how we can make the dietary stuff go as smoothly and easily as possible. I've spent hours with the cruise line and talked with the access department and I've gotten such varied responses. "All food must be prepackaged and non-perishable." "Bring your baking mix and the chefs will prepare the children's baked goods." "Prepared food must be pre-cooked and frozen so we just warm it up for you." "There are microwaves located at the buffet." "There are no microwaves on the ship, even in the kitchens." The answers I get are all over the place.

 

In my ideal world, I could bring some of my kids' special foods already cooked, such as papadam crackers and chocolate muffins. I'd have them in a small cooler and just give them to my kids as needed. Secondly, I would bring some ingredients to make simple things. For instance, they can drink Bai drinks, which come in 18 fl. oz. bottles. I would bring a few flavors to let them split a drink once in a while and I would bring little zipcicle bags to make icepop-type frozen treats. I'd fill the bags with Bai drinks and put them in the freezer or maybe I could put them in a small cooler with a lot of ice overnight to freeze into a slushy texture? I could bring So Delicious dairy free sugar free ice cream if the cruise would let us keep it frozen. I could also bring my baking mix if I could give the cooks instructions (1 cup mix, 4 eggs, 1/4 cup oil, 1/4 cup coconut milk, can be made into pancakes, waffles, etc.). Would this work?

 

Thanks for any ideas or suggestions.

 

Hi there! My nephew has severe food allergies so I know exactly what you're talking about in needing to feel most comfortable in taking a cruise while still being able to feed your child. My sister is also what we thought had Gluten allergy, but come to find out has Celiac Disease (she is very careful of what she orders and speaks to the chef as well and she also brings her own snacks).

 

In your post above, the only thing that is true is "All food must be prepackaged and non-perishable." My sister was able to bring on frozen foods, snacks, drinks (mainly pre-packaged and non-perishable foods) for my nephews foods." There are no microwaves except in the galley/kitchen. When my son was smaller and was a very picky eater, I had taken black beans with me, but they could not hold the can, so I had to take it back with me to the room to keep in the mini-fridge.

 

If you want to PM/DM me, feel free. I had to climb the ladder with Carnival on what could be brought on the ship and the cooler size. I cannot PM/DM you for some reason so I don't know if it's me or CruiseCritic. If you cannot, you can just email icare at carnival dot com to get specifics. A very nice lady names Sonia Iglesias was helping me back then.

 

Here is my review regarding a food allergy friendly review:

 

 

Edited November 27, 2018 by Mrs.C05
Correction

[tallnthensome]

Ideally and while unfortunate, a land based trip would better suit all these needs and restrictions.  Your expectations would never be met like bringing baking mix and having cooks bake it for you. Not trying to be rude but your expectations aren't reasonable and I think the stress of trying to reach these expectations on a cruise would overwhelm you. You need to go where you can bring and prepare your own meals. 

[hennaLisa]

Tallnthensome - The customer service representative is the one who suggested that I should bring the baking mix and have their chefs make it - can you say positively that they will not do what they said they would do? If you have lived with a child with medical needs, you would know that it isn't always possible to choose the optimal situation. In this case, my entire extended family is going on a cruise together so opting for a land based trip isn't really a possibility, which is why I didn't ask for people to help me consider that choice. I know that people without disabilities might just assume that people with disabilities should just not do things, but life is full of challenges and we prefer to find ways to make it work. I just wish I could get a more clear picture of what we are allowed and what we are not allowed, so that I can make the best of the situation and prepare properly. 

[dcgrumpy]

2 hours ago, tallnthensome said:

Ideally and while unfortunate, a land based trip would better suit all these needs and restrictions.  Your expectations would never be met like bringing baking mix and having cooks bake it for you. Not trying to be rude but your expectations aren't reasonable and I think the stress of trying to reach these expectations on a cruise would overwhelm you. You need to go where you can bring and prepare your own meals. 

I have to agree. I'm not being insensitive.  My daughter has multiple food allergies. I understand how difficult it is. I just don't think the expectations are realistic. 

[Rudyard]

36 minutes ago, hennaLisa said:

Tallnthensome - The customer service representative is the one who suggested that I should bring the baking mix and have their chefs make it

 

As a lot of experienced cruisers here can tell you, ask half a dozen different CSRs a question and you'll get half a dozen different answers. The next one might say "no way". I hope the one you talked to was correct and things work out for you. 

[crewsweeper]

41 minutes ago, hennaLisa said:

Tallnthensome - The customer service representative is the one who suggested that I should bring the baking mix and have their chefs make it - can you say positively that they will not do what they said they would do? If you have lived with a child with medical needs, you would know that it isn't always possible to choose the optimal situation. In this case, my entire extended family is going on a cruise together so opting for a land based trip isn't really a possibility, which is why I didn't ask for people to help me consider that choice. I know that people without disabilities might just assume that people with disabilities should just not do things, but life is full of challenges and we prefer to find ways to make it work. I just wish I could get a more clear picture of what we are allowed and what we are not allowed, so that I can make the best of the situation and prepare properly. 

hennaLisa,  Have you contacted the Special Needs desk at Carnival? For most cruisers with dietary restrictions, these folks can be very helpful.  Your children's need will be give to the dining staff and the hostess or Maitre-d' will work with you on selections out of the dining room.  Also, selections in the buffets.  And Special Needs can probably provide you with answers to bringing special foods on board as they not PVPs or CSRs deal directly with these things. There are sugar-free desserts in the MDR. Not sure what the replacement sweetener is.  Just know they taste terrible to me.

[Schoifmom]

9 hours ago, hennaLisa said:

Thanks for the info. When we signed up, the only time available was anytime dining, so that is what we have. I was thinking it would have been nice to have the same waiters so they would get to know us.

 

 

If you like your waitstaff (or are at least comfortable with them) the first night, you can request to be seated in their section on subsequent nights.  That way you will have some consistency.

[Schoifmom]

25 minutes ago, Rudyard said:

 

As a lot of experienced cruisers here can tell you, ask half a dozen different CSRs a question and you'll get half a dozen different answers. The next one might say "no way". I hope the one you talked to was correct and things work out for you. 

 

16 minutes ago, crewsweeper said:

hennaLisa,  Have you contacted the Special Needs desk at Carnival? For most cruisers with dietary restrictions, these folks can be very helpful.  Your children's need will be give to the dining staff and the hostess or Maitre-d' will work with you on selections out of the dining room.  Also, selections in the buffets.  And Special Needs can probably provide you with answers to bringing special foods on board as they not PVPs or CSRs deal directly with these things. There are sugar-free desserts in the MDR. Not sure what the replacement sweetener is.  Just know they taste terrible to me.

 

These are both VERY true.  CSRs and PVPs are not the right ones to answer your questions.  Please get in contact with Special Needs and they will give you all of the information necessary for you to make the right decisions.  I, personally, have traveled gluten free and they were fantastic with that.

[Mommawo]

Keep us posted on how this goes for you please.  I have a child with food allergies also.   Curious as to how this works.  She is a teenager now so it should be a bit easier. Alsobhahe an adult child with a deadly food allergy. My first cruise is in March and it’s an anniversary one for hubby and me so it’s just us.  However I want to do a family one soon as well 

[stellarose]

i have a son  (16 year old) with severe food allergies (peanuts/ tree nuts/ sesame and fish- not shell fish).

 

we packed 2 epi pen twin packs. (did not use any)

 

we let the main wait staff know before the trip. we got the menu for dinner the night before. 

 

our son was very careful about asking questions at buffets etc. 

 

if you have any specific questions- please let me know. 

[Ehpride]

One additional thing to consider is ports. You can only take prepackaged food off the ship in ports. No fruit. No meat. I would be prepared with appropriate prepackaged snacks for those situations in case you can't find anything in ports that is safe for them to eat.

[SadieN]

I’ve only read two times on CC where they’ve allowed food-to-be-cooked onboard.  It was a member whose child is on the Autism Spectrum who has severe textural issues and another whose diet was even more restricted than your childrens.   IIRC both pax had food that only had to be heated/cooked, not mixed together.  

 

We always bring on assorted crackers and such.  

 

Ask someone for the email address of the MD to get exact information.  There are no places for you to cook or heat up food (other than placing it into hot water). 

 

Online, there is a review about a Paleo diet.  It’s a very interesting read.  Lots of fruit, veggies and plain meats.  

*****

 

This is my basic post about allergies..... We travel with a group that combined has allergies to peanuts, treenuts, shellfish, egg whites, chocolate, MSG and liquid dairy. Only had issues with 'user' error, no issues with Carnival. If you have a nut allergy, know that Carnival classifies seeds as nuts. 

Each ship seems to do things a little differently. This has been our experiences on the West Coast ships.  
If you have an odd allergy contact Special Needs before your cruise. If you have a 'normal' allergy no need to do so. 

https://www.carnival.com/about-carnival/special-needs/dietary-needs.aspx

See the Hostess at embarkation when the Maitre 'd has hours. Hours will be in the FunTmes, usually starting around 1pm. The hostess will take that night's order.  Each night the hostess or your waiter will bring you the next day's MDR menu-breakfast, brunch/lunch and dinner.  If deciding between two entrees, order both.  For brunch don't hesitate to order a  breakfast and lunch if you want to eat both meals in the MDR. At ATD, an order slip will be generated and given to your waitstaff when seated.  They will confirm the order with you.  
Only issue we've ever had was one cruise DD's food arrived before mine. 

For room service, they cannot make special for you but they can tell you the ingredients.  No special area so there is always the possibility of contamination

Buffet is a minefield.  Ask the Hostess or the Head Lido Chef or the Food and Beverage crew in the officer whites.  DO NOT ask the line cooks or those serving desserts. They mean well but do not know the full recipes.  Cross contamination is always a possibility.  

Onshore--- we bring allergy cards. I made our own but you can buy some at selectwisely dot com. 
You can only bring off commercially prepared food. We bring cereal bars, boxes of cereal, bottled water, hard candy etc. 
Many ports will check. Some will do a physical search, others use dogs.  You do not want the cute Labrador to sit next to you.  I've had them alert on my Lemonheads. 

Kids clubs have a form to fill out. There are some snacks served at times. The younger kids meet up at the dinner buffet certain nights.   Ask the counselors what's on the menu.   

Gluten Free has a few different things.  Cruise Critic has lots of info about GF.  Use ‘gluten’ or ‘celiac’ in the search engine.  Know there’s at least GF pizza, noodles, bread available.

[SadieN]

Another idea.....

seems like your kids eat a Paleo diet. Here’s a very good review of eating Paleo on Carnival. 

 

https://www.thepaleomom.com/cruising-paleo-possible/

[chicchic325]

Mat I suggest a "Vegans Crusin' with Carnival group on the site that cannot be named that is run by someone whose name rhymes with Muckerburg? They are a group of people who try to cruise vegan (no meat, eggs, or dairy) and it sounds like some of your concerns have been answered in that group. 

 

On the first day to talk to the Matire D, the times will be listed in the Fun Times. 

 

The chefs cannot and will not cook anything you bring.

 

You maybe able to bring your homecooked goodies, but I would put them in bags like you bought them from a store. You can bring any prepackaged goods that happen to be all the stuff free.

 

There should be fridges in your room, but think dorm fridge and I'm not sure ice cream will stay frozen. You can bring dairy free cheese, ranch, and other cold stuff, so it doesn't have to be non-perishable as someone told you. 

[stellarose]

yes talk to matire d on the first night. 

[Elaine5715]

The rules about bringing on food and preparing food is beyond Carnival.  They are required to follow strict Coast Guard Health Regulations.  

[serene56]

On 11/26/2018 at 10:41 PM, hennaLisa said:

Thanks for the info. When we signed up, the only time available was anytime dining, so that is what we have. I was thinking it would have been nice to have the same waiters so they would get to know us.

 

I would ask carnival to move you to traditional time.  Having too many waiters all week with explaining your needs etc is just too time consuming.     Id be surprised if they cooked your food  or held your food in the freezers etc.     Visit the mairtre de the first day   he usually meets at 1:30  and explain your needs to him.   each night he will come out and discuss tomorrows menu with you-- and make the adaptions as needed.    Youwill be avoiding the buffet at all costs. 

[stellarose]

we did any time dinning and had no issues with our son's food allergies (nuts/ tree nuts/ peanuts/ sesame/ fish)

[hftmrock]

3 hours ago, serene56 said:

I would ask carnival to move you to traditional time.  Having too many waiters all week with explaining your needs etc is just too time consuming.    

you can get the same waiters each night if you choose to. you just have to ask and the good part about this is if you dont like the waiter you have, you can make sure you dont get them the next time

[Martini Mom]

As a vegan cruiser I can say that it's definitely harder,  but not impossible. 

[GMRPHRN]

Just wanted to share my personal experience. I shared a table with someone on a Legend cruise that had a gluten allergy. The wait staff came to him every night after dinner with the next night's menu to help plan his dinner. They seemed to be very accommodating.