Best cruise line to Alaska to handle dietary restrictions

[KC CRUISERS]

I thought our cruising days were over after my wife told me she was allergic to gluten, dairy, soy, and eggs. Our last cruise was on Princess and they failed miserably at handing her dietary needs. We can get by with fresh fruit for breakfast, maybe a salad for lunch, (dressing on the side), but dinner is when you want to enjoy those meals that make the cruise memorable. She agreed to take a 7 day cruise to Alaska since its been on my bucket list. My hope is that one of the cruise lines sailing to Alaska can handle these restrictions and still present an excellent dinner, (X 7). I heard Holland America my be the route to take but some of the reviews I've read on this site leave me in doubt. I would love to hear from any experienced cruisers who may have suggestions or even dealt with similar circumstances. Thanks so much.

[NurseDave]

I don't have a lot of experience with other lines, but I know Disney will bend over backwards to meet dietary needs if you tell them ahead of time. Plenty of reviews mentioning the chef meeting with the people the day before to set the next day's menu.

[jenlong]

I sailed to Alaska on the Carnival legend last August with my BIL and niece who both have celiac disease. They set up each meal the night before using a special menu, and were assured that everything was prepared in a separate area from the rest of the food to avoid cross-contamination.

 

 

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[SadieN]

We cruise Carnival almost exclusively. I've seen good results on Princess, haven't traveled with any of our group with allergies.

 

Be specific about the egg allergy. i.e. Can she have eggs in baked goods?

 

This is my basic allergy post--

 

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.

 

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.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.

[crystalspin]

HAL did likewise, although it was "only" low-sodium, not an actual allergy. They were very attentive though!

 

Also HAL along with Princess are said to have the most/best permits for Glacier Bay, and I recommend a route that starts (and/or ends) in Vancouver for the narrow part of the Inside Passage between Vancouver Island and the mainland!

[Bag194]

I am anaphylactic to all marine products and food plus intolerant to everything in the bell pepper family. I cruise exclusively with Princess and have no problems at all. They are advised via my personal cruiser and on embarkation I'm invited to contact the Maitre D. My Head Waiter provides nightly the menu for the following day for me to chose. If there isn't something suitable on the menu then the chef prepares whatever I request.

 

 

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[cb at sea]

All cruise lines have a "special needs" dept....call them. Lay out all of her dietary restrictions, so they can prepare for her and get the ingredients onboard that she will need.

Then, talk to the head waiter in whatever venue you use....and she should have plenty of choices! (How "good" meals are without any of those items....I can't say!)

[mjkacmom]

NCL has always been great with dd's celiac. He met with her right after boarding in the MDR, she picked out her dinner every night (they really did a great job customizing meals for her), and her breakfasts. She'd call him before leaving the cabin to let him know where she would be dining, and he'd bring breakfast wherever we were. What a spread! Her last breakfast last week was 2 eggs Benedict, waffles, bacon, potatoes and a muffin. Gluten free bread was brought to the table every night at dinner.

[Sandy Sails]

Sounds like most cruise lines handle allergies well. But Holland America handles Alaskan cruises the best.

[KC CRUISERS]

Thanks so much for the quick responses. This info is reassuring and I'm getting excited about our upcoming cruise. Sandy Sails, I'll take your word an proceed with my Holland America cruise. Thanks again!

[Lovely other]

My husband is a vegan and I am a vegetarian with coeliac disease ... HAL has dealt with our dietary needs in an exemplary manner and as your wife only has the extra component of a a soy allergy I'm sure they will handle it just as well. There is almond milk available on request, gluten free bread etc ... I hope you enjoy your cruise :cool:

[filmfestgirl]

I've sailed many cruise lines (Princess, Royal, Celebrity, Carnival, NCL) and all but NCL (due to freestyle dining and not having set dinner time) were great. I'm on HAL (first time) to Alaska in July

 

I put allergy in reservation but you need to see Maitre D when boarding to be very specific. each night the server will give you the menu for next night to order food. on celebrity I didn't like options and said I was skipping sit down dinner - they asked me what I wanted and I said I normally eat this at home and they made that for me! celebrity also went above and beyond at the crepe restaurant by crafting a dairy free version the next day for me.

I've been impressed by most cruise lines great attention to food allergies. Disney only had gluten free cookies from room service not advertised - had to ask.

 

at the buffet tell the host and usually a chef will walk you around to tell you what you can/can't eat

 

 

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[Hlitner]

That is a tough allergy situation. We have a very good friend who developed similar allergies soon after having her gall bladder removed (apparently this is not unknown). She has found that she can use certain types of soy. Apparently some soy products have traces of gluten products...which she cannot use...or will pay a multi day price :(. But there are some soys that are totally gluten free...and perhaps the OP's wife can explore that information.

 

But the reality of cruise ships is that the galleys are preparing thousands of meals. Quite a few folks have differing food allergies and others try to follow strict dietary regiments such as Vegans. Cruise ships do their best to accommodate all these issues...with varying success. My friend acknowledges that whenever she leaves her own home and eats....she assumes some risk. Fortunately, her allergies are not life threatening...but even a little gluten cross contamination can leave her with severe gastric issues (apparent to anyone near her) for days. A vegan friend (who has done a lot of cruising) thinks that he does best by sticking to the Lido buffets for all meals and trying to bond with some of the Lido management and cooks. He feels there is just too much risk of mistakes and cross contamination in MDRs...given their huge galleys and large numbers of cooks.

 

We wish the OP and spouse the best of luck.

 

Hank

[mjkacmom]

That is a tough allergy situation. We have a very good friend who developed similar allergies soon after having her gall bladder removed (apparently this is not unknown). She has found that she can use certain types of soy. Apparently some soy products have traces of gluten products...which she cannot use...or will pay a multi day price :(. But there are some soys that are totally gluten free...and perhaps the OP's wife can explore that information.

 

But the reality of cruise ships is that the galleys are preparing thousands of meals. Quite a few folks have differing food allergies and others try to follow strict dietary regiments such as Vegans. Cruise ships do their best to accommodate all these issues...with varying success. My friend acknowledges that whenever she leaves her own home and eats....she assumes some risk. Fortunately, her allergies are not life threatening...but even a little gluten cross contamination can leave her with severe gastric issues (apparent to anyone near her) for days. A vegan friend (who has done a lot of cruising) thinks that he does best by sticking to the Lido buffets for all meals and trying to bond with some of the Lido management and cooks. He feels there is just too much risk of mistakes and cross contamination in MDRs...given their huge galleys and large numbers of cooks.

 

We wish the OP and spouse the best of luck.

 

Hank

I believe most of the ships have separate kitchens for allergy issues.