Drinks on MSC for Lactose-Intolerant

[alserrod]

My father is lactose intolerant and I wanted to ask about it.

 

His travel agent has not guaranteed anything.

 

How is the issue of lactose-free diets at MSC?

 

Are there enough drinks at the breakfast buffet? Lactose-free milk and/or oat milk, soy milk, etc...

 

In the case of the restaurant, who should it be indicated to? How can you find out about food intolerances on the menu?

 

I know that there is a form to fill out at the entrance but more than one of you have said that there have been problems with the information and that it is better to be sure.

[JamieLogical]

I just looked back at a few of the menus from my February cruise and I do not see any notations on the menus about items containing lactose. However, I do know that your servers at the MDR as well as every server in the specialty restaurants will ask you if you have any dietary restrictions. I do not recall seeing milk onboard at all (maybe in the buffet?), much less milk alternatives....

[Jamie7777]

1 hour ago, JamieLogical said:

I just looked back at a few of the menus from my February cruise and I do not see any notations on the menus about items containing lactose. However, I do know that your servers at the MDR as well as every server in the specialty restaurants will ask you if you have any dietary restrictions. I do not recall seeing milk onboard at all (maybe in the buffet?), much less milk alternatives....

My parents and I had breakfast in an MDR on the Seaside last summer and they had milk as the creamer for our coffee.  Both Mom and I are lactose intolerant and took a Lactaid tablet before drinking it.  For some reason, it didn't occur to any of us to ask for non-dairy milk or creamer.  However,  I did see some non-dairy creamer at the buffet drink station where the coffee is located.  Hopefully, they'll have it at the Seashore buffet drink stations.

[markwfpb]

I've had soy milk on the Divina and Seascape, so maybe it's a fleetwide thing.

FYI, they refer to it as soya so ask for that!

On Holland America last year, they also had almond milk and oatmilk. 

Definitely insist on a dairy alternative - taking lactaid seems like a ridiculous way to go for something as simple as milk for your coffee! Save that for a banana split or shake!

 

[Cloudyrain]

They are very good with food restrictions and alternatives are available.
 

Contact MSC before you travel: this is really important and means they can assist a lot better. They will then ask your father to speak to the Food and Beverage manager: they usually provide an open appointment hours on a card in the cabin. They can ensure that adjustments are made in the MDR for food by checking the menu for the following day and choosing food in advance. 
 

We found there were options in the buffet for Oat, Soya, and Almond or Coconut milk - not all were always available, but staff were able to get them if they had ran out. In the MDR is was only Soya I my experience, most other venues about the ship didn’t have any alternative milks when we asked (that’s not to say they might not usually, but we stopped asking as I’m ok with black coffee).

[Homosassa]

My husband is lactose intolerant.

 

He has never had a problem on any cruise line because he knows what foods contains lactose and avoids them.

 

If he wants to "cheat," he uses Lactaid and limits his intake.

 

By the way, cream contains  a minimal amount of lactose and can be used instead of milk. Cream is available in both the buffet and other dining venues.