Dairy free?

Hello All,

I will be cruising on Harmony for 7 nights in February. I have a milk protein intolerance (I am NOT lactose intolerant I can have lactose but not dairy of any sort). I do my best to avoid any dairy, whey and caseins (which are in EVERYTHING). If I have any then I get sinus problems which move to the ears and throat. I don't die but am uncomfortable even with a steroid nasal spray, anti-histamine and nasal rinse.

Has anyone done a cruise, eating in the MDR and managed to avoid dairy and still have options to eat? Desserts?

I am trying to figure out the lesser of 2 evils: eat nothing good for a week on a cruise or eat good food and have the above symptoms while on the cruise and the week or so after. Hoping for a bit of feedback from those experienced in something similar...I might go load up on drugs to try and make the symptoms bearable. I really would like some desserts and good food :-)

I would contact special_needs@rccl.com, report your dietary restrictions, and see what they can do to accommodate you.

From my experience with my husband, desserts are limited to fruit and sherbet. One of the restaurants, Giovanni’s maybe, made a dairy free cake for him.

From my experience with my husband, desserts are limited to fruit and sherbet. One of the restaurants, Giovanni’s maybe, made a dairy free cake for him.

Be careful. Sherbet contains dairy while sorbet does not.

We have found that Royal mostly has sherbet.

I would contact special_needs@rccl.com, report your dietary restrictions, and see what they can do to accommodate you.

:-) That's my debate! I don't want to do that until I decide if I am going to go the full week without. I worry they will flag me and not give me anything when I get a few days in and NEED real food options and decide to bail on being good and go for the 'real' food :-)

I was/am hoping to hear from others that there was decent food choices before I commit to being a good patient. It's sooooooo hard. Dairy is in everything. I can kind of manage at home with effort but I worry on a cruise it will mean a week of disappointment. Since I am not technically at any harm from eating the dairy I need to decide to manage the disappointment of boring food or manage the symptoms and live the week in a life of food luxury lol.

Hello All,

 

I will be cruising on Harmony for 7 nights in February. I have a milk protein intolerance (I am NOT lactose intolerant I can have lactose but not dairy of any sort). I do my best to avoid any dairy, whey and caseins (which are in EVERYTHING). If I have any then I get sinus problems which move to the ears and throat. I don't die but am uncomfortable even with a steroid nasal spray, anti-histamine and nasal rinse.

 

Has anyone done a cruise, eating in the MDR and managed to avoid dairy and still have options to eat? Desserts?

 

I am trying to figure out the lesser of 2 evils: eat nothing good for a week on a cruise or eat good food and have the above symptoms while on the cruise and the week or so after. Hoping for a bit of feedback from those experienced in something similar...I might go load up on drugs to try and make the symptoms bearable. I really would like some desserts and good food :-)

My wife is also allergic to the proteins in dairy. Like you she is not anaphylactic but will get severe joint pain if she consumes dairy in anything but the smallest amounts. She finds that by taking an antihistamine daily it helps reduce the symptoms from the small amounts of dairy that can creep in unexpectedly (mostly through breads or the "may contains").

We gave up on the MDR several years ago as we found it very hit or miss as to the quality of the meals that they would provide. Many times their idea of dairy free was simply the protein without any sauce, steamed veggies and a dry baked potato. Dessert was a bowl of fruit. Sometimes (usually dependant on the head waiter) they did do a great job and put some effort into the dishes that they served.

We have found that meals (particularly desserts) in the specialty restaurants were better prepared to accommodate my wife's allergy.

:-) That's my debate! I don't want to do that until I decide if I am going to go the full week without. I worry they will flag me and not give me anything when I get a few days in and NEED real food options and decide to bail on being good and go for the 'real' food :-)

 

I was/am hoping to hear from others that there was decent food choices before I commit to being a good patient. It's sooooooo hard. Dairy is in everything. I can kind of manage at home with effort but I worry on a cruise it will mean a week of disappointment. Since I am not technically at any harm from eating the dairy I need to decide to manage the disappointment of boring food or manage the symptoms and live the week in a life of food luxury lol.

By contacting Special Needs, you won't be committed to a specific diet. You would still have the option to eat whatever you want.

My wife is also allergic to the proteins in dairy. Like you she is not anaphylactic but will get severe joint pain if she consumes dairy in anything but the smallest amounts. She finds that by taking an antihistamine daily it helps reduce the symptoms from the small amounts of dairy that can creep in unexpectedly (mostly through breads or the "may contains").

 

We gave up on the MDR several years ago as we found it very hit or miss as to the quality of the meals that they would provide. Many times their idea of dairy free was simply the protein without any sauce, steamed veggies and a dry baked potato. Dessert was a bowl of fruit. Sometimes (usually dependant on the head waiter) they did do a great job and put some effort into the dishes that they served.

 

We have found that meals (particularly desserts) in the specialty restaurants were better prepared to accommodate my wife's allergy.

Thank you for your response. I suppose that I am lucky in that my symptoms more resemble a bad cold/sinus infection and can be managed with meds. Not ideal, but better than anaphylactic or even severe joint pain.

I was suspecting that my options would be the plain protein, plain veggies and plain starch based on a menu recently posted. This is not what I remember eating on our last cruise with all the desserts and many sauces and meals.

Now to figure out my best course of action. It might turn into a full out binge on dairy week before I resume my 51 weeks of the year of not having dairy. I might check in with my doctor to see what he suggests to manage the symptoms for the week (and the week following) then make my decision.

By contacting Special Needs, you won't be committed to a specific diet. You would still have the option to eat whatever you want.

Good to know. I am slightly weary of making things known as I also have type 1 diabetes. I vividly remember as a teenager I was at an event and I literally had to grab on to my plate and refuse to let it go when they realized I was 'the diabetic" and therefore they felt I was not allowed to have the gravy that was on my potatoes. The older lady that was trying to fight my plate from me had a friend with type 2 diabetes that couldn't have gravy and therefore she insisted I couldn't either. After a rather dramatic production I managed to keep my plate and my full table of friends were all staring at me wide eyed and so confused as to why someone wouldn't let me have gravy because of diabetes! Misinformation, the lady did have her heart in the right place, just not her knowledge.

So now I usually tend to just manage on my own so I don't have strangers trying to over ride my decisions about my health!!

Good to know. I am slightly weary of making things known as I also have type 1 diabetes. I vividly remember as a teenager I was at an event and I literally had to grab on to my plate and refuse to let it go when they realized I was 'the diabetic" and therefore they felt I was not allowed to have the gravy that was on my potatoes. The older lady that was trying to fight my plate from me had a friend with type 2 diabetes that couldn't have gravy and therefore she insisted I couldn't either. After a rather dramatic production I managed to keep my plate and my full table of friends were all staring at me wide eyed and so confused as to why someone wouldn't let me have gravy because of diabetes! Misinformation, the lady did have her heart in the right place, just not her knowledge.

 

So now I usually tend to just manage on my own so I don't have strangers trying to over ride my decisions about my health!!

What usually happens is that Special Needs puts you in touch with the chefs on board and they discuss options with you once you are onboard. You get to decide what you want to do.

My daughter has both gluten and dairy intolerance. On Carnival, the MDR was fantastic. Every night they would give her the menu for the next day, and they would make her special meals without dairy or gluten. It was wonderful! We are going on RCCL in a few weeks and I pray it will be as good.

My daughter has both gluten and dairy intolerance. On Carnival, the MDR was fantastic. Every night they would give her the menu for the next day, and they would make her special meals without dairy or gluten. It was wonderful! We are going on RCCL in a few weeks and I pray it will be as good.

From what has been reported, RC does a very good job with GF. Sounds just like what you described for Carnival.