Food on Antarctic cruises

[dcbiker97]

We are looking at doing an Antarctic cruise in December 2024. We normally sail in suites on Celebrity. One of the main reasons we sail with them is that at dinner, the staff is very accommodating to some food needs (both allergies and medical requirements for simple foods like pasta, eggs, etc) Breakfast is usually no problem and so would be a lunch buffet.  How accommodating are the staff for working with us?  I totally get that supply issues are present since they replinish in the location they do. For example, on Celebrity, they will show the next nights menu and if there's nothing on it, we would work with them to get an alternative that would work. 

Edited August 15, 2023 by dcbiker97

[CDNPolar]

You will have to contact the different companies that do Antarctica cruises.  
 

Antarctica cruises don’t restock they only have what they have.  Once they leave and cross the Drake Passage there is no restocking.  
 

You won’t want to get on board and then find out that they cannot accommodate your dietary needs.  

[jonikal]

Once you know which ship you are sailing on, you can contact your agent and request they convey your dietary needs to the culinary department.  We did this on the Nansen recently and it worked very well.  The dining staff in the Lindstrom were very accommodating.

[grayjay]

I can agree to that - let yourself be known way before you board. We did that once and as breakfasts and lunches were buffets and though no problem because ingredients of the dishes were shown, for dinner I had a special sign on our table and got a different dish for example for the main course.Worked very well but I had to take what was given - no more choices.

[CDNPolar]

On 8/18/2023 at 11:24 AM, grayjay said:

Worked very well but I had to take what was given - no more choices.

 

The one thing I would say about dinner was that other than I think one night, it was menu, and the menu selection was quite limited.

 

Choice of two appetizers, two or perhaps three entrees, and then between two desserts.

 

Other ships was have been on for similar cost had much more extensive daily choices of a custom daily menu and also a standard list of always available choices.

 

The food quality was excellent, and the breakfast and lunch buffet were really good, but dinner was limiting for sure.  Often I chose an entree that I was not really interested in because it was the best choice for my taste, but I would have liked more options.

[philbob84]

what brand of tea do they use>

[CDNPolar]

I do honestly believe that you choose an expedition cruise line for their expertise in the destination and the expedition crew over the food.

 

We knew that we would get better food choices on another cruise line, but they were also 50% more expensive than Hurtigruten.

[Rothko1]

I concur that you need to have this addressed prior to going, and you probably need to double-check it to confirm.  You would be going to the bottom of the globe; there's no way to accommodate someone once the ship leaves the mainland (and even then it is difficult).

[southerngoose]

I have dietary issues and my normal coping mechanism is to go on a larger ship with a large buffet and/or rely on port stops to go on land and find some snacks to bring on board or at least get a good meal in me.    So these types of trips are hard for me because - small ship, not a good offering at the port.  

 

I would advise that you search for Hurtigruten trip "diaries" - here, or on Trip Advisor or on Blogs.   I found several folks who posted each night's menu and I could see from the menus that there would be something I could eat - maybe remove the sauce or something simple that they would likely accommodate.  It's not like they'd be making a whole different meal...but a variation of the one they had already made.   Or maybe 2 portions of soup, skip the main meal.   That sort of thing.    I'm also thinking, worse case, I can bring some single use packets of peanut butter and see if they have some bread or I could bring crackers.    Usually, these single use packets are so processed that there's no fear of disease/agricultural issues.  Also, granola bars are a good emergency.   Even Australia lets me bring my Nature Valley and they agreed with me that these things are so overprocessed that they were not a danger.   I've never seen anyone more strict than Australia.    

 

My personal conclusion was that I would survive Hurtigruten meals (or components of their meals), but I'd bring some emergency provisions, just so that I would feel comfortable that I wouldn't starve.  

[GeezerCouple]

13 hours ago, southerngoose said:

My personal conclusion was that I would survive Hurtigruten meals (or components of their meals), but I'd bring some emergency provisions, just so that I would feel comfortable that I wouldn't starve. 

 

 

For *ANY* special needs, including diets, ALWAYS contact the cruise line well in advance.  Cruise ships aren't like hotels; no one can dash over to the corner shop to get <whatever> would help a guest, etc.

And "even more so" for a cruise like Antarctica, where there are no shops at all along the way.

We each have a special dietary need, and:

a) We contact any meal provider [cruise ship, conference banquet, friend with a dinner invitation (this can be a bit awkward, but is necessary), etc.] well in advance;

b) We always have "something else" with us in case it turns out there is not something suitable.  These are usually snack bars, because they travel well and have a long shelf life (aka, suitcase life!).

 

As for Hurtigruten, we also found that the "substitute" was "Here is <whatever>", and there were no choices at that mealtime for the special selection.

However... it was definitely possible to speak with someone in the Dining group to discuss preferences, at least among the possibilities that were on board.  And if there were some favorites that you'd like repeated, just tell them. 🙂 

 

GC

[CDNPolar]

We found Hurtigruten dinner menu options limited against other cruise lines.  The menu at night only had a couple of choices where other cruise lines typically have the daily specials and the always available options.  

 

Definitely contact Hurtigruten before - long before - sailing.

 

We did find that the breakfast and lunch buffets were very extensive, but we were not looking at themm in relation to food restrictions.

[AlanCruise]

On Roald Amundsen last Christmas a couple of times did not fancy the meal options in the Main Dining Room, but I was able to order an item from the other restaurant (Freidheim) which has a different menu but shares the same kitchen.

[CDNPolar]

We find cruise ships today want to be accommodating where possible, but don't leave it until you board the ship to address food allergies, sensitivities, or restrictions.  Start long before boarding.

 

Note also that you likely want to go further than the reservations team.  You want to ensure that your food concerns have been sent in advance to the ship's Chef and Restaurant Manager.  Ask for the email address of these people or to the Guest Services desk on the ship itself.

[mlgb]

In addition to Fredheim, which is open from lunch through dinner and has a veg burger on offer,  there is always chicken/salmon/steak on the dinner menu and you can always have a green salad. There were allergen symbols shown on the menus. I think Fredheim has a veggie burger.