How is Carnival with dealing with food allergies?

[wdwfamily]

We are planning on booking the Oct 4th sailing on the Legend out of Tampa and this will be our 1st Carnival Cruise. How are they with dealing with passengers that have food allergies? Our family consists of 4 with life threatening allergies to Peanuts, Treenuts, & Shellfish (lobster, crab, shrimp). Once I figure this out I can move on to worrying about cruising that area during hurrican season LOL

[rednose83]

This might be something you'd want to call them and ask. I don't remember them serving any peanuts (except at the bars) but it could be an ingredient in the foods of course.

[wdwfamily]

Thanks. We have cruised twice on RCL and they were fantastic. Was just wondering what to expect on Carnival.

[tgo's]

My allergy to nuts is not life threatening - but I thought Carnival handled it very well.

I made sure to mention it to my server our first dinner - on day 3 he remembered and steered me away from a dessert that had nuts in it - you have to love the care and attention of the dining room staff. I found the menu's were very clear about what was in the dishes.

When eating at the buffets I asked a crew member about the contents of any dish I was suspicious of - there was always someone close at hand. If they weren't sure I just passed on that item - there were plenty of other choices. The one too tempting chocolate pastry I just had to have - well I made my sister take a test bite for me and got the no nuts clearance.

 

Again, my allergy is not life threatening - just uncomfortable for a day or so. Because your situation is more serious I would recommend speaking to someone at Carnival when your reservations are made, then again to the dining staff when you board. After that take all the same care you would at any restaurant on land - and enjoy.

[4nlalaland]

When we booked our cruise I mentioned to the PVP that my daughter had a peanut allergy and soon after I was sent an email with a form that had to be filled out and sent back to them concerning the allergy.

It wasn't until the second or third night that our waiter informed us that he was just made aware of the allergy... which was fine because we are use to checking the contents of the food to make sure it does not contain peanuts. She is very careful about what she eats and will not eat anything that looks like it might contain peanuts.... also the previous poster is right... the menu at dinner has a very good description of what the dish contains and if there is any doubt the waiters are happy to check for you.

If the person with the allergies is young and attending camp carnival then I would make extra sure that all the counselors are aware of the allergy. When my daughter was younger, I had to do this every where she went. Thank goodness she is older and can look out for herself now.

[marygal]

This will be my 5th cruise and I have a peanut allergy along with a few others also...either your PVP or Travel agent let them know and they will get you the form to fill out..the wait staff will be aware but also remind them the first night at dinner....they were very good as suggesting things that I should avoid and I had no problems....just take the same care as you would at home you will be ok

[rebric12]

hi there, I was on the Holiday a few weeks ago with a shell fish allergy. I contacted guest service before sailing and Faxed the form. The fist night a nice lady showed up at our table with the following nights menu for me to review. I already knew what I was going to be having the following night.:) I also purchased a medical alert necklace and had my epi pen just in case.

[A&Jfamily]

Contact special needs, and when you get on board, go to the Maitre D' and advise. There are plenty of people who are given the menu for the next night in advance or have special meals made for them...like those with gluten allergies. I have yet to read of a bad experience for people with allergies.

[pinkjszt]

We were on the Legend in June 2007 with our son who has multiple life threatening allergies, including walnuts, peanuts, sesame,coconut, apple... the staff were all wonderful! We just got off the Glory 2 weeks ago, and again, they were wonderful!

 

We notified Carnival in advance, so they were ready for us. The hostesses brought the menu over each night for our son to pick the next night's item. They were able to accomodate him each night- even if they had to omit something, they would give him extra of something else.

 

My husband introduced himself to the head chef on the Lido deck the first day. He showed the chef our son's allergy card which lists his allergens, and he or his assisstant took care of us at each breakfast or lunch we dined there.

 

We just booked our next cruise. We will be on the new Dream in July 2010... I expect the same good care there.

 

Best wishes!

[bigrobdog]

We are planning on booking the Oct 4th sailing on the Legend out of Tampa and this will be our 1st Carnival Cruise. How are they with dealing with passengers that have food allergies? Our family consists of 4 with life threatening allergies to Peanuts, Treenuts, & Shellfish (lobster, crab, shrimp). Once I figure this out I can move on to worrying about cruising that area during hurrican season LOL

I also am sailing on the Legend in two weeks and have a severe peanut allergy and avoid tree nuts can you tell me about your trip?? tips would be appreciate as this is my first cruising experience.

[Lady_Jag]

bigrobdog,

You will be fine in the MDR, but be careful of foods served on the Lido deck, and even room service. I, my daughter, and my hubby have a shellfish allergy, and I had a mild allergic reaction to the Mongolian Wok food on the Dream due to cross contamination from utensils being used to serve shrimp, chicken, then sauce, and then stir the entire wok contents. :eek:

 

I'm not sure if the Legend even has a mongolian wok station, but my point is to pay attention to the food and how it is served on the Lido - did someone just use the utensil from the potatoes to grab crab cakes (or something with crab in it) off the bar? Did you ask if that sushi roll from the sushi bar contains real crab or crab stick? Did that ladle from the peanut sauce just get dipped into the soy sauce? Is that fish fried with shrimp or other shellfish goodies?

 

Just something to consider, depending on the severity of your family's allergies.

[golfadj]

DW has many food allergies that give her migraines.

 

The first dinner she will order very plain food the first night such as fruit and plain chicken or salmon.

 

Than we will tell our waiter and ask him to send over the social host with the next nights dinner.

 

They will come up with dishes and they will be made special for her. Still she must give a close look to what is on her plate as sometimes somebody will screw up.

 

They will do this the rest of the cruise. Carnival does a great job with this and we have been very successful.

 

For breakfast she is ok and for lunch she will order things like mongolian bbq where she can control what goes into the pan or turkey sandwiches or burgers.

[vabeachlady]

We do not personnally have food allergies, but on our last cruise, we were getting our seating changed and the lady right in front of us in line to talk to the dining room staff had severe allergies to certain foods. They took her info regarding room, etc and had someone come talk to her regarding foods and ensured she ate in the MDR for the cruise. They went over all the menus with her and ensured she was good with everything they were serving and that her allergies would not be a problem. I was quite impressed with the care that she was given!

 

Good luck.

[PenguinLife]

I am going on a cruise next week, and also have food allergies (tree nuts mostly), some more serious than others, thankfully I am not allergic to peanuts. I was thinking of writing up a brief letter to give to the wait staff, including my name and cabin number if they had any concerns, etc. You would be surprised at some of the things people put Walnuts in (cornbread dressing, fruit salad, dips, etc) Mine are not so severe that simple cross contamination is likely to cause a serious reaction.

 

Ike

[ekatiel]

Sailed last March with our son who has life threatening allergies to eggs, peanuts and tree nuts. We talked with the special needs department before hand and they emailed us the food allergy form, which we faxed back. We were allowed to bring food on board for our son (we brought things like bread and cupcakes). On the first day, we met with the Matre' D (did I spell that right??). One of the hostesses in the MDR ended up taking care of us for the entire week. She would show us the menu the night before, and let my son pick his food. After a slight reaction on the first day (which I describe below), she brought out my son's food each time. We tipped her well on the last day!

 

They stored the food we brought with us, and would bring my son out a piece of his "bread" when everyone else got their rolls (although his food usually came out a bit later than everyone else's-- something we're used to when the chef/manager/hostess has to bring out your food personally) and would usually bring him one of the cupcakes I brought for him for his dessert.

 

The first night, we did have one slight reaction-- they brought out a side of coleslaw that was hidden under the ribs he ordered. We didn't notice it until, he ate a carrot slice out of the coleslaw (which had mayo on it, which equals eggs). Luckily, it was a small enough amount that he only got a rash. After they saw his rash from a single carrot slice that had a very small amount of mayo on it, they were VERY careful the rest of the trip. We went reaction free the rest of the trip.

 

Carnival does suggest that you try to eat all your meals in the MDR. We ate about 85% of our meals there. A time or two, we ate on the lido deck. When we ate up there, we always asked to talk to the head waiter and he found out what was safe for us.

 

One con: Carnival cannot tell you about ingredients of foods before you sail, so we came prepared with pretty much anything that could have eggs in it (like bread, hamburger and hot dog buns, etc).

 

I'd give Carnival a B+ on food allergies. They at least know what's in their food when you get there or can find someone who does know. In comparison, Disney World (we've never been on a Disney Cruise, but I've heard they're great, too) gets an A+ for food allergies. We'd definitely be willing to sail on Carnival again with my son. --Katie

[SadieN]

We also travel with a group that has peanut/treenut/shellfish/chocolate allergies.

 

The hostess will bring over the menu every night to choose the next night's dinner.

 

We always stay away from some of the cakes and the Mongolian station. But there is always a risk of cross contamination at the buffet.

 

The kids clubs will have an allergy form to fill out. The younger kids usually are fed chicken nuggets, fries and peas & carrots.

 

*********

 

On one of the galley tours we were shown the area where these meals are prepared. Not near the main area at all.

[pseudoswede]

First, I apologize for digging up old threads. If this is a faux pas, please let me know.

 

One con: Carnival cannot tell you about ingredients of foods before you sail, so we came prepared with pretty much anything that could have eggs in it (like bread, hamburger and hot dog buns, etc).

 

This is what truly irks me. If the majority of the food is loaded in Ft. Lauderdale, why can't Carnival tell me what kinds of foods are being loaded?

 

The same happened with us on RCCL, and the fact that the chef said all of their pastas contain egg (which 4-year-old Miss Swede is highly allergic to) made us think this was going to be a very challenging 7-day cruise. What made it even worse (albeit a relief) was that the chef was incorrect and none of their pastas contained egg.