Traveling gluten free involves advance planning. What will you eat on the road, in the sky, on the ocean, or on the rails? What food should you bring with you? Should you send food to your destination? What restaurants in the areas you are visiting are gluten-free friendly? If traveling out of the country, what local food is gluten free? How are these foods spelled and how do you pronounce them? The list goes on and on.
One of the best people to give tips on gluten-free travel is my friend and colleague Melinda Dennis, MS, RD. Melinda, who was diagnosed with celiac disease 18 years ago, specializes in celiac disease at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. She is the owner of the nutrition consulting service Delete the Wheat (www.deletethewheat.com) and offers dietitian coaching, nationwide lecturing, gluten-free classes, shopping tours and home visits for those following the gluten-free.
Along with Eastern Mountain Sports, Melinda runs adventure travel trips that are 100% gluten free. If you are interested in group travel, please visit Melinda’s website.
What advice do you have for someone who is afraid to travel because they are gluten free? If someone is planning their first gluten-free trip and feeling overwhelmed, where do you suggest they begin?
Certainly, it takes time to adjust both mentally, physically and emotionally to a new diagnosis of celiac disease. For that reason, many people spend some time learning how to read labels, shop comfortably and more quickly and adjust to preparing new meals. Then, it’s time to head out and enjoy travel as you did before. With thought and preparation, it can be done!
Carry your restaurant card listing safe/unsafe ingredients (available from Gluten Intolerance Group, CSA/USA, Inc., Triumph Dining, and Celiac Travel). Visit the archives of the Celiac Listserv and read what others have done for restaurants, lodging, food stores, etc., in the city you live or will visit. Ask for a kitchenette and refrigerator so you can store and prepare food. Access to boiling hot water or a microwave allows you to eat from some of the gluten free (GF) prepackaged meals and pre-cooked rice pouches.
Call lodgings ahead of time and find out if they can store food for you. Ask where nearby convenience stores are to purchase fruit, milk, yogurt, coffee and other necessities. Carry ice packs (not allowed on carry-on baggage so store in your suitcase) and freeze later. Rent a car that has an electric outlet in the back and take along your own mini-fridge. Plot some of your stops along the way, visiting known celiac-friendly inns, B & Bs and restaurants, but leave room and time for spontaneity, too.
If you’re visiting friends, have them pick up a few refrigerated necessities for you in advance. Save room in your suitcase for your sealed packages – dried pasta, liquid supplement drinks (suitcase only), crackers, cookies, trail mix, energy bars, packaged meals and soups. I always take along extra clean containers with tight-fitting lids. Also, do not attempt to carry large bags of flour onto a plane. I was stopped for carrying 4 bags of sorghum flour on board after a celiac convention – security was suspicious of what they considered to be excess plant matter.
What about foreign countries? Do you have tips for getting around language barriers?
Fortunately, most countries of the world do not rely on wheat and wheat-based products as much as the U.S. does. Celiac-friendly ethnic cuisine includes: Italian, Indian, Japanese, Mexican, Southeast Asian, etc. If you’re headed to Brazil, go to a Brazilian restaurant in your own city and talk to the Brazilian waiter or chef to find out how the typical dishes are prepared in that country.
I lived in Japan for two years in my early twenties and then returned years later having been diagnosed with celiac disease, carrying my gluten free soy sauce with me everywhere. I asked a Japanese friend to write out a page-long explanation of my diet. Print out one of the safe/unsafe ingredient listings that have been translated into many languages – see resources at the end.
You might consider bringing a letter of medical necessity from your doctor – it might be helpful at immigration points if an officer questions why half of your suitcase is filled with packaged food. Ask your hotel or lodging if you can send a package in advance. I use the list-serve’s archives to read where others have ...
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