Food Allergies: Planning ahead for summer outings part 2

In my last post Food Allergies: Planning ahead for summer outings I talked about quick trips or day outings. But what if you are going away for a longer period of time?

This year we are going on a beach vacation. Due to the nature of my sons allergies and where we are going I found the easiest and safest place for us was to rent a condo. For most of our vacations we've either done the condo or an efficiency hotel where I can cook for him safely. The only exception to this was when we went to Walt Disney World. They were fabulous with food allergies and I didn't need to cook. Not even once. It was a dream come true for all of us (you can chronicle our trip on the side bar of my blog). Alas, we can't go there every year so having a place with a kitchen is the next best thing.

We are driving, so a few weeks before our trip I will start buying shelf stable items and packing them to take with us. I also take any safe cooking utensils that I will need. Due to cross contamination I can not use the pots, pans, or any utensils in the condo so I will bring my own. I even pack the toaster (one Bell Hop gave us the stink eye when he had to unload it and bring it up to our hotel room. I'm sure it was a first for him. We tipped him extra). We have a very well traveled toaster. If you don't want to bring your whole toaster, you can also bring toaster bags. These work great. You can buy them online or I've found them at our local natural foods store. And if you are making pasta and are gluten free, don't forget your colander (or you'll have to buy one like I did).

If you aren't travelling by car and still want safe food where you'll be staying you can see if there is a Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, or other natural food store near where you are staying (Google helps with this) or you can UPS/FED EX it to where you'll be staying. I did this for Disney. Just keep in mind to do it soon enough that it can go ground and not air. I messed this up and for ground, they would have charged me $25.00 but because I waited too long, I had to send it air and it was $75.00. What a huge difference and what a waste of money!! Also many grocery chains now have organic sections which carry specialty items that those with food allergies can use. Don't forget to check out the local grocery, you may be surprised at what you find and the prices are always much more reasonable. Also check out farmers markets and road side stands for fresh fruit and veggies.

If going to an amusement park or other family venue, call ahead and ask about food service. Many locations will have an ingredient list of the items served and will be able to tell you if they can or will accommodate food allergies. I have found most places to be very helpful. You can also do a restaurant search on the Internet so you can see what types of restaurants surround your location. One of your "go to" restaurants may be near by. Another great resource if you are gluten free is Triumph Dining Restaurant Guide. And anyone with food allergies should have a chef card.

Never leave home without your epinephrine. Always make sure to update all your medications and bring them with you. And bring an updated emergency action plan also.

Relax. Have Fun. Repeat.

For more on summer fun with food allergies see:

Food Allergies On A Stick: The risk of summer eating from AAAAI

Make Summer Camp Safe For Your Food Allergic Child from Kids With Food Allergies and Jill Tipograph

Travelling with food allergies from Elizabeth Gordon and the Huffington Post

Family Travel With Food Allergies: A Mother's Perspective from AllergySense

So what am I missing? What other tips can you share? What is the best place you ever traveled with your food allergies? What is the worst?

Tags: allergies, epinephrine, food, food allergies, fun, safety, summer, travel

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Comment by AEPaul on June 21, 2010 at 11:46am: I have started AllergyEats as a means of finding allergy-friendly restaurants wherever you travel. The guide is based on peer ratings and is shy of 4 months old, so please considering not only using the guide for a restaurant search, but to rate restaurants you've dined at (both good and bad). Rating a restaurants only requires answering 3 simple questions and takes less than a minute. Each new rating increases the value of AllergyEats for the entire food allergy and intolerance community.

Thank you.

Comment by Janeen on June 21, 2010 at 3:21pm: Hi AEPaul,
Thanks so much for stopping by and sharing your website with us. The more we rate restaurants and share our experiences, the safer we'll be able to eat out. I've checked out your site and it's wonderful. There aren't too many restaurants rated in our area (probaby because there aren't too many allergy friendly places to eat around here) but hopefully as awareness grows, that will change. If I come across any, I will surely stop by and rate them.

Comment by AEPaul on June 21, 2010 at 11:14pm: Thank you so much, Janeen.

I think the biggest reason there aren't more rated restaurants in your area is because the site isn't even 4 months old. However, a look at the search results for "Boston, MA" show how powerful this tool can become as awareness increases and "goes viral." I've just brought someone in to help me get the word out. Despite the extremely encouraging initial # of visitors, page views, ratings, members, etc., "PR" is certainly not my area of expertise!

In any case, thank you again and please encourage everyone you know to check out AllergyEats and rate, rate, rate! :)

Food Allergies: Planning ahead for summer outings part 2

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