Traveling with Food Allergies/Intolerances

Traveling with a restricted diet can be tricky. But there's hope! It does get easier the more you do it.  To help you out ,The Welcoming Kitchen has these great ideas for traveling with food allergies.

Here are some of my favorite tips:

1. Research.  Before you go check out restaurants and grocery stores along the way and at your destination. If you are taking a road trip, scope out the cities you will pass through.  If you are flying somewhere research airports you could get "stuck" in along the way.  Having a list of places you can eat in a pinch can take a load off. Knowing where you can shop/eat out when you arrive also will make your life so much easier. Getting an app like Find Me Gluten Free can make a huge difference, too!

2. Your cooler is your best friend.   Bringing food with you can make a huge difference.   You can bring lunch or dinner, as well as snacks and non-dairy milk.  If I go to a place without a full kitchen I whip up some basic stuff in advance. For example, I'll cook some burgers, quinoa salad, grilled chicken, spaghetti sauce, a lasagna, etc. Then all I need to do is microwave portions when I get there. Which leads me to point number 3.

3. Stay somewhere with a full kitchen.  The Residence Inn is my personal favorite.  Vacation rentals are also an amazing idea (flipkey for example).  Not only will this save you a fortune, it will make eating allergy friendly so much easier.  I like to cook up a bunch of things at once, and then reheat stuff as needed for the next few days. For example, taco meat, burgers, chicken breasts for salads and spaghetti sauce all at once.  Then I don't feel like I am slaving away cooking all vacation long.

4.  Plan, plan, plan.  Having a meal plan before you start, I believe is even more important than when you are at home. Knowing what you are eating next takes a huge load off and puts you at ease.  It also makes it easy to go to the store once while you are gone and not have to go to the store repeatedly while on vacation.

5.  Snacks!  Having a bunch of snacks on hand makes a huge difference.  If plans change and you can't eat out where you want to, never fear, there is plenty of food to be had right there in the car. I pack a variety of food to keep it interesting.  I especially like to chose fun things that we might not eat every day. It makes the trip more fun and in the long run is still usually cheaper than buying stuff on the road.