Allergies When Traveling: Tips For Choosing The Right Destination
Hey there, I’m Corinna!
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If you’re traveling with food allergies, the idea of planning that your trip can feel totally overwhelming. Where should you go? How do you make sure it’s as safe as possible? And how do you enjoy it instead of stressing the whole time?
In this post, I’m breaking it all down—how to choose a destination, what to look for, and what to avoid. And be sure to stick around until the end, because there’s one common mistake that can make or break your trip—and you don’t want to overlook it!
Our family in Portugal.
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Allergies When Traveling: Choosing Your Best Destination
You may or may not know that our family has traveled extensively around the world with food allergies.
I’m Corinna, a Food Allergy Mom turned Food Allergy Travel Advisor.
We’ve been all over Canada and the US, to the Bahamas, Mexico, Ireland, Spain, the UK, Italy, France, and Portugal. For the record, we’ve also been to Disney World and Disney Land many times and Disneyland Paris too. If you want to know the destinations I think have been the best places to travel with food allergies, go to this blog post and podcast episode.
Or, if you want to know how to fly with food allergies confidently, go here.
I tell you about where we’ve been, not to brag, but instead, I tell you so you know that I have a lot of experience with food allergies when traveling. I want you to know that what I’m telling you today comes from a place of experience, and I’m not guessing based on one or two trips, or even one or two destinations. You can trust what you learn here!
All this experience has allowed me to help hundreds of food allergy families travel safer to Disney (or anywhere), with less stress using my travel services, my Food Allergy Travel Workshop, and travel blogs.
Our family in Naples, Italy on Mount Vesuvius
I remember the first overseas trip we planned several years ago—a family vacation to Europe. I’d dreamed about exploring with our kids, seeing the sights, experiencing a different culture, and adventuring together.
But as the date got closer, my excitement turned into this knot of anxiety in my stomach. My daughter has severe food allergies and gluten intolerance and the thought of traveling to a place where we didn’t speak the language, and where allergens could be hidden in the most unexpected places, made me second-guess everything.
The week before we were supposed to leave, it felt like a ticking bomb. I thought, "Is this worth it? What if I miss something? What if we’re at a restaurant and they can’t understand us, or worse, she has a reaction?
My husband could tell I was spiraling, and he sat down next to me. We talked through it—the extra precautions we'd take, the plan we had in place. I realized I'd done everything possible to make the trip safe.
And while the anxiety was real, I couldn't let it paralyze me. I wanted both my daughters to experience life fully, not from a place of fear, but one where they knew we had their back, and where my daughter felt empowered, not limited, by her allergies.
Our family would have missed out on SO MUCH if we hadn’t taken that trip, because taking that trip also gave us the desire to travel to many more places too!
So If I were talking to a food allergy family who is brand-new to traveling about picking their first trip, I’d focus on these key things. And, if you’re not brand-new to traveling, keep reading because you’ll get some important information too!
TIP 1: Start Simple & Close to Home
Your first trip doesn’t need to be an international adventure, you can work up to bigger trips. Pick a destination within driving distance. By driving, you take away the aspect of flying, and if it’s only a short distance, it’s easier to pack your own food. For several years, while our kids were young, we went camping. There are many campgrounds in our area. We had a small trailer and we always had an allergy-free kitchen and it was easy to pack our safe foods.
Not only that, but staying close to home removes the language barrier too.
Being able to pack more safe food and control transportation makes things easier.
Remember, though, that if you’re driving a long distance, it can now present the same issues that flying does because you need to pack for a longer drive OR find safe food on the road. So there’s a balance there.
TIP 2: Look for Allergy-Friendly Destinations
Some places are known for being more food allergy-aware. Cities with strong healthcare, easy grocery access, and allergy-friendly restaurants can make a huge difference.
For example,
One of the biggest challenges of food allergies when traveling is figuring out meals. Most of the time, it means researching restaurants endlessly, calling ahead, and sometimes just cooking everything myself to be sure it's safe. But then we discovered Disney World. It’s different.
When we go to Disney, I get a break from cooking—something that rarely happens on vacation. Their allergy-friendly dining options and well-trained chefs take so much stress off my plate (literally!). I can sit down at a restaurant, have a real conversation with my family, and enjoy a meal without second-guessing every bite.
For us, Disney isn’t just about the rides and characters—it’s about being able to relax a little when it comes to food. And if you’ve ever felt like traveling with food allergies is more work than fun, Disney might just change that for you too.
BUT HERE’s The Thing… Disney isn’t perfect.
It still takes a lot of planning. There are tickets to buy, reservations to make, and park strategies to learn. And when it comes to food allergies, you still need to be vigilant when you go there. They are amazing with food allergies, but they aren’t perfect!
There are essential tips for traveling to Disney World with food allergies you need to know before you decide to go.
Our family at Disney
Tip 3: Consider whether you want accommodations with a kitchen.
Another thing to consider when choosing an allergy-friendly destination is whether you can get accommodations with a kitchen. Access to a kitchen is the ultimate in food allergy safety because you can bring your own food and cook your own food. You don’t have to depend on others and hope they understand that food allergies are serious and hope they know how to navigate cross-contact/contamination.
** Here’s what many people don’t know…
You don’t have to rent a VRBO or vacation home to get accommodations with a kitchen. Some resorts offer kitchens where you can still get the beachy, resort vacation feel, even if you’re not at an all inclusive. There are resorts where you can still cook for yourself, but still have the kids club and the pool and the resort experience! This is possible!
I think sometimes people disregard this option because they don’t want to cook, BUT with planning, you can make cooking easy on vacation. Yep, you heard that right. It just takes some extra planning, and you will find that cooking is much easier than you thought it would be.
That said, I do want to touch on all-inclusive resorts. For a LONG time, we stayed away from them. Here’s why…
First, there weren’t a lot of all-inclusive resorts that truly understood food allergies and how to navigate cross-contact. It was just a non-starter for a long time.
That said, since I’ve become a Food Allergy Travel Advisor, I have found that there is a LOT more understanding at SOME all-inclusive resorts these days. Even so, some still don’t.
For example, I’ve contacted the Head of Sales of a large chain of all-inclusive resorts and when talking to him about their food allergy processes, they understand how serious food allergies are and how to navigate them. However, after all was said and done, it was still stressed that it’s very important to check with every single resort to check their processes and procedures before booking.
And in my first little while as a Travel Agent, I find this true.
As I research, some resorts are much more knowledgeable than others, but there are some with really good allergy procedures in place. So I think that my tune is changing a bit. I think that finding an all-inclusive that can properly manage food allergies is possible, as long as you ask lots of questions and dig in to see if they do their due diligence.
If this feels overwhelming to you, I can help! I’ll use my experience to ask the questions and curate the best options for your needs. You don’t have to do it alone!
TIP 4: Prioritize Medical Access
There was a time when having medical access nearby was essential.
NOW, because the newest anaphylaxis practice parameters say that you do not necessarily need to go to the hospital if a reaction occurs, this may be less important. Even so, you MUST speak with your allergist to discuss your risk factors and guidance about your specific situation. Here’s a link to the anaphylaxis practice parameters, but please consult your Allergist about it before you choose a travel destination.
Another tip when it comes to medical access is to look up how to say key allergy phrases like "severe food allergy" and "epinephrine" in the local language and know what the emergency number is in the country you’re going to. It’s not 911 worldwide!
Tip 5: Pack for Success
We already talked about bringing safe snacks and meals, even if you think you won’t need them, but what are some of the other things to bring on your trip?
First, it’s important to have extra epinephrine,
When it comes to epinephrine, I suggest you bring 4. Two that you carry every day, and 2 in the hotel in case you lose or use the first 2. Remember, that its’ not easy to get replacement medication in another country, and even in the same country, across states and provincial borders. You don’t want to spend your vacation trying to get new epinephrine because without it, you’ll still have to eat, and eating without the epinephrine isn’t a good idea, especially while traveling. So make sure you have a backup set, and that they are not expired.
It’s also important to have a letter from your Allergist saying that you need to carry epinephrine AND safe foods while traveling. This is helpful at security and possibly customs too.
Lastly, don’t forget other the antihistamines/medications, epinephrine carrying bag (one that cools if you’re going to a hot destination) and an anaphylaxis emergency plan.
When you book travel with me, I will send you a checklist of things to remember, and give you all the food allergy support you need.
TIP 6: Research Food Options Nearby
A great food allergy destination is one with safe food options.
As we mentioned, if you want to travel with the least dependence on whether others take the right precautions, it would be to get an accommodation with a kitchen and cook food yourself. This way you BRING all non-perishables like pasta, granola bars, bread because this lowers stress and adds safety…
Then, find 2-3 restaurants nearby that might be allergy-friendly. You’ll have to contact them in advance so you don’t spend most of your time searching while on vacation. Remember, the more you have figured out in advance the more relaxing time you have. Don’t wait until you get there to pre-vet the restaurants. Then when you get there, you can ask again. Use your gut, and if they don’t seem to understand, or they don’t take it seriously, find somewhere else. That’s why I always try to find 2-3 places, so there’s always a backup.
Let’s talk about grocery shopping for a second.
You need to know that no matter where you’re going, grocery shopping has the potential to be VERY stressful when you have food allergies. Different stores have different layouts, and states or provinces have different products.
If you depend on grocery shopping when you get there, you will spend a lot of time trying to find safe foods. It’s kind of like when you were first diagnosed and grocery shopping felt hard because it seemed like the allergen was in everything. The same can happen when you’re in a new place.
This is not what we want on vacation. That’s why I highly recommend you bring the non-perishables so that you just need to find things like meat and veggies once you’re there. Before you go, identify grocery stores that are near where you’re staying.
Tip 7: Consider the Stress Level
Traveling is about building confidence, not testing limits. I hope these tips give you the confidence you need, but remember that you CAN GET HELP with planning!
I can take the stress and guesswork out of planning because I understand what’s important when traveling with food allergies. I have many years of experience, and I’ve been all over the world with food allergies. I can help you source, book, and plan all your allergy-friendly accommodations and trip details, and give you deep support. You don’t have to do it alone!
Go HERE OR email me at corinna.meckelborg@fora.travel to start the process.
Conclusion
What travel destination are you dreaming of? Comment below, I’d love to hear from you!
Don’t forget, when traveling with food allergies, good planning makes it possible to go to almost any country or destination.
Because good planning doesn't just help you travel more safely.
It empowers you and your child to make good decisions, safely roll with changes that need to be made during your trip and lowers food allergy stress.
