Travel Success Stories

You can travel confidently and safely allergen-free in your own country and across the globe. See all the world has to offer! Traveling allergy-free takes some research and requires a little homework on your part, but it is well worth the effort.  
 
Below are some of the success stories that individuals want to share with you. If you have your own success stories and would like to share them with other visitors to this site, please contact us at .
 
“Thank you so very much for all of your support, help and encouragement... thanks to your books I had no “episodes” when we were traveling in Russia or Greece. I was able to fully enjoy this “trip of a lifetime” for our family! Many thanks again.”
- Alyson B.

“We have just returned from our trip to Kos Greece and found the phrases you provided for us so useful. The Greek people we asked to read the phrases completely understood what we were trying to ask and we could not have managed without it. We tended to use only two restaurants who took the extra care of rewashing Anna’s cutlery, glasses etc which felt very safe. Thank you so much for helping us.
 
The only problem we had was at the Kos airport. What a nightmare. I was trying to explain that we needed to carry epi-pens in the hand luggage and despite a Doctors letter (written in English) at first they said no. I had to say we would not get on the plane without them and in the end we were let on. Again may I take the opportunity to thank you for all your help and assistance for our trip.”
- Helen B.
 
“I have been on SouthWest Airlines for 2 round trips and on 2 of the 4 flights, they requested that no one open nuts on the flight. They also announced that there was a little girl with food allergies and to please be careful (Mikayla proudly annouced "hey that is me!") They also did a special cleaning (I did my own also) and let me review the snack that was to be to serve. They allowed me to determine if they would pass it out. The other 2 flights, they were not as helpful. I guess it depends on the flight attendants.”
- Kristin K. 
 
“I can’t tell you how excited I am by your book. I have a severe allergy to soy that I developed in my late 20’s.  Since then I too have figured out how to eat out (out of necessity!) in the US.  I’m still struggling when I travel overseas. In fact, I’m going to Germany, France and the UK next month and am panicked about what to do with eating. Just today, I had my allergist prescribe 4 EPI pens for me just in case. ….. Your information was very helpful and gave me the confidence that I would likely have no issues eating out overseas and I did not. Again, I can’t tell you how excited I am by what you are doing and thank you.”
- Debbie P. 
 
“We visited Disney World in May and had a wonderful time without any allergic reactions. It was our first airplane trip as well as our first trip that we would dine out most of our trip. My daughter is 3 and is allergic to many things including peanuts, sesame, soy, milk and eggs. To give you an idea on how we planned for our trip to Disney World, we emailed their food service ahead of time. They forwarded a list of foods and the ingredients for each of the parks, they also indicated where you can find the items in the park, etc. 
 
On our trip, we stayed on a Disney property and only ate at the Disney restaurants. We used Disney's dining plan during our stay (not sure if Disney Land has this).  We made our advance dining reservations ahead of time for table service restaurants and they noted all of our daughter's allergies in the reservation. You can call the restaurants a couple days in advance and/or to speak to the chef when you arrive.  
 
Each time we arrived at a table service restaurant, they already were aware of the allergies from the reservation and sent the chef over to speak to us about her specific dietary needs. We found them to be very knowledgeable and friendly. We were sure to ask them questions about how items were prepared, hidden ingredients, etc each time so thank you very much for this knowledge which was included in your book and small guides. They really helped us a lot.
 
At the buffet restaurants, the chef walked us through and showed us what she could eat and prepared something in addition when necessary. At one of the buffet restaurants, they even made her special Mickey Mouse shaped pancakes that were allergy free. We were also impressed by the selection available on the buffet for her. We truly had great dining experiences and my daughter did not have any reactions.”
- Jim and Cara S.
 
“Thanks for the Russian restaurant cards and phrase translations. We had a wonderful 16 days in Tallin and Russia. The translated restaurant cards were very, very, very helpful. I printed them out in color and laminated several copies at home to take. I couldn't have communicated my needs as well if I only had English ones. The whole service crew mostly spoke only Russian and loved them. 
 
I like your restaurant card very much. I have a couple of others I got from the Internet, with a minimum of explanation. I like yours much, much better. Many, many thanks.”
- Janet R.
 
"I wanted to share information about how to manage food allergies while living and traveling in Asia. My allergies cover a broad spectrum - gluten, milk casein, soy, eggs, corn, and most nuts. 
 
One of my approaches to determining which foods I can safely eat out is to review my Let's Eat Out! book and the descriptions for the most popular dishes. I also purchase cookbooks to review specific recipes if they're not included in your book. In doing so, I can discover how a dish is prepared and determine in advance what I can order while at a restaurant. 
 
I do find that eating in Italian and "Continental/Western" restaurants are my best bet. I also find some options in Indian as well as Thai restaurants.  The Thai chapter is fantastic by the way!  I learned about several items that I had been afraid to try (like dumplings and rolls) and have very limited experience in cooking Thai food (just red and green curries, and tom khai gai). 
 
I tend to avoid French, however, due to heavy use of cream and cheese, and the many sauces which often contain a roux base (flour + butter). Thanks for giving me so many more choices both here in Asia and everywhere else in the world!"
- Laurie R.
 
“We had a very wonderful trip to Belgium and France. As you warned me, it was a challenge for my son to find enough to eat. 
 
We stayed with a family in a small town in Eastern Belgium and I thought they would be eating all fresh meat, produce, etc. They actually used a lot of mixes and pre-made sauces. . . but they were quite accommodating and made separate food for Max. 
 
Paris was truly a challenge but he survived getting sick only once! He was such a good sport. The passport books were very helpful. . . .keep 'em coming.
- Tina E.
 
“I’m in the process of planning a trip to India and I’ve already reviewed the Indian cuisine chapter so I can plan my food strategy. Thank you for all of your research and publishing such a great book series that meets a real need for people like me.”
- Debra P.
 
“We had a wonderful trip to Scotland and Ireland. I didn't have to EXPLAIN my allergen-free diet (as you already know), just order one. Most of the time it was just a matter of leaving off the sauces.”
- Janet R.