Airplane
policies

Trip to Jamaica, did not go as well as we had hoped

When we arrived, we filled out a form about our allergy, and were told it would be given to the chef. The first problem was there were three restaurants, and we didn’t know which chef. The first night we ate at a restaurant, we asked about the ingredients in the chicken fingers. We were told there were no milk products, but our daughter had a reaction, and later when my husband read the ingredients, there was milk in the ingredients.

So we had planned for that, and had taken a suitcase full of food for our daughter. By the second last day we were there, they finally seemed to be expecting her and asked what special meal we would like them to make, but we said we’d just prefer to use our own food. They were agreeable to heating up a can of soup, or a package of noodles for supper. They did have soy milk. We were also disappointed that the only breakfast option was a buffet meal – fortunately we had taken a box of cereal.

Although we were disappointed (there was also no fridge in our room as we had asked, but since we took all non-perishable goods we didn’t need one anyway), we managed rather well. We had no trouble with customs and taking food into Jamaica, as I had a complete list of what was included in the suitcase, and since we ate/left most of it down there we had no issues on our return.

I was disappointed in Air Transat, as we had requested a lactose-free meal for the plane, and none was available. We were told that specialty meals were not available on flights that were not overseas, but our travel agent was not told that when we requested the meal, and we’ve heard mixed comments about whether or not that is the case.

I guess the long and short of it is that because we were prepared for worst case scenario, we were fine. I think in the future I would either do the same thing (make sure we had food for all our meals), or plan a trip in a location where we could rent a kitchenette, or have access to a vehicle to go to a store and find our own food (I’m not a very adventurous traveler, so hopping in a cab to go to a local grocery store is not a comfortable option for me). Fortunately our daughter’s reaction was mild (although not anaphylactic, we carry an epi-pen). I can’t say the experience was one that gave me any confidence about traveling with allergies. I wish I had a better experience to report.


From Kathie send comments, or questions to resolutewriter@yahoo.ca

More Stories

Airline stories from Food Allergy Connection

News Story

CTV Winnipeg: Allergy policy gets severe reaction (April 2008)

A Winnipeg mother says her daughter's spring break was ruined because of an airline policy that can't guarantee safety for passengers with severe food allergies.

Lori Veiderman said her 13-year-old daughter, Taylor-Anne, has a severe allergy to peanuts and peanut oil. link article

Tips

We have read mixed reviews of almost every airline regarding food allergies. Remind and tell people about your allergy at booking, a few days before your flight confirm information about your allergy when boarding.

Do your homework, ask other people about their experiences flying with allergies.

Tell us your story (good or bad) travelling or flying with allergies.