Travel Abroad

[Jean Shifrin]

Hello, For those of you who have been brave enough to travel, do you have any tips? I am interested in Western Europe, Australia and Africa. Does anyone know if any particular country is Celiac friendly? How do you navigate eating when traveling? TIA.

[Rogol72]

I've been to Italy recently for a wedding and it was excellent. I made my own gluten-free sandwiches/pannini to take on the flights. 

Spain is good and you can get good gluten-free breads in the supermarkets there. The UK and Ireland are very good also. Australia would be good since Coeliac Disease is fairly common there ...1 in 70 as opposed to 1 in 100 in other countries.

You have to advocate for yourself in restaurants when eating out.

I've read about several Coeliacs being cross contaminated from preordered gluten-free meals on airlines. Personally, I wouldn't trust a gluten-free meal on an airline especially long haul.

Try the hashtag celiactravel on tiktok and instagram. Loads of Coeliacs posting about their experiences with plenty travel tips.

The Atly app has a list of gluten-free friendly restaurants worldwide.

[Scott Adams]

I've not been to Australia, but they have one of the strictest gluten-free standards in the world, and I've heard that going to the larger cities there is easy for those who are gluten-free.

[LCO]

I'm new to this site. Wondering if anyone has traveled to Tokyo and how they managed gluten-free. Looking for tips. Trip planned for end of March. Thanks.

 

[Scott Adams]

Around 5 years ago I visited Tokyo, and luckily had my sister in law with me who is from there, otherwise it would have been more difficult. The bottom line is that there are tons of naturally gluten-free food options there, but you need to be able to communicate your needs to restaurant staff.

Here is a gluten-free restaurant card for American visitors in Tokyo. It includes a request for a gluten-free meal and mentions common gluten-containing ingredients to avoid, like soy sauce and miso.

English:

Quote

I have a gluten allergy. I cannot eat wheat, barley, rye, or oats. This includes soy sauce, miso, and any dishes containing flour or bread crumbs. Can you help me find a meal that is gluten-free?

Thank you.

Japanese:

Quote

私はグルテンアレルギーがあります。小麦、大麦、ライ麦、オーツを食べることができません。これには、醤油、味噌、そして小麦粉やパン粉を含む料理が含まれます。グルテンフリーの食事を見つけるお手伝いをしていただけますか？

ありがとうございます。

 

You can also download the Google Translate app, and besides being able to help you speak with people there about this, it has a camera app that translates Japanese text to English in your camera, so you can use it when shopping in a supermarket.

[LCO]

Thank you very much!