Learn 5 Must-Dos Before Hiring A Food Allergy Travel Agent
First, this isn’t a post discouraging you from using a food allergy travel agent. In fact, I think getting the best travel agent for food allergies can be really helpful.
But that said, food allergy travel services can be expensive and they may not address the thoughts that make food allergy travel scary. Not only that but having a “done-for-you” option may not help you know how to deal with highly likely changes in plans and even situations that you may not have thought of before you leave home.
This is why I highly recommend these 5 essential tips BEFORE hiring a food allergy travel agent.
First here are a couple of important things to know.
I’m Corinna!
At the time of writing, I’m a 16-year food allergy mom and a 6-year Food Allergy Coach. I base all of my resources on evidence-based research and then add my 16 years of practical knowledge to create trusted resources that work for food allergy families & sufferers.
We have traveled all over the world with severe food allergies even before my kids were 11 and 13. Some of our destinations have been the Bahamas, Mexico, Spain, Ireland, the UK, Italy, France, and all over the USA and Canada.
We’ve been on several Disney vacations (including Disneyland, Disney World, and Disneyland Paris), road trips as well as beach vacations, tours, a river cruise, and a Mediterranean cruise too! At the time of writing, we are currently planning a vacation to Portugal.
I think it’s safe to say that we have extensive food allergy travel experience.
My daughter has peanut and tree nut allergies and gluten intolerance, but what you learn here will work for ANY food allergy and celiac disease.
I’m not a food allergy travel agent, but I’ve helped hundreds of food allergy families navigate the tricky world of food allergy travel with my coaching program, workshops, and blog.
I tell you all of this so you know that this post isn’t just a bunch of random tips. You can trust what you read here. I also want you to know that food allergy travel CAN be safer and less stressful, which also makes it more fun and memorable!
Although it took me many years to fumble through and figure it all out while making a lot of mistakes along the way; with guidance, you can have a safer and less stressful vacation right away.
P.S. Check out my full series of food allergy workshops. You’ll find expert resources based on 16 years of research and practical knowledge for many food allergy challenges like navigating school, travel, and dining out with food allergies.
Now, let’s get to the 5 must-dos to take before hiring a food allergy travel agent.
5 Precautions To Take Before Hiring A Food Allergy Travel Agent
Overcome the fears.
Here’s a surprise…
Food allergy travel is MORE than just finding allergy-friendly destinations, accommodations, and safe restaurants.
In order to have a great vacation, your MIND needs to be in the right place too. This will allow you to think on your feet when plans change and actually ENJOY your vacation, instead of stressing! If your mind is worried, frantic, or stressed, you may not be able to enjoy your time OR make good decisions when needed.
When it comes to food allergy travel, your mindset and thoughts are really, really important!
I remember when we were about to go on our first overseas trip to Spain, (or was it Ireland??). We had researched and planned it all out. But a week before, I WAS A MESS! I wanted to cancel the whole thing. The guilt was getting to me and I kept wondering why we would take the unnecessary risk of travel.
Thank goodness my husband calmed me down because our trip to Spain is still one of our favorite trips of all time. 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 Ireland and the Mediterranean and many more places too!
I tell you this so you know that these feelings of fear, doubt, and guilt are real and will likely happen at some point. So it’s important to truly overcome the fear before hiring a travel agent so you can fully anticipate your vacation with joy, as well as make your vacation safer and less stressful!
2. Don’t overlook the small things.
As I already mentioned, food allergy travel is MORE than just finding allergy-friendly destinations, accommodations, and safe restaurants. There are a lot of small things that you WILL need to face too.
A few examples are, the safest way to travel on a plane, how to eat safely on travel days, what to pack, and where to find safe food when you’re on an excursion and away from your accommodations. Also, consider flight delays or emergencies that could come up.
You may not think of these things right away, but they are inevitable and it’s ESSENTIAL to be ready so that you can have safe food easily accessible if anything like this ever happens.
3. Understand how to do it yourself first.
Having a food allergy travel agent do the research, and make the bookings and plans can be a great idea. But without knowing what to look for and how to do it yourself, you aren’t able to verify that your travel agent is actually asking the RIGHT questions on your behalf.
Because a lot is riding on your Food Allergy Travel Agent and they must take the right precautions & steps.
This is why it’s essential that you fully understand what needs to be done so that you can ensure nothing falls through the cracks, even when you hire a food allergy travel agent.
Consider also if you want to take ANOTHER vacation or even a weekend trip. Are you going to be dependent on your travel agent for every trip? If you know how to research and plan yourself, you have the freedom to decide what works for your family for every trip you take, not just one vacation.
4. Know what will make finding & cooking safe foods quick and easy so you feel like you’ve had a vacation too.
Even with lots of restaurant research, it’s likely that there are ONLY one or 2 restaurants that are fully allergy-friendly in every location.
For example, there have been many times when I’ve researched a restaurant before leaving home but have NOT felt comfortable with it once we arrived. Safety is always our number ONE priority ESPECIALLY on vacation, which meant that we would not eat at a restaurant if we didn’t feel confident with their food allergy protocols.
This uncertainty means that vacations with food allergies often mean packing the right things, shopping for food, and cooking ourselves.
Which is often what we want a break from when we’re on vacation, right?
That’s why it’s important to know HOW you can actually make the burden of finding and cooking allergy-safe foods stream-lined and easy so the cook can enjoy the vacation too.
5. Practical knowledge is essential.
As you can see, there is a lot at stake when it comes to hiring a food allergy travel agent. But whether you hire one or not, a safe and worry-free trip boils down to having the practical knowledge you need.
You can get all the practical knowledge I’ve learned from our extensive experience traveling with multiple severe food allergies in the Food Allergy Travel Workshop.
I’ve packed this workshop with what we’ve learned after traveling to the Bahamas, Mexico, Spain, Ireland, the UK, Italy, France, and all over the US and Canada. We’ve been on several Disney vacations (including Disneyland, Disney World, and Paris Disney), road trips as well as beach vacations, tours, a river cruise, and a Mediterranean cruise!
The workshop also includes essential travel planners and packing templates you need whether you hire a food allergy travel agent or not.
Get the Food Allergy Travel Workshop here.
**When you click on the link or button above, you’ll go to the page where you can buy the Food Allergy Travel Workshop. I completely trust and recommend this workshop!
Conclusion
Knowing these 5 essential must-dos BEFORE hiring a food allergy travel agent will help you have an amazing and allergy-friendly vacation.
If you have a nut or peanut allergy, you may also like this post about The Best Places To Travel With Nut Allergy, OR this one about Traveling On A Plane With An EpiPen.
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