I've been on several ABD's, and we've had folks with some sort of allergy on most of my trips (Celiac's, peanuts, even one person allergic to wine!). The ABD Guides have been FABULOUS about working with the restaurants to get their allergies addressed and taken care of. I have a lot of dietary restrictions (not allergies, but GERD and diabetes related) and they've done wonders for me making sure there's always food I can eat available. Try dealing with someone who can't eat tomatoes or tomato products in Greece!! They were wonderful!
Sayhello
I'm sure you know, just discuss it with the Guides when you get there. They've always been the best. No-one I know has ever had a problem with the food on an ABD. I've always heard they're the best if you have food problems, because they take it quite seriously!I feel your pain sayhello! I have a sensitivity to tomatoes (and a strong personal dislike) and my hubby has GERD, and also sensitive to tannins/tannic acid so no red wines or black tea products or else he will be violently ill for at least a day!
We had no issues with food.
We are on our way to Germany in a few days and I have confidence we will be fine.
We did the ABD BSM in July with my peanut/tree nut allergic daughter and there were no issues with the meals. Three of the six meals, prior to arriving at Disneyland, are at the Loews Hollywood Hotel. I spoke to the executive chef before booking the trip and he assured me they could provide safe meals for her, and they would make something just for her that was not on the buffet if she wanted something else. The lunch at Tam O'Shanter was good for her as was the lunch at Walt Disney Studios. I called ahead to all of the places before booking the trip. It is important for me to feel like they understand the severity of the situation. There is one dinner on your own. We ate at the Cabo Wabo Cantina mexican restaurant in the Hollywood and Highland Center, which is connected to the hotel. However, there is one special surprise you may want to skip. SPOILER ALERT If you don't wish to know about any surprises on this ABD than read no further, but this information is useful for someone traveling with food allergies. On the day you have dinner on your own the group was told to meet at the Ghirardelli ice cream shop for ice cream sundaes. This is a frequent surprise but may not always happen since it is not part of the official itinerary. When I called ahead I found out that the only thing my daughter could have was a sorbet. There was no ice cream that didn't have the possibility of cross contamination. My daughter and I skipped this event and went to see where her favorite band shot a music video, while my wife and other daughter went to the ice cream shop. Everyone was happy, and the next day the guides surprised my daughter with about $15 worth of candy because she could not go to the ice cream shop. The guides took care of us and our special needs like we were part of their family.
I had the most success when I could deal with the restaurant or restaurant staff directly myself. I had a horrible experience letting the ABd guides deal with restaurants when it came to my allergies. They actually caused me to have 2 major anxiety attacks while on my ABD in Europe over concerns about my allergies. The company we travel with now is fantastic about it. No anxiety attacks at all and we did 15 days in Southeast Asia.
Agree 100%Sorry that you had a one off experience. We have had great response from ABD concerning allergies. Anxiety around concerns over ABD is not a direct reflection on how ABD actually handles allergy issues.
Sorry that you had a one off experience. We have had great response from ABD concerning allergies. Anxiety around concerns over ABD is not a direct reflection on how ABD actually handles allergy issues.
Unfortunately the lackadaisical attitude of the guide towards the allergy and my concerns happened not once but twice on the trip and it was the official Disney guide that was the issue. When it was left to the local guide to deal with there wasn't a problem but the minute the Disney guide was dealing with it, that's when the issues started. Add to that, the major anxiety/panic attack happened at the final dinner and the guide basically brushed me and my concerns off. Did not leave me with a great impression of Adventures by Disney. Nor did Disney's response when I informed them of the issue and my concerns upon our return.
I am sorry to hear that. I would suggest and voicing your concerns to Adventures By Disney. They take guest experiences very seriously and are always looking for areas to improve in. I would seriously consider reaching back out to them. ABD has always been very responsive to any concerns that I have had.
Everyone has a different experience. For me, I would chalk it up to a new experience and move on with life. I, myself, feel that harboring such strong feelings towards a company would make me want to take up the issues with the company. Taking a first level brush off would just encourage me to start emailing or tweeting the higher-ups.
I don't really think nearly ending up in the hospital in Austria due to the actions of the guides can be chalked up to a "new experience".
This response was from the higher ups. I send my letter to the head of ABD and that was the response we got back. We weren't looking for anything, just an acknowledgement that the guides screwed up and that the situation would be rectified moving forward. The response we got back was that if we didn't like it, we could either suck it up or not travel with ABD.