Road Trip Tips For People With Celiac or Gluten Intolerance
Traveling can be tricky for anyone, but if you have any food restrictions, allergies, or intolerances it can be downright frustrating! A few summers ago my husband and I were traveling from TX to the Florida Keys for our 20th wedding anniversary. I had snacks packed, but nothing that could serve as a meal. There was an 8-hour portion of the drive in which all we saw was a Subway. There were no other restaurants. We stopped because I thought that surely I could find something safe to eat at Subway. When I asked the young lady behind the counter if they had any gluten free options, she looked at me like I had 3 heads. I was familiar with that look and knew I better just eat the snacks I brought with me. I’d rather be hungry than glutened! We still had a long road ahead. I gained some helpful information from this situation:
If at all possible, bring a cooler with actual meal options.
Thank goodness I had GF snacks!
So many people still don’t know about Celiac & gluten intolerance.
Research restaurant options before traveling so I don’t get in that situation again.
Nowadays whenever I’m going out of town for a week or more, I will take 2-3 bags of food and a cooler. I will share with you the contents of those bags and cooler to help you plan your next road trip. Luckily, I love to cook, so if we are going to a place with a kitchen, I take food items with me for cooking (GF flour, GF rice, GF pasta, my herbs and spices, etc). If I can buy certain items at a grocery store where I am vacationing, then I do that. I live in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex and even here I can’t always find what I need. If in doubt, I pack it. Here are some of my favorite snacks that I take with me when I travel.
Cooking when travelling is one of the best ways to avoid being glutened. I have some favorite products that I pack that make cooking easier. We also save a lot of money bringing food and cooking our own meals. Here are some of the products I take with me when I travel.
In the cooler I pack premade sandwiches. I like to bring my own condiments (like dijon, ketchup, plant-based mayo, and relish). Things like premade guacamole, hummus, and salsa are perfect also. Add some bottles of water and iced tea and you’re all set. Before I started minimizing the dairy intake I would travel with cheese cubes.
Like I said I love to cook, but I also love to go out to dinner. Since I’m a lifelong foodie, I love learning about food, recipes, and other cuisines. I love reading menus and observing how a chef/owner runs their restaurant. I always research the restaurants beforehand. That way I can download the pdf of the GF menu ahead of time if possible. I seek out people on Instagram from the city to which I am traveling to read their advice about their home city’s gluten free restaurants. If I am having trouble finding Instagram accounts to follow, then I search for hashtags. For example before traveling to New Orleans I might try #glutenfreeNewOrleans or #NewOrleansGlutenFree.
As you can see planning, preparation, and research are key. Once you find places to shop and eat in the cities to which you travel, keep a journal or photos of those places so that when you visit again you remember what you learned the first time. I hope this has been helpful to you. Happy traveling!
