Readers of the DS-gluten free enewsletter may remember that in our July edition we wanted to know your gluten free holiday stories! Good or bad, glutened or not, going on holiday gluten free can be a real nightmare at times. We were really pleased to hear all of your stories; our winner was Stacey Hingley from the West Midlands. Stacey had already booked her wedding in an all-inclusive hotel in Mauritius before she was diagnosed with Coeliac Disease. Despite the fact that Stacey had been managing her gluten free diet very well at home, going on holiday to Mauritius and planning a wedding was understandably a bit daunting!

Read below for Stacey's story:

Hello,

My name is Stacey and I have been diagnosed with coeliac disease for 12 months now. Before my diagnosis was confirmed, I had booked our wedding in Mauritius for this May (it was a fantastic day). I had booked an all-inclusive 14 night stay in a hotel and couldn't wait. At this point food was never a consideration as I was never a fussy eater. However, when I was diagnosed with coeliac disease and I did more research into a gluten free diet, the panic set in and I knew I had to change my relationship with food, but still not thinking about Mauritius. Within months I started to feel better and I had cleared the kitchen and had my own gluten free cupboard, replaced the gluten containing items with gluten free alternatives where available, and with the loving support of my now husband all of our meals are cooked gluten free. I'm not sadistic as I haven’t banned gluten products in the house, in fact to stop me eating my husband’s crisps before him, he will buy the brands that contain gluten!

Flying gluten free...

Anyway back to the holiday, the airline, Emirates, were great and they offered a gluten free meal, one advantage was they brought my meal out first so I was happy not having to wait. Emirates meals were laid out the same as other airline’s meals; foil tray for hot food, sandwiches individually wrapped, salads open with the plastic lid with a sticky label saying gluten free. The hot chicken meal was ok, a little dry, as there was no sauce with the boiled rice and vegetables. The breakfast meal was similar to the other meals but with the sausage, hash brown etc. being removed and not really replaced with anything else. The sandwich was in no way food, the bread was the worst I have ever had, and it was cut thick and very dense. Overall, they seemed to remove what would have contained gluten but not really offer an alternative and therefore the meals lacked something. I'm not sure if contamination would have been an issue as the food was covered but not always sealed.

A case full of alternatives...

I tried to contact the hotel and request information about their menu, but all I heard back from them was that there would be gluten free food available. So with this in mind, my hand luggage contained 5 packs of crackers (a few varieties), 6 packs of biscuits and 1 pack of gluten free oat muesli, enough for 3 meals a day for 15 days and yes that's all I could fit in my hand luggage. I didn't want to risk putting them in the case as broken crackers and biscuits for two weeks would not be good. As we all set off to the airport my bag was the butt of all jokes which amused us during a 3 hour delay, but I soon found it daunting to think that's all I'd be eating for two weeks and on my wedding day too. Bringing gluten free food in my hand luggage was not a problem and I didn't ring ahead, I did check the food restrictions into Mauritius and found only fresh food would be a problem. My bags went through security without problems and no questions asked.

Gluten free food at the hotel...

Once we got there we discovered that our luggage didn't make the connecting flight and we had no change of clothes but I had my gluten free food. The hotel took our details and I informed them that I required a gluten free diet. The first meal was met with anticipation as I really didn’t know if there would be anything for me to eat. I was wondering if I’d have to go and get the crackers and hope for some cheese on the buffet but it was good. The gluten containing food was labelled "contains gluten," which left me with grilled meat, boiled rice and salad, no need for the crackers. As the days went on, I realised that not all of the meals had been labelled “contains gluten” so I got to know which waiters understood “no gluten food.” One waiter tried to tell me that the pasta was ok to eat and the bread pudding, at which point I gave him a look and said no thank you and stuck to the salad and boiled rice. The crackers and biscuits came in handy on day trips as snacks, although the hotel did provide snacks; these consisted of sandwiches and battered food deep fried, which obviously contained gluten.

The wedding day...

The wedding day came and I asked could the hotel staff if they could provide a gluten free cake expecting that it wouldn't be possible, but to our surprise they said yes! It was a lovely soft sponge cake with fresh cream and fruits for decoration. The rest of the wedding meal was the same for everyone but mine was adapted slightly. My starter was a simple salad different to the others that had a pate and toast (I lost out there). The main was lobster and prawn, mine was the same but without sauce, they did offer gluten free bread but it wasn't nice. The pudding was fresh fruit for me; this was the only dessert I could have throughout the holiday and a lovely mix of cakes for the rest. This was typical of all the meals really.

Cross contamination strikes...

Time came to go home and with a few packets of crackers left we were packed up and on our way. The holiday and the wedding had been great, but I did seem a little bloated when I boarded the plane. Once home I did feel a bit yuk with an unhappy tummy and bloating, I put it down to the 22 hours travelling and jet lag, but still a few weeks later I wasn't quite right, I had symptoms of eating gluten, my trousers were tight although I had only put on a few pounds. I hadn't done so well with the food as I first thought.

Living with the gluten free lifestyle...

It’s been 2 months since we got married and I'm just starting to feel like my normal self, it has shown me no matter how hard I try if someone else is controlling the food then contamination of gluten is still a high risk. I'm not convinced the wedding cake was gluten free, but it has shown me that although I miss cakes, bread and biscuits, as let’s be honest gluten free ones are nice but they don't bring back childhood memories of the cake your Nan made when you slept over or having to pay for an empty pack of cookies after eating them all around the supermarket with Mum and Dad, it’s just not worth the uncomfortable feeling for months later. A little pleasure has large consequences.

DS-gluten free want to thank Stacey for sharing her story on going away gluten free. If you would like any tips on going on holiday gluten free visit our previous blog or our avoiding gluten contamination section. If you would like to ask Stacey any questions or share your own experiences please comment below.





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