Category: Travel

Air travel air poses the greatest challenge for someone on a gluten free diet. It is hard finding food to buy on an airplane and finding much more than gluten free granola bars at an airport can seem impossible.

On a recent trip, we flew home from Philadelphia’s airport.  We had a long flight home and knew we would need to eat something.  I went through a CIBO Express kiosk looking for some nuts and granola bars.  And as we were winding our way past the sandwiches, my husband pulled out a GLUTEN FREE turkey sandwich!  I had to stare at it for a minute or two, because I couldn’t believe it!  CIBO Express is located at a few of the major airports.  Check into it next time you are traveling.  I sent an email to the company to see if all their locations offer gluten free sandwiches.  I’ll update the site if I hear back from them.

We have found few restaurants at airports that have food that is labeled as gluten free, and your chances of the wait staff being familiar with a gf diet is riskier than most restaurants.  We usually have luck at any of the Vino Volo’s that are in many airports.  Vino Volo has a lighter fare with salads and some small plates.  They have gluten free crackers that they can substitute for some of the entrees.  That is usually our go to place if we can find one.  And they have great wine choices too!

As far as food on the plane (at least in coach), it seems lately that the only snacks they pass out are cookies or pretzels.  No peanuts anymore.  On a recent United flight, we purchased a snack box that was labeled as gluten free.  It was cheese, salami, gluten free crackers and a cookie.  United is the only airline that I’ve seen this on so far. Be aware that some airlines offer for sale Pringles, a potato-based chip, which are not gluten free.

If you are traveling overseas on an international flight where meals are being served, you will have an option to order a gluten free meal.  To be sure there is a gluten free meal for you, log in to your airline’s website prior to your flight to make the request.  In addition to gluten free meals, there are many other dietary options.

Depending on the length of your flight, I’d recommend bringing food with you especially if you are traveling with a child who must eat gluten free, because your choices will be limited.

With a little planning, air travel shouldn’t be as difficult as it may seem.