What It’s Really Like to Travel to Spain and Portugal with Food Allergies

What It’s Really Like to Travel to Spain and Portugal with Food Allergies

When we were invited to Portugal, my 1st thought wasn’t sightseeing. It was safety.

Traveling internationally with food allergies requires a different level of planning than staying closer to home.

As my thoughts spun through my mind:

Would Spain & Portugal understand cross contact?

What can I find to safely feed us?

Did I really just add on a whole other country by stopping in Spain before we arrive in Portugal?

So, here’s what we really experienced.

The wins, the challenges and what I’d suggest before you book your trip!

Why Spain and Portugal with Food Allergies

So, let’s start at the very beginning…Why Spain and Portugal?

Well, when you get invited to a wonderful European country like Portugal…you just can’t say “no”!

Maybe that’s just me!

Therefore, when we received the invite, Portugal was a resounding “YES!”

And then my husband Joe said, “How about we stop off in Spain before we go to Portugal?”

Of course, it makes sense for us to add Spain to our trip.

Preparing Before We Left Home

Flights are easy to Europe and inexpensive offseason or bought in advance.

Once you have purchased anything for a trip, immediately buy travel insurance that includes medical coverage.

If you get your travel insurance within 14 days of your initial trip deposit/payment usually pre-existing conditions are covered, so food allergies will be a covered condition.

However, you should always double check all policies!

• We personally use for over a decade, TravelGuard Insurance & World Nomads.
• Translation Cards specifically for Food Allergies – Use our link for up to 30% off (usually 10% off). We THANK YOU for supporting our woman owned business!
• Grab our free Ultimate Packing List here specifically for Food Allergy Trips – all kinds of travels: long weekends, 3 weeks in Europe, Caribbean…

OK, if you would like help planning your Food Allergy trip, our Travel Starter Guide is having your own personal travel agent/food allergy expert!

😎 Our Travel Starter Guide EASILY walks you thru planning each & every one of your trips when you have added challenges of food allergies.

Our Food Allergy Experience in Spain

As my son was going to be graduating from Penn State University, the evening we return, chose flights in/out of Philadelphia as times allow for us to make his graduation!

If you follow us in our private Facebook Group, Food Allergy Travels and Life, (You should come join the Party – this Group is positive & gives great tips for Food Allergy Travels and Life!).

You may know that long flights are my most concerning travel concern when someone has food allergies.

NEVER EVER EVER…EAT AIRLINE FOOD if you have anaphylactic food allergies. Far too risky at 35,000 feet.

As international flights require us to be at the airport 3 hours pre-flight, we head into the American Airlines Admirals Club.

Now, I’ll have to do another post on “To Eat or Not to Eat at airport lounges”…

All the food items on the buffet are labelled.

However, when we went to speak with the manager, he said:

I wouldn’t chance it. The preparation area is small and there’s all kinds of food allergens all over.” – Scott, manager

Good enough for me. And getting our warm Italian Gnocchi stew from our insulated Hydrapeak wide-mouth food container in our leak-proof backpack cooler. SAFE & DELICIOUS!! And can be vegetarian by omitting the meat.

Did I mention we’ve travelled for over 20+ years & 8 years of having our travel consulting agency helping 1,000’s of clients with 0 food allergy reactions? This is a Major reason.

Bring your “Handy Dandy Backpack Cooler” filled with your food allergy friendly food & snacks. This is the EXACT backpack cooler we use for years!

🌟 On our Instagram, we show you what we bring with our multiple anaphylactic food allergies to: Peanuts, Tree Nuts, Legumes, Shellfish, Soy & Dairy & Meat Intolerances. For 24 hours.

Really & YUMMY too!

Now, but back to What It’s Really Like to Travel to Spain and Portugal with Food Allergies!

Long Distance Flight with Food Allergies

So, this was a HUGE blessing flying business class to Madrid! Lie down seats, plenty of room….

However, before even settling into our cushy seats, Joe was handed a dish of warm nuts!

WHY????

Potato chips are just as tasty and much safer!

Really.

In over 20+ years of being a food allergy family, never met anyone who is allergic to potatoes or salt…yet millions of people are deathly allergic to nuts/peanuts!

Airlines: YOU NEED OUR FOOD ALLERGY RISK & MITIGATION TRAINING NOW. CONTACT US HERE.

Too many people are having serious and deadly reactions at 35,000 feet and a lot of it can be averted.

As my daughter Katie is touch allergic to peanuts, we steer clear of the nuts.

She always brings her washable airline seat cover to protect her and wears long sleeves and pants to avoid skin contact.

See EXACTLY how we clean our airline seats/area from our Instagram.

And for more Flying with Food Allergies Guide, our most popular blog post, updated yearly.

Arriving in Madrid, Spain

Our flight is quick – just 7 hours and thankfully uneventful. Both Joe and I slept for several hours! Super unusual for me.

Arriving on the Madrid Marathon day, with many streets blocked off for the runners, our drive from the airport to the @AirBnB rental should have taken 20 minutes but took 2 hours!

Perfect example why we ALWAYS bring our food allergy friendly food & snacks.

Arriving at our apartment in the beautiful Plaza del Sol area, we drop off our luggage and head out into the warm sunshine to take a look at Madrid & get some lunch and groceries.

Eating Out in Spain with Food Allergies

Because we had done some preparation pre-departure, we had contacted several #foodallergyfriendly restaurants near our apartment.

Heading right outside our apartment, the delicious Serafina Cocina Bar is the perfect place for a food allergy lunch (for our specific food allergies. There is shellfish, gluten, dairy, etc… on their menu. They have both indoor & outdoor dining)!

Serafina’s staff let us know weeks in advance that they could accommodate for our specific food allergies.

On arrival, we showed the manager our email from them and he smiled and nodded yes.

SO much YUMMINESS!!!

Planning our Food Allergy Restaurants Pays Off

What we ate in Madrid with Food Allergies:

Baked provolone cheese stuffed with mushrooms and caramelized onion, Laredo´s anchovies, served with concasse tomato, 100% Sheep´s milk cheese slices, bread toast and fresh tomato. & Green fresh salad with avocado, asparagus, pomegranate and spring onion with a red berries dressing.

All typical Spanish foods prepared to keep us safe. Priceless – Gracias Serafina!

The staff’s care and EU labeling for food allergies made us feel welcomed and accepted. Another reason we love travelling to Europe when you have food allergies.

Other places that we were able to eat out safely with our specific food allergies:

• Chain restaurant Malvon – Empanada’s that were prepared in many different flavors & delicious washed down with a cold beer! Note: as with any place to eat, there were many food allergens on their menu including pistachios, cheese, dairy, egg, etc… for us, their Empanada Roquefort Pera (Pear with Roquefort cheese was safe). This is a good picnic food too. They had a separate allergy binder listing ingredients. If you have an egg or gluten allergy, NOT sure this will work for you.
• A fantastic dinner at La Buha y El Bol – sitting outside with many locals, enjoying Tortilla with potatoes and onions (note: this is an egg dish which is fine for our food allergies but may not for others). Their menu lists out Top 14 food allergens, and their staff was knowledgeable about cross contamination/cross contact.
• Lalina has 100% Gluten-free Bravas, Tapas & more! And #dairyfree as well as vegetarian options. Their outside area was bustling with locals. Our server did not speak much English, so we spoke to manager for all ordering, which is our preference.

What It’s Really Like to Travel to Spain and Portugal with Food Allergies: Our real experiences to inspire & help you make your dream trips with food allergies.

Madrid is a Beautiful Place to Visit

As we are in Madrid for only a few days, our whirlwind tour allows us to see:

• Royal Palace
• Many gorgeous Cathedrals & Churches including the Cathedral de Santa Maria La Real De La Almudena
• Walk & Eat Madrid Food Tour – Very Fun! Although not the easiest with our multiple anaphylactic food allergies they did an amazing job accommodating us!! Thank you very much!
• Plazza del Sol
• Mercados San Miguel & Mercado Barcelo (great fresh fruits & veggies, but note there is fresh fish & shellfish, nuts too)
• Gran Via area
• Plaza Mayor

So much to see & do in Madrid!

Challenges of Food Allergies in Spain – Custard Tarts

Now for the “You Need to Know” portion of our trip to Spain with Food Allergies.

If you have meat allergy/Alpha Gal, know that there is a lot of ham/salumi/meat. It is absolutely delicious if this is not your food allergen, but ham is a very common food in Spain.

Also, there are 2 traditional breakfasts/desserts that you should be aware of & surprisingly, we can eat one! But if you have an egg or dairy food allergy, be aware.

There are scrumptious little custard tarts called “Pasteis de Nata” everywhere!

And you can watch as they’re being made at many places, including local favorite, Manteigaria.

Yummy & warm from the oven with sprinkle of cinnamon, OMG!

Surprisingly, they told us this creamy confection is nut/peanut-free! However, dairy and gluten allergies are a firm “NO”.

Manteigaria has many locations, including in Portugal where we’ll eat these heavenly pillows of creaminess again!

Churros & Hot Chocolate with Food Allergies

Another traditional breakfast, snack or dessert is Spain’s famous churros & hot chocolate.

Again, this is something that you can watch being made right in front of you!

On our Walk & Eat Tour, they took us to Manosanta. Definitely not good if you have food allergies to dairy, gluten, nuts and peanuts.

If these aren’t your specific food allergies, have at it!!

Lastly, be aware that the drink called a Horchata is made with almonds & found all over. It is usually a drink made with ice (cold drink).

At many of the cafes, we saw a quick wipe of a wet towel to clean items, not a full disinfecting wash, so cross contact risk is high imho.

Memories of our Trip to Madrid

As we often like to make a few meals in our apartment rental, we went to a few grocery stores and the fresh markets above.

It was very easy to get dairy free milks, safe for us bread and a lot of really delicious foods to prepare breakfasts and a few meals sitting on our terrace like this yummy salad in photo above!

So nice listening to live street musicians below our apartment, with a coffee or glass of wine!

These are the memories that make me smile now, reflecting on how well treated we were throughout Madrid.

Our next post will continue as we fly to Portugal for 10 days!

Subscribe to hear all about our food allergy travels!!

This is what It’s really like to travel to Spain and Portugal with Food Allergies!

Part 1 of Series – Part 2 Portugal with Food Allergies will follow. 

Madrid reminded us that with the correct preparation, international travel with food allergies can be both safe & deeply rewarding! In the next post, we’ll share how we continued our journey through Portugal & share:

• What Worked with our multiple Food Allergies
• Surprises!
• Strategies for eating out with food allergies & enjoying Portuguese food

We did an additional trip to Spain for our 2025 Small Group Trip, see our Instagram reel on Eating Out with Food Allergies in Mallorca, Spain & Barcelona, Spain.

And come with us on our 2026 Small Group Trip especially for people who have Food Allergies is going to be starting in the lovely Barcelona! Our 2027 trip is to Greece – sign up now!

 

So, A LOT more Spain with Food Allergies to come!

Make sure that you’re subscribed to keep up with ALL our Food Allergy Travels and Life!

Xo, Cindi

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