Looking for vegan and vegetarian cruising tips? Here are some ideas from my 20 cruises and some of my favorites.
Note that most of my cruises have been on Carnival, with two on Royal Caribbean. I have found these cruise lines to be very accommodating for dietary requests.
Carnival has a “Menu Mate” stand in the buffet area to discuss requests with a knowledgeable staff member. They also have a separate vegan menu for each meal in the dining room. The idea is that meals don’t have to be special ordered, but I did need to order my dinner entrees the night before.
Sometimes the servers explained that the breakfast or brunch foods would take longer to arrive. This was on the Legend in December of 2023 – maybe it has changed since.
In my experience, the servers, hosts, and maitre’d’s are very helpful with finding out ingredients in meal items and helping to accommodate requests.
Fresh Fruits
First, you can find a variety of delicious fruit on the breakfast menu and buffets for each meal. Fruit soups and fruit plates for dessert are often available.
I was on one cruise with a yogurt buffet with fruit and granola toppings. I would imagine some have smoothie bars: has anyone seen this?
Avocado toast may be on a dining room breakfast menu or on the buffet. On this day it was topped with citrus slices.
Sometimes it is topped with eggs or prosciutto: I have had luck asking for it to be made separately without these.
Enjoy International Options
Look for vegetarian sushi, Indian food, made-to-order stir-fry, and bean burritos. I was surprised to even find Indian items like potato and vegetable curry and freshly made breads with garlic and vegetable rice at the breakfast buffet on a recent cruise out of Southampton, UK.
Chinese and Japanese specialty restaurants offer a variety of vegetables in salads and stir-fries. Many ships rotate buffet areas and restaurant menus to include different cuisines over a week-long cruise, in addition to dedicated space for some concepts, like the Mongolian wok and Asian areas on some Carnival ships.
The Anthem of the Seas had a pasta buffet and stir-fry area where your meals could be made to order. We loved that you were given a beeper so you didn’t have to stand there and wait.
These were tasty and fresh, but they didn’t have tofu, edamame, or nuts for the stir-fry so with just vegetables, noodles, and sauce they weren’t high in protein.
Legumes and Vegetables
A large variety of vegetables are found on lunch and dinner menus and buffets. Check the salad bar for cooked chickpeas and beans, Tofu is sometimes part of daily vegetarian dinner entrees. Marinated vegetables are a great addition to salads.
Vegan and vegetarian vegetable, bean, and lentil soups may be served. I loved this green lentil soup with San Marzano tomatoes (vegan) from Royal Caribbean:
Indian and Southeast Asian vegetarian menu items or a buffet may be available: check these out for more plant-forward dishes.
Plant milk has become very popular, but can be a little hard to find. Ask your server as almond and soy milk is probably available in the kitchen for people with food allergies. I have found soy, almond, and oat milk on board.
Tips for Finding Whole Grains
Rolls, pasta, rice, cereals, pastries, bagels, muffins, and more are usually available in abundance. Finding whole grains can be a challenge.
At breakfast, look for oatmeal or bran cereal. Carnival has a “Norlander” bread that is good. Royal Caribbean as a wheat bread that can be toasted, but I’m not sure that it is whole wheat.
Compared to home where I buy or make most grain foods with whole wheat flour, this is an area where I think he cruise lines could improve.
Desserts
You will probably find more than enough delicious desserts on your cruises. I have found that Carnival and Royal Caribbean make sure to offer a vegan dessert at each main dining room dinner menu, too.
There are usually no sugar added and gluten-free options as well as a fruit and cheese plate.
Beverages on Cruises
Finally, let’s talk about drinks. Typically, cruises include these free beverages: water (not bottled water), coffee, black tea, orange juice, other juices at breakfast like apple and/or passionfruit, lemonade, iced tea, and maybe flavored water like strawberry kiwi.
Higher-calorie beverages include alcoholic mixed drinks, soft drinks, milkshakes, and sweetened coffee drinks. Alcohol contains 7 calories per gram, which is more than the 4 calories per gram in carbohydrates and protein.
Cruisers seem to love getting the packages for drinks: alcohol or beverages. If you choose an unlimited drinks package, there is a tendency to drink more to make it worthwhile. The alcoholic beverage packages include cocktails up to a certain dollar amount, like $15, plus distilled spirits, beer, and wine.
Beverage packages may include soda and coffee drinks, plus bottled water and energy drinks. These packages may also encourage excess added sugar and calories.
In moderation, light beer, beer, wine, or a mojito are lower-calorie alcoholic options.
Of course, the healthiest option is water, especially in the heat. Additionally, plain iced tea is refreshing: look for lemon slices for flavor.
Healthy eating on cruises can help you feel energetic and enjoy every minute!
You can search the internet and sites such as Prof Cruises for menus to check them out before your trip. Contact guest services before you leave for special dietary needs like food allergies and gluten-free options.
Keeping Active on a Cruise
With all of the delicious food, you may be concerned about preventing weight gain when you cruise.
Seeking out healthier options and limiting alcohol and desserts can help.
Plus, there are lots of ways to be active. I think I move around more on a ship than at work for sure: walking the hallways, taking the steps when not going up a lot of flights, dancing (I love the silent disco!) and swimming.
On my last cruise, the large ship had a lot of fun activities like laser tag and rock climbing. We walked a ton exploring the Mediterranean ports and climbing around old forts.
You can find active excursions like water parks, kayaking, and stand-up paddleboarding.
Related Travel and Nutrition Posts
Hopefully, these ideas will help you enjoy self-care with good nutrition on your next cruise. Will you need a long drive to get there? Here are some healthy snack ideas for the road!
Please share your tips for healthy vegan and vegetarian cruising in the comments!
Originally published: 8/10/18. Updated: 8/15/24
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