TOKYO

Given that the allergies we had to consider at the time of booking our holiday to Tokyo included sesame, fish and dairy, Tokyo would not normally be a destination I would prioritise taking my children to. However when some very close friends told us they were getting married there, that made us think again! I agonised over whether to go, and in the end we decided to go - after all, we could manage it by renting a serviced apartment and cooking for the kids, but I must admit I was pretty anxious in the lead up to the holiday! The holiday turned out to be a wonderful experience - Japanese people are incredibly polite and accommodating, yet cautious (they generally won't say that something doesn't contain an allergen if they are unsure), and I get the sense that they pride themselves on providing high quality service particularly when it comes to food.

FLIGHTS

To fly into Tokyo (Narita) from Sydney, we had the choice of JAL, Qantas and Jetstar. Price was important for us so we initially considered Jetstar, but for long haul I generally prefer the non-budget airlines (so much more comfortable), so when Qantas went on sale, we snapped up the opportunity. Qantas were great in that they had a gluten-free meal which was safe for one of my children, and a child's meal which was safe for the other, so we specified these meals in our booking well before the departure date to ensure they would be able to give this to us. I also packed some food in case for whatever reason (eg flight delay, airline unable to provide the special meal). Whether you allow your children to eat the airline meals, or prefer them to eat food you have brought is of course entirely up to you; the airlines will never be able to guarantee that the food is 100% free from allergens that are used in their kitchens, but based on the information on the Qantas website at the time, I felt comfortable requesting the special meals.

WHERE TO STAY

We made a choice on where to stay based on proximity to the wedding we were going to attend, so we stayed in Omotesando, which is a lovely area with some upmarket shopping (not that we did any upmarket shopping - especially not with our little ones in tow!), and restaurants and cafes. The Tokyo Metro is excellent and clean, so I would say anywhere close to a Metro station is usually a good option; The Tokyo Chapter (https://www.thetokyochapter.com/where-to-stay-in-tokyo-with-small-children/) has some great information on where to stay. I've stayed in Roppongi Hills pre-children, and I think the handy thing about staying in that area (when you have kids with food allergies), is that you are more likely to find grocery stores there that have english labels. We used booking.com to find a 2 bedroom serviced apartment.

PLACES TO VISIT

We were in Tokyo for such a short time, and only visited the places listed below (but there is obviously much much more that Tokyo has to offer! In previous pre-kid trips to Tokyo, we’ve also visited Mount Fuji (manageable in a day trip) and also spent a few days in Kyoto).

Meiji-Jingu shrine

明治神宮, Meiji Jingū

1-1 Yoyogikamizonocho, Shibuya City, Tokyo 151-8557, Japan

Kitanomaru Garden

北の丸公園

(especially beautiful during Cherry Blossom season)

1-1 Kitanomarukoen, Chiyoda City, Tokyo 102-0091, Japan

Tsukiji Fish Market

築地市場, Tsukiji shijō

5 Chome-2-1 Tsukiji, Chuo City, Tokyo 104-0045, Japan

Tokyo Disneyland

東京ディズニーランド Tōkyō Dizunīrando

1-1 Maihama, Urayasu, Chiba 279-0031, Japan (closest metro station: Maihama)

Disneyland is very organised when it comes to food allergies - a lady brought out an iPad that had an app with allergens listed in English; I selected various foods and the menu would adjust depending on what was safe for my children to eat (based on the allergens I had selected). The bread does contain wheat and milk, but as my then 3 year old had outgrown his wheat allergy and could tolerate small amounts of milk baked in bread, we were able to have the bread in the Mickey Mouse shaped burgers. I did bring a thermos of food though, as there wasn't a HUGE selection of dairy-free and wheat-free options, and sometimes it is far to get to certain restaurants, depending on where you are in the park at the time your kids get hungry. Also, because Disneyland is always so busy, it was sometimes just easier to have food (and cutlery) ready to go. I did pack a few snacks and fruit for the kids to keep them going (save some also for the journey home!).

As mentioned above, there is so much more in Tokyo! If we had more time, we may have taken the kids to the famous super-busy crossing at Shibuya, to a ninja experience, the Imperial Palace, and maybe Legoland and DisneySea.

GROCERY SHOPPING

We stayed in Omotesando, and bought groceries from Kinokuniya and Natural House, and they had a great range of food. My then 3 year old had outgrown his wheat allergy, and even better could tolerate small amounts of milk baked in bread (despite being otherwise allergic to dairy), but there were gluten-free options (rice-bread) and also rice milk available in Natural House. Kinokuniya had a great range of fresh produce and also had soy milk which my then 3 year old could drink. Between these two grocery stores, we were able to get bread, bacon, soy milk, lamb cutlets, salmon, rice amongst other things, and some really amazing Fuji apples!!

Some things to note for Japan are:

- Some cured meats like ham and bacon contain dairy (don’t ask me why, but they do!).

- We found it impossible to find any instant noodles without sesame - also look out for the sesame paste sauce / dressing that they love to use over there (the colour of it is a bit like peanut butter, with a more watery consistency).

OTHER TIPS

I've written about managing allergies while travelling here and these tips are particularly relevant for Japan, but some additional tips when travelling to Japan with children who have food allergies are:

- The top allergens in Australia / UK / USA may be different to other countries; sesame for example is not a major allergen in Japan.

- Order portable wi-fi (that can be picked up at the airport - make sure it’s the right airport; flights generally fly into either Narita airport or Haneda airport) prior to your holiday. I think there is also an option to get a SIM card (best to research compatibility with your phone before you go).

- Bring spare chargers / phone battery boosters.

I do mention in my tips on managing allergies while travelling that you should download a translation app, but we also had a Japanese friend we could send photos to and this helped immensely where Google Translate wasn’t clear (for example the cured meat that contained the dairy!). This would be one of the advantages of staying in a hotel where there is a concierge, (although for me, having a kitchen where I could prepare meals for the kids was more important!).

WHERE TO EAT

For reviews on restaurants we went to while we were there, check out my Tokyo restaurant reviews here.