Travel safely with clear, downloadable allergy cards you can trust, from Love Travel Planning.
These free food allergy translation cards are designed to remove the uncertainty of second-guessing every meal, giving you a simple, clear way to communicate peanut, tree nut and sesame allergies in 19 languages.
Each card is written to be understood by chefs, waiters and emergency responders, so you are not relying on Google Translate in a high-risk moment. Every card also carries the local emergency number and a line saying that the allergy is life-threatening and that you carry an EpiPen.
Pick your destination below, download the card, print it or save it to your phone, and hand it to staff before you order. Each card covers peanuts, tree nuts and sesame, and prompts the server to check with the kitchen. They are free, and there are nineteen languages so far.
On the surface, the word allergy often translates easily; the problem is everything around it. While terms like peanut, tree nut and sesame can be translated, how they are understood, especially in a busy kitchen, is not always consistent. That is where miscommunications happen.
We have developed these cards to simplify that interaction by:
They are not about replacing awareness; they are about making that first interaction as clear as possible.
Includes:
Choose your destination and download your card in seconds. Each card is available as a printable PDF or a mobile-friendly image you can save to your phone. If you only need one version of the card, you can use any free PDF (or Adobe) tool online to remove the extra pages and keep things simple.
This is the master card. Every other language below follows the same layout, wording and allergen highlighting, so if you are unsure what a translated card says, hold it against this one. For England, and everywhere else English is the kitchen language: Scotland, Ireland, the USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The card says you have a serious allergy to peanuts, tree nuts and sesame and asks the server to check with the chef before serving. Worth carrying even at home. Outside the UK and EU, menus rarely list allergens, so in America and Australia the card does the job the menu does here.
Singapore: English is the language of most restaurants, so use this card there; we have made a Singapore version with the local emergency numbers (995 for an ambulance) on the back. If kitchen staff prefer Chinese, the Mandarin card below works alongside it.
For Barcelona, Girona, Valencia, Mallorca, Menorca and Ibiza, where menus and many kitchens run in Catalan. The card says, in Catalan, that you have a serious allergy to peanuts, tree nuts and sesame, and asks the server to check with the chef. Romesco and picada are almond and hazelnut sauces, and panellets, the autumn sweets, are pine nut and almond throughout. Carry the Spanish card too; staff will read either.
For mainland China, and useful wherever kitchen staff read simplified Chinese, including Singapore. The card says, in simplified Chinese, that you have a serious allergy to peanuts, tree nuts and sesame, and asks the server to check with the kitchen. Peanut and sesame are the two to watch: peanut oil and sesame oil in the wok, sesame paste in noodles and cold dishes, crushed peanuts in sauces and fillings, and cashews in stir-fries. The emergency number on the back is 120, the ambulance line.
For Croatia, and understood in Bosnia, Serbia and Montenegro. The card says, in Croatian, that you have a serious allergy to peanuts, tree nuts and sesame, and asks the server to check with the chef. Walnuts are the traditional one, in the orahnjača walnut roll, in strudels and in Dalmatian cakes, and almonds appear in coastal sweets. Grilled fish and meat, the everyday food, are usually simple.
For Denmark, and readable across much of Scandinavia. The card says, in Danish, that you have a serious allergy to peanuts, tree nuts and sesame, and asks the server to check with the chef. The bakery is the risk: almond paste (marcipan) and hazelnut run through wienerbrød, kringle and most of the Christmas table, and sesame sits on a lot of the rye bread and rolls. Restaurant mains are usually straightforward. The word to learn is nødder.
For France, Belgium, Switzerland and Quebec. The card says, in French, that you have a serious allergy to peanuts, tree nuts and sesame, and asks the server to check with the chef. The risk is the pâtisserie: frangipane, macarons, financiers and praline are all almond or hazelnut, and the counters are shared. Savoury dishes are usually simpler, but ask about pistou.
For Georgia, the country between the Black Sea and the Caucasus. The card says, in Georgian, that you have a serious allergy to peanuts, tree nuts and sesame, and asks the server to check with the chef. Georgian cooking grinds walnuts into almost everything: pkhali vegetable pâtés, satsivi and other sauces for meat, stuffed aubergine, and many salads and fillings. Treat every dish as containing walnut until the kitchen has said otherwise, and hand this card over before anything is ordered.
For Germany, Austria and German-speaking Switzerland. The card says, in German, that you have a serious allergy to peanuts, tree nuts and sesame, and asks the server to check with the chef. Hazelnuts and almonds are in a great deal of the baking, from Nusskuchen to marzipan and the whole Christmas market, and sesame is common on bread rolls and pretzels. The word to learn is Nuss.
For Greece, Cyprus and the islands. The card says, in Greek, that you have a serious allergy to peanuts, tree nuts and sesame, and asks the server to check with the chef before serving. Sesame is the everyday one: koulouri bread rings, tahini, halva and pasteli bars are all sesame, and walnuts and almonds fill most of the pastry tray, so this card earns its keep at breakfast.
For the Gaeltacht areas of Ireland, where Irish is the first language. The card says, in Irish, that you have a serious allergy to peanuts, tree nuts and sesame, and asks the server to check with the chef. Everyone will read the English card too, and EU rules mean allergens are listed on menus across Ireland, so this one is about respect and a clear conversation in the places where Irish is spoken at the table.
For Italy and Italian-speaking Switzerland. The card says, in Italian, that you have a serious allergy to peanuts, tree nuts and sesame, and asks the server to check with the chef. Pesto is pine nuts and sometimes cashews or almonds, Sicilian pesto is almond, and pistachio turns up in pasta sauces, granita and gelato. Gelaterie and pasticcerie share scoops and counters, so treat them as high risk however clean they look.
For Mexico, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Peru and the rest of Spanish-speaking Latin America, where peanut is maní or cacahuate and sesame is ajonjolí, so the Spain card does not quite land. The card says, in Latin American Spanish, that you have a serious allergy to peanuts, tree nuts and sesame, and asks the server to check with the chef. Peanuts are the risk: ground into mole, salsas and snacks, and pressed into cooking oil. Emergency numbers vary by country, so the back lists the main ones rather than one number.
For the Netherlands and Flemish-speaking Belgium. The card says, in Dutch, that you have a serious allergy to peanuts, tree nuts and sesame, and asks the server to check with the chef. Peanuts are the Dutch risk: satay sauce, Indonesian dishes and pindakaas are everywhere, and speculaas and many biscuits contain almonds. Sesame is common on bread.
For Poland. The card says, in Polish, that you have a serious allergy to peanuts, tree nuts and sesame, and asks the server to check with the chef. Walnuts and almonds sit in cakes, in poppy seed rolls and in some pierogi and dessert fillings, and Christmas dishes lean on nuts heavily. The word for nuts is orzechy, and it is worth recognising on a menu.
For Portugal, Madeira and the Azores, and readable in Brazil, though some words differ. The card says, in Portuguese, that you have a serious allergy to peanuts, tree nuts and sesame, and asks the server to check with the chef. Almonds run through Algarve pastries and most of the pastelaria counter, which is shared with everything else. In Brazil, add cashews and Brazil nuts to the list of things that turn up unannounced.
For Spain. The card says, in Spanish, that you have a serious allergy to peanuts, tree nuts and sesame, and asks the server to check with the chef. Almonds are the one to watch: they thicken romesco and picada sauces, and they are the base of turrón, marzipan and most of the pastry counter. For Mexico, Argentina and the rest of Spanish-speaking Latin America, use the Latin America card above; the words for peanut and sesame are different.
For Türkiye and Turkish Cyprus. The card says, in Turkish, that you have a serious allergy to peanuts, tree nuts and sesame, and asks the server to check with the chef. Sesame is on almost everything: simit, tahini, halva and the bread on the table. Pistachios and walnuts fill baklava and appear in kebabs and rice, and hazelnuts are a national crop. This is the card we would least want to travel without.
For the United Arab Emirates, and readable across the Gulf and much of the Arabic-speaking Middle East. The card says, in Modern Standard Arabic, that you have a serious allergy to peanuts, tree nuts and sesame, and asks the server to check with the chef; it reads right to left. English is widely used in Gulf restaurants, so carry the English card too. Sesame is everywhere as tahini, in hummus, dressings and breads, and pistachios, almonds and walnuts fill the sweets and the rice dishes.
For Wales, and especially the Welsh-speaking north and west. The card says, in Welsh, that you have a serious allergy to peanuts, tree nuts and sesame, and asks the server to check with the chef. UK allergen law applies, so menus will list allergens; the card is a courtesy that is appreciated in Welsh-speaking cafés and a useful backstop when the staff member on the day has not seen the allergen folder.
Save it to your phone and take a printed copy; do not rely on signal or battery. We have formatted these for printing, so if you can, use a local printer and get it laminated. That way you can reuse it across multiple trips. If not, a standard online printer will do the job.
Hand the card over as soon as you sit down, or even when you arrive if it is quiet. This gives staff time to understand your allergy properly and prepare safely, rather than reacting at the point of ordering.
Each card prompts the server to check with the kitchen, but do not assume it has been done. If they do not confirm, it is usually a sign to move on and find somewhere else.
These cards are designed to support communication, not replace it. If you have a specific allergy (for example, cashews), it is worth learning how to say it out loud in the local language as well. Think of the card as your starting point, not your only line of defence.
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