Hawaiian Airlines Vegan Meal on International Flights (Review + Photos)

Does Hawaiian Airlines provide vegan meals on international flights? Yes, they do!

I took two international flights with Hawaiian Airlines in 2023, from San Francisco to Seoul, South Korea, then Seoul to San Francisco.

Both times the food on Hawaiian Airlines were just okay to be honest!

Keep reading to see my Hawaiian Airlines vegan meals (Hawaiian Airways Economy Class Food).

Heading to Honolulu? Check my list of vegan restaurants in Honolulu.

Flying with any of these other airlines?

✈️ Tip: Use Skyscanner to see which weeks are cheapest to fly to/from on Hawaiian Airlines flights

Does Hawaiian Airlines Serve Free Meals on International Flights?

Hawaiian Airlines serves complimentary hot meals and snacks on long-haul international flights.

My flight was 11 hours, with an additional layover in Honolulu.

They do not serve meals on domestic flights within the United States.

What Are the Hawaiian Airlines Vegan Meal Options?

Hawaiian Airlines has one vegan meal option.

Here are the complete special meal options for Hawaiian Airlines.

You want to request the vegan one:

  • Vegetarian: may contain egg or dairy
  • Vegan: no meat, egg, or dairy products
  • Gluten-free
  • Child: for children 2-11 years of age

Hawaiian Airlines Vegan Meals Review

Hawaiian Airlines provides great in-flight service and the seats are comfortable in my opinion. But, Hawaiian Airlines vegan meal options aren’t the best.

Before takeoff, they do go to your seat to confirm your meal option, which I appreciated!

San Francisco to Seoul, layover in Hawaii, 2023 (11 hours)

I chose the Vegan Meal and here’s what I got:

Meal 1: Pasta with mushrooms dish, side vegetables and fruit.

Hawaiian Airlines Vegan Meal - Pasta with mushrooms dish, side vegetables and fruit

Meal 2: Sandwich with lettuce, tomato & cucumber, no seasoning nor dressing, plus an apple.

Hawaiian Airlines vegan meal - Sandwich with plain vegetables, no seasoning or dressing, plus apple

Snack: For both flights the snacks weren’t vegan so I did skip those.

The food was just okay, and didn’t have much flavor. But the pasta was filling.

Seoul to San Francisco, layover in Hawaii, 2023 (11 hours)

I chose the Vegan Meal and here’s what I got:

Meal 1: Vegetable and beans dish, side salad, and rice cracker. The dressing was more of an oil. The main dish was just okay.

Hawaiian Airlines vegan meal - Vegetable and beans dish, side salad, and rice cracker

Breakfast: Two bananas, rice cracker, and pineapple.

Hawaiian Airlines Breakfast: Two bananas, rice cracker, and pineapple

Snack: For both flights the snacks weren’t vegan so I did skip those.

They weren’t the most filling meals, but the ideal me knows it’s better to eat light to help avoid body jet lag.

How to Request a Hawaiian Airlines Vegan Meal

You cannot select your special meal during booking. You have to contact the Reservations Department.

For US and Canada, the number to request special meals is 1-800-367-5320.

Make sure to request it for both flights if it’s a roundtrip. Meals are only provided for international flights.

This is a bit inconvenient, but I hope they change that in the near future.

In case you don’t get an updated booking email like below, go back to your booking on HawaiianAirlines.com to confirm the Hawaiian Airlines vegan meal was requested.

Screenshot of Hawaiian Airlines Special Vegan Vegetarian Meal Email

When Can You Request a Special Meal on Hawaiian Airlines?

You can request your vegan meal up to 24 hours before your flight.

From their website:

“Specials meals must be requested through our Reservations Department or your travel agent at least 48 hours before your flight. Special meals cannot be requested at the airport or onboard the aircraft.”

When Do You Get Served Your Vegan Meal?

Special meals generally get served first, and early. Sometimes you’ve finished your food before others are even served! (I personally wait until my row gets served before I start eating, just a cultural thing. Unless I’m really hungry.)

So I always breathe a sigh of relief when a flight attendant either comes up to me at the beginning of the flight confirming my seat and vegan meal, or when they come up to my row with my vegan meal early. Phew!

That being said, don’t change your seat since the special meal is assigned to your seat number.

If there are lots of seats and you want to move, make sure to tell them first that you’re moving and if it’s possible to serve your vegan meal at your new seat.

Meals are generally served an hour or two after landing and before arrival.

Hawaiian Airlines Vegan Meals: Just Okay

Since Hawaiian Airlines only have one vegan option, they’re less likely to mix the meals up.

Hawaiian Airlines isn’t my favorite either in terms of online customer service help, but since the acquisition by Alaska Airlines, my favorite domestic airlines, maybe things have changed since!

Still, their in-flight staff are always friendly and flying on their planes is always quite nice and comfortable.

🏨 Tip: Look up vegan-related activities on Viator

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