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Mobility issues on a Rhone River Cruise


momsherpa
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My 83 year old mother wants to take a river cruise, we are looking at the Rhone. She is on a walker - relatively mobile, just slow. The biggest issue is stairs. She can handle 1-2 steps, but not flights of stairs. Has anyone with similar issues taken a river cruise? I'm interested to hear about accessibility to get on/off the boat at ports, excursions, etc. (I have received information from a few river cruise lines, but would like first hand information from someone who has done this.) Thanks!

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At least some riverboats don't have elevator banks. Of the ones that do, some of them have some deck(s) that still require a flight of stairs, so the entire boat won't be accessible.

There are times that riverboats 'raft' to others, and don't dock themselves. Passengers have to transfer from one boat to another (and sometimes another after that) before they reach the shore. There is no guarantee that even if your boat has an elevator to the needed decks, the boat you need to transfer to will also. Stairs might still be necessary.

Then, once ashore, the route to street level can be very steep---a difficult walk with a walker.

 

This is probably not the best way for someone with your mother's difficulties to travel.

I wish you luck in your decision making.

 

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My 83 year old mother wants to take a river cruise, we are looking at the Rhone. She is on a walker - relatively mobile, just slow. The biggest issue is stairs. She can handle 1-2 steps, but not flights of stairs. Has anyone with similar issues taken a river cruise? I'm interested to hear about accessibility to get on/off the boat at ports, excursions, etc. (I have received information from a few river cruise lines, but would like first hand information from someone who has done this.) Thanks!

 

Suggest you do as search on this forum as there are a lot of previous posts as to why River Cruises are not the best option for someone using mobility aids. Following are just a few of the issues you'll encounter.

 

  • Unlike cruise ships river boats don't have a separate dock for each boat. Rather there can be 2-4 river boats all docked and tied together causing you to cross over/through several other boats evening before getting to the dock
  • River boats don't dock at street level. Rather there are multiple steps (more than 1-2 ) to have to walk up/down to reach street level/dock level. The steps often don't have hand rails and can be slippery.
  • Not all river boats have elevators and or accessible cabins.

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I have limited mobility and can do some stairs, but have ruled out river cruises. Often you have to cross other boats to get on/off. Water levels can change making the boats low in the water, so not easy to get on/off again.

 

Many of the places visited would require a lot of walking on uneven ground.

 

I'm only telling you what my research has revealed, but they are not very suitable. You could ask on the river cruising section for more clarification.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

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I would concur for river cruises in Europe not being mobility challenged friendly. Often when you have as many as 6 boats rafted up alongside the pier, you must climb up the stairs, cross over the boat, down the stairs, up the stairs on the next boat, etc. etc. to get on or off the boat if yours is the one on the outside. On many boats the less expensive cabins are also on a deck with no elevator. Most do not have elevators to the top or observation deck.

 

You might want to investigate a river cruise in the USA instead. The river cruise ships that ply the Mississippi and Columbia rivers all have a limited number of accessible cabins, and usually have a ramp for access on/off the pier, and are not competing for pier space with other river cruise ships.

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While the above information about European river cruises may well be true in some cases, it is not necessarily the end of the story.

Like your mother, I use a walker full time and am also slow. I have taken Viking river cruises in Europe and China and never felt I was missing anything. The elevators have full access to the upper lounge as well as the lower level dining room and main lobby.

On some days I would sit on the comfortable balcony while we floated down the river and my husband was enjoying the excursion of the day. Sometimes I would go on an excursion and could always hear everything the guide said with the sound system and earphones used.

Walking across other ships was not a problem anyplace we have been as the staff always made sure there was access. I have not been the only mobility challenged guest on any river cruise, though there were more in Europe than China.

You understand your mother better than anyone but I am suggesting that the trip is at least worthy of consideration.

I wish you both a wonderful adventure, wherever you go.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I agree with the post that said stick to the us. We have done a number of Viking cruises and have found they would be fine if one wished to stay on the boat and not visit the top deck. But they are very very long ships... and transferring to any excursion involves stairs and sometimes long walks to buses. (One stop in Strasbourg involved 6 flights of stairs to the bus!!! )

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Going Costal - Thank you for the information. I'm new to this site, but will add you to my contacts/friends, hoping that maybe you can answer a few questions for me off-thread.

 

While the above information about European river cruises may well be true in some cases, it is not necessarily the end of the story.

Like your mother, I use a walker full time and am also slow. I have taken Viking river cruises in Europe and China and never felt I was missing anything. The elevators have full access to the upper lounge as well as the lower level dining room and main lobby.

On some days I would sit on the comfortable balcony while we floated down the river and my husband was enjoying the excursion of the day. Sometimes I would go on an excursion and could always hear everything the guide said with the sound system and earphones used.

Walking across other ships was not a problem anyplace we have been as the staff always made sure there was access. I have not been the only mobility challenged guest on any river cruise, though there were more in Europe than China.

You understand your mother better than anyone but I am suggesting that the trip is at least worthy of consideration.

I wish you both a wonderful adventure, wherever you go.

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Thanks to everyone who replied. I think our decision making process is moving from "can she" to "should she". I'll admit, I always assumed river cruises (because they tend to cater to an older crowd) would have been better suited to accommodate those with some mobility issues. Learning something new...

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Cruise Critic does not have a private messaging capability.

 

Thanks. This probably isn't the place for it, but I guess I can hijack my own thread with totally off topic questions, so here goes... if you can't private message, what's the point of the friend and contact buttons?

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