Do you have to be handicap to book a handicap room?

[MonaLisa]

Just wondering if you have to be handicap to reserve a cabin that is for the handicap?

[bob&france]

YES {proof required I beleive}......that said though, we have been given a room equiped for handicapped passengers. The cruiseline will hold off on allowing non handicapped passangers reserve said rooms UNTIL they feel it will not sell IE very close to the sail date. In the event it is still available you could ask your TA to call the cruiseline to see if it's still available and if so request a transfer of your room.

 

Bob

[MonaLisa]

Thanks for your quick response!

[Booyakasha]

Why would you want to book a handicap accesible room if you are not handicapped?

 

B.

[If only]

Just wondering if you have to be handicap to reserve a cabin that is for the handicap?

 

 

Any handicap cabins that are not sold will be given to those that want them, you can ask for it to be waitlisted if any are available. Just know that if any handicap person comes along in the meantime they will be given priorityand you will be moved. The remaining handicap cabins are not given out until just before the cruise sails.

[ikelmay]

With some cruiselines, they will release the rooms for general sale very late in the booking cycle but they may still require you to vacate if a handicapped cruiser needs it.

[mildew1951]

I do hate the word handicapped. It makes a person sound second rate. I much prefer challenged as a more apt description e.g physically challenged.:mad:

[Booyakasha]

I do hate the word handicapped. It makes a person sound second rate. I much prefer challenged as a more apt description e.g physically challenged.:mad:

 

How about handicapabale? :)

 

B.

[bob&france]

These rooms are slightly bigger in the living space , wheelchair width between furnature..the bathrooms are HUGE. If it's available...why not get the extra space.

 

Bob

[TrikeRider]

These rooms are slightly bigger in the living space , wheelchair width between furnature..the bathrooms are HUGE. If it's available...why not get the extra space.

 

Bob

 

Because you do NOT need it if you are not in a wheelchair.

[dkjretired]

You do not have to be handicapped to book a handicapped room, however you may be bounced out for someone who needs it. The rooms are usually bigger and are attractive for that reason...

[dkjretired]

Because you do NOT need it if you are not in a wheelchair.

 

Disagree, not everyone who is handicapped needs a wheelchair....I don't need one all the time but when I use a bathroom sitting down, I need the grab bars...Just one example...

[cb at sea]

Sometimes, when booking a guarantee stateroom, you will be assigned an HC room, whether you need it or not.

I don't like all the grab bars in the bath, so that wouldn't make me happy, despite the larger size of the cabin.

If no one has booked it, they will release them for the general public.

[C 2 C]

These rooms are slightly bigger in the living space , wheelchair width between furniture..the bathrooms are HUGE. If it's available...why not get the extra space.

 

Bob

 

total agreement:

When they are finally released by the cruiseline it means that no-one who needs the cabin for mobility or other reasons, they need to be filled for revenue reasons. We just got lucky with a GTY C1 aft :D:D on Constellation. We are really looking forward to this one for 14 days.

[vickila]

The correct term is an ACCESSIBLE STATEROOM.

[tuggers]

Once upon a time I was given a balcony accessible cabin on the Millie. It was wonderful. Half again as big as the normal stateroom. More like the size of a hotel room. I LOVED it!

The second night onboard I slipped on a small puddle of water and fell down a (short) flight of marble stairs. After half a night with x-rays and exams I was put in a wheelchair and returned to my 'accessible' cabin.

Now I'm afraid being given one of those is a self fulfilling prophesy. I don't think I would ever take one again. I spent the entire 10 days bruised and banged up (but not broken), hurting and in a wheelchair. No, not for me!!:eek:

[teajak]

Any handicap cabins that are not sold will be given to those that want them, you can ask for it to be waitlisted if any are available. Just know that if any handicap person comes along in the meantime they will be given priorityand you will be moved. The remaining handicap cabins are not given out until just before the cruise sails.

Celebrity does not waitlist handicapped cabins, they refuse to keep a list of people that need it if one becomes available. Poor policy for cruisers like me that need one, very few available and they go fast.:(

[pmdc5696]

My DD and I are booked on the Summit in November. I don't normally need an accessable room but have found myself in need on this trip because of a knee injury (just had the first of 2 needed surgeries). Can't get into an accessible room.....they are all taken. I will be leaving a scooter at home and making the best of it (and plan on having a great time!). Hope no one who doesn't need an accessible room isn't taking one of these prized rooms. Most folks who need these types of rooms absolutely need them and cannot travel without them. Traveling can be difficult when you are stuck in a wheelchair and takes a great deal of planning and moxy (Thank God I am not permanently in that group). The least fellow travelers can do is to not take up rooms that accomodate their needs.

[2SeaWithMe]

I have no idea why a person would take one of these rooms if it's not needed.

 

It took four calls to several different departments for them to discover that an accessible room was available for myself. None of the lines are very good at knowing their exact policies, and I understand the cruise lines main goal is getting all of those cabins sold.

 

If you don't need it, and you take the room, you are basically denying someone their chance at a vacation.

[patseacruiser]

I put a message out today on one of the roll calls if anyone was in an accessible cabin and really didn't need it could they give it up. Once it goes out for sale to general public they will not call someone and say 'hey are you handicapped?'. Once they sell it it's gone from inventory. They try to keep them as long as possible but at some point they put everything out for sale.

[firemanbobswife]

As long as there are cabins open, they need to be filled.

 

However, those who truly need them of course should get priority. No matter what.

 

If they would otherwise sail empty, then they should be made available to whomever would like them.

[DEL67]

With some cruiselines, they will release the rooms for general sale very late in the booking cycle but they may still require you to vacate if a handicapped cruiser needs it.

 

That is what they may say, but the reality is once a cabin is out of "inventory" it is considered booked and cruiselines rarely agree to call and check if those that booked the cabin really need it.

[PartyAllDaTyme]

Several months ago, I started a thread asking how to go about getting an otherwise-unneeded HC (another poster's term for a wheelchair-accessible) cabin. After many responses and a call to Celebrity, I came away with the following information:

 

1) The time when the HC cabins are made available to the general public can vary, typically anywhere from two to six weeks before sailing. At that point, they are no longer designated as HC cabins for that cruise, though of course they physically remain the same.

 

2) Once they are released, there is no accommodation for someone who wants an HC cabin based on need. If one is still available when someone books, they can request it, but so can anyone else.

 

3) If you've booked what had been designated an HC cabin, they will not move you out of it to make room for someone who needs it.

 

4) If you are assigned such a cabin as a result of a GTY booking, these assignments can be changed at the last minute to accommodate someone who says they need it.

 

5) Unfortunately, no documentation of need is required to book an HC cabin prior to their release to the general public (or after). The way the laws are written, the cruise line is prohibited from requiring proof of need.

 

6) Someone may not have mobility issues and still be considered to be handicapped (or handicapable, or whatever you wish to call it). Of course, the rooms are designed specifically to be accessible for those with mobility problems, but since documentation is not required, it's easy for someone to correctly claim that they are handicapped, even though they could be accommodated just as easily in a standard cabin.

 

I cannot vouch 100% of the accuracy of the above information, I'm just passing on what I've been told by others. Corrections are welcome.

 

Why book an HC cabin if you don't need it? Obviously, the extra room is attractive. It's detestable to lie and say you need an HC cabin when you don't, but, after they're released, if the cabin is going to go to someone who doesn't have the need of it anyway, at that point there's no difference in trying to get one of these cabins than there is in trying to get a Sweet Sixteen with an oversize balcony versus a standard 2C. In the eyes of the cruise line, anyone who may have needed one of these cabins has already booked.

 

I have a bit of a problem as to when the HC cabins are released. When I made my inquiry, I assumed these would be released about a week before sailing. What I was told is that they are not released until the cruise line is reasonably certain that it's unlikely that anyone else needing an HC cabin would be making a booking, but that could be as early as six weeks out. That seems much too far out to me, but they have to balance the possibility of booking a last-minute cruiser who would have need of the cabin with not being able to sell the cabin at a decent price.

 

If you see someone coming out of an HC cabin that apparently does not need it, please keep in mind that they may have been assigned to or managed to change to that cabin at the last minute. Maybe that person does not need it, but their partner does. Possibly they have chronic issues that often restrict their mobility, but just happen not to be having them at this time. And it could be that they don't have need of the extra space, but need the bars in the shower.

 

It's insane that cruise lines cannot require proof of need to prevent unscrupulous people from booking these cabins, but it's the law. I urge US Cruise Critic members to write your congressman and senators-- I have.

[2SeaWithMe]

 

If you see someone coming out of an HC cabin that apparently does not need it, please keep in mind that they may have been assigned to or managed to change to that cabin at the last minute. Maybe that person does not need it, but their partner does. Possibly they have chronic issues that often restrict their mobility, but just happen not to be having them at this time. And it could be that they don't have need of the extra space, but need the bars in the shower.

 

 

Thank you for that. I have a rare form of muscular dystrophy, but..almost annoyingly..look perfectly healthy. I've used both a wheelchair and a walker on cruises before, and there certainly are days I don't need it. But I absolutely need the bars and fold down seat in the shower daily.

 

I've certainly received my share of nasty comments and glares just when parking.

[kitty9]

These rooms are slightly bigger in the living space , wheelchair width between furnature..the bathrooms are HUGE. If it's available...why not get the extra space.

 

Bob

 

Because it's not about the space, it's about allowing the disabled to cruise. There are VERY few accessible cabins on any ship, so WHY would you advise anyone to book them if they're not disabled????? As someone who's been disabled since age two, it's unconscionable to book an accessible cabin, and the same for anyone to recommend booking one if not needed.

 

Now, we are not saying that those cabins should go unused, but they should only be given out to the able bodied AFTER final payment.

 

And to the OP, you have to fill out paperwork detailing why you NEED an accessible cabin, just like I just did for our Eclipse cruise.