accessible cabins

[medcoder]

I was shocked while looking for an accesible cabin for our next cruise to see someone complaining about "all the old people in wheelchairs" on their cruise yet they had booked an accessible cabin. Shocked because in all our cruising time we have never done such a thing. Now that my husband needs to use a scooter due to having had cancer and chemo and lacks the stamina due to that we need an accessible cabin. I didn't even realize that these cabins were that much larger than the normal mini suites we usually have. It would be nice to know that some people who don't need the extra space aren't booking these cabins just because of the extra space. Not sure if the cruise lines check credentials or not. We this year have booked the usual mini suite and the stewards have been kind enough to find a little niche to store the scooter in so it was available with a short walk. My husband BTW doesn't appear to be a cancer survivor as he is a large man and I'm sure many believe he has the scooter due to his size. He also has injuries from shrapnel from Vietnam that have caused him issues this far out and also severe arthritis in both legs along with perhipheral neuopathy. It grieves me that someone would even post "all the old people in wheelchairs" and then book an accessible cabin for the space. Shame on them. BTW, I am having difficulty finding an accessible cabin for the cruise we want and I've tired 4 different lines so far. Grrrr sorry but just had to vent! Wh

[Orator]

I was shocked while looking for an accesible cabin for our next cruise to see someone complaining about "all the old people in wheelchairs" on their cruise yet they had booked an accessible cabin. Shocked because in all our cruising time we have never done such a thing. Now that my husband needs to use a scooter due to having had cancer and chemo and lacks the stamina due to that we need an accessible cabin. I didn't even realize that these cabins were that much larger than the normal mini suites we usually have. It would be nice to know that some people who don't need the extra space aren't booking these cabins just because of the extra space. Not sure if the cruise lines check credentials or not. We this year have booked the usual mini suite and the stewards have been kind enough to find a little niche to store the scooter in so it was available with a short walk. My husband BTW doesn't appear to be a cancer survivor as he is a large man and I'm sure many believe he has the scooter due to his size. He also has injuries from shrapnel from Vietnam that have caused him issues this far out and also severe arthritis in both legs along with perhipheral neuopathy. It grieves me that someone would even post "all the old people in wheelchairs" and then book an accessible cabin for the space. Shame on them. BTW, I am having difficulty finding an accessible cabin for the cruise we want and I've tired 4 different lines so far. Grrrr sorry but just had to vent! Wh

 

There was an extensive discussion on this topic in the last week. These cabins are held until about 6 weeks prior to a crusie when they are released to the general public. In recent months there has been a trend to assign these cabins when people booked a guarantee. The reason is simple: Celebrity doesn't want to run a risk of sailing with unsold cabins. The best way to guarantee what you need is to book prior to the release. Some people will try to "game the system" to get one of these cabins and if caught they should be told that Celebrity no longer wants their business.

[Lsimon]

I was shocked while looking for an accesible cabin...

 

I presume you know the following, but just in case you don't I'll mention it:

These cabins are "held" and not released to the public for most of the advance booking period, so you have to call Celebrity directly or have your TA check on availability. You can't see these as available on Celebrity's web site during this "held" time period even if they are open and available for sale.

 

As Orator indicated above, at some point as the cruise date draws near they will be released for sale to anyone who wants to book one. My understanding is only at this point will they appear on the web site.

 

Personally, I've sailed in an accessible cabin that we were assigned to a week before our cruise once. While the size was very nice I had mixed feelings about it as I wasn't crazy about the accessible features which are not all that nice unless you need them. Even disregarding the fact that I'd prefer to see these go to someone who needs them I still would prefer a "regular" cabin even if slightly smaller.

[willow148]

I presume you know the following, but just in case you don't I'll mention it:

These cabins are "held" and not released to the public for most of the advance booking period, so you have to call Celebrity directly or have your TA check on availability. You can't see these as available on Celebrity's web site during this "held" time period even if they are open and available for sale.

 

As Orator indicated above, at some point as the cruise date draws near they will be released for sale to anyone who wants to book one. My understanding is only at this point will they appear on the web site.

 

 

If you state on the Celebrity website that you need an accessible cabin (there's a tick box for you to do this on the 'Find a Cruise' page), then it will show only accessible cabins. If you don't tick the box, you won't see the accessible cabins.

[Orator]

If you state on the Celebrity website that you need an accessible cabin (there's a tick box for you to do this on the 'Find a Cruise' page), then it will show only accessible cabins. If you don't tick the box, you won't see the accessible cabins.

 

That's true until the release date. The same applies to the FV cabins that normally require 5 to book. They can be booked by fewer than 5 once they are released into inventory. DW and I had them twice.

[coolbluegreenseas]

I was shocked while looking for an accesible cabin for our next cruise to see someone complaining about "all the old people in wheelchairs" on their cruise yet they had booked an accessible cabin. Shocked because in all our cruising time we have never done such a thing. Now that my husband needs to use a scooter due to having had cancer and chemo and lacks the stamina due to that we need an accessible cabin. I didn't even realize that these cabins were that much larger than the normal mini suites we usually have. It would be nice to know that some people who don't need the extra space aren't booking these cabins just because of the extra space. Not sure if the cruise lines check credentials or not. We this year have booked the usual mini suite and the stewards have been kind enough to find a little niche to store the scooter in so it was available with a short walk. My husband BTW doesn't appear to be a cancer survivor as he is a large man and I'm sure many believe he has the scooter due to his size. He also has injuries from shrapnel from Vietnam that have caused him issues this far out and also severe arthritis in both legs along with perhipheral neuopathy. It grieves me that someone would even post "all the old people in wheelchairs" and then book an accessible cabin for the space. Shame on them. BTW, I am having difficulty finding an accessible cabin for the cruise we want and I've tired 4 different lines so far. Grrrr sorry but just had to vent! Wh

 

I am not going to give you advice about procuring an accessible cabin as other people have posted an answer. I will say our society has become more mean, more judgmental, and more rude over the years. As a whole, we are very quick to draw a conclusion and pass judgement on a person without understanding the situation. I see it everyday at work. Wouldn't it be nice if people would stop for a moment, and actually wonder what the real problem instead of being such nasty trolls?

 

Good luck on finding a good cabin for you and your husband.