Heart/Lung Transplant Patient Needs Help

[bfljw]

I'm a 36 year old woman currently awaiting heart and lung transplant. I have a rare lung disease and cannot walk very long stretches. I can only walk maybe 2 or 3 steps at a time before having to stop and rest. Because of this, I use a wheelchair for anything beyond a short walk and use supplemental oxygen. Things like snorkeling, caving and swimming are not an option. My husband and I cruised the Southern Caribbean last year on RCI's Adventure of the Seas. A friend had been on the itinerary and we knew what to expect from a handicapped point of view.

 

We are cruising the Western Caribbean on RCI's Explorer of the Seas in a few weeks. The ports of call include Belize City, Costa Maya, Cozumel and Georgetown.

 

We are especially concerned with activities I can do in Belize. :confused: If you have any suggestions, I would truly appreciate it, as we don't know anyone who has been there or Costa Maya.

 

Thank you,

Julie

[kitty9]

From my experience, Belize is mostly a water sports/beach stop. I've not really found much other than that to do. There is limited shopping, but beyond that, it's not much of a place for a disabled person. I just got off the ship for a short time just to say I was there.

[montgomeryfamily]

Julie, Belize is a tender port--ALL ships must tender here and the anchor location is about five miles away from the dock. So the tender boat ride is about 25 to 30 minutes. You may not be able to tender if the waves are too big. If you decide you do want to go to Belize and you can tender, they will load your wheelchair onto the tender so you'll have it when you get to the dock. There is a paved/hard surface area with some shops and in one area is a food/beverage area and a band that plays. This is it as far as the port entrance area goes. I am not aware of any tours that could accommodate you with your disability except that you might book a private tour to the ruins. (There is an airboat tour that might work, but you wouldn't be able to take your wheelchair) There is a tour guide that is mentioned on the Belize port forum that has a van and he takes small groups to the ruins. Some disabled people have booked with him. He takes the wheelchair in the van and he drives to the ruins area and tries to accommodate the group, going as slow or fast as they want to go. The ruins area is hard to get around and although you can push a wheelchair through some parts of it, it is difficult. But this is much better than the cattle-car RCI bus tour to the ruins because the tour guides will not slow down for you and help is limited. We don't even get off the boat for Belize any longer--we just take advantage of the ship during the time that many people are ashore.

 

One other caution about Belize. It is an area where there is a malaria caution and if you go in-country, be sure to wear long-sleeves and use mosquito spray.

 

Costa Maya is a port where you dock (only rarely does any ship tender, as the dock will accommodate a lot of ships), so it is better for wheelchairs. The distance from the ship to the port area along the dock is quite long, but there is a shuttle and if you want you can ride the free shuttle and they'll put the wheelchair on the shuttle. It is paved and a nice surface, so if someone in your group wants to push you, it is easy going. However, once you get to the port area, although everything generally accessible, the pavement is cobblestone and it is rough for a wheelchair and the rider. There is a stage area and there are often free shows with local dancers/singers. There is also a lot of shopping in this area. Most people leave the port area and take a taxi to Majahaul. This is where the beach is located. There are no paved areas and it is hard to push a wheelchair except in places where the sand/dirt is hard packed. There are a lot of potholes too. I don't believe this would be a good place for you to go because it is hard to walk in the sand and there is really nothing accessible for you to do here. One exception would be if you went here to catch a private tour to go to the ruins. Again, there are some private tour guides mentioned on the Costa Maya port forum that might work for you. There is also a monkey farm that you can hire a taxi to drive to and wait on you. This is a santuary and you don't have to walk very far to see the monkeys--they are very nice there too. But I don't know if you should be exposed to wild animals if you are awaiting a transplant.

 

Grand Cayman is also a tender port where ALL ships tender. In Grand Cayman, there are land tours that are available. Also, if you can go down some steps which have a rail, the Nautilis semi-submersible is very nice. There is plenty of room up top and your wheelchair could remain there (you could also, but you wouldn't get to see the underwater area) There is a circular staircase with a railing and you go down to a large air conditioned area with many padded benches and large picture windows. The boat goes to Cheeseburger Reef and past a couple of shipwrecks. The underwater scenery is absolutely beautiful. It is airconditioned and there is cold water to drink. They are very nice and helpful. This is much better than the Atlantis, another semi-submersible tour which has very steep narrow steps and goes down into

an hot/warm area that has narrow rows, stools and very small viewing windows. I think that the butterfly farm is back up and running and if that is the case, then that would also be something you could do, either on an organized tour or just taking a taxi.

 

Cozumel is a port where the ships usually dock. It is fairly accessible from the dock area to the port entrance. Since I understand the marine park in Cozumel is closed due to the hurricane damage (which would have been a great place for you), you may need to look at some of the land tour options. If you wanted to just go to a nice place with a beach but that has an area where you could sit without walking on the sand, Paradise Beach is very nice. There is one step from the street to enter the area. The entrance area is covered and a hard concrete type surface with a bar area and lots of chairs and tables. This is next to the beach and the staff would help you to a beach chair and get an umbrella for shade for you if you wanted. There are American style bathrooms also. There is no charge for any of this--just the food/drink if you want to order anything--plus they use purified water.

 

Hope this information helps. Have fun on your cruise.

[bfljw]

Thank you so much for your input regarding my upcoming cruise. I truly appreciate it! :)

[montgomeryfamily]

Julie, I understand that Chaakanab Marine park is back open now, although the gardens received a lot of damage. This was earlier than expected. So you might consider going here.

 

Although they do have good pathways and its fairly accessible to wheelchairs, you would probably have some limitations at the beach area because they don't have traditional loungers--they have sand chairs that are very close to the ground and its hard for many disabled to use them. When we have gone, we sit at tables and chairs that are near the dining area and don't try to sit in the beach area.

 

Hope you have a great cruise. :)

[jobinhume]

I have been to Belize twice on cruise ships, and while I enjoyed the tours I went on, it is not easy travelling and I am totally healthy. The air was *very* heavy both times I was there, and noticibly hotter/humid on shore than on the ship.

 

Once you get off the long tender ride, there are about 2 dozen booth shops right at the pier, but they sell the same things you will find at every other port. There is nothing else around the pier, and you have to take a van/bus ride of at least 45 min to get to any of the sites.

 

This might be a good day to sit back and relax on the ship.

 

The other ports should be much more fun for you.

[CaptData]

I would check with your doctor weather you should get off the ship in Belize due to the malaira thing. There is meds you can take to help. I have MS so I tell my doctor where I am going and he says yea or nay. When was going to Costa Rica, he put me on extra meds for a few months.