oxygen tanks

[k1cobra]

I will be traveling in September and my wife needs oxygen 24/7, that means I will need to bring 12, 4 hour tanks and a poc for night. Does anyone have a best practices type way of handling this load. were taking royal caribbean enchantment of the seas. Thank you all.

[Clarea]

You should contact the Special Needs department at [noparse]special_needs@rccl.com[/noparse].

[k1cobra]

You should contact the Special Needs department at [noparse]special_needs@rccl.com[/noparse].

 

Thanks, but thier answer is to rent the equipment from a company they recomended at a cost almost equal to the cruise. Thnks for the respose though.

[138east]

Post on the disabled cruise travel board for more responses.

 

I did this a number of times with my mom. For the last few cruises I had a full sized oxygen concentrator strapped to a luggage dolly, a portable oxygen concentrator and a suitcase with 8 of the smaller oxygen tubes.It was a lot of stuff, but I got lots of help with it.

 

I can't imagine taking 12 of the larger oxygen tubes. Have you contacted your local provider to see if you can get a portable machine (if your wife can use that) for the cruise? We were taking 5 day or 12 day cruises and my mom never used the cylinders. She just used the large machine in the cabin and the portable when she was out of the cabin.

[knittinggirl]

I'd second the oxygen concentrator. But you'd still need the tanks.

 

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[k1cobra]

Thank You for your reply's. The tanks are not that big, it's the 2 foot size. Carol, did you send the tanks through luggage or cary them on?

[loubetti]

Just as an FYI, if you are driving to the ship, fine, but if you are flying, don't even think about bringing O2 bottles on the plane. It's not going to happen, unless they are FAA certified / tested bottles ($$$$), and even these might prove an issue with an airline. O2 bottles can be very, very nasty stuff.

 

The concentrator is the way to go, but if you still need to bring bottles / tanks aboard the ship, rent them at the port, as the airlines will NOT allow them on board.

 

This comes from an aviator of 40 years experience.

Edited June 19, 2014 by loubetti

[bayportkat]

I don't know anything about oxygen tanks, but if they are something younger through your health insurance, you should contact them. My dad was on dialysis and had his fluids delivered to the ship when he cruised and I believe it was coordinated through the health insurance, provider and cruise company. He also did this for hotels. Good luck working this out!

 

 

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[138east]

Thank You for your reply's. The tanks are not that big, it's the 2 foot size. Carol, did you send the tanks through luggage or cary them on?

 

All the equipment was carried on. I had smaller tanks and 8 of them fit in a medium suitcase. We drove to the port and I got assistance for my mom in a wheelchair and I wheeled the large concentrator and the suitcase with the oxygen tubes. The portable concentrator was slung over the back of the wheelchair.

 

I never got involved with renting equipment for the ship. We already had everything we needed and were driving to the port. I knew I could get all the help I needed. It was a hassle, but once we were aboard, we were good for 12 days.

 

The key item in this plan was the portable concentrator.

[k1cobra]

All the equipment was carried on. I had smaller tanks and 8 of them fit in a medium suitcase. We drove to the port and I got assistance for my mom in a wheelchair and I wheeled the large concentrator and the suitcase with the oxygen tubes. The portable concentrator was slung over the back of the wheelchair.

 

I never got involved with renting equipment for the ship. We already had everything we needed and were driving to the port. I knew I could get all the help I needed. It was a hassle, but once we were aboard, we were good for 12 days.

 

The key item in this plan was the portable concentrator.

 

Thank You Carol