Cruising with broken fibula

[donutcop]

My husband and I are taking our four children (17,15,14,12) on a cruise in three weeks from today. The oasis of the Seas. Unfortunately today I took a spill and broke my fibula, my calf bone. Right now I’m in an air cast min six weeks and using crutches but also plan to get a knee scooter for the ship. Is there anyone I need to call at Royal to advise them of this or does that matter? Does anyone have any advice for me and what to expect or tips to make the trip a little more enjoyable? I just want my kids to have a fun time. I’m ok with missing their beach days, my husband can do that with them.  Thanks for any advice!

[Psycho and Barb]

I would contact Royals Special Needs and let them know...Not sure what they could do to help you out but it’s got to be worth a shot.  Try https://secure.royalcaribbean.com/allaboutcruising/guestSpecialNeeds.do

[Coralc]

Yes. Contact Special Needs. You could probably ask them for a shower chair to make that easier, and maybe wheelchair service on/off ship instead of using crutches on the inclines. And probably lots of ice. Bring your own reusable (fillable-old kind with the lid) ice bag.  Sorry about your injury. 

Edited January 25, 2019 by Coralc

[Bloodgem]

Hi, sorry about your accident. The Oasis is a big ship and you might find a manual wheelchair is less painful on your broken leg than a knee scooter 

[parrotfeathers]

Your injury is much more serious and more inconvenient  than mine was (broken hand) but everyone was very accommodating to me.  I was more worried about the flight and their restrictions.  Had a removable cast/splint thankfully for TSA.

[cruiseguy1016]

10 hours ago, donutcop said:

My husband and I are taking our four children (17,15,14,12) on a cruise in three weeks from today. The oasis of the Seas. Unfortunately today I took a spill and broke my fibula, my calf bone. Right now I’m in an air cast min six weeks and using crutches but also plan to get a knee scooter for the ship. Is there anyone I need to call at Royal to advise them of this or does that matter? Does anyone have any advice for me and what to expect or tips to make the trip a little more enjoyable? I just want my kids to have a fun time. I’m ok with missing their beach days, my husband can do that with them.  Thanks for any advice!

 

What a great attitude. It sounds like that while this injury may be an inconvenience, you're not going to let it spoil your or your family's vacation. Ensure that the kids know that you'll be fine. Send them off and tell them to have a great time. With a positive attitude, you'll find ways to enjoy yourself even with a broken leg.

[gatour]

Are you stopping at Labadee or Coco Caye?  I can't recall, but they may have "beach" wheelchairs.  If so they could wheel you to a lounger so you can sit with your family.  That way you wouldn't have to navigate the sand on crutches, and still enjoy the beach your family.

 

Hopefully someone can confirm or deny that they have seen beach wheelchairs on either private island.

[donutcop]

3 hours ago, gatour said:

Are you stopping at Labadee or Coco Caye?  I can't recall, but they may have "beach" wheelchairs.  If so they could wheel you to a lounger so you can sit with your family.  That way you wouldn't have to navigate the sand on crutches, and still enjoy the beach your family.

 

Hopefully someone can confirm or deny that they have seen beach wheelchairs on either private island.

 

Thanks for this idea.  We have a beach bungalow rented so if I can at least get there I’d be able to enjoy some beach time with the family.

[cementhands]

16 hours ago, donutcop said:

My husband and I are taking our four children (17,15,14,12) on a cruise in three weeks from today. The oasis of the Seas. Unfortunately today I took a spill and broke my fibula, my calf bone. Right now I’m in an air cast min six weeks and using crutches but also plan to get a knee scooter for the ship. Is there anyone I need to call at Royal to advise them of this or does that matter? Does anyone have any advice for me and what to expect or tips to make the trip a little more enjoyable? I just want my kids to have a fun time. I’m ok with missing their beach days, my husband can do that with them.  Thanks for any advice!

Request a handicapped room. Bigger shower and area to maneuver around. I was fortunate to get one following back surgery.

Plastic bag for covering your cast for showering are available Walmart etc. Bring a cane for fatigue. Elevate leg with pillows I’ve been through similar swelling can occur.

Enjoy and don’t let your injury get in the way!

[stevea36]

36 minutes ago, donutcop said:

 

Thanks for this idea.  We have a beach bungalow rented so if I can at least get there I’d be able to enjoy some beach time with the family.

They do have beach wheelchairs on both Labadee and CocoCay.  and, if I remember correctly, someone will actually push you to your destination...

 

Also, I cruised on Celebrity with my foot in a boot.  The crew is amazingly sympathetic and helpful, just beware of the children who are out of control and others who believe they are entitled to push ahead of you.   Protect your injured leg at all costs (I had some quite big friends with me who would always block for me).

 

btw, the phone number for Special Needs is 866-592-7225

[Snit13]

You may be better off renting a scooter.  We rented one for our last cruise and I found it great to go anywhere on ship that I wanted to go.  Everyone (except for a group of teens) was awesome.  Was so pleased to see other passengers as well as crew go out of their way to offer assistance.  Oasis as has been stated is a huge ship if you have not been on her before.  You will be exhausted unless you are Super Mom.  Rent a scooter and scoot around the ship.  If you arrange to pick it up in terminal it is less expensive than if you have it delivered to your cabin and you have it for boarding.  Wish I had done it on previous cruises.

[UkeT3]

2 years ago I was on the Oasis in Sep and had a hip replacement scheduled for a week after I returned.  Determined to enjoy myself I rented a scooter for the ship.  Never had one but quickly adapted.  Royal does not handle it but did not need to.  Look at www.specialneedsatsea.com.  Not sure what company I used.  Good stuff. The scooter was in my room waiting for me.  I left it there at the end (per their directions).  I was overly concerned as the scooter filled up the isle in my room when it was plugged in.  Working with the cabin attendant, I ended up leaving it outside my door, it would disappear in the evening and reappear in the am at the time I requested. NO PROBLEM.  I recommend it.  It made my cruise so much more enjoyable.  I am not terribly old and felt a bit self-conscious but people helped me.  Even in the wind jammer they helped me.  Secondly, notify your airline.  They will line up a chair waiting at your gate on both flights and any layovers.  Wonderful service.  Just let them know ahead of time.  Enjoy yourself.  you deserve it!

[Menk1624]

My wife broke her ankle a couple years ago and was on crutches right before our cruise.  For the muster drill the crew dismissed us a few minutes early which allowed us to navigate the elevators without the crowds. You may want to ask if that is a possibility. 

[BirdTravels]

Don't be shy about requesting a wheel chair at airport, port, and on the ship. A knee scooter may sound and look easy, but moving it along 'miles' of carpeted surface on a ship is more than a work out. Much nicer to be pushed along by your teens. 

[TEXASMUNK]

Only  one suggestion.  Be careful around other people  Folks today tend to be highly self-centered, rude and you may find yourself getting shoved, pushed, banged into...Protect that leg!  Especially around an elevator....all rational behavior disappears when it comes to getting on or off elevators.

 

[Snit13]

9 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

Don't be shy about requesting a wheel chair at airport, port, and on the ship. A knee scooter may sound and look easy, but moving it along 'miles' of carpeted surface on a ship is more than a work out. Much nicer to be pushed along by your teens. 

 

We were told by Royal that wheel chairs are NOT available on the ship.  They are available in the event of an emergency and to wheel you on/off the ship but they told us we had to furnish our own while on the ship.  That is the reason we rented the scooter.  I can not imagine using a knee scooter on such a large ship.

[brillohead]

Try out the knee scooter at home, and make sure it's properly adjusted for your height.

Knee scooters are amazing, way better than crutches in most cases.  If you can walk it, you can scoot it.  

You can also look into the "peg leg" crutch:  https://iwalk-free.com/

No matter what you choose, make sure it's properly adjusted for your height and you're familiar with how to use it safely well in advance of leaving.  

Too late to request an accessible room, so make sure you get a scooter that isn't too wide to fit through the door to your room.

 

 

[payitforward]

On 1/25/2019 at 12:26 PM, donutcop said:

 

Thanks for this idea.  We have a beach bungalow rented so if I can at least get there I’d be able to enjoy some beach time with the family.

 

On 1/25/2019 at 12:56 PM, cementhands said:

Request a handicapped room. Bigger shower and area to maneuver around. I was fortunate to get one following back surgery.

Plastic bag for covering your cast for showering are available Walmart etc. Bring a cane for fatigue. Elevate leg with pillows I’ve been through similar swelling can occur.

Enjoy and don’t let your injury get in the way!

First, I agree with the posters who suggested renting electric scooters. I cannot even imagine trying to get around on Oasis with a knee scooter. There is no way you'll get an accessible room at this late date, but scooters do fit in regular rooms. You don't say how many/what kind of room you have, but I am guessing you have more than one. The scooters work best in the balcony cabins that have the bed closer to the balcony. If you rent from Special Needs at Sea, they will have the scooters that are less than 22" wide to fit through the door.

I was able to ride my scooter almost all the way to the beach bungalows in Labadee. I just had to park it right at the end of the sand, about 200 feet from my bungalow.

In addition to plastic bags, I have found Glad Press N Seal super helpful for covering casts to shower.

Edited January 28, 2019 by payitforward

[Crusingwith4kids]

Someone referred me to this page because they said my problem is similar. Thanks for help and advice!

[IRMO12HD]

I broke my fibula when I was a teacher in a middle school (age 58) -- no stairs, but a really big school with loooonnnngggg ramps!  The first two weeks, I was in an air cast and used crutches, non-weight-bearing.  After that, my Ortho wanted me to start weight-bearing activities, so I used the crutches and then a cane.  By the fourth week, I was using just a cane.  While everyone's different, I would check with your Ortho, and see what the prognosis is for three weeks out in terms of weight bearing.  I definitely agree with watching out for other people -- and crutches do tend to attract attention (of the good sort) in terms of others looking out for you.  Assuming that it wasn't a compound fracture, do you have limitations on getting it wet?  If not, hydrotherapy was actually something my Ortho recommended for me.  Silver lining -- if you HAVE to break a bone in your leg, the FIBULA is definitely the way to go . . .