Limited mobility shore excursions

[SeaBurd]

Hopefully some day tour operators will recognize there is a, large, basically untapped market for affordable, organized tours for people with limited mobility.   I'm not talking about needing a vehicle that can accommodate a person while seated in a wheelchair but someone who can transfer to a car, van or bus seat yet must have a wheelchair or other mobility device for stability and/or endurance.

 

With our limited cruising experince, most ship sponsored tours that are marked accessible are either immediately sold out or are nothing more than a "drive by".  And, many that are marked "easy" say they are not wheelchair accessible or there is no way to transport a mobility device.  Almost every port offers a private tour option but the costs are often prohibitive!  And, the response I've gotten from some tour operators is to use the Cruise Critic Roll Call to organize an appropriate private tour so the tour can be more cost effective.  I don't know about you but signing up for a tour costing hundreds of dollars and then hoping to get enough people that we don't even know to share the cost along with collecting their portion sounds a bit stressful.  We are going on a cruise to relax, not to stress out or be the tour organizer. 

 

We were lucky in St. Petersburg and had an extremely affordable, well organized, small (only 8 of us) and comprehensive tour with TJ Travel.  Now, we are going on a 21 day transatlantic from Rome to Ft. Lauderdale and we will actually have to do our own sightseeing excursions in several of the ports.  Wish I could find a TJ in every port of call!

 

Thanks, everyone, for letting me vent!

[GeezerCouple]

Why not contact local tour providers?  ASK them if they can provide tours with <insert need>?

 

We do this a lot, as I have some mobility difficulties.  I don't (yet) need any devices, but there isn't any chance that I can keep up with a group.  I can't go as far, and I need to rest along the way "as needed".

 

Sometimes they arrange a "regular tour", but leave out certain sights, and add others.

 

But we do the same thing so that we can see what *we* want to see, and not, for example, spend a lot of time in souvenir or other shops...

 

And sometimes we can find others to join us, by posting on Roll Calls.

 

GC

[SeaBurd]

Thank you, GC.  I have outstanding inquiries to several tour operators along the way.  In fact, I just booked one with ItalyTours EU after several emails back and forth.  Here is part of my final response to them:
 

Let me address the 3 issues you raised as detrimental for taking the small group tour:

1.     That person may not access all sites and they might be asked to wait at some points for others to complete the walking part of the tour for example (sorry we can't tell in advance where and when).
        Understood.  We have dealt with this issue on previous tours. 

2.     That person will have someone to help them physically as our staff may not be able to help 100% of the time.
        I am his assistant and have been his primary support on other excursions.

3.     The person will have to seat as others in the van and we will fold the wheelchair and store it in the luggage space
        He is able to transfer and does not remain in the wheelchair when riding in a car, van, bus, train, plane, etc.

 

The other issue you raised is: "We would normally recommend going on a private tour in order to avoid holding back others (the type of tour that you have chosen)"
        On other excursions we have taken, this has not been an issue.  (Don's chair can go faster than I can comfortable walk!)  He has also chosen to remain behind when the terrain is too difficult.  As I read your description, both the small group and private tour have the same amount of walking - 2 hours. 

 

Bottom line, ItalyTours EU accepted our booking for its BEST OF FLORENCE & PISA --- Full day shared tour from the port of Livorno.  Still working on the other ports of call on our upcoming excursion!

[CRUISEWITHH]

My husband uses a mobility scooter.  I research the destination and then email a supplier there and ask if they can accommodate us for a private tour.  Some can and some can't, but since my husband's scooter folds down it will fit in the trunk and the tour operator adjusts the tour to our needs since it is a private tour.

 

If you can get 2 couples together it sometimes works out to about the same price as a Princess tour and it is certainly better when there are just 4 of you than when you must contend with 50 people getting on and off the bus.

 

If you go to the ports section you will find many guests have recommendations for tour operators in many cities.

 

 

[GeezerCouple]

21 hours ago, CRUISEWITHH said:

My husband uses a mobility scooter.  I research the destination and then email a supplier there and ask if they can accommodate us for a private tour.  Some can and some can't, but since my husband's scooter folds down it will fit in the trunk and the tour operator adjusts the tour to our needs since it is a private tour.

 

If you can get 2 couples together it sometimes works out to about the same price as a Princess tour and it is certainly better when there are just 4 of you than when you must contend with 50 people getting on and off the bus.

 

If you go to the ports section you will find many guests have recommendations for tour operators in many cities.

 

 

 

This price issue is so often true, and especially with cruise ship sponsored tours/excursions.

In many cases a very small group (4 or 6) can end up being *less* per person than a big bus tour.

And if one looks at some of the "airport transfers", for example, if there are just two people to share a taxi, it's about the same price per person as that big bus, where you are waiting around for others, and all getting dumped off together and then needing to search for luggage, etc.

This can be true of cruise sponsored hotels.  What might be a good deal for a single person (the hotel or transfer costs, although the cruise costs might be high!), doesn't make sense for a couple or a family.

 

It's often well worth checking the per person costs, as well as "what do you want to spend the time doing/seeing", etc.

 

GC

[shel003]

I recommend checking out Sage Travelling.  They offer accessible excursions that are more than a "drive by" for many European ports.  I have not used them yet but am planning to on my upcoming cruise next year.  They offer wheelchair accessible vehicles where someone can stay in their chair or if they can transfer to a regular seat, sometimes the prices can be cheaper.  They can also assist in booking accessible cruises and have resources if you are staying in a port before or after your cruise (ie accessible hotel information and regular city tours (not shore excursions)).  Here is the link https://www.sagetraveling.com/accessible-cruises-and-excursions-in-europe/

[SeaBurd]

Thank you, shel003.  I have looked at them and they have some excellent options.  The prices take into account the use of fully accessible wheelchair vehicles so the cost is higher.  Fortunately, we are able to use standard vehicles when there is room to also transport a mobility device.  My husband uses a folding electric wheelchair but the same issue exists with manual wheelchairs, light weight folding manual or electric scooters and even rollators. 

 

When looking at some shore excursions (currently booking them at Mediterranean ports in Italy, Spain, Gibraltar, Portugal) I am reading "no wheelchairs" and when I question some of the tour operators they tell me that they have no way to transport the wheelchair, even if it is a small, lightweight, folding one.  Making progress by working through the city tourism divisions to find help. Not finding as much help as hoped for working with the shore excursion group at the cruise line itself.