Renting a Scooter

[tip]

Me darling wife and I are veteran cruisers with thirty-one cruises under our belts.  Like many folks, we aren't getting any younger, but I have always said that we shall continue to cruise as long as we can make it up the gang plank!   When our 2020 cruise looked like it was going to be cancelled, we booked a back to back cruise on the Sky Princess sailing both in the Eastern and then Western Caribbean.  We are set to sail on November 20th of this year.  Of course the big IF is whether or not Princess and other lines will be able to sail out of U.S. ports.  None of us will have any control over that.

 

Since all of this has taken place, me darling wife has suffered a severe stroke which has greatly impacted her mobility and she now uses a walker at all times.  We talked about the situation last night and she still very much wants to go on the cruise and we both recognize that past practices will now change in more ways than one.  I am prepared to ask our travel agent to change our cabin to one with disability access.   We agreed that renting a scooter makes sense.   Maybe someone who has done this before will give us some tips.  They would be appreciated.

 

 

Edited April 22, 2021 by tip

[chrysalis]

How to Prepare for a Cruise FAQs - Princess Cruises

[san diego sue]

If you decide to rent a scooter, plan on having her try one out before you do that . She needs to see how to operate one and if she is capable of using it. 

On one of our cruises in 2019, a gentleman came barreling down the hallway just as I stepped out of our cabin. He was so fast, like he came from out of no where. Ran over my foot. Rest of the cruise I had

pain and swelling. He had rented the scooter for a temporary situation and I doubt he realized his speed. Afterwards, we never saw him using it again.  We were nice and didn't make a big deal about it.

Backing into an elevator for someone not used to driving one can be a problem.

I have a friend that uses a scooter all the time and brings her own. She has never had a problem with it , and drives like a  pro.

If she can't use a scooter, possible bring a lightweight wheelchair for long walks or  tours.

[cr8tiv1]

Please check to see if accessible cabins are available.  They sell out quickly.  Good luck on the rental.  I understand (no experience) that they might not fit through a regular cabin door.

[dog]

Scootaround is the company in Ft Lauderdale & in San Diego my cruise friends used for a walker, wheelchair. It was delivered to their cabin & picked up in their cabin. They reserved & paid online. 

[geocruiser]

https://scootaround.com/en/rental

 

https://www.specialneedsatsea.com/about-us/our-cities/fort-lauderdale-florida/

 

https://scootaround.com/en/cruise-scooter-rentals

Edited April 22, 2021 by geocruiser

[Yehootu]

Several years ago we got my Mom to rent a scooter. She had never driven one before. We live in Honolulu and didn't want to travel with Moms transport chaired her walker. 

 As Sue said above, someone new to a scooter needs to learn. I took my Mom up on deck and risked my own life before she took someone out. I walked in front of her and cut her off, and made her do stops and starts. I didn't tell her there was a speed control and made her do it at full speed. Once she had mastered that I showed her the speed control( I wasn't her favorite son for awhile)

I actually took off the fenders before she could rip them off.

 Mom was sailing solo in a balcony cabin, set up with 2 single beds. I moved the side table against the wall and moved everything closer to the door area. This gave "me" enough room to turn her scooter around in the am.

 Mom was able to by her self and usually with help, get the door open and my advice was to gun it till you hit the refer. This gave her just enough room to get around the walker in the night. I would come to her room in the am and was able to spin the walker so that it faced the door and I was able to charge it.

 If you are unable to get a handicap room, good advice would be to get a room in the breezeway. Advantage is a straight in approach to the door. Disadvantage is the wind force against the door when you go to open it.

 Please remember that scooters DO NOT get left the in the hallway. Others can't get buy the scooter.

 In the main dining room our waiter would ride off and park Moms scooter.

We bought lights and bows to bling out her scooter so she'd like it more and more important I'd tell people to look out for her as she was a novice driver. She had no problems after my intro training period.

 

[Yehootu]

23 hours ago, tip said:

Me darling wife and I are veteran cruisers with thirty-one cruises under our belts.  Like many folks, we aren't getting any younger, but I have always said that we shall continue to cruise as long as we can make it up the gang plank!   When our 2020 cruise looked like it was going to be cancelled, we booked a back to back cruise on the Sky Princess sailing both in the Eastern and then Western Caribbean.  We are set to sail on November 20th of this year.  Of course the big IF is whether or not Princess and other lines will be able to sail out of U.S. ports.  None of us will have any control over that.

 

Since all of this has taken place, me darling wife has suffered a severe stroke which has greatly impacted her mobility and she now uses a walker at all times.  We talked about the situation last night and she still very much wants to go on the cruise and we both recognize that past practices will now change in more ways than one.  I am prepared to ask our travel agent to change our cabin to one with disability access.   We agreed that renting a scooter makes sense.   Maybe someone who has done this before will give us some tips.  They would be appreciated.

 

 

See Above

[gmjc2]

My hubby and I have  taken scooters on board before but we bought our own. We have small lightweight ones that break down into 4 parts for transport in the car. They can be taken on an airplane and are a much better deal than renting. They also fit through the regular door on the cabin.

1. The rental price is very high.

2   You do not have it for use along those endless corridors on the way to immigration when you arrive.

3  We have seen some of those rental scooters and they were not in great shape.

4. They are usually large and would require an accessible cabin which, as was noted earlier, are very hard to come by. In fact I believe we got the last one available in the Oceanview category. 

 

Good luck and I hope your wife improves soon.

 

 

 

[catwoman6226]

I've rented scooters from Special Needs at Sea for our last several cruises. They have always been in tip-top shape.  In fact, I've never seen a rental scooter on any cruise that was in bad shape.  I also disagree that the price is 'very high'.  If you need a scooter, you need a scooter, and you bake that into the price of the cruise.  I don't think that ~$275 for a 7 day cruise is exhorbitant.

 

If someone is not familiar with using one, I highly recommend spending some time at a local grocery store that has scooters, to get familiar with navigating.  Just keep in mind that the speed at grocery stores is much, much slower than what you'll find with a rental scooter on a cruise ship.  Anyone using a scooter on a ship should make sure the speed setting is turned down as low as it can go before moving, only turning it up after becoming comfortable with the higher speed. As an example, I keep mine towards the 'turtle' setting while navigating around the ship, but I crank it up to 'rabbit' speed while zooming down the sidewalks from the ship into downtown St. Thomas. 

 

I always use the scooter to get to the table in the dining room, and the staff are more than happy to move the scooter, and bring it back at the end of the meal. 

 

I travel with a friend who also uses a scooter and we never back into the elevator - we pull straight in, and it's usually no problem to back straight out.  Again - experience helps.  If one pulls in slightly to the left, and the other pulls in slightly to the right, there's still room for 3-4 other people to join us.  This is on most Princess ships -  your mileage may vary on other lines/ships.

 

Good luck and please don't let your need for a scooter impact your vacation - it's a relatively minor adjustment and will make your time much easier!

[Kiran]

Rented a scooter for my Mom on a Disney cruise  and it was simply too big for ship corridors- This was years ago. She wasn't able to use it at all and it remained parked after the first night.

 

Then I found her a used Travel scoot. It is much smaller. It can come apart in pieces to make it easy to carry. It can be used in a non HA cabin. It has been on several cruises and many WDW/ Universal/museum visits since. It may be sailing this January !

 

http://mytravelscoot.blogspot.com/2010/03/getting-on-carnival-ecstasy.html was where I learned about the Travel Scoot.

 

It seems like there are more small, slimmer scooters than there used to be.

 

Best of luck and hope you get to enjoy many more cruises.

 

[gmjc2]

15 hours ago, Kiran said:

Rented a scooter for my Mom on a Disney cruise  and it was simply too big for ship corridors- This was years ago. She wasn't able to use it at all and it remained parked after the first night.

 

Then I found her a used Travel scoot. It is much smaller. It can come apart in pieces to make it easy to carry. It can be used in a non HA cabin. It has been on several cruises and many WDW/ Universal/museum visits since. It may be sailing this January !

 

http://mytravelscoot.blogspot.com/2010/03/getting-on-carnival-ecstasy.html was where I learned about the Travel Scoot.

 

It seems like there are more small, slimmer scooters than there used to be.

 

Best of luck and hope you get to enjoy many more cruises.

 

My point exactly. Why pay 300.00 to rent a large bulky scooter when you can buy the one we have for 500.00 and own it for anytime use!!  It fits in most regular cabins ( although it will be tight for room.)and is small enough to not take up too much room in the elevators or narrow corridors. The smaller ones are also easier to maneuver for a novice .

We bought ours from Walgreens online then had it delivered to the store to avoid shipping charges. Also if you get a Doc to declare it medically necessary there is no tax. 

 

Maureen.

[Bellaggio Cruisers]

I have used my own scooter for more than 10 cruises. It is portable.. fold into suitcase size. Just a little fatter. It weighs just over 50 pounds. Breaks down into three pieces. I use it in airports and on cruises. It’s perfect. 
My husband just bought one for himself. 
It’s much lighter and smaller than a rental one. Went off he ship for tours end it fits underneath the bus. 
Buy your own. Just my opinion. 

[ccqueenanne]

I got a Travel Scoot for my mom and it made all the difference for future cruises (so much smaller than the rentals). I'd recommend going to a local store for a test drive and seeing if your wife can manage a scooter and if you can manage lifting it and putting it together. But buying certainly pays off, and allows for more freedom at home, as well - going for "walks", trips to the mall, etc. 

[Yehootu]

We ended up getting a Transport AF ( auto fold ). You push a button and it auto folds. It is pricey, around $2000.00. Folds up to suitcase size.

[cruisequeen4ever]

Do it! Being able to rent an electric mobility scooter just enabled me to vacation when I wouldn’t have been able to without one. Google “mobility scooter rental” along with the city of departure and/or check out the companies others have mentioned. They deliver it right to you at your hotel or ship and pick it up at the end. Driving it is not difficult. You can go turtle slow all the way up to 4-5 MPH. I was even able to hold my husband’s hand with one hand as we went along while holding the forward handle with my other hand. Yes, you can have accidents, but they’re pretty easily preventable by going slowly and watching where you’re going. I always went slowly around corners and would look first before going. Most people were very respectful of me. The only hassle was my hubby having to break it down into 4 parts to load it into taxis; it’s definitely doable but preferable to avoid. We found it easier for him to just walk and me scoot everywhere. My need for one is hopefully (🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞) temporary, but I wouldn’t hesitate to travel and rent one again. Travel is so worth it!

[gabieleke]

If you decide renting a scooter, you should look over some aspects at first. Go and see if your dear wife is comfortable with it. Ask her if she can move easily, or if she does not feel any discomfort. You can make trials at the place you want to rent the scooter. After that, make sure if the cruise ship does have special facilities for disabled. And also ask if they have a special path for persons, who will use scooters on board. That's pretty much everything I believe, you should also opt for an electric scooter so you will be able to charge it on the ship. I hope my tips will help you. Good luck!!!

[SNJCruisers]

Why drop 250 to rent one, when you can get a model that was specifically designed to cruise and can fold flat to go under a bed, even in a non HC room.  Here is a video on it, the Golden Technologies Buzzaround Carry on.  It is pricey at about 2000 and another 250 for the travel battery, but well worth it.

 

[gmjc2]

If you read post 12 you will see that a 2000.00 scooter is not necessary. The 500 one with Walgreens is just fine. It fits most doors and is great for visiting theme parks and any other event that takes a lot of walking. It breaks down in 4 pieces and fits in the rear of your car easily.  

Hope this helps.

[va804]

https://scootaround.com/en the worst service and never a refund. Read all reviews everywhere before you agree.

 

Rented a knee scooter from Scootaround on 8/14/2021 for a cruise on 8/21 2021. There website clearly states Copied from web site (we deliver your cruise mobility scooter rental directly to your ship, cabin, port, hotel or residence) Well on Monday 8/16/2021 they send me a conformation on where to pick it up and return outside the terminal. I called and said that is not what the web site said and she said due to covid I would have to pickup and return outside the terminal at a predetermined location. That was not acceptable lugging that scooter on and off the cruise ship so I cancelled. Tracy Simpson said ok but no refund because I did not buy a cancellation policy. My augment was I would not cancel if they could deliver what they said. They don't care no refund. I used my debit card big mistake so there is no recourse.  
 

[SNJCruisers]

On 7/24/2021 at 9:03 AM, gmjc2 said:

If you read post 12 you will see that a 2000.00 scooter is not necessary. The 500 one with Walgreens is just fine. It fits most doors and is great for visiting theme parks and any other event that takes a lot of walking. It breaks down in 4 pieces and fits in the rear of your car easily.  

Hope this helps.

Great if you’re driving, but what about flying for vacation?  Does the $500.00 from Walgreens come with a FAA compliant battery?  It’s a whole different scenario comparing driving and flying. 

[gmjc2]

It is true that the battery is not gel but it is a hybrid of sorts. The scooter came with a letter explaining the difference for complying with aviation and maritime rules. We never had an issue using it for flying or sailing. It was questioned once on an international flight. This scooter is several years old now so the technology may have changed. It does bear looking into though. 

[SNJCruisers]

1 hour ago, gmjc2 said:

It is true that the battery is not gel but it is a hybrid of sorts. The scooter came with a letter explaining the difference for complying with aviation and maritime rules. We never had an issue using it for flying or sailing. It was questioned once on an international flight. This scooter is several years old now so the technology may have changed. It does bear looking into though. 

The Buzzaround was designed specifically for cruising and can fold down to 12 inches so that it can even fit under the bed in a stateroom.  But, others may balk at the price if they can't afford it.

[gmjc2]

Sounds like a great scooter but too rich for my blood! We will stick to our old models.