Best River Cruise Line for a solo traveler with some mobility problems

[Tom11_Montreal]

I’m helping my sister check out river cruises in Europe, and she has some special needs.

 

She is starting to have mobility problems – she walks, but slowly and could not walk real far at one time (say less than a km – half a mile – in a day). She can go up stairs on her own, so getting around the ship is not the problem. She is keenly interested in culture and history – her goal for going on the cruise (most likely a 7 day Danube cruise) would be to go on the tours.

 

What lines offer options for people with problems like hers – excursions mostly in buses, to museums or concerts, etc.? In addition, she is likely to be a solo traveler, so cruise lines without exorbitant single supplements would be a big advantage.

 

I’ve heard good things about AMA, Avalon and Riviera for people like her, but with few details and no comparisons of lines. Any advice you have for us on the best lines for her would be great – thanks!

Edited September 7, 2021 by Host Jazzbeau
This thread is about River Cruising and should stay in this forum

[SuiteTraveler]

I believe all the lines offer "gentle walking" tours which are slower, not as long a distance, etc.  River cruise lines don't usually charge single supplements as single cabins are fairly common on most lines.  When we were on Uniworld, they certainly had gentle walking tours.   On that Uniworld cruise we befriended 93 year old Philip who chose to remain on the ship most of the time and had a lovely time talking to people rather than wearing himself out touring. Hopefully this article will be of assistance.  https://www.cruisecritic.com/articles.cfm?ID=4375 

[mapsd]

3 hours ago, Tom11_Montreal said:

I’m helping my sister check out river cruises in Europe, and she has some special needs.

 

She is starting to have mobility problems – she walks, but slowly and could not walk real far at one time (say less than a km – half a mile – in a day). She can go up stairs on her own, so getting around the ship is not the problem. She is keenly interested in culture and history – her goal for going on the cruise (most likely a 7 day Danube cruise) would be to go on the tours.

 

What lines offer options for people with problems like hers – excursions mostly in buses, to museums or concerts, etc.? In addition, she is likely to be a solo traveler, so cruise lines without exorbitant single supplements would be a big advantage.

 

I’ve heard good things about AMA, Avalon and Riviera for people like her, but with few details and no comparisons of lines. Any advice you have for us on the best lines for her would be great – thanks!

What you're describing seems like a tough fit for ANY river cruise.

IMO, while onboard, getting on/off the ship will be the biggest challenge.  No consistent docking protocol and some motion involved.  Possibly even gangplanks in-between multiple ships.

 

On tours, it will often include stairs/cobblestone paths/uneven surfaces, and not the ADA railings we are used to in North America.

 

As a solo traveler, with no one to assist, or push a wheelchair, it could be nearly impossible.

Googling "European travel with mobility issues" will get you to someone who lists a bunch of land-tour options/

[lcand1923]

As mentioned, the biggest challenge your sister will face will be getting on and off the river boat.  In many places, ships are berthed together and it is a major challenge to pass from one to the other.  I travelled for many years with my Dad who had the mobility challenges your sister has.  Once off the vessel, we could find a “gentle” tour without difficulty.  Getting on and off the vessel, he needed assistance which I could provide.  Keep in mind, too, that Europe has cobblestone streets, unmarked curbs, many stairs and few elevators.  It is not an easy place to travel if you have mobility issues.

[notamermaid]

I agree with the previous posters. In short: a challenge. Going around the ship including the sundeck which usually has steep, small steps and no lift sounds okay for her, so getting off the boat anywhere should be fine, too. You need to bear in mind that every town is different in how much walking is required to even get to the sights. Many places have the dock outside of town. There you have a shuttle very often, but may have to stay in the museum or in a café while the others do the 2 kilometre town walk. Challenges in all sizes and variations if your daily radius or ability to walk is one mile.

 

To give you an extreme (but not untypical) example. My day in Vienna: dock in Nussdorf (a district), walk to tour bus 50m, tour one hour on bus, walk Belvedere castle for 30 minutes, take tour bus into other part of city, walk half an hour, leave guide and walk for 20 minutes to meet bus again. All at normal speed. You could get the shuttle back to Nussdorf, we took the tram.

 

Gentle walker groups will organize this differently for sure.

 

While cities accommodate wheelchair users very much these days, there will be museums who cannot and forget any castle (basically) unless it is a renovated Schloss. She could take a foldable wheelchair (check with the cruise line), but scooters are normally excluded from transport on a river cruise ship. Crew will always be happy to help and I am sure in a group of 15 on a town walk she should find someone happy to push. A motor assisted wheelchair would be better.

 

Travelling on her own will certainly mean she will have to rely on "strangers" helping her everyday, more or less.

 

All in all, most cruise line will be accommodating and fine to choose. I see the problem more in the actual places you visit.

 

notamermaid

 

[Daisi]

Gentle walking is not always less walking, it's more geared to slower walking.  We took the gentle walking tours so I could snap pictures and found that the main difference between our tours and those on the "normal" ones were our guides talked as we walked, so if we saw something along the way, we could ask about it, or get pictures, while when we were on the "normal" ones, we were walked to an area where the guide could stop and talk for a bit, then off to another one.  Our group saw a lot that the others didn't always get to see, as they walked past with no explanations.  Our tours had less time at the end for shopping, which was no problem for us, as we aren't shoppers anyway.

 

One of the main things is the length you can be out on tour, as they average 1.5 to 2 hours, and you don't have much "rest" between.  You do a lot of walking on the tours, gentle walking or not.  They can avoid steep hills sometimes, but in the cities where it's flat, you do walk a fair bit, no matter what group you are in.

 

We did have one guy who used a portable wheelchair on our cruise, he could walk on and off the boat, and we were very lucky not to have to go up to the top to cross ships to get ashore.  That is something else to consider, having to go up to the top deck of your ship, crossing over to the top deck of another one (or two), and then down to get off.  

 

I think finding a land tour for those with "mobility issues" would maybe be best if she can only walk a km or so a day....or maybe you or someone could tour with her and push her in a wheelchair?  That way, she could have the experience, and enjoy the trip as most of her fellow travellers would.  I will warn you though, pushing someone over some cobblestones and hills can be difficult, so you want to be strong to do so.

 

I wish both you and your sister good luck, and hopefully she can get over while she can still enjoy the trip.

 

Edited September 7, 2021 by Daisi

[gnome12]

2 hours ago, notamermaid said:

A motor assisted wheelchair would be better.

Motor wheelchairs would also not be allowed, because there is nowhere to store them, the same as motorized scooters. (They are also much bigger and heavier than a folding wheelchair.)

[notamermaid]

24 minutes ago, gnome12 said:

Motor wheelchairs would also not be allowed, because there is nowhere to store them, the same as motorized scooters. (They are also much bigger and heavier than a folding wheelchair.)

Thank you for pointing that out. It is of course true. I meant to refer to - and do not know a term for it - something a relative of mine has. It is an altered standard wheelchair with detachable battery that drives the wheels. It is easier to store than the big electric wheelchairs.

 

notamermaid

 

[lcand1923]

I want to mention something that has happened to me on two different river cruises:   The Port Authority required the river boat to be moved while the groups were on tour.  This first time this happened, the river boat was roughly one mile from the original stopping point.  We had been on “free time” in the town and it took about 20 of us close to an hour to find our vessel.  The new berth was down a very steep hill and our vessel was the third in line away from the dock.  The second time, our vessel was fourth in line away from the dock.  In both instances the passengers with mobility problems, primarily use of canes, had some major problems getting back to the ship.

 

[gnome12]

Even if they don't actually move the docking location, ships can rearrange positions so that the earliest to depart is on the outside. You might depart a ship right next to the dock, and come back to find it in third position.

[Second seating]

21 minutes ago, gnome12 said:

Even if they don't actually move the docking location, ships can rearrange positions so that the earliest to depart is on the outside. You might depart a ship right next to the dock, and come back to find it in third position.

Or in fourth position! On one of my river cruises (Tulip and Windmills Uniworld) numerous times we rafted and we had to go up and down to get on and off the ship.  Also wet gangways get slick when damp!!!

 

Second seating

[notamermaid]

40 minutes ago, Second seating said:

Or in fourth position!

I did not know that was possible! So that was in Netherlands?

 

notamermaid

 

[Second seating]

It was a while ago and it must have been in the Netherlands and only happened once and was only like this while we got off. I am sure it was not Ghent (or near there) or Antwerp.  This was about 10 years ago now and I thought at the time this was a pain for me and I did not really have any mobility issues.  Out of a total of 8 river cruises this was the only time I have ever seen this. It seemed one of the ships did not want us walking the the main area!

 

Second seating

[gnome12]

1 hour ago, Second seating said:

It seemed one of the ships did not want us walking the the main area!

Covid has made going into another ship not possible, I believe. They are making you go up and over. 
 

In other cases, if the lobbies don’t line up, you have to go up and over. This is one case where Viking has an advantage; since all their longships are pretty much the same, they line up easily. 

[Tom11_Montreal]

Thanks, everyone for all your advice. It seems like a river cruise is not the best choice for my sister - she really would be keen to get out and see things despite her mobility problems, and it sounds like that would be very difficult. We'll have to look for other options I fear...