Iceland, Silver Moon Norwegian Fjords, and the QM2 transatlantic

[JSR]

Part 1 Iceland

 

I have decided rather late to try and do a review of our trip to Iceland the Norwegian Fjords, and a transatlantic home from an accessibility perspective. This trip took place in June 2022 and was our first post lock down trip.  

 

Who we are:

I am Jean, a T5 paraplegic for 27 years in her 60s, I use a lightweight manual folding wheelchair, Motion Composite Veloce, made of carbon fiber. I travel with my able bodied husband in his 60s who has Parkinson’s. I am in reasonably good shape given my disability, working hard to maintain stamina and strength. My husband remains very active despite the Parkinson’s.

 

Pre cruise research:

In preparation for our travels, I research. I am great at it and find lots of options. I am terrible at making decisions so that is where my husband comes in. I present the data and he helps me pull the trigger. 

I wrote about 10 hotels in Reykjavik asking questions about details of their accessible rooms including height of toilets, location of bars around toilet, roll in shower, shower bench/chair and the height of the bed. I also requested photos of the bathrooms, which were the most telling. After reviewing them all the hotel that met my needs the best was Fosshotel Reykjavik (more below). I also researched accessible tours in Iceland and every port we called at. We prefer to roll/walk as much as possible and when we cannot do that we try to utilize a wheelchair accessible vans as it saves a lot of wear and tear with transfers. 

 

Getting there:

I can fly about 5 ½ hours plus boarding and deplaning without using the bathroom. So, we needed to break up the flights. We flew from LAX to Boston, overnighted at the airport Sheraton hotel. It was about a 30-minute trek to the hotel through the airport from the American Airlines gate we landed at. The room was a typical Sheraton and I do not remember how the accessibility was. We had dinner in the pub in the hotel and the food was ok. The next day we reversed the roll/walk with a luggage cart to the Iceland air check in We had way too much luggage and hope to avoid this in the future. We then flew to Reykjavik. Iceland air has the only non-red eye flight once a day from Boston and once every couple days from JFK. We did fly business and I would give the seats a C-. Fortunately after seeing the salmon served to me I chose not to eat it, the women across the aisle did and was sick most of the rest of the trip. It took a lot of time to get off the plane as we waited a long time for aisle chair assistance. The bathroom in the airport which we used after collecting our luggage was accessible. I had prearranged wheelchair accessible transportation from the airport to the hotel as well as daily tours. We arrived at the hotel, checked in. organized the room and headed to bed as it was now around midnight. 

 

Fosshotel Reykjavik.

The room was small but totally serviceable. The man who checked us in came with us to the room. He and my husband pushed the bed over some so I had wheelchair access on my side of the bed. Lovely view from the room of sunset at midnight. Sunrise followed around 3 am. The only complaint was that the curtains were not as blackout as they could be. The room is always hot so we needed to open the window to cool things down. Heat is abundant in Reykjavik so there is no thermostat, just open the window. We requested a shower chair which was waiting for us in the shower. We also paid for breakfast included which was a very extensive buffet every morning. You could also pack your breakfast to-go which I did often in order to have snacks on the tours as I am not an early eater. There were many employees that offered to help with getting the food off the buffet and to my table. 

 

 

 

 

[JSR]

Looking at the photos I remember that the towel rack was way above my reach and my husband had to put towels down low on a rack. I have more photos of the room if anyone needs them please reach out to me at rtravel at aol. I am not a TA. Next up excursions around Iceland from our base in Reykjavik. WE were in room 1315 and the category is a tower view room.

[JSR]

Reykjavik Day 1
This was an exploration day. Rolling along the sea wall, getting lost heading to the heart of town, and going up the way steep road to the cathedral. I would recommend plotting out a less steep route to the cathedral and also planning ahead to be there for an organ concert. It was a nice day with no rain. We did not realize at the time how rare this would be. For the most part we found rolling easy except in some parts of the town that had uneven cobble stones. Had to also be aware of some very steep streets in other parts. We did stop and ask people a couple of times and they steered us to better routes. There is also a section of the city center that is blocked to car traffic and rolling in the street was flat and easy. After exploring the cathedral, we rolled back to the hotel to meet our nephew who was flying in from France to join us (early 20s). He is a foodie and we headed out to dinner. Back to the center of town which was a bit of a roll again but hey that way you get to eat more. In Iceland unlike other parts of Europe people eat early. Make reservations. Something we did not do but got lucky as we were seated right before the wait became very long. We ate at Old Iceland (https://oldiceland.is/) which was very good. Later in the trip we ate at their sister restaurant which was the highlight meal of our trip. We all had different fish, I had Arctic Char which was excellent. After dinner we rolled around a bit and headed back to the hotel. Had a nightcap in the bar and then off to bed.

[JSR]

[JSR]

Day 2 Shaefellness Peninsula – 9-10 hours

When I was researching wheelchair accessible tours I can across a tour company that specializes in accessible tours that turned out to be middlemen. They were extremely expensive and would not break down the tours, you had to buy everything as a total package. I persevered and got lucky and finally figured out who the local day tour company was that they were reselling and booked directly with them. They provide accessible tours as well as standard tours.  The company I booked with let you pick and choose your tours, pay for them individually and were a pleasure to work with. They picked us up at the airport as well. While, Iceland is very expensive, and these private tours were as well they were half of what the bundler wanted to charge. That being said some people may prefer to work with a bundler who will arrange everything for them including hotels. I am happy to share the names of both of these, however, I believe I have to be asked for that information. You can then access their website and see the details of all their tours. Most of which offer an accessible version.

Shaefellness Peninsula is a long tour with a lot of driving. We were still a bit jet lagged, unaccustomed to the rain and did not get out of the van frequently enough so we were not as thrilled with this tour as we would be with the subsequent ones. In retrospect I attribute this a lot to being too tired for such an extensive tour.  We had a good lunch along the way and the restaurant had an accessible bathroom. Inge, our tour guide was very well versed in accessible bathrooms, and making things very interesting and informative. He was fun, helpful, and a wealth of information. My husband is both an engineer and also very versed in international economics. He peppered Inge with questions about energy, economics, politics, etc. My DH has no agenda and is a very curious soul who absorbs knowledge like a sponge, so it made things very informative along with learning about geography, flora, and the sights. We were totally taken in by the amazing scenery. It was raining hard when we returned from the excursion so ate in the hotel bar and called it a night.

[JSR]

Edited January 19, 2023 by JSR

[JSR]

[Essiesmom]

Please, please do tell us who the agency is, and also the consolidator.  There is no limit on excursion agencies and guide, not like travel agencies.  Please go over to the Ports of Call board also.  The only restriction there is that you can’t recommend an excursion if you haven’t yet taken it.

   I have been to Iceland twice and I’m looking forward to your next segment!

[JSR]

The previous photos are for this discription:

 

Day 4 Reykjavik peninsula and fishing. We split up today. I went with Inge and the accessible van on an amazing tour and the fellows went with a fishing guide to fish. The guide company was not very good as the guys were assigned a novice guide and it was a bit of a bust, DN did catch one fish. They had fun despite this but would not recommend this outfitter. On the other hand, Inge and I had an amazing time. I loved this tour so much we are doing it again this summer with Inge and my husband, pre arctic cruise. Inge got me out of the van at every stop and we were able to walk around. The landscape was so varied. The geo thermal pools were other worldly. The blue lagoon, which is full accessible reminded me a booze cruise with lots of bathing suit clad tourist sipping umbrella drinks. Accessible bathrooms. I did not go in the lagoon but could have had a chosen too.

 

[JSR]

3 minutes ago, Essiesmom said:

Please, please do tell us who the agency is, and also the consolidator.  There is no limit on excursion agencies and guide, not like travel agencies.  Please go over to the Ports of Call board also.  The only restriction there is that you can’t recommend an excursion if you haven’t yet taken it.

   I have been to Iceland twice and I’m looking forward to your next segment!

Thanks, I am glad you are enjoying this and please feel free to add anything you want to share about your trip too. 

 

The tour company I used is prime tours iceland http://primetours.is/ 

I can not recommend them enough! They were fantastic!

 

The tour operator consolidator is https://icelandunlimited.is/.

[JSR]

Day 4 Reykjavik peninsula and fishing. We split up today. I went with Inge and the accessible van on an amazing tour and the fellows went with a fishing guide to fish. The guide company was not very good as the guys were assigned a novice guide and it was a bit of a bust, DN did catch one fish. They had fun despite this but would not recommend this outfitter. On the other hand, Inge and I had an amazing time. I loved this tour so much we are doing it again this summer with Inge and my husband, pre arctic cruise. Inge got me out of the van at every stop and we were able to walk around. The landscape was so varied. The geo thermal pools were other worldly. The blue lagoon, which is fully accessible reminded me of a booze cruise with lots of bathing suit clad tourist sipping umbrella drinks. The outside was interesting and we were able to roll around the thermal pools that are not in use and Inge explained the whole evolution of the Blue Lagoon tourist stop which was fascinating.  Accessible bathrooms. I did not go in the lagoon but could have had a chosen too.

We met up and swapped stories and headed out to dinner. We walked all the way to the end of town to the restaurant we read about. They had a full flight of stairs, and we were very ungracious so we left. We wondered all the back to about a few blocks from our hotel to the sister restaurant to Old Iceland. They were committed because of a large group and a small restaurant so they said come back after 8. At this point we decided just to wander around and return. So glad we did. The food was excellent, and we cannot wait to return. There are steps down to get in. They were very helpful in getting me in and out of the restaurant. Reykjavik Kitchen http://reykjavikkitchen.is/ Make a reservation!

[JSR]

 

 

 

[JSR]

Day 5 Golden Circle Tour 10-12 hours. This tour is the most popular from Reykjavik and well worth it. We had a wonderful time. Again, getting out often. Afterwards we went to dinner though I do not remember where. The photos tell the story and you can check out the itinerary on the website. I have not figured out how to load the photos onto my computer, so I am posting them from my phone and I have not mastered labeling them. Also, the videos of the room and of the previous post you have to click on.

[JSR]

[JSR]

Day 6 

I will start with a photo of the van we toured in and Inge. Prime Tours Iceland. http://primetours.is/

 

 DN was up at the crack of dawn to get a covid test for his return home to the States and to his summer internship/work (he is in law school). DH and I headed to the opera house rolling along the seawall to get our covid test to board the Silver Moon for the next leg of our journey. Negative test in hand we headed back to the town up the hill to buy a Christmas ornament as a souvenir. We are not big shoppers. The only other purchases we made while in Iceland were a pair of long underwear for my husband, and some guitar strings for his guitar which he had with him. I had not arranged transportation with the tour company to the pier and they were booked, so the hotel arranged for an accessible taxi to pick us up. We headed back to the hotel to get organized for a pickup. Our boarding time was 2 pm. The taxi arrived a few minutes late. The ride was very short. 

I will post a link to the next part of our adventure. 

[JSR]

Part 2A posted. Silversea Moon cabin 409 wheelchair review 

 

 

[GRBlizz]

On 1/19/2023 at 7:18 PM, JSR said:

Thanks, I am glad you are enjoying this and please feel free to add anything you want to share about your trip too. 

 

The tour company I used is prime tours iceland http://primetours.is/ 

I can not recommend them enough! They were fantastic!

 

The tour operator consolidator is https://icelandunlimited.is/.

Oh, this is amazing to read, We are going to Iceland in August, and I was planning to splurge on a Golden Circle tour with Iceland Unlimited. To confirm, you booked Golden Circle with Prime Tours? Any other advice? We only have 1 and 1/2 days in Reykjavik, so we will to GC and then spend the half day exploring the town,

[JSR]

I think you should go with Prime Tours directly. Iceland Unlimited is a middleman. 
I booked all our tours with Prime tours as they are an actual tour company not a middleman. our guide, Inge was great. They offer 24 hour cancellation. 

I loved the Reykjavik Peninsula tour. I think you can make that a half day tour. I liked it so much I’m doing it again as my husband missed it last time. GC is a good one. Very popular. Check the prices on Prime’s website then fill out the contact form. 
 

I highly recommend our hotel. It is not in the middle of the tourist area but close to the sea wall.and we rolled/walked to the tourist area almost everyday I do not know what your needs are, but I found the bathroom worked well. We roll/walk a lot and distance doesn’t bother me. The cathedral is worth the trip however, the hill we took was long and steep. Try and find out if there is a lunch time organ concert. We have yet to experience this but on my to do list. The concert hall/opera house is worth a visit, the sea wall is an easy roll with some fun sculptures. The downtown shopping area is ok but nothing there particularly worthy.  I researched a lot of hotels and I always have them send me bathroom photos so there are no surprises. The room is small but very manageable. 
 

We are in Reykjavik briefly again this June - 2 days and one is our arrival day we will probably just sleep and wonder. We wanted to try Dill but didn’t have reservations so could never get in so I have already made reservations for June. I’ll report back. Our fav restaurant was Reykjavik Kitchen, best to make reservations and note they have a couple steps down, they helped get me in and out in my wheelchair. 
 

let me know if you want more info. Or have questions 

Edited April 2, 2023 by JSR

[alwaysfrantic]

On 1/19/2023 at 5:34 PM, JSR said:

Day 2 Shaefellness Peninsula – 9-10 hours

When I was researching wheelchair accessible tours I can across a tour company that specializes in accessible tours that turned out to be middlemen. They were extremely expensive and would not break down the tours, you had to buy everything as a total package. I persevered and got lucky and finally figured out who the local day tour company was that they were reselling and booked directly with them. They provide accessible tours as well as standard tours.  The company I booked with let you pick and choose your tours, pay for them individually and were a pleasure to work with. They picked us up at the airport as well. While, Iceland is very expensive, and these private tours were as well they were half of what the bundler wanted to charge. That being said some people may prefer to work with a bundler who will arrange everything for them including hotels. I am happy to share the names of both of these, however, I believe I have to be asked for that information. You can then access their website and see the details of all their tours. Most of which offer an accessible version.

Shaefellness Peninsula is a long tour with a lot of driving. We were still a bit jet lagged, unaccustomed to the rain and did not get out of the van frequently enough so we were not as thrilled with this tour as we would be with the subsequent ones. In retrospect I attribute this a lot to being too tired for such an extensive tour.  We had a good lunch along the way and the restaurant had an accessible bathroom. Inge, our tour guide was very well versed in accessible bathrooms, and making things very interesting and informative. He was fun, helpful, and a wealth of information. My husband is both an engineer and also very versed in international economics. He peppered Inge with questions about energy, economics, politics, etc. My DH has no agenda and is a very curious soul who absorbs knowledge like a sponge, so it made things very informative along with learning about geography, flora, and the sights. We were totally taken in by the amazing scenery. It was raining hard when we returned from the excursion so ate in the hotel bar and called it a night.

I would love the name of the tour company you used.  I’m hoping you’re still on the boards.  I see your trip was a year ago. 

[JSR]

Prime tours Iceland 

birgir@primetours.is

Www.primetours.is

 

i am currently on Silver Nova in South America. Just got back to the ship. 

 

[alwaysfrantic]

Thank you!!! 
 

have a wonderful trip!!