Newbie needs help

[4xcruisers]

Hello All.

 

First off I have cruised several times, but my parents have not. This is a question on behalf of my mother. I have directed her towards these boards as there is a wealth of information and such nice people here.

 

I have helped them as far as general information about cruising, but I know nothing about cruising with a disability.

My mother is mobility challenged, she can walk and stand on her own. Walking is ok, but slow and challenging, the more she does the more it hurts. Standing for anything more than a few minutes is very difficult. This is due to severe arthritis in her knees.

She has questions regarding traveling with a scooter. They are looking at going to hawaii this fall (oct, nov). At this point I believe they are looking at NCL, but not set on anyone line yet. My dad will be with her to assist with moving the scooter around (he does this alot for her now and he can lift and move it easily). My/her questions are as follows:

 

1. Is there any line that is better with tolerances and helpfulness for the mobility challenged? My folks are first timers and in the "prime" of their life ( I am 37).

2. Getting the scooter off the ship to the port when "docked" will not be a problem, if necessary my dad can maneuver it. They are concerned about the tendering. Can a scooter go on the lifeboat tenders?? Again my dad can help with the maneuvering, just wondering if it is possible, or which lines it is possible with and which ones not??

3. They are planning on staying in the ps on Norwegian (sorry I do not remember which ship), will the scooter fit through the door? I know it will not go through the standard door, but seem to remember the high cabins having a larger door. Again dad can help

4. Any other pointers that anyone would care to provide would be greatly appreciated either ship or port related.

 

I would really like to see them experience the wonderful world of cruising and maybe be able to go with them sometime. I never thought mom would get dad to even think of going.

Thanks in advance to all the wonderful people here, you are always such a help. When mom started asking me these questions this is the place I told her to go.

[shipaddict]

I am disabled and have used a wheel chair on all cruises that require a lot of walking. The employees are there to help put her on board to and from the ship.

 

The ships are so big=to 4 football fields and many elderly decide not to do anything but sit by the pool because of the long distance walking.

 

The down fall is in the Carribean there are not a lot of handicap/disabled ammenities such as wide sidewalks, bathrooms, dining room ramps ect.

 

But if she is not planning on getting off the ship this is the way to go. Passengers do not always get out of the way but be patient. Also there are places on the ship that you need to turn the wheelchair around and go over these places backwards to get over them.

 

If your ship goes to Key West there are handicap/disabled ammenities as well as ramps and nice sidewalks.

[RevSmith]

Hello All.

 

First off I have cruised several times, but my parents have not. This is a question on behalf of my mother. I have directed her towards these boards as there is a wealth of information and such nice people here.

 

I have helped them as far as general information about cruising, but I know nothing about cruising with a disability.

My mother is mobility challenged, she can walk and stand on her own. Walking is ok, but slow and challenging, the more she does the more it hurts. Standing for anything more than a few minutes is very difficult. This is due to severe arthritis in her knees.

She has questions regarding traveling with a scooter. They are looking at going to hawaii this fall (oct, nov). At this point I believe they are looking at NCL, but not set on anyone line yet. My dad will be with her to assist with moving the scooter around (he does this alot for her now and he can lift and move it easily). My/her questions are as follows:

 

1. Is there any line that is better with tolerances and helpfulness for the mobility challenged? My folks are first timers and in the "prime" of their life ( I am 37).

2. Getting the scooter off the ship to the port when "docked" will not be a problem, if necessary my dad can maneuver it. They are concerned about the tendering. Can a scooter go on the lifeboat tenders?? Again my dad can help with the maneuvering, just wondering if it is possible, or which lines it is possible with and which ones not??

3. They are planning on staying in the ps on Norwegian (sorry I do not remember which ship), will the scooter fit through the door? I know it will not go through the standard door, but seem to remember the high cabins having a larger door. Again dad can help

4. Any other pointers that anyone would care to provide would be greatly appreciated either ship or port related.

 

I would really like to see them experience the wonderful world of cruising and maybe be able to go with them sometime. I never thought mom would get dad to even think of going.

Thanks in advance to all the wonderful people here, you are always such a help. When mom started asking me these questions this is the place I told her to go.

 

1. I have not been on all cruise lines, but I have found, Holland American, Princess, Carnival, Royal Caribbean and Princess to all be very, very nice to people with disablilities...My DH can not walk and is partically blind.

 

2. I would really not advise getting on or off a tender in a scooter or wheel chair...it is very, very dangerous. What would happened if the disabled person fell overboard...the consequences are not worth the risk...I do see people doing it, but then I see people do a lot of crazy things. You don't have to be smart to travel!

 

3. Re: cabin door. Call the cruise line they can tell you the size of the door! I know that the suites on Royal Caribbean have doors wide enough. But there are lips sometimes to the bathroom and out to the balcony. A medical supply store will usually carry blocks that are very light weight that will solve that problem. The lip is aprox. 2 inches, again, call the cruise line.

 

4. Bring an extention cord and a power stip so you can plug in and charge the scooter.

 

Hope this has helped. Happy cruising.

[Queenie2]

lol, first off I want to know what you consider the "prime" of life -- I might be there but don't know it!!

 

On NCL you are talking about the Pride of Aloha and the Pride of America. They are both nice but the Pride of America is newly built and has a wider selection of accessible cabins, while the Pride of Aloha is retrofitted. (only inside accessible cabins -- but they are very large and a good value for the money) The both call on the same ports. I highly recommend the inter-island itin as you get a lot of shore time (overnighting in Maui and Kauai). Kona is the only tender port on the NCL itin (they don't have to tender in Maui like other lines as they dock at Kahuli instead of Lahaina). You could bring along a manual wc to tender, but Kona isn't that big of a deal (IMHO - not that much to see unless you rent a car - just a bunch of shops around the port area). See the "Hawaii shore excursion thread for a link to my article on the NCL ships).

 

I would book an accessible room, especially since there is a step to the bathroom in standard rooms (which may be a tripping hazzard for your mom). If you have a compact travel scooter it may fit through the door of a standard cabin - call the cruise line and measure your scooter. But i recommend an accessible room.

 

Candy

[4xcruisers]

Thank you for the responses.

 

I would like to clarify a few points.

In regard to the scooter on the tenders, they are wondering if it can be transported. My mom can get on and off the tender without the scooter as long as there is a railing or support "arm" (my dad) for her to hold on to. She does not need to be in the scooter constantly, just for long distance walking. She still works without the scooter and moves around her home, goes grocery shopping etc without it. They have gotten quite good at maneuvering it around places without ramps etc.

 

The bathroom is not much of a concern as mom would not need the scooter in the room. I do not know even how much she would use it on the ship.

 

Thank you so much for the helpful information and any more information that may be provided.

[Queenie2]

well regarding the tender, think of it as a fun house (you know the the old-time ones that you have to put one foot in front of the other to access and still it's not accessible, because it moves at unpredictable times.) That is what the tender is like. Kind of like throwing somebody on there and hoping for the best. No it's not just a matter of "taking" the scooter, They won't do that. In fact it's the captain's call (safety issues) if pwds can even tender at all. If they consider it too dangerous (which it is in relatively calm seas) it will not be possible at all in a scooter.

 

Candy

[daju22]

Hi 4xcruisers,

My husband and I were just in Hawaii. 14 day cruise on Infinity Celebrity cruise line from San Diego to Hawaii and back. It was fantastic. We took our scooter. My husband had a stroke and has difficulty walking and can't use his right arm properly.

I can identify with your needs. It was our first cruise with the scooter and we would never go without it again.

 

Thank you for the responses.

 

I would like to clarify a few points.

In regard to the scooter on the tenders, they are wondering if it can be transported. My mom can get on and off the tender without the scooter as long as there is a railing or support "arm" (my dad) for her to hold on to.

We used the tenders in Kona and Maui. They were very bouncy, but two crew members helped my husband on and off(he walked down the stairs) and they carried the scooter onto and off of the tender. It was really great to be able to walk around the tender ports like normal people. We didn't do any tours in the tender ports. We took ship's bus tours to Wiamea Canyon, Pearl Harbor, and Volcano's Nat. Park. The bus drivers put the scooter(Pride Go Go) under the bus. I could put it in and take it out, but everyone wanted to help-even the passengers! We really needed it on the tours to see anything. If we didn't have it my husband would have stayed on the bus!

She does not need to be in the scooter constantly, just for long distance walking. She still works without the scooter and moves around her home, goes grocery shopping etc without it. They have gotten quite good at maneuvering it around places without ramps etc.

 

 

The bathroom is not much of a concern as mom would not need the scooter in the room. My husband doesn't need it in the room, but a handicapped cabin will give you more room to park the scooter and he didn't have to worry about tripping on the bathroom step. There were also grab bars for him to hold onto. The ship can really roll in rough seas.

 

I do not know even how much she would use it on the ship. I'm sure she'll use it ALOT on the ship! It's a long distance walk everywhere you go. Drive it to the diningroom, park the scooter and walk to dinner. Our waiter even had my husband drive it to our table and he parked it! He loved it.

Here is the thread that was started to find out about buying and using a scooter on cruises. There's alot of info in this thread about what to expect on a cruise.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=141323

 

 

Thank you so much for the helpful information and any more information that may be provided.

__________________

 

Hope this helps a little. It was such a good experience, we are using the scooter again in Europe this summer- Baltic and TA.

You will love it!

Ask if you have more questions. Everyone on this board is great!

[cusyl]

There might be one more option if she is able to get around on her own for short distances.

Take a look at this rollator http://www.invacare.com/cgi-bin/imhqprd/inv_catalog/prod_cat_detail.jsp?s=0&prodID=65100R

 

They have several different models depending on her weight. You can buy them on Ebay new for less than the manufacturer's site. I got mine for $148.

The 8 inch wheels are best as they would go over the cobblestones and uneven sidewalks. They fold up easily, can store in an overhead bin on an airplane, will fold to get through the narrow passageways on the ship and thru a standard door. They provide stability and take weight off the knees if one uses their arms properly, and the seat pulls down to rest when you need to. It is easy to fold and take on the tender also. I see a lot of scooters on the ships but they do kind of limit what you can do.

[DEL67]

My husband uses a wheelchair and we have found cruising is the best vacation. Most ships today are very accessible and provide a stable environment to return to allowing us to visit places that would otherwise be difficult or impossible for us. You have food and entertainment close at hand. You unpack once and they take you places. What could be better!

 

A couple of additional thoughts. First of all, in addition to providing your mother with increased mobility around the ship, using a scooter will also be safer if they hit rough waters. Secondly, unless she has a narrow scooter, it may not fit through the door of a regular cabin and most cruiselines do not let you leave it outside your cabin. I would measure the scooter width and then call NCL and check. Also, request a shower seat in advance if she needs one. Finally, I always bring an extension cord and surge protector for recharging his batteries. The extension cord allows us to park the chair anywhere in the cabin and the surge protector gives us extra outlets (there is usually only one per cabin) in case we need to plug something else in while the chair is charging