Sirena - Not Disability Friendly

[Shepherd9119]

Took a 12 day cruise of the Mediterranean this summer.  There were 10 of us and my 81 year old mother was with us. She recently was in an accident and walks with a cane/walker. We rented a scooter on board which was helpful. However, I feel the ship, let her down on several occasions, which led to her overall experience being subpar. First, in Venice, there was no one to help her from the dock to the embarkation point. This was an extremely long walk that she and one other passenger struggled with as there were no wheelchairs or golf carts offered. Though the ship had multiple wheelchairs on board, they would not allow her to use them. Finally at disembarkation, they would not allow her to use a wheelchair to get off the boat which would’ve been helpful. Much of this was counter to what was told to our travel agent.

[LHT28]

That is  unfortunate   that your mother  could not get  help embarking  & disembarking  usually they have porters  to assist people with disabilities  to embark & disembark  with wheelchairs   it is up to the port if they supply this  service

 

Unfortunately  your  TA was wrong

 

Did you or anyone in your party read the  T &C  or Guest ticket contract

 

https://www.oceaniacruises.com/sites/default/files/2023-02/oceania-guest-ticket-contract-new.pdf

 

see #6

 

[Shepherd9119]

Did not read it.  Travel agent called Oceania directly and relayed what they said.  Given the age range they target this was inexcusable.  We've sailed with them multiple times.  Unfortunately this will be the last time.

[kibutzer]

8 hours ago, Shepherd9119 said:

Did not read it.  Travel agent called Oceania directly and relayed what they said.  Given the age range they target this was inexcusable.  We've sailed with them multiple times.  Unfortunately this will be the last time.

Sorry to hear. Seems like your TA let you down as well. They needed to do their due diligence.

[JFontaine]

I've cruised on many lines and last week on first Oceania cruise was the only time where we had no porter assist on embarkation and disembarkation (we had our own wheelchair).   Until this cruise, regardless of the US port (including the same terminal as this cruise) or line, local porters assisted through security to check in and cruiseline porters assisted from there onto ship.  This time --- nothing, which left us struggling up and down ramps and over thresholds.   Not only was it a danger to my mom, it held up the people behind us, some who pushed through, with their luggage and all. Very disappointing.

[Vallesan]

9 hours ago, Shepherd9119 said:

Did not read it.  Travel agent called Oceania directly and relayed what they said.  Given the age range they target this was inexcusable.  We've sailed with them multiple times.  Unfortunately this will be the last time.

So sorry to hear about your issues.

I also require assistance but, unlike your mother, have done for many years so I am more aware of the pitfalls.

As LHT has said it’s the responsibility of the Port Authority to provide assistance but Oceania could probably have been more understanding on board.

I do know that they will only allow you to use their wheelchairs onboard in an emergency.

I had a similar problem disembarking in Valletta… no wheelchair assistance and a very long walk. Fortunately I had a walker with a seat with me so could sit down. We waited almost an hour for assistance but it did come.

For future reference if you need assistance please make sure you let Oceania know by filling in the medical form before you sail so they can arrange assistance for boarding. Also, speak to guest services a few days before you disembark to make sure you have assistance on the dockside.

I think you may just have been unlucky this time. Hopefully should you require assistance in the future it will be there.

 

[Sthrngary]

After years of learning as much about cruising as I can, I have come to a few conclusions. My opinion is going to seem cold and non-caring.  It is not my intent.  I feel for this family and the issues they had.  No one wants these kinds of things to happen to them on a Dream Cruise.  Yet, we as consumers must learn from this situation and understand we have to be our own advocate as well as take accountability for knowing all the rules/policies/procedures.  Again, not trying to being cold here, just want all parties to take a level of accountability.  Brand bashing is a thing now-a-days and Social Media seems to promote it. One last thing, I have NO skin in the game.  No stock in any cruise brand. 

 

1. "Let the Buyer Beware": We ALL need to read the LONG and BORING cruise contract from "soups to nuts".  I assure everyone, it protects the Cruise Line over the client.  This is NOT an Oceania Cruises issue, it is EVERY SINGLE cruise brand I have traveled on. The cruise contract is scary. 
2. "Special Needs": We hire travel agents and think they can see ALL the potential issue that can happen on a cruise ship.  Travel agents especially when they know a guest has a disability, should do their due diligence.  Yet we as guest have a responsibility also. So does the cruise brand.  All three parties are at fault here. 
3. "Porters Assistance": Hit or miss.  Especially outside the United States.  Should Oceania have had a porter available, YES.  Is it their responsibility, debatable. Can't fix the past for these folks, but we can sure learn from the OP's experience in the future. 
4. "I Will Never Cruise This Brand Again": Fine, but we as guest have to take some level of accountability for situations like this.  We knew our guest had mobility issues, we knew we would be in a place outside of our country. If we needed to have a wheel chair/scooter/walker, for short walks, we should have brought one. I see them all the time being checked by the airlines and provided when the guest gets off the flight.  My mother used to do this on every flight with no issue. Should the cruise brand have allowed the use of one of theirs, maybe but I would put dollars to donuts it was a legal issue.  Read the contract.  Everything is a legal issue.
5. "Social Media Complaints": My career before retirement was in teaching brands "Issue Resolution".  How to handle when things happen that make our clients upset.  What was missing was how to teach a client how to get their issue resolved.  Complaining on Social Media scratches an itch but the issue is not addressed.  Feels good to let out some steam and maybe get some sympathy.  We all need to have folks support our positions, it is human nature.  However, the issue can only be resolved by direct communication before, during and after the issue happened with the brand.  Sympathy from social media does not fix the issue for others, nor does it resolve our less then satisfyingly experience.  

 

Again, I am NOT trying to be harsh here.  I am only expressing the thought, lots of errors were made in this situation and all parties need to accept the blame so it can be fixed in the future.

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

[ToxM]

My TA once told me they had booked a “disabled” transfer for me and my mum (a wheelchair user). We arrived at Monte Carlo to see a full sized coach. A 90euro taxi transfer was refunded to me from my TA as clearly it wasn’t in any way mobility friendly. On disembarkation I just sorted the cab myself as it was Barcelona and very easy. 

 

I filled out the disability form prior to embarlkation and requested roll bars for my mums bed. The roll bars weren’t fitted correctly in the cabin, my mum fell out of bed got trapped under the mattress which also fell on her, we were in medical bay at 3am and security wanted to do a breathalyser test on her to see if she had been drinking. They got a bit of an education that night, as well as probably learning a few choice new words. We were given an extra cabin so my mum could have a double bed. My mum got extensive medical treatment - which we declined to pay for, and a small amount of OBC. 

 

I no longer use that TA (one more cruise to go booked through them, and we are done). I double check everything myself and understand that on disembarkation/off the ship the line wash their hands of you. Harsh but true.

 

On another note a well placed and intelligently worded complaint on Social Media can do wonders - the reputation damage of a solid complaint to a brand in the eyes of current and future customers can be very expensive (I work in risk analysis and intelligence analysis currently and have done for 20 years). 

 

Writing in bold to emphasise your words is grating beyond belief. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Sny]

I think the poster has zeroed in on a basic problem.  Situations may vary; but for those with limited mobility, the distances that one must walk in many ports of call to get from ship to terminal/buses/taxi is a challenge.  Whether it's charter buses, shuttle buses or golf carts, lots of us could use the service.  On each of the five O cruises we have taken, I have skipped one or more port of call because I didn't want to face the challenge of the long, painful walk.  I don't use a cane or a walker in the "real world;" so, looking at me, you wouldn't think "mobility issue."  But, I have enough metal in my back, hips, legs and ankles to make me bionic.  As many others have noted, Oceania's demographic is changing.  We are aging and the company would do well to adapt to our needs.

[Snaefell3]

13 hours ago, Shepherd9119 said:

Did not read it.  Travel agent called Oceania directly and relayed what they said.  Given the age range they target this was inexcusable.  We've sailed with them multiple times.  Unfortunately this will be the last time.

Hmmm....  "Travel agent said", "Travel agent relayed", "Travel agent told us".  Maybe the problem is Oceania, but I know where I'd put my rent money if I were betting.

 

As for wheelchairs for embarkation/debarkation?  Would Venice's porters union permit cruise ship wheelchairs to be used shoreside?  I know that when my DW wrenched her knee on the dock in San Pedro, it was a shoreside wheelchair that got us aboard and to our cabin door and that "shoreside" were fairly territorial about it, nevermind their chairs were too wide for a standard cruise ship cabin door.  (A knee brace from the Medical Center fixed her up for the cruise, thank you for asking)

[Shepherd9119]

We have sailed Oceania before as well as many other lines. The distances from the port were much further than we have typically experienced in the past. Oceania positions itself as an upscale cruise line. I don’t think it’s a good look to flood my mailbox with a catalog every week making cruising look elegant and carefree and then not offer assistance getting on and off the ship itself.  This was our main issue with the cruise but we also had a scary issue with a tender in Sorrento. There was an issue with the tender engine and we rammed the ship when trying to return to the ship. They continued to try and connect with the boat many times - ultimately shattering a window of the tender - as opposed to putting us on a properly functioning tender.  Lastly, the signage at some ports is lacking making navigation, even with smartphones, challenging. 

[EJL2023]

13 minutes ago, Shepherd9119 said:

We have sailed Oceania before as well as many other lines. The distances from the port were much further than we have typically experienced in the past. Oceania positions itself as an upscale cruise line. I don’t think it’s a good look to flood my mailbox with a catalog every week making cruising look elegant and carefree and then not offer assistance getting on and off the ship itself.  This was our main issue with the cruise but we also had a scary issue with a tender in Sorrento. There was an issue with the tender engine and we rammed the ship when trying to return to the ship. They continued to try and connect with the boat many times - ultimately shattering a window of the tender - as opposed to putting us on a properly functioning tender.  Lastly, the signage at some ports is lacking making navigation, even with smartphones, 

Edited September 23, 2023 by EJL2023

[ORV]

I was on a California Coastal cruise that I met a man that was also told by his TA that they would have the use of a wheelchair for one in their party. When it didn't happen he went to a rental place, oddly enough on Catalina Island, and was able to buy an old chair to use for the cruise. 

 

Just an FYI, there are companies that you can rent scooters and probably a wheelchair from at almost every port of embarkation, but you have to set it up in advance. 

[shepherd really]

1 hour ago, Shepherd9119 said:

We have sailed Oceania before as well as many other lines. The distances from the port were much further than we have typically experienced in the past. Oceania positions itself as an upscale cruise line. I don’t think it’s a good look to flood my mailbox with a catalog every week making cruising look elegant and carefree and then not offer assistance getting on and off the ship itself.  This was our main issue with the cruise but we also had a scary issue with a tender in Sorrento. There was an issue with the tender engine and we rammed the ship when trying to return to the ship. They continued to try and connect with the boat many times - ultimately shattering a window of the tender - as opposed to putting us on a properly functioning tender.  Lastly, the signage at some ports is lacking making navigation, even with smartphones, challenging. 

I like your name 😁 and wish you had a better experience.

[RD64]

Europe is Europe - you should not expect the same considerations that you do in North America despite what the cruise line / TAs May tell you. Every country / port is different with different rules and regulations, and most importantly unions. Expect inconsistency - sadly that is just the way it has always been. Not being discriminatory to Europeans - I am of Italian background and having been dealing with 50+ years of Italian bureaucracy. You truly cannot blame the cruise line on this one.

 

 

[Pandazoo]

The ticket contract has a section regarding general health conditions.  I will never understand people not reading their ticket contract.  You are required to advise them in writing if you need a wheelchair or other equipment.  It addresses that embarking and disembarking at various places may be difficult. It also states that your travel agent is YOUR agent and O is not responsible for their conduct…including giving you the ticket/contract and money issues.  

[alcpa1]

Just as an FYI.............

Many cruise lines are in the same situation. We were just on an X cruise embarking in Vancouver. The same issues were persistent.