Which U.S. cruise line and itinerary for wheelchair user?

[dcsam]

Is there a U.S. based cruise line and itinerary that would be suitable for a wheelchair user?  
Thank you!

[Host Jazzbeau]

Do you mean a company that does cruises on US rivers, or a US-centric company that does river cruises internationally?

[dcsam]

Thank you.  
Any cruise within the U.S.

Mainly interested in the Mississippi and east coast trips.  But open to suggestions. 

[bundtkate]

I can't speak for other lines and I think the ships on the Mississippi might be a bit different from the European longship I experience, but assuming a similar design I think the onboard experience on Viking would be okay for a wheelchair user. The trouble is, the ships generally aren't the issue, it's the destinations and the docks themselves. Depending on water levels and even the design of the docks, the ramps to embark/disembark can be really steep and potentially unsuitable for wheelchair access. In Europe, the cities themselves aren't terribly accessible either which can make touring a challenge. You likely wouldn't have the issues with cobblestone and general lack of accessible infrastructure in the U.S. so that's a plus, but the river docks and water levels are a potential problem on the Mississippi same as in Europe. If an east coast cruise would work for you, I'd consider an ocean cruise covering New England and Canada. Some itineraries may have tender ports, which won't be accessible, but outside of that ocean cruising tends to be more wheelchair accessible overall. My uncle is incapable of even a single stair and, outside of a single tender port, was able to enjoy our Panama Canal crossing on an ocean cruise just as much as the rest of us.

[CDNPolar]

I agree with bundtkate that a Viking ship is basically accessible for a wheelchair user, but some things go consider:

 

1) The Viking Longships in Europe - have not been on one is North America - would offer basic accessibility to everywhere on the ship but not the sundeck because the elevator does not go to the top deck.  This could be a problem in some ports as I have been on ships where the disembarkation was done from the top deck from one ship to the other and then down stairs.

2) Often the gangway is not a ramp but everything from small to full size stairs.  If you are going to disembark in some ports, you may have to have special arrangements to get off the ship.

3) Make sure you are booking a fully accessible cabin as all the ships I have been on, and especially River ships, the cabins are very small and there would not be the room necessary to pull a wheelchair beside the bed, and often the bathrooms have a step to get into.

 

If I were you, I would create a list of questions for all cruise lines, find the itinerary that you are interested in, and then call the cruise line directly and pose the full list of questions.

 

I am an advocate for accessibility, but there are just some restrictions that cannot be avoided, and you need to be fully aware of this before you pay your good money and book.

 

 

[pontac]

The Viking Mississippi boat is built especially for that river.

 

The two cabin grades on those cruises that state they are wheelchair accessible are French Balcony Stateroom (FB) and Explorer Suite (ES) room 300 only.

 

From the Viking FAQ

 

When you make your reservation, please advise us of any disability that will require special attention while sailing on a Viking cruise and provide a completed Fit to Travel Form along with a physician’s letter. Should you have any medical, physical or other special needs, check the fleet information on our website to gain an understanding of the layout of any particular ship and contact a Viking Expert at 1-877-668-4546 (1-877-66VIKING) directly with additional questions and to obtain a copy of our policy statement.

 

I suggest that a call to that number will give definitive information. (The FAQ on wheelchairs seems relevant to European cruises.)

[steamboats]

There are basically 3 companies on the Mississippi river system and all of them do have wheechair accessible cabins:

 

1) American Queen Voyages

2) American Cruise Lines

3) Viking

 

American Queen Voyages and American Cruise Lines also do have ships on the Columbia/Willamette rivers.

 

Traditionally on the Mississippi river stages are used as gangplanks - those are accessible (not used by Viking). Anyway the river levee may cause problems as there usually is not docking area with a concrete wall where a ship goes alongside (Viking has some ports) but the ships do stop at the river levee which can be cobblestone and is sloping down into the water.

 

steamboats

[Host Jazzbeau]

For historical reasons, American Queen Voyages and American Cruise Lines have their own separate forums on Cruise Critic.  Viking river cruises (in all countries) are here on the main River Cruising forum.

 

Questions relating to individual River Cruise Ports (anywhere in the world) have a subforum here.

 

Roll Calls are also confusing:  Viking river cruises have their own roll call forum.  All Other River Cruises (including AQV and ACL) are lumped together in one forum.  But roll calls don't work well for river cruises, because the ships are so small and excursions are included – I have encouraged people to create meta-roll calls for all the sailings on a particular itinerary for an entire year; this helps with some that reach a critical mass but even some of these are very lonely...