Christmas cruises - how tough are they for a disabled cruiser?

[bnwbaron]

Hi, all. My wife and I are considering a Christmas cruise on the Rhine or the Danube in 2025. The catch-my wife is somewhat disabled. She can comfortably walk about a half mile (round trip) and then her partially paralyzed leg gets stiff/tired, and she needs rest. So, would a Christmas cruise work for her? Is it a long walk to the markets? Are there shuttles? Is it all cobblestone? How doable is a Christmas cruise given our scenario? Thanks 🙂

Edited August 28 by bnwbaron
Typo in title

[Canal archive]

For various reasons this sounds a bit like myself at the moment so I will be really interested! One of the challenges I suspect would be finding that elusive resting spot to gather one’s oomph for the next bit. I hope you find something. Our local Christmas Market is Bath and simply because of the crowds in the past I would be wary of attempting it.

[AnhaltER1960]

15 hours ago, bnwbaron said:

So, would a Christmas cruise work for her? Is it a long walk to the markets? Are there shuttles? Is it all cobblestone? How doable is a Christmas cruise given our scenario? Thanks 🙂

There is no "one fits all" -answer to that. Some cities do have docking locations close to the city centres (i.e. Xmas-markets), some dont. Also, there are often different docking locations in a city and you often do not know beforehand, which one will be allocated to your ship. Shuttles are usually provided.
Cobblestones are quite common, but rarely "all". It is, however, December and there might be wet, slippery, even icy surfaces. Also it gets dark at four /five pm, so some walking will be in darkness. 
Standard are booths for eating and drinking while standing. Benches are rare, wet and chilly. Some markets feature lounges to sit down. Of course you are expected to consume there, you might not like the music and bathrooms may still be at the other end of the market. 
I recommend to have an intense look at the itineraries, the ports and do some reading before choosing a cruise. Christmas markets tend to repeat, so no need to bother to make them all. Staying on a ship and missing a "difficult" one is no problem, you will see enough of them. And finally, even if you dont need it 24/7, bringing a wheelchair might be helpful.

[notamermaid]

To give you an idea of a very good port for getting to the Christmas market, this is Koblenz. If you walk from the Viking dock to the first Christmas market you will need 11 minutes at a normal pace:

 

Almost all ships dock as close or closer. Google has got a good photo for the standard scenario here, see almost all the various docking locations on both Rhine and Moselle. It gets hardly any better than that along the Rhine.

 

You need to bear in mind that river conditions can make this more difficult, in flooding docking locations may have to be further away from the prime spots. In Strasbourg for example the ship does not even dock in town if it is a 135m ship. The location will either be industrial or at Kehl on the German river bank. The companies provide shuttles.

 

You may be able to call a taxi or use a little tourist train as transport in some places. The cruise director on board will be happy to help. However, there may be restrictions as to how close a taxi may be allowed to get to the docking locations. Embankments can be banned for all motorized vehicles.

 

notamermaid

 

 

[RobInMN]

While anyone who's read my comments knows that Grand Circle is not my favorite (nothing to do with crew - they were great), we did a Christmas Market cruise with them with my parents and my sister's family. Anyway, there were a couple places where they did have a shuttle, but I want to say that there were a couple places where the markets were too close for a shuttle, but just far enough away that the CM's said something about arranging for some transportation for those that needed it. To be honest, didn't apply to us, so I didn't really pay much attention and could be wrong. But if GC does something like that, I would imagine most others would?

[bnwbaron]

Thanks for the comments so far! We would love to hear additional. 

[CDNPolar]

5 hours ago, bnwbaron said:

Thanks for the comments so far! We would love to hear additional. 

 

We have done many river cruises, but we are very sturdy on our feet and walking is our favourite exercise and we can do hours at a time.

 

BUT we do see a lot of folks on river cruises that are not as able and this always pains me a bit because we have seen some get into difficulty as the walking continues, and then struggle to find a place to sit and sometimes even ask the guide if they can rest somewhere while the group carries on and the guide circle back at the end to bring them back to the ship.

 

I think that the answers above are very good.

 

Where a ship docks and how close to the city centre or market depends on many things.  Last year because of high water levels we were docking sometimes 15 minute shuttle bus rides from the city centre.  You can never know.

 

Cobblestones can be everywhere.  

 

Like another said, you can have snow and ice.

 

Could your wife take something like this?  Might be a pain to fly with, and I would assume that it may have to be checked luggage, but could this help?  At least she would always have her own seat to rest when she wants.

 

Oh, and last winter the Christmas markets were elbow to elbow crowds.  You were edging your way through the crowds, and there is lots to eat and drink, but very few - if any - places to sit.

 

[capriccio]

I second @CDNPolar's recommendation of an adjustable cane with a seat.  Last December we had an ocean cruise scheduled that we had reserved a year in advance.  My DH had to have two back surgeries less than 2 months before the cruise.  The doctors all encouraged him to start walking with a cane and build up his strength in the 6 weeks before the cruise and gave him their blessings at a check-up days before.  He bought a https://a.co/d/cIbzI5c from Amazon and had no problem storing it in the overhead compartment on the plane.  Our excursions were walks in San Juan and Porto Plata and he would sit every time we stopped to listen to the tour guide. It was wonderful for his physical and emotional health and recovery.

[Nippy Sweetie]

Ocean cruise ships are very different from river ones. I'd think recovering from an op would be ideal on board.

However, I really don't think that a Christmas Markets river cruise would be at all suitable for the OP for all the reasons stated by others. River cruise literature literally says that they're not suited for those with mobility challenges. 

[bnwbaron]

Very thoughtful responses. I shared with my wife….we are leaning away from this idea for a trip :(

[Coral]

8 hours ago, bnwbaron said:

Very thoughtful responses. I shared with my wife….we are leaning away from this idea for a trip 😞

I think you could fly to a city with a lot of Christmas Markets and then taxi from one to another. Vienna is a great city with markets. There are several others.

 

I absolutely love Christmas markets. Just because a river cruise wouldn't work, doesn't mean you can't go t one.

[notamermaid]

I agree, a city trip could be an option for you. A city like Vienna, Budapest or Cologne will keep you busy for days. Do consider others like Munich or Strasbourg. A few of these places have scenic river cruising offers even in winter, i. e. an excursion boat round trip.

 

notamermaid

 

[Second seating]

On 8/31/2024 at 1:45 AM, bnwbaron said:

Very thoughtful responses. I shared with my wife….we are leaning away from this idea for a trip 😞

You might try and limit your trip to a few locations,I have been on 4 Christmas market cruises plus many DYI trips. I loved Dresden (DYI including Berlin), not huge, stunning and mostly flat!!!  Book a hotel on the square and you can easily return to your room as needed.

Second seating