Disabled On Legend Of The Seas

[killie]

Hi Everyone -- we are a polio disabled Scottish couple, who are desperately looking forward to our first ever cruise on LOS ( we sail ex-Southampton on 09/09/06 ) on the Mediterranean trip.

However we're not sure what to expect. Any info from RC seems very sketchy. We have booked a ocean view handicapped cabin, so hope that will be OK. My wife is in a wheelchair, and we are just concerned about the suitability of the boat for moving around and accessing the various restaurants/bars etc.

Can anyone please give us any general info regarding this. We are also wondering if it is possible to book a scooter on board, and if so, where can this be done. Finally, if anyone has been on the Med cruise, can you please let us know if RC will help in obtaining say, wheelchair accessible taxis/minibus at the various ports of call.

In short, any info you can give us will be gratefully received. Many thanks & Regards --- Killie.

[Valentine's Mom]

Hi Everyone -- we are a polio disabled Scottish couple, who are desperately looking forward to our first ever cruise on LOS ( we sail ex-Southampton on 09/09/06 ) on the Mediterranean trip.

However we're not sure what to expect. Any info from RC seems very sketchy. We have booked a ocean view handicapped cabin, so hope that will be OK. My wife is in a wheelchair, and we are just concerned about the suitability of the boat for moving around and accessing the various restaurants/bars etc.

Can anyone please give us any general info regarding this. We are also wondering if it is possible to book a scooter on board, and if so, where can this be done. Finally, if anyone has been on the Med cruise, can you please let us know if RC will help in obtaining say, wheelchair accessible taxis/minibus at the various ports of call.

In short, any info you can give us will be gratefully received. Many thanks & Regards --- Killie.

RC is very HC accessable and the oceanview room should be great. Your room will have wide door, roll in bathroom and shower, lower roll under sink, and a flip down seat in the shower. The room will be wide enough to turn in your chair. In all the newer ships, of which LOS is one, all bars, restaurants, and in general all public areas are accessable. There is a even a lift for the pool. The staff is more than willing to help. There isn't a place on board to rent a scooter, however there are places online to do so. I don't have this info but I'm sure someone here will. I have not been on a Med cruise so I can't help there but I have found that a ship is the best way for me to travel and I hope that you enjoy your first cruise. Please feel free to ask any questions that you may have. We were all new once.:D

[Splinter]

There are very few lift-equipped tour vans in the Med, and I would not expect that RCCL will know about them anyway. You can book on your own some places but it is VERY expensive (esp. in Italy). Barcelona was the only place we found with lift-equipped vans for taxis and I understand that their buses are pretty accessible in the mid-city area as well.

 

Generally the ships will not have scooters, but may work with some rental companies. I would think you would save a lot of money renting at home and taking a scooter with you on the plane though. You need to take your manual chair too though since scooters don't work well in many ports due to few curb cuts and generally they will not go on a tender unless you can walk separate from the scooter.

 

Here is some information about LOS from another website:

 

The Legend of the Seas has 17 accessible staterooms with both cabin and bathroom doors that are 32" wide. They have three types and sizes of cabins, two of them are suites and are 295 sq. ft., the numbers are 8026 and 8526 The remainder are regular staterooms, 9 outside at 257 sq. ft., the numbers are; 2554, 2556, 2558, 6060, 6060, 6064, 3050, 3052 and 3054. The 6 inside at 251 sq. ft. are; 2083, 2085, 2087, 7083, 7085 and 7087. All of these staterooms have roll in shower with 36" entrance, fold down seats, hand held showers and grab bars. The toilets have grab bars and the sinks are accessible.

 

All the deck are accessible except the Compass Deck and there are accessible public restrooms. There are alert kits available for passengers who are deaf or hard of hearing

 

Royal Caribbean has beach wheelchairs available for the disabled passengers on the stops at their private islands.

 

Experiencing exciting ports of call is a part of the Royal Caribbean cruise vacation. With our shore excursion program, guests are able to choose from a wide variety of wonderful possibilities. While not every port of call may be amenable to wheelchair transportation, every effort will be made to accommodate our special needs guests where possible. Our experienced onboard shore excursion staff can help you select tours that will best meet your needs.

 

 

Passengers Comments

 

I have sailed on this ship and the accommodations in their accessible cabins are great. They have taken the space for 5 normal cabins and made 3 accessible cabins so they are very spacious. I booked an outside cabin on deck 6, and have been in one of the veranda cabins on deck 8. They are all very similar. The bathrooms are large with roll in showers and fold down seats. Raised toilet with grab bars, and roll under vanity.

 

Not all public bathrooms marked as accessible are. Check with a friend first as I was trapped in one that I could not open the door once I got in.

 

The shore excursion department was not at all helpful for a wheelchair user that was not ambulatory. In fact they would not help at all with securing taxis or other ground transpotation. Liability??

 

The seamen that help chair users down the gangplanks are very rough and often do not understand English. Make sure the Officer at the top of the gangplank understands your needs and instructs the seamen.