Length of Ship

[nuekruizer]

I'm going on my first cruise ever on the QM2 Labor Day Cruise. I have difficulty walking long distances without assistance from a walker due to my disability. Can you experienced cruisers tell me approximately how long a walk it is from say midship to either end of the ship? I do not have a concept of how long a walk I will have.

Are there any tips for folks with some ambulatory problems? Are there special handicapped elevators? Where might they be located? Thanks for your kind responses. I am very excited, but somewhat anxious!

[smeyer418]

I'm going on my first cruise ever on the QM2 Labor Day Cruise. I have difficulty walking long distances without assistance from a walker due to my disability. Can you experienced cruisers tell me approximately how long a walk it is from say midship to either end of the ship? I do not have a concept of how long a walk I will have.

Are there any tips for folks with some ambulatory problems? Are there special handicapped elevators? Where might they be located? Thanks for your kind responses. I am very excited, but somewhat anxious!

 

All the elevators are handicap accessible but there are none specifically for handicapped only. This is a long ship over 1000 feet. When you are a midships you have at least 500 feet each way. But the ship is very well set out with most things closer than from one end to another. But there will be some walking.

 

One suggestion plan you trips on the ship carefully so you don't need to double back Study the map and know the most direct way to where you are going and make you plans with as little walking as possible.

 

PS welcome to cruise critic ask away and we will try to be helpful...

[mariaemp675@hotmail.com]

Hello NueKruizer,

 

First let me welcome you to the cc threads.:)

 

Second welcome to the Labor Day Cruise. We have a separate thread on the Roll Calls for this trip.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=72

 

Just click on the above and scroll down to QM2 Sept. 2, 2006. We have quite a large group of ccers. We are planning a Meet and Greet on Sept. 3 at 2PM in the Commodore Club, deck 9, forward. Please join us.

 

To answer your question, according to the Cunard information the QM2 is 1,132 feet in length and 131 feet in width.

 

I walk with a cane and the only real trouble I had was going from the front of the ship at Illuminations to the Queens room and the rear of the ship.

 

Otherwise, the four elevator banks are placed within easy walking distance.

 

Again - Welcome Aboard!:D

 

Maria

[YankeeClippr]

Hi ... Travelled on the QM2's maiden voyage with my Mom who was wheelchair bound (I was the motive power!)

 

A few tips: Try to locate your cabin near one of the elevator banks, especially the one nearest your dining room. You will need to eat three times a day (at least), and selecting a cabin with the "shortest route to food" is a big time and energy saver.

 

In general, the QM2 is very well laid out for those with mobility issues ... much better than the QE2. There are special lifts towards the bow for wheelchair / mobility challenged to get to the area where lectures / enrichment are given. Ask a crew member to point them out. These are the only "dedicated" lifts ... but other passengers were very kind and polite and we never had any trouble.

 

Again, the very best advice is to study the deck plans. The little "pocket directory" you will get on boarding is not really detailed enough. You should be able to obtain a Cunard brochure on board with detailed deck plans, or "tear out" the deck plans from your brochure and pack it with you. This will help a lot.

 

We found the crew to be VERY helpful ... but, if one needs help, one needs to ASK ... they won't rush in unless you ask them. We took this to be respect for one's personal space and preferances.

 

You will have a WONDERFUL time ... shipboard turned out to be an ideal vacation experience for my over-90 Mom who was not only mobility impaired, but also blind.

 

All the very best to you!

 

YankeeClippr

[cusyl]

I was on the 2nd voyage of the QM2 and I also use a walker due to arthritis. Invest in a rollator, it is a walker with wheels and has a seat.

It is a long ship but you will absolutely love it. The eight inch wheels are the best for the cobblestones on the islands. We just returned from the Med. and it was great for getting over the rough roads. There is no way I could travel if I didn't have my rollator. There is a lift on the QM2 just for the handicap that goes between decks where the art gallery is and on the other side coming near the Queens Room. You go in and shut the door and push the button and it will take you up without climbing the stairs.

Otherwise, there are many elevators on the ship.

I thought it was a once in a lifetime experience for us, but we are booked again on the Dec. 9th voyage to the Western Caribbean. You will love this beautiful ship.

[guernseyguy]

Although the ship is big, she is well designed - and I've been on smaller ships that felt much bigger because of poorer design or fewer elevator banks - the QM2 has 4. Also, unlike many other ships, there are great places forward, (Library, Spa, Commodore Club, Theatre) in the middle (Golden Lion, Veuve Cliquot, Sir Samuels) and aft (Queens Room, G32) - so its easy to find somewhere to pause if you are trying to get from one end to the other. You'll have a great time!

 

Peter

[travel-to-go]

Neucruiser,

I, too have difficulty walking great distances, expecially if I have to wear dressy shoes and/or stockings, which are like sandpaper on my feet. While the QM2 is a very large ship, her layout is pretty good. A cabin towards the center of the ship will be best, as you can get more places easily. The dining room is not all the way to the aft, but a goodly amount. So amidships works out very well for easy access. You might also ask that you be given a table towards the front of the dining room. You won't feel as rushed or uncomfortable winding between tables and passengers trying to be get to their tables. The library and Commodore club are all the way forward, as is the Royal Court theater. Plan your time so that you don't feel rushed or tired. There is a handicapped elevator for the "1/2 deck" areas where the photo gallery and Queen's lounge are, next to the stairs, but it is easily used. I realize that walking or using a walker are a world of difference from a wheelchair. Unfortunately, as a handicapped advocate, (former chairman of my company's Disability Action Committee) I am well aware that all disabilites and limitations are not alike, and planners will sometimes plan only with the wheelchair in mind, (notice I don't even say wheelchair USER, as though the wheelchair were the important thing to plan for, not the person who may be self propelling it and utilizing that tool!) and not with the person who has other difficulties, such as arthritis, heart and lung problems or easily tiring. (and face it, they don't often plan wheelchair access either! I have seen and heard horrors! Let me tell you where they LOVE to pile excess snow or park service vehicles in many businesses!)

I think you will find the QM2 an easy vessel to navigate. I have found some of the HAL ships, which are half the passenger count to have interminable hallways! Not so the QM2. I, too will be on your cruise. You are always most welcome to walk with me at a stately pace. Let those scalawags who are in a big hurry be damned! <G> We will show them how to walk in an unhurried and dignified manner! ;)

 

Karie,

who believes in being fashionably late. But. not necessarily by design, though.