Handicapped and considering which cruise line? read this...

[CruisinOnWheels]

we are a handicaped, a/b couple who has dreamed of taking a cruise...

 

Like many, living on a tight budget does not afford us very many "luxuries.

 

Our dream is about to come true, through 6 months of careful budgeting & saving, and also because of the help of ONE particular Cruise Line.

 

In selecting your cruise, you will have 100's of choices to make...including cruise line, ship, itinerary, price etc... and if your handicapped, accessibility is a huge concern.

 

From the experience we have had so far, Royal Carribean has won our business and devotion! While their ships may not be the biggest or brightest, the devotion and assistance that their special needs department shows to persons with disabilities is unmatched in our opinion!

 

If you have a handicap and are considering a first time cruise do yourself a favor and contact them first..or even email us, we will be glad to share our experiences with you, and suggestions...

 

We knew to not expect fully ADA accessible ships because they don't exist due to most ships registry being outside the USA...making ada not applicable to them. But RCI will go out of their way to make your cruise comfortable and to meet your needs.

 

We ended up not only with a cruise that met our financial resources, but with a cabin we did not expect to be able to afford!

 

Please let us know if we can be of any help...

 

Brian & debi

[littlefarge]

Thanks for the reinforcement. I chose RCCL for the same reasons. We are looking forward to our cruise on "Rhapsody of the Seas".:D

Ken

[Cruiser@Heart]

I totally agree! A couple of years ago, I took my handicapped mother on the Enchantment of the Seas for a Christmas Cruise along with my sister. My parents had always wanted to take a cruise. Unfortunately, they weren't able to make it happen before my father passed away. The Enchantment staff was exceptional. Our handicapped cabin was fantastic. Quite large, balcony easily accessible with her wheel chair. While the ship wasn't 100% accessible, we were able to navigate a large portion of the ship without much difficulty. When eating in the Windjammer area, the staff assisted my mom on making her food selections, carried her plate/drinks for her. The only place we had difficulty was in the dinning room. Our table wasn't easy to access with a wheelchair. When I requested a different table, I was informed by the Matire D' that it wasn't possible. :rolleyes: Needless to say, we didn't eat in the dinning room very often that week.

 

This cruise ended up being a "once in a lifetime" trip for my sister, mother and I. The day after we returned from our cruise, my sister died of a heart attack (with no warning at the age of 37). Two months later to the day of my sister's death, my mother passed away.

[Splinter]

Not sure of what you mean by "totally" accessilble, but the last RCCL ship I was on (Vision of the Seas) was not. It had two areas in the buffet that were totally non-accessible (dessert or waffle station...up 2 steps).

 

In addition, the wheelchair seating in the show room was all the way in the back and off to one side with very poor lines of sight, and it was not possible to sit with the rest of your party if you needed a wheelchair.

 

While most of this (older) RCCL ship was better than others, I don't consider this "totally" ADA compliant. Show room access is much better on Crystal and HAL. Buffet is best on HAL or Celebrity in our experience.

[cusyl]

 

This cruise ended up being a "once in a lifetime" trip for my sister, mother and I. The day after we returned from our cruise, my sister died of a heart attack (with no warning at the age of 37). Two months later to the day of my sister's death, my mother passed away.

What a horrible tragedy for your family..I am glad you had that special time together.

We have been cruising with mostly Princess lately for many reasons, they are very helpful to the disabled, their ships are very easy to navigate and their HC cabins are comfortable. In addition, they muster inside the ship rather than out in the hot sun. The crew are very helpful in the buffet with assisting you with your plate as well.

[CaptData]

Crusin on Wheels: Sorry to here of your familiy members passing but you got to enjoy a vaction together like no other.

 

As you can see I have been on Princess, Hal, Celebrity and RCCL. All ships were accessible but the Dawn Princess required someone to help with some doors. The Maasdam (Hal) if you did not look down in one bar you would fall off a 4" lip easily. The Summit and Navigator are both newer ships and are more accessible. It depends on how new the ship is for it to be more accessible. One problem on Celbrity was the drian in the H/C was terrible. On Navigator you had to manuver around carts and a Room Steward wanted me to back up so he could do his job.

 

As you can see every ship has a problem but if you are flesable and can think of ways around problems, help for doors, look at where you are and discover where the danger is, have towels ready and have another Room Steward come to your rescue, you can enjoy this vaction. I have always gotten around any problems by thinking about them as in my own daily living. Cruise vactions are the best for me as I get pampered and treated with respected even in a chair. I enjoy watching others and love to snorkle.