Wheelchair Accessible tours in Jamaica?????

[jfjudge]

My husband and I are booked on Carnival Conquest for May 2008. We have never been to Jamaica and would like to do something fun but it doesn't seem as though Carnival has any tours that are wheelchair accessible. Does anyone know of a tour company we can contact.

[D&TTexasCruisers]

We went on the Conquest last September with my son who is in a wheelchair. We went to Negril to Margaritaville and then they took us to a shopping mall on the way back as well. We went on a bus and they folded the wheelchair and put it on the bus with no problem. Of course we are able to get him out of the chair to get him onto the bus I am not sure if they have any buses with lift's if that is what you need, but if you can get out of the chair and transfer onto the bus then you wont have a problem. We were told at first by the excursion desk that there is was nothing we could do because of that but we talked to the special needs purser on the ship her name was Shaney and she was great at helping us find out what we could do. We were able to go on a tour in Grand Caymen as well and swim with the sting rays they loaded up the wheelchair for us with no problem as well.

[jfjudge]

Thanks for the information. I will check with the special needs purser and see what they can arrange. Otherwise I guess we will just get of the ship and see if we can find someone with a van or taxi. We will use a manual wheelchair in port and he can get in and out of a vehicle with no problem. We went to Alaska a few years ago and had to do the same thing so we pretty much know the routine.

[tcworld]

Last October we were on a Princess Cruise and we stopped in Jamaica. I use a manual wheelchair for mobility. We booked a Princess tour that took us to Dunn’s River Falls and then we swam with the dolphins. We were extremely happy with the tour. The tour operator name was Ken’s Wheelchair Service. E-mail is ally876@hotmail.com

We went in a van with a wheelchair lift in it.

 

Trina

[Tennessee Rose]

Trina, I hope you are still checking posts on CC! My question is were you able to get down the "path" or steps down to the bottom of Dunns River falls. How difficult was it and how long did it take you? I'm having unexpected arthroscopic knee surgery in 2 days, and our cruise is in 3 1/2 weeks! My doctor assures me I'll be fine for the cruise. We didn't get into what kinds of activities I'll be able to do that soon after surgery.

I'm sick about this but must get the surgery done, but now not sure which excursions in Ocho Rios I'll be able to do.

Please help with any suggestions!

[tcworld]

Trina, I hope you are still checking posts on CC! My question is were you able to get down the "path" or steps down to the bottom of Dunns River falls. How difficult was it and how long did it take you? I'm having unexpected arthroscopic knee surgery in 2 days, and our cruise is in 3 1/2 weeks! My doctor assures me I'll be fine for the cruise. We didn't get into what kinds of activities I'll be able to do that soon after surgery.

I'm sick about this but must get the surgery done, but now not sure which excursions in Ocho Rios I'll be able to do.

Please help with any suggestions!

 

When we visited there in 2007 there was a viewing platform with a great view of the falls centrally located. At that time you accessed the platform from a paved pathway. I had no problem at all. If the others in your party want to climb the falls you will be able to watch them from the platform.

[Tennessee Rose]

Trina, thanks for the info. and the pictures. I think all attractions should have those low walls to sit on! I really like the one on the overlook also--so close to the water.

Knee surgery was 2 days ago and I'm actually walking a bit already, some without crutches. I've found out that there are some in my party that just want to do a beach break, so that may be what I end up doing. Although now I've read about some of the botanical gardens and hope I might be able to go there. I guess I was just assuming since DRF is one of the 1st things people talk about in Jamaica, that they would all want to go there. Lucky for me, there are others in our group who simply want to relax and not do all the physically demanding activities.

Thanks again for the quick reply!

LaRose

[mclinns04]

Last October we were on a Princess Cruise and we stopped in Jamaica. I use a manual wheelchair for mobility. We booked a Princess tour that took us to Dunn’s River Falls and then we swam with the dolphins. We were extremely happy with the tour. The tour operator name was Ken’s Wheelchair Service. E-mail is ally876@hotmail.com

We went in a van with a wheelchair lift in it.

 

Trina

 

Trina,

I have a scooter. I'm assuming the lift would take it. What about the dolphin swim? Would I be able to get the scooter fairly near the water? I have always wanted to do this. I can walk short distances on crutches. About how expensive is he? We did a couple of private tours in Acapulco and Costa Rica, and the prices were vastly different.

[tcworld]

Trina,

I have a scooter. I'm assuming the lift would take it. What about the dolphin swim? Would I be able to get the scooter fairly near the water? I have always wanted to do this. I can walk short distances on crutches. About how expensive is he? We did a couple of private tours in Acapulco and Costa Rica, and the prices were vastly different.

 

We booked our tour through Princess Cruises and yes it was rather pricey. The van we took was one of the ones that has a lift in back. It was a regular platform lift. I think it could take a scooter but you would have to ask them. Since we didn't book directly through Ken's I don't know if he had other vehicles available. I would assume he would do a private tour but that is also something you would have to find out directly. There were other guests on our tour that just took a big bus from the ship. Our transportation was a minivan and just my husband and myself plus a tour operator and a driver.

 

There was a small boardwalk over the dolphin pin and a guide that was there just picked me up from my wheelchair and put me in the water. I was wearing a life vest and he never left me. I was able to hang on the ladder until he got in the water. They were very accommodating. It was the highlight of of our cruise. I looked at it as a once in a lifetime thing. It was great!!

[mclinns04]

Thanks for the info. I could probably get into the water by myself. ( Falling would work!!) I can swim well, so that isn't a problem. My biggest issues would be getting to the dock and getting OUT of the water. Not sure I could do the ladder. And trust me, NO ONE is going to want to just lift me in and out. Let's just say it would be difficult and leave it at that.

[Ribi]

Dear Community

Thanks a lot for all the advice I have already got trough this forum. We are sailing on the allure of the seas on August 26th and we are looking into the Royal Caribbean Chukka Beach break and lunch excursion. Has anyone in a wheelchair ever done this before. This beach looks just amazing! Are there maybe beach-wheelchairs such as in labadee?

I can get on a bus and also transfer to a car seat, if needed I can walk a couple of steps but not much.

Any advice is greatly appreciated since I am a first time cruiser with a lot of questions and even more excitment about sailing on the allure.

 

Thank you so much and greetings from Switzerland

[CrusingJoe]

Will I be able to tour these ports without much Difficulty or should I stay on the ship? I can walk short distances, but need my Drive Medical, Phoenis 3 scooter to travel further.

 

Barcelona, Spain

Cannes, France

Florence/Pisa/Livorno, Italy

Ephesus/Kusadasi, Turkey

Mykonos, Greece

Naples/Salerno, Italy

[raindropsalways]

CrusingJoe: I'm confused... the Mediterranean and the ports you mentioned are a long way from Jamaica. Regardless, you will thoroughly enjoy yourself in Barcelona. Some of the old buildings may not accommodate you, however Barcelona is very wheelchair friendly. Between the metro and the city buses, we got to see all the points of interest.

 

Livorno: We just wandered around town. There was one of the shuttle buses that was accessible. The train to either Florence of Pisa is accessible, however they like advance reservations to schedule the lift. I understand there are some private tours, but they can get pricey.

 

Kusadasi: We used a private tour to go to a town in the hills and local sites. Had previously been to Ephesus. Depending on the individual (how adventurous you are), you should be able to take an Ephesus tour. You might get hung up on a couple bumps in the path and have to help the scooter over them. I think it would be worth a try. I cannot remember the name of the tour company we used.

 

Naples: Our time in port was not long enough to chance going to Salerno so we just wandered around Naples. There are some interesting sites near the dock. If the port of call happens to be Civitavecchia, you would be best to get a private tour into Rome. Civitavecchia is a cute little town that you can do on your own however there are not any exceptional sites.

 

If you do a lot of research, you can probably find tour companies that will accommodate you. It all depends on what you want to do. I would suggest that you post your questions under the subject of “Mediterranean” and/or the specific ports.

 

Betty

[CrusingJoe]

CrusingJoe: I'm confused... the Mediterranean and the ports you mentioned are a long way from Jamaica. Regardless, you will thoroughly enjoy yourself in Barcelona. Some of the old buildings may not accommodate you, however Barcelona is very wheelchair friendly. Between the metro and the city buses, we got to see all the points of interest.

 

Livorno: We just wandered around town. There was one of the shuttle buses that was accessible. The train to either Florence of Pisa is accessible, however they like advance reservations to schedule the lift. I understand there are some private tours, but they can get pricey.

 

Kusadasi: We used a private tour to go to a town in the hills and local sites. Had previously been to Ephesus. Depending on the individual (how adventurous you are), you should be able to take an Ephesus tour. You might get hung up on a couple bumps in the path and have to help the scooter over them. I think it would be worth a try. I cannot remember the name of the tour company we used.

 

Naples: Our time in port was not long enough to chance going to Salerno so we just wandered around Naples. There are some interesting sites near the dock. If the port of call happens to be Civitavecchia, you would be best to get a private tour into Rome. Civitavecchia is a cute little town that you can do on your own however there are not any exceptional sites.

 

If you do a lot of research, you can probably find tour companies that will accommodate you. It all depends on what you want to do. I would suggest that you post your questions under the subject of “Mediterranean” and/or the specific ports.

 

Betty

 

I know I posted in on the wrong board, Jamaica and thanks for the information.