Wheelchair - Star Princess

[cruisinlawn]

will be on Star for Alaska, 6/1. Does Princess have loaner/rental chairs you can reserve? If so, do they allow you to take them off ship? Sailing Carnival, we have always reserved one with no problems. Is there a company in Seattle we might go to? Would rather not schelp mother's chair cross country.

 

I have posted on Princess board as well. THanks.

[Splinter]

Take your own. If your mother does not have a good quality light-weight wheelchair, get one. It is easy to gate check on the plane, and it will give you the advantage of a chair to use at the airport and in transit rather than depending on the clunky airport chairs or the chairs on the ship. Princess does not allow you to take their chairs ashore, and does not allow you to have one for your exclusive use anyway, and their chairs are heavy and difficult to use (no quick release wheels, often no desk arms, etc.)

 

You might want to consider renting her a scooter for use on the ship through CareVacations or some similar company. You should still take a manual chair, but this would give her much more freedom around the ship, and you can use the manual chair for shore excursions and travel.

 

I assume you have already booked a wheelchair accessible cabin for her?

[cruisinlawn]

Thanks Splinter...yea she has a lightweight but its the type with the small rear wheels. It does fine at home (mall shopping) but not as easy to push in other terrain, don't know what we'll encounter in Alaska with sidewalks, etc. She is not bound so cabin is not necessary and will likely not use it full time on ship. More concern is with the ports. Atlanta airport have them readily available and I'll be inquiring about Seattle. Have contacted Care Vacations (aka ShipAssist) and Special Needs at Sea. Any experience with either. Thanks again.

[Splinter]

My mother is not "bound" (chained to her wheelchair, what a distasteful term!!!!) either, but she is a full-time wheelchair user and cannot walk or stand.

 

The transport chair you have is not appropriate...get a real wheelchair with big back wheels that you can take anywhere, and easily get over curbs, up steps, and into cars as well. It also keeps the person dependent as they cannot wheel it themselves, even to turn around and look at something else.

 

The Star is a BIG ship. Pushing a transport chair across acres of carpet is hard, no matter who is doing it, and it is easy to tip the chair over.

 

Just be aware that in a regular cabin she will have to step up 6" or so to get into and out of the bathroom (and this may be at night in the dark), there will be a VERY small shower with no seat, and it may be quite a distance to the elevators. Also, even folded, there will be little space for an elevator, and NO space or ability to get a scooter through the door. You cannot park scooters in the hallway on Princess (thank goodness for other wheelchair users).

[cruisinlawn]

SORRY if I offended you, none meant. This term is what she has used as well as an uncle that is quadriplegic and a neice with MS. All in open conversation. Guess I need to be more PC when in open forum.

 

Thanks for the input.