Santorini port help! for disabled passenger!!

ok so my ship is tendering at this port which I didn't realise - this is my first cruise. I am disabled - will I not be able to get off as they wont be able to accommodate my wheelchair? also do I really have a long walk or donkey ride as my only option when I arrive?

:confused::confused:

ok so my ship is tendering at this port which I didn't realise - this is my first cruise. I am disabled - will I not be able to get off as they wont be able to accommodate my wheelchair? also do I really have a long walk or donkey ride as my only option when I arrive?

 

 

:confused::confused:

can you walk at all and is your wheelchair collapsible?

it can be a bit hairy getting on tender boat especially if sea is rough

but staff will try to help you

assuming you get ashore there is apparently a lift to the cable car station but isn't obvious.

Otherwise it's several steps to get to cable car which wont accommodate a wheelchair unless it collapses-2 bench seats opposite each other accommodating 6 people maximum

walking up the donkey path is a long zigzagging slope and at the top is uneven surfaces and occasional steps so not really wheelchair accessible

your other option is a ships excursion as they tender to another location where coaches can get up and down the cliff however the return trip drops you off by cable car for journey down so a similar problem

with the geography of the island it is tricky for disabled visitors

This is one place that is NOT for wheelchairs. Sorry but even if you take a ship tour that will tender you to an area where they bus you up to the top of the cliffs, you will still have to be able to get to the cable car to come back down. The entire area is steps/stairs/inclines and is no way wheelchair accessible. My husband and I took his parents on a cruise last year and she stayed on the ship. We had been to Santorini before and knew it just wasnt going to work for her. She can walk, but not far or for very long.

On a side note: Europe is not very handicapped friendly anywhere. Not sure of your other ports but many areas have cobblestone streets/no sidewalks and the historic areas are the worst. We took a collapsible travel chair for her and it worked pretty well but there were times it was pretty bumpy. We did a lot of private tours so we could control where and how better. WE also found some alternative type tours (golf cart tour in Rome) that allowed her to see more than she would have otherwise. Some ports are a bit better than others but pretty much all have their challenges for wheelchairs.

Good luck - plan well and remember they do not have ADA in Europe.

https://www.santorini.com/sailing/anemos-boat/

The link above is to a company that can be hired to take people on a trip around the island. If you could manage the tender boat to the dock below Fira and then manage to get into a motor boat, it might be an option. I don't know the cost, but the boat holds 12, so if you could get others to share the expense, it might possibly work. Of course, you also might not see a lot, as, for the most part, the towns of Santorini are way up high on cliffs. However, there are some places on Santorini that are best reached by boat (for example, the beautiful red beach or the volcanic island of Nea Kameni) so you might be able to experience something that the rest of us won't.

Another possible option would be to see if any of the excursions your cruise ship offers takes passengers to and, more importantly, back FROM the FERRY port on Santorini (Athinios) instead of dropping everyone off in Fira, which seems to be customary. That way, you would not have to take the cable car.

https://www.santorini.com/sailing/anemos-boat/

The link above is to a company that can be hired to take people on a trip around the island. If you could manage the tender boat to the dock below Fira and then manage to get into a motor boat, it might be an option. I don't know the cost, but the boat holds 12, so if you could get others to share the expense, it might possibly work. Of course, you also might not see a lot, as, for the most part, the towns of Santorini are way up high on cliffs.

Another possible option would be to see if any of the excursions your cruise ship offers takes passengers to and, more importantly, back FROM the FERRY port on Santorini (Athinios) instead of dropping everyone off in Fira, which seems to be customary. That way, you would not have to take the cable car.

We were on Grand Princess cruiseline tour. We were tendered to the port of Athinia (I think) for the coach tour. We went to a winery and around the island. At the end of the tour, we were offered the choice of staying in Fira or returning to the same port we boarded. We are both mobility limited so we opted to stay on the coach, returned to port and back to ship on a motor launch. I would say better than half of us did not stay in Fira as we didn't want to do the cable car ride down.

Check your ship tours and see if they can accommodate your wheelchair. As others have said, Europe is not very accommodating to the disabled.