Planning Private Excursions

Does anyone have any experience with taking a folding wheel chair on private excursions?

I need to know what to tell the tour companies. DH can't walk any distance without becoming short of breath so I thought I'd get a wheel chair for him.

We will be renting the chair on board for a Baltic and Transatlantic cruise that follows.

I use a collapsible scooter (travelscoot brand) and have had good fortune using private tours. I can transfer to a standard car/van which provides options not available if you must use accessible transport. When I make contact with an excursion provider I tell them about my mobility problems, describe the tour we wish to take, ask their opinion of the suitability of such a tour, and also give them the dimensions of the scooter in both collapsed and working format. When we took our Baltic cruise (never been on a transatlantic) we used SPB tours in St. Petersburg.

I use a collapsible scooter (travelscoot brand) and have had good fortune using private tours. I can transfer to a standard car/van which provides options not available if you must use accessible transport. When I make contact with an excursion provider I tell them about my mobility problems, describe the tour we wish to take, ask their opinion of the suitability of such a tour, and also give them the dimensions of the scooter in both collapsed and working format. When we took our Baltic cruise (never been on a transatlantic) we used SPB tours in St. Petersburg.

Thanks. We will be using Alla Tours. We had booked with her for last summer but we had to cancel due to illness. We intend to re-book with Alla. I will have to call the wheelchair rental company for dimensions.

May I ask, what were the limitations of your Baltic excursions using the scooter? I think it would help me plan my excursions.

If you prefer, you can email me at kelliepoodle at yahoo dot com.

Kellie Poodle

I took a collapsible wheelchair on our Baltic cruise last September. We also booked with Alla in SPB. We booked the 2 day Comfort Tour and I had advised Alla about the wheelchair. She came back with exactly how far each place would be from where the bus would stop and exactly how many steps there are in each place.

I can manage steps and short distances, so am not confined to the chair. When we arrived in SPB there was only one other couple from our ship doing the tour with us. We had a small, modern mini bus for the 4 of us. The bus driver was very helpful and tried to park as close to the kerb whenever possibly so I could easily step up or down. He also took care of the wheelchair. The guide ensured we got into places easily and arranged for us to use lifts whenever appropriate. We were very impressed by the service from both the guide and the driver.

The most difficult port of call was Tallin. We took a taxi to the top of Tapea Hill and walked down. The first, steep part was OK as there is a pavement, but once get further down into the town it is all cobblestones. I spent more time walking than I did in the wheelchair. I ended up having a drink in a bar whilst my partner walked around and took photos. However, I am glad I saw what I did, but wouldn't rush to go back to Tallin because of the difficulties.

If you let me know your ports of call I'll tell you what we did in each one if they are the same as ours.

If you do a search there is quite a lot of info for disabled people visiting the Baltics.

Kellie Poodle

 

I took a collapsible wheelchair on our Baltic cruise last September. We also booked with Alla in SPB. We booked the 2 day Comfort Tour and I had advised Alla about the wheelchair. She came back with exactly how far each place would be from where the bus would stop and exactly how many steps there are in each place.

 

I can manage steps and short distances, so am not confined to the chair. When we arrived in SPB there was only one other couple from our ship doing the tour with us. We had a small, modern mini bus for the 4 of us. The bus driver was very helpful and tried to park as close to the kerb whenever possibly so I could easily step up or down. He also took care of the wheelchair. The guide ensured we got into places easily and arranged for us to use lifts whenever appropriate. We were very impressed by the service from both the guide and the driver.

 

The most difficult port of call was Tallin. We took a taxi to the top of Tapea Hill and walked down. The first, steep part was OK as there is a pavement, but once get further down into the town it is all cobblestones. I spent more time walking than I did in the wheelchair. I ended up having a drink in a bar whilst my partner walked around and took photos. However, I am glad I saw what I did, but wouldn't rush to go back to Tallin because of the difficulties.

 

If you let me know your ports of call I'll tell you what we did in each one if they are the same as ours.

 

If you do a search there is quite a lot of info for disabled people visiting the Baltics.

Thank you so very much!

DH's disability is merely walking any distance without resting. He can do steps, slowly. He has a bad back and congestive heart failure. Downhill and cobblestones are usually not a problem.

We will be doing a private itinerary in SPB with Alla. We have been there before and there were specific places we wanted to see so it will only be the two of us.

I do know that the tour we had planned with her in Tallinn also started from the top of the hill and we had to walk down. It was also just us on the tour. DH has no problems walking down hill.

The other ports are Copenhagen, Helsinki, Stockholm and Visby, Sweden. I know that Alla does tours in some of these ports as well.

Does anyone have any experience with taking a folding wheel chair on private excursions?

 

I need to know what to tell the tour companies. DH can't walk any distance without becoming short of breath so I thought I'd get a wheel chair for him.

 

We will be renting the chair on board for a Baltic and Transatlantic cruise that follows.

You should probably think about renting a scooter rather than a chair. Don't forget that someone has to push that chair and you don't want that to be you!

Yoletta

Anastasia Tours offers a wheelchair tour in St Petersburg. You can use your own wheelchair or they will provide one at no cost. You can push your companion or, for $50 per day, they will provide someone to push the chair for you. You can do it in a group or privately, but I believe the group is comprised of wheelchair/ scooter passengers and their companions. There is a set itinerary and they seem to do everything that the grand tours that the other companies offer. My DH and I are doing the tour privately, so we were able to custom design the stops. I also have breathing problems when rushing, and a slight mobility issue that requires me to use a rollator. I would never have been able to plan the activities I chose without using a wheelchair. My DH could never push me that fast or that far.

In Copenhagen we did the HOHO bus. In Stockholm we used public transport to get around, which was very easy. We had an overnight stop in Stockholm, so we bought a 24 hour pass to use on bus, trams and ferries. It also included the metro, but we didn't go on that.

The public transport was accessible and everybody very helpful. We visited the Vasa Museum by bus and it stopped very near. My partner got in FOC as 'carer goes free'. This is normal in many museums and attractions throughout Europe, so something to bear in mind.

We very rarely use ship excursions as we find them extremely overpriced.

You should probably think about renting a scooter rather than a chair. Don't forget that someone has to push that chair and you don't want that to be you!

Yoletta

Thanks for the suggestion. It was considered.

I have pushed him in a wheel chair before. I think it would be easier to bring along a folding wheel chair than a scooter. Scooters are heavy and have to be taken down and put back together. A wheel chair is simply unfolded and the legs hooked on.

If there are curbs or other obstacles, he is able to walk, just not distances.

In Copenhagen we did the HOHO bus. In Stockholm we used public transport to get around, which was very easy. We had an overnight stop in Stockholm, so we bought a 24 hour pass to use on bus, trams and ferries. It also included the metro, but we didn't go on that.

 

The public transport was accessible and everybody very helpful. We visited the Vasa Museum by bus and it stopped very near. My partner got in FOC as 'carer goes free'. This is normal in many museums and attractions throughout Europe, so something to bear in mind.

 

We very rarely use ship excursions as we find them extremely overpriced.

Thanks for the info.

When we had planned this trip for last summer, I got info on the HOHO bus, but found there was another bus that would take us to the museum area.

If we had an overnight, HOHO would be worth considering, but our experience is that on a brief port visit, they are not worth waiting for and they stop their service long before we want to stop our visiting.