Leaving Sunday - need advice!

Good morning,

10 days ago, my traveling companion decided to participate in the Spartan Race - and broke her fibula as well as injuring her foot (MRI pending). She is in a boot and cannot bear weight. It might be helpful for information sake to know she will be traveling with myself (65), my grandson (21-year old firefighter thank the Lord!) and her 5-year old son with autism....we are quite the little traveling band! Fortunately, we always book an HA cabin to accommodate the little boy's oversized stroller....whew!

Knowing the size of the Allure, I immediately arranged for a travel scooter from Scootaround. But I have been awake since 4:00am trying to figure out the logistics of getting her, the little boy and our luggage through the airport and on to the ship without exhausting her. I have read the posts regarding port requests for a wheelchair attendant, so I understand that we may be taken to Lido to wait for cabin availability.

On to my questions.......

Is there any reason I need to contact RCCL in advance of the trip regarding her mobility issues?

We have a non-stop redeye flight from Phoenix. Are skycaps available with a wheelchair to help us through to the gate in the middle of the night?

What does the airline do with crutches? I don't believe they go in an overhead bin.

How do we request a wheelchair pick up at the end of the flight? Do I need to notify American in advance?

We arrive in Miami and will UberX to Port Everglades - I don't for see a problem with this part of the journey.

Fortunately, we won't have the car parking problem others encounter, but will need to get from the porter luggage drop to the representative at the terminal to request a wheelchair assist. I am assuming she will be OK on crutches for this part.

Port advice??

We have the ship's "On Your Own" excursion to St. John. I read that is possible to roll onto the ferry in St. Thomas. I have contacted the St. John visitors bureau who replied that cabs will be able to manage the scooter and that Trunk Bay is quite flat and should be OK for her to get to a beach chair. (I purchased a waterproof cast cover so she could at least rest her feet in the water). Does this sound OK?

I have contacted Amigo Tours in St. Maarten about the situation and they will transport the scooter, but Maho and Orient beach do not have the big wheel sand wheelchairs. Is it possible to use crutches on sand to get to a beach lounger?

My biggest concern is Nassau. We were to take the little boy to the ship's Balmoral Beach Sting Ray encounter, which includes a small boat ride. I have tried my best to find out if this is going to be feasible for her. Most agents only know what they read in the descriptor about the excursion. Is there anyone at RCCL that might truly know if there is a possibility for us to go? I need to cancel 48 hours in advance and this port is the day after boarding - so I would need to decide before we go.

Any thoughts, tips, etc. are very much appreciated!!

Maureen

Gotta say the timing on your companion's injury sucks - but you already know that. ;)

> and on to the ship without exhausting her

Ain't gonna happen. Best you can hope for IMNSHO is to make it as easy as possible and give her time to rest once you are on board. Besides, she is a mother, she's used to being exhausted.

To that end, my first recommendation is that you look into renting a manual wheelchair to take with you (as well as the scooter for on the ship). Yes, you can request wheelchairs at various points in your travel, but they aren't very expensive to rent and having a fairly comfortable place to sit and wait can be a big help in relieving travelling stress. Call your local charity resale places, often they have wheelchairs for sale that have been donated and your companion can pick out whatever feels most comfortable and looks sturdiest. Make sure it folds up! (Nearly all of them do.) Also, don't rule out a transport chair (like a wheelchair except it doesn't have the big wheels so your friend could push herself around) if that is the only inexpensive purchase option you find. Most of the places you will need a wheelchair for her, there will also be someone who can push her, especially with your grandson around. Once her leg is healed, you can always re-donate it.

> Is there any reason I need to contact RCCL in advance of the trip regarding her mobility issues?

I would. You need to request a wheelchair and/or assistance for embark/disembark ahead of time. Also call the accessibility desk and ask if they have any suggestions to make her trip easier. Bear in mind that you can ONLY request help to embark and disembark, other than that (including port stops) she will be on her own. (I have seen mentions of people in suites being able to get help on and off at ports, but I don't know that I would count on help being available.)

> We have a non-stop redeye flight from Phoenix. Are skycaps available with a wheelchair to help us through to the gate in the middle of the night?

> What does the airline do with crutches? I don't believe they go in an overhead bin.

> How do we request a wheelchair pick up at the end of the flight? Do I need to notify American in advance?

Lumping these questions together because you most definitely need to call the airline(s) ASAP. They are really good about helping people with mobility issues but they need time to prepare. I don't know exactly what they do with crutches but they have handled my manual wheelchair seamlessly, so well in fact that I'm not very worried about entrusting my new folding scooter to them for my upcoming flights. In your situation, I would request a wheelchair and someone to push it from curbside to plane and back to curbside at the arriving airport. Both ways. (Benefit of bringing your own wheelchair: no wait while they find one of theirs and get it to your friend. All you need is a person to push the wheelchair, which is usually easier logistically.) I would also ask the airline about the availability of skycaps - they SHOULD be available 24/7 at a major airport but "should" and "are" are not the same thing. You may also need to call the airport(s) to find out how accessible the shuttle busses are. At Denver, all the shuttle busses "kneel" so it is fairly painless for me to get on and off. (If you bring your own wheelchair and the busses don't "kneel," you should be able to request the driver's assistance getting the folded wheelchair on and off the bus.)

> We arrive in Miami and will UberX to Port Everglades - I don't for see a problem with this part of the journey.

I hope someone with Uber experience can chime in here. My understanding is that Uber is great for cutting costs by sharing a cab, but with your troupe, you will already need a minivan.

> will need to get from the porter luggage drop to the representative at the terminal to request a wheelchair assist. I am assuming she will be OK on crutches for this part.

Again, this is a point at which having her own wheelchair will make it much easier for her. Standing on crutches is tiring. Being able to get out of the cab and immediately sit in a wheelchair will let her rest and probably care for her son, leaving you and your grandson to deal with the luggage. Easier for everyone. (I really don't work for a wheelchair company, but I've used a wheelchair for over 10 years and I know from experience what a difference bringing your own makes when travelling.) If you decide to rely on letting the cruise line provide the wheelchair, ask the Accessibility Desk how to get someone to bring the wheelchair to her when you arrive. You may wind up simply waiting at the door while someone able-bodied goes inside to find a cruise line representative and get the wheelchair brought to her. As soon as they can find one that is free. (Am I being too subtle about the benefits of bringing your own? lol)

> Port advice??

First, I would talk to the accessibility desk as well as the excursion department. I've been very impressed with how knowledgable the Norwegian shore excursion people are, hopefully you will find the same on your cruise line.

Second, I would post new threads in this section with the port name in the title - something like "St. John on crutches" (or a scooter) and "St. Maarten beaches on crutches" - the title of this thread was so general that you may have missed someone who has good advice to offer but was in a hurry and skipped this thread. I would also look for websites on these ports and see what they say about accessibility, and even telephone if you don't find usable, reliable information. Most of the posters here are great and would not intentionally mislead you, but I have seen info posted that I knew was flat-out wrong. I personally double- or triple-check info that will make-or-break a plan because I don't cruise often and I don't want misinformation to mean I waste any of my valuable cruising time. ;)

> Is it possible to use crutches on sand to get to a beach lounger?

If she is seeing a physical therapist, she could ask the PT.

> My biggest concern is Nassau.

> Is there anyone at RCCL that might truly know if there is a possibility for us to go?

Probably not, but I would suggest calling the tour operator yourself. If you don't have contact information, call the shore excursion line and request it - since you have already booked through the ship, if you explain why you need to contact them, I would hope they would understand. If not, call the accessibility desk and ask them for a phone number. If neither gets you the info, post on the Caribbean ports sub-forum here, maybe someone there knows who runs the tour. You could also call the local visitor's bureau, I bet they know who contracts with which cruise lines.

You have a lot of work ahead of you, and it's already Wednesday. I hope you are able to find the answers you need and have a great cruise!

Crutches and sand do NOT play well together. (neither do canes, for that matter)

if the flight is full, they may take them up front and stash them with the First Class passengers' jackets or in the cabin attendants closet.

would a knee scooter be of any use? on board or in ports?

Mamsylvia - thank you for taking so much time to answer my concerns. It is very much appreciated. I volunteer at St Vincent de Paul and they often have wheel chairs in our thrift store. I received an email today from Phoenix Sky Harbor stating that the representative had contacted an American Airlines supervisor in my behalf who will be calling me tomorrow. Very good customer service!

I emailed the special needs excursion address but have only received the auto response that the email was received. I'll have to work on it again tomorrow.

Spookwife- Because the fibula is broken, she isn't allowed to kneel or a knee scooter would have been a great idea. The doctors even had to take off the fiberglass cast and use a boot instead because it was pressing on the break.

Thanks again, Maureen

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> I emailed the special needs excursion address but have only received the auto response that the email was received

I don't think you have time to wait for an email response. Did you try telephoning them? You might have to call the main number and ask to be transferred, but don't take "email them" for an answer - ask for a supervisor if the CSR won't transfer you or give you a direct number.

Please do let us know (when you get back) how it went!

Thanks for all the good advice - it turns out she not only broke her fibula but broke all the bones in the front top of her foot as well. With your help I was able to call the cruise line and the airline and we are all set and ready to leave tonight. Thanks very much,

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