pvlinda

Ah hah , use  your own scooter and a luggage service, duh! 

I am traveling alone to meet up with friends for a Carnival cruise out of Galveston. I have limited mobility and own a scooter (have never taken it on a plane) but am concerned about how to handle luggage checkin and pickup upon arrival by myself.  I could drive scooter to the plane entrance and upon arrival the cruise line will provide transportation with a lift which is ideal. Other option is to rent a scooter, use my rollator, check that and get a wheelchair at checkin to gate and upon arrival to baggage. Concerned that I might have issues with steps to get on cruise line provided bus. Also, long walk and waiting at pier until I get a wheelchair there. It all seems so complicated, I am not sure which is the best option.  Also, can anyone shed some light on the process at the pier if I take my scooter? is it difficult to navigate onto the ship upon embarkation in Galveston (steep ramps, etc.)?  Thanks to anyone who can help with advice. 

I am disabled and plan to take my scooter for the first time on an upcoming cruise from Ft. Lauderdale. I am traveling with a friend and do not want to depend on her to help me with my luggage. I am thinking about using a luggage shipping service and need any recommendations, experiences, suggestions. Thank you.

I am planning to bring my scooter and will need accessible transfers from FLL airport to hotel and then the next day to cruise port. Does anyone have any suggestions? Thank you.

I have upcoming reservations at Hyatt Place. Looked at Google street view and I could not find any restaurants across the street or even within the immediate neighborhood. Of course the pictures could be outdated. Are these restaurants fairly new to the area?

I am on the same search for accessible transfers. We are planning a pre-cruise stay at Hyatt Place in SanJuan prior to a Celebrity cruise in January. I am taking my scooter and could (with assistance) take it apart and store in a trunk if necessary. Prefer to Use a transfer that can transport it without disassembling. Any suggestions? Or referrals?

i am disabled and use a scooter. I would like to get a massage but want to stay close to the port shopping area and not have to take a taxi anywhere. Are there any massage opportunities in this area?

Thank you, that was exactly what I was looking for. :D

Any photos/info about Rotterdam OV Aft Accessible Cabin 3437. Looks like it does not have a couch or love seat and it is quite a distance from the elevators. Of course it is the only OV cabin available. Any info would be great. Thanks.

Heard that Viking plans to start Mississippi River sailings in a year or two. If they keep their same cruise formula this should bring a whole new perspective to these cruises.

We are in Vienna on Viking Atla and were told tonight that the water is very low, but we are going to sail to Budapest tonight. We have to sail very slowly and won't get there til about 2:30pm Saturday. Ok with that, did a ship swap yesterday and we were all holding our breath that we might have to get on a bus and stay at a hotel tomorrow night.

We left this morning for our Danube river cruise. I am sitting in Paris waiting for my connection to Nuremberg. We had a comfortable, uneventful flight. No one here seems nervous or worried. It is a normal travel day. Have a great day everyone.:):):):)

I leave in the AM for my Danube cruise. Our flight connects through Paris. I have no intention of changing any of my plans. As long as the airport remains open.

Did Viking offer any options if the alternate plans won't work for you? Refunds? Vouchers for a different trip! Thanks.

No options offered in the email. They provided contact info if I had questions. I bought insurance with the cancel for any reason clause. The thought of cancelling never crossed my mind. We leave in the morning and are looking forward to the adventure.

FYI, I just received an email from Viking about our Nuremberg to Budapest Danube cruise which starts this Sunday (11/15). We are scheduled to do a ship swap at Passau and the river is too low to sail from Vienna to Budapest. We will be bussed to Budapest and spend the last two nights at a hotel. I am satisfied with the timeliness of Viking's communication and am confident they will everything possible to make our trip enjoyable.

This is my opinion only. I did my research before I booked my cruise. I knew there was low water issues. I also read the terms and conditions, asked questions and bought travel insurance. Unfortunately, none of the cruise companies have any control over Mother Nature.

That being said, of course in a perfect world I would prefer not to be bussed but if that happens so be it. I plan to savor the experience and approach it all with a positive attitude. What Makes me unhappy are people that are impatient, gripe/whine about things constantly and do everything they can to try to ruin others experiences. Go ahead be upset, just don't try to spread it around to everyone else. I hope all those people decide to cancel and reschedule another time when things will be perfect for them.

:):):)

I am curious if the quality of meals you had at the hotel and restaurants were of the same or better quality as Viking provides on their ship? And were the meals pre-selected by Viking or were you able to order what you wanted from the menu (maybe provided a voucher)?

We are scheduled for a connecting flight In Paris to Nuremberg in about 10 days. I use wheelchair assistance and the last time I flew into and out of Paris, getting wheelchair assistance was a pain in the ass (literally). Air France/Delta had everyone using this service wait til everyone was off the plane, then had us exit from the rear onto a truck with an elevated platform. Then we were taken to a holding area, where we had to wait what seemed forever for someone to come and give us assistance. I was very poorly organized and the other passengers were very confused and irate about the process. The return flight setup was poor as well, requiring us to checkin at a special handicapped section and wait til a chair was brought to transport me to the gate. This trip we have a 2hr 30 min. layover, I hope this go a lot smoother this go around.

Let me understand, you want Viking to reimburse you for an nononrefundable excursion you purchased with another company? REALLY???

Most businesses have a time frame for processing refunds. Viking has a paid in full policy, and if you aren't comfortable with it, take your business elsewhere. I don't see the need to constantly spew negativity about the company at every opportunity.

We're going on the Romantic Danube in November too! We leave from Nuremberg on the 15th. When is your trip?

We also sail November 15. We are spending two nights in Budapest and our outbound flight leaves at 630am. Really there is not much choice on times if we want to get home the same day. Since we aren't using Vikings post cruise pkg, We paid a fee to change our outbound flight. That is ok cause the hotels in Budapest are very reasonably priced. Viking said our air was free but of course, the price is built into the cruise pricing. Still Vikings bulk airlfare rates appear quite a bit less than we would have paid on our own. I don't plan to start my first river cruise with negative outlook.

I am going on Viking Romantic Danube cruise next month. We used

Viking air and are traveling from Kansas City. We have a connection in Atlanta then Paris arriving in Nuremburg. I couldn't do the itinerary any better. We did have a flight schedule change which left us with a sort connection in Atlanta, Viking made a change and all us well now. Return schedule this good too with connection in Amsterdam and Atlanta.

Glad to hear you are enjoying your river cruise experience. Look forward to hearing more as you make your way to Budapest. :)

Thank you very much Hydrokitty. (Sounds like we have matching ankles.):)

This is my first river cruise, and we are on Viking Jarl. The ports I am concerned about are Resenberg and Passau.

Thank you for your responses. You have put my mind at ease that we will be able to get taxi assistance from ship personnel. Unfortunately, I broke my ankle a couple of years ago and it has slowed me down. I want to be able to make my own plans and not be restricted to tours. After reading so much negative information about exiting thru other boats, slippery gangways, slippery cobblestones, tight quarters for walkers, etc., my enthusiam has somewhat been dampened.

Side note: Last year, we went to Paris for a a beautiful 10 day trip. I decided to splurge and use taxis to get to the area we wanted to explore. It worked well and my walker fairly well on the cobblestones, even in the rain.:)