redhotmermaid

Booked an Alaskan for next August. Good grief the waiting is the worst!!!

you know pan my only issue right now is this i got a handicap on the epic when cabins were 499 they always cost more so mine was like 100 each more

 

now the cabins are 349 for inside but the obc they offer me and( there is never an upgrade cause the cabins are so few )are not what they are offering the other people in our roll call. I just think thats not very fair. I can not park the scooter else where or i could sleep in the inside cabin just fine. I think ncl should be a little fairer to us handicap people.

We are going back on the pearl for the same trip as last year as it coincides with hubbys bday. We had such fun last year and it was so relaxing knowing that we both were having fun. If you want i can put up a few pics. I have a slightly larger handicap cabin this year but the one from last year was just awesome we didnt even have to put the luggage away. BTW im down about 30 lbs. And we have attached a carrier to my scooter seat to hold a camp chair for the hubby which works well for walking. Have a great day :D

Wow what a wonderful review! Could you provide me with info on where you got your scooter? Sailing on 4/21/2012 from san juan and no one has a scooter for me :( I am 6'2" and weigh 420. Have rented b4 from care vacations, but they now tell me they cannot .

If you could e mail me at allatrop1@aol.com, my family and I would be greatly apprecaitive.

Bill

hon i own mine.

Let me start off by saying i am a 460 lb fat girl. I make no excuses for my size. I also am handicap with severe arthritis,and from bone breakage and hip dislocation in 99. I try to exercise everyday and watch what i eat. So that i can deal with my own life as mobile as possible. I also have thyroid issues and medication does not work in the blink of an eye.

 

As you all can tell before the cruise i was a nervous wreck. But it was the best vacation we ever had. I am married to a bhm who is 400 lbs has some mobility issues also do to the same car accident.

 

Any way on the second day we had a private meet and greet arranged by Tammy of cruise critic and we met with several of the officers on board the pearl.

 

They were lovely. They made it their personal jobs to make sure we were happy. We had sailed on rccl before twice since the accident. I will now sail with ncl. I had booked a inside handicap room. 36 inch doorways and it was huge.

Both my scooter and folding large size chair fit fine we didn't even have to put the luggage under the bed in the room. The only issue with the room was the fold out shower chair and it bent under my weight but my hubby used it fine. I took showers using my wheel chair for support.

The toilet was on the wall but secured better than any other. The public handicap bathrooms all were good size. Occasionally i had to have clothing help from my so so we were in there together. not a comment was made that we over heard.

 

I did go in my two piece swim suit in the public pool mostly in the late evenings. no comments, the other passengers were lovely about my scooter in the elevator. there is so much armless seating on this ship and its everywhere. I also was on one of the king size beds in the lounge with my so and two friends at white hot nite.

 

We tendered twice once at cayo which is their island and the cruise director was on board our tender. I did 12 steps down and used my chair. The issue was there are no hard roads their yet so she had the gentleman come from the surf shop in a rv and pick us up and take us to the beach. Then one of the other officers had him do the same so we could get back. I got preferential treatment by going on first on the tender since i was slow and i was allowed to wait at the dock.

the tender officers that worked on the ship got to know me well and were just adorable people.

 

Evidently Julie the cruise director had talked to several other officers after this and the night before we tendered in Jamaica Jorge who is head of all the restaurants and bars asked me to call him. The morning of the tender i road my scooter which is not a small scooter to the tendering area after meeting Jorge at breakfast and talking to him. Rashima who is head of the group services met me there. The captain informed me that he would be taking my scooter on board when we went and that he would just pull up to the doc which i could board straight to the ship or from land to the top of the ship when i was ready to leave. This could not happen because the dock belonged to another shipping company going to Jamaica but i went down the 16 stairs and the ramp and the captain and first mate and 2 other crew men helped my hubby make sure i was secure stepping off the ship onto the dock. These 4 gentlemen sweetly and calmly assured me they did not mind carrying my scooter down the steps. When we returned both the captain of our tender and his first mate had talked to ncl personal and i was allowed to depart from the dock like he originally wanted. I was watched by all the other passengers and he explained he would be picking me up. When they pulled forward and i rolled on board they all clapped. I am not easily embarrassed because i deal with people of size with handicaps all the time. I smiled and did the queen wave and everyone laughed.

 

As a person of size with a handicap your going to be seen so do your best to look good as you are. Be nice as you can and most people are nice back.

Everyone seemed to know me after that first tender and would often speak to us or stop by when we were sitting somewhere to say hello.

 

I also asked Jorge if we could one night get a ship side table so we could look out while we dined in the dining room. He said absolutely. The Head of the Dining room took it upon himself to seat us at a ship side table each night so i could watch the ocean while we ate. They even opened a separate room for us one nite cause there were none.

 

From our Room steward to the smallest of staff members they would remember our names from day to day and i asked if we could have armless chairs in the buffet area for breakfast that first day and they remained at that handicap table from then on. Everyone had a smile for us and i wrote many good job notes and tipped well. I personally cant say enough good things about the staff from the pearl from the steward who cleaned our room and removed items from the fridge with no compaints straight thru to the hotel manager Hans the Pearl was 5 star for me. And free styling was the best. No crowds and we even were treated to wine with our specialty resturant on my hubbys bday. And the staff tried to keep germs down with the washy washy happy happy hand sanitizers at every meal which is great.

If she had specifically requested that seat to be placed at the table for her, then yes, it is hers. It's like ordering food at McDonalds then having someone else pick up your order. Whether they accidentally picked up your order or purposely chose to take it, it's still your order. You wouldn't say "that's ok, i'll just order a new one."

Thank you miss rabbit that is how i meant that. Lets face it everyone is going to look at a larger person its the way you act and carry yourself that make people think hummm more to them than a fat girl.

I don't think you should have mentioned anything to anyone at the table about your standing request for an armless chair. Obviously there were both types of chairs at the table and the other person wanted to sit in the armless chair. I think you should have quietly mentioned it only to one of the waiters or other service staff so that they could bring another armless chair.

I am sorry to disagree with this approach. As larger size women we often are expected to be docile. I think most people expect women to be more docile than men but thats my opinion. I would have said excuse me your in my seat and smiled. YOu can not have what you do not ask for.

Hey everyone! :)

 

I went to the WLS seminar today. It was informative and I already have my first appt with the surgeon on Oct 7th. My hubby was worried of the financial costs, but with the insurance it looks like it will be minimal. :) So, I figure if all goes well with the pre op testing, I will be getting it at the beginning of the year! Wish me luck! ;)

good luck from the bottom of my heart

[quote name='Bearcat1946']Well, I just got off the 29 August-5 September Emerald Princess Western Caribbean cruise and it happened again. I requested a 2-person table, close to the entrance. They gave me a 2-person, all the way up against the far wall. I went to see the maitre 'd before the first meal and they moved me completely out of the original dining room and moved me down one deck to[SIZE=4] Michelangelo. When I went to the Tuxedo people, I was informed they had nothing to fit me. I explained this to the maitre 'd and he told me in no-uncertain-terms that there would be no exceptions to the formal nights and I could just go to the Horizon or Caribe or the hot dog place. I was informed that the formal nights were for the benefit of the Europeans who enjoy the formal activities, and they do not wish to be around others who are not dressed appropriately. It's not like I didn't try to get a tux.

BTW, I called room service and got a very nice club sandwich and a chefs salad. Just for sh*ts and giggles, I also ordered a hot dog, sat there with my Beck's beer and watched baseball on ESPN.

Freaking amazing.
[/SIZE][/quote]
Dear bear...the mens warehouse got my hubby a tux size 70 hes a 68 in pants for 80 for the whole cruise with two shirts and two vests....he looked good. And he could buy it perm. for a decent price.