World Cruise and excursions for wheelchair bound passengers

My wife and I will shortly be going on the Queen Elizabeth for the World cruise and I would love to hear the experiences of folks who have been to the following countries and have managed to go on a shore excursion whilst sat in their own wheelchair?

1. America

2. Costa Rica

3. American Samoa

4. Tonga

5. New Zealand 6. Australia Overnight

7. Papua New Guinea

8. Japan

9. South Korea

10. China

a. Hong Kong Overnight

11. Vietnam

12. Singapore Overnight

13. Malaysia

14. Sri Lanka

15. India

16. United Arab Emirates18th a. Dubai, United Arab Emirates Overnight

17. Jordan

18. Egypt

19. Italy

20. Spain

21. Portugal

I accept all our excursions will have to be arranged privately.

I accept that some countries do not offer any type of suitable vehicle and I accept that going ashore via tender is not an option.

Getting out of my wheelchair and sitting on an ordinary seat is NOT an option as I have a spinal injury and my chair has to be reclined.

When booking this cruise I did it on the basis that I will be aboard the ship for the duration and any excursion will be a bonus.

I have however managed to book an excursion to visit the USS Arizona at Pearl Harbour Hawaii so I have already got the ball rolling.

I would love to hear the experiences of folks who have managed to book excursions, especially any contact details.

1. America -----Where in America? We're a pretty big country.

2. Costa Rica---Where in Costa Rica? There are two very different sides, one on the Atlantic and one Pacific. But generally speaking, CR is pretty much a physical stop with things like hiking, rainforest trips and the like.

3. American Samoa----Three and four might be tender stops, so if you cannot go down steps at all, and board a tender, it's not possible.

4. Tonga

5. New Zealand---Again, where in NZ? Its a big country

6. Australia Overnight----What cities in Australia? See, knowing the cities you're going to be visiting will make a huge difference in my advice. I've been to Sydney, Melbourne, Queensland, Great Barrier Reef, Cairns and Darwin.

7. Papua New Guinea---See if this is a tender port for you.

8. Japan---What city? Japan is generally pretty easy to get around but it's very crowded and may be tough for a private car.

9. South Korea--What city?

10. China

a. Hong Kong Overnight----You could have a problem here if your ship docks in the new terminal because it will be another tender port. The old terminal was on Kowloon, right in the middle of the city, and therefore very easy to get around. Let me know if you find out which dock you're using. HK is a fantastic city with great food and culture.

11. Vietnam---Again, a lot depends what cities you're visiting. Ho Chi Minh City is fascinating and you could do a city tour that includes a stop at their Vietnam History museum.

12. Singapore Overnight-- I recommend a tour of the old city area, a trip to Raffles, and at night there's a wonderful tour of their Zoo where the animals are much more active than during the day.

13. Malaysia---Where in Malaysia?

14. Sri Lanka---This is a difficult area as there is an ongoing civil war. When I was there, I made it a point to get to the Elephant Orphanage about an hour outside Colombo. It's a fantastic trip, if you can handle it. Once off the bus, it's a bit of a walk/ride on a dirt road to get to the riverbank where the elephants come to drink.

15. India---Where? What city or cities? Mumbai? Cochin?

16. United Arab Emirates a. Dubai, United Arab Emirates Overnight--An interesting city where you go for the shopping and sightseeing. I hired a private driver to take me to a few of the sites and the souks to do some shopping. I highly recommend going to the shopping mall that has a real ski resort inside. I was also able to do a picnic in the desert, which was a tour Crystal did.

17. Jordan----I did a trip to Petra, but in all reality, I think it will be impossible for you. Unless you're OK with taking a private car to the area of Petra, and seeing it from a distance, the only thing I can recommend is a tour of the city.

18. Egypt--What city? I'm not sure if the pyramids will be OK for you, but you might want to try and find a company that handles pyramid tours for the disabled. You might want to check a company called Egypt for All. I used them a few years ago and they are trustworthy.

19. Italy---Where in Italy? Some places aren't easily accessible and the ride from the ports to the cities can be two hours long. If you stop in Rome, get in touch with a company called Rome In Limo. They did a very nice job for me as I was able to tell them exactly what I wanted to see. Also, if you're going to Livorno, which is the port for Florence, a private car can take you to the city center where you can get into seeing the statue of David at the Academia (make sure you get time stamped tickets for this, and any other museum where you won't have to wait in line). If you have someone to push you, the old town of Florence is easily walkable. From Santa Croce square, you can get to just about anywhere in the old city, including the museums.

20. Spain--What city

21. Portugal----I'm assuming Lisbon? If so, it's an easy city to get around and I would have a private car take you to St Jeronimos Monistery and from there to the cafe that makes the incredible and amazing pastries called Pasteis de Belem. There's also an interesting tour of the factory that makes the very famous hand made tiles that you'll see all over the city. I had a private car there and my driver just took me to all the usual sites.

Hope this helps.

1. America -----Where in America? We're a pretty big country.

 

2. Costa Rica---Where in Costa Rica? There are two very different sides, one on the Atlantic and one Pacific. But generally speaking, CR is pretty much a physical stop with things like hiking, rainforest trips and the like.

 

3. American Samoa----Three and four might be tender stops, so if you cannot go down steps at all, and board a tender, it's not possible.

4. Tonga

 

5. New Zealand---Again, where in NZ? Its a big country

 

6. Australia Overnight----What cities in Australia? See, knowing the cities you're going to be visiting will make a huge difference in my advice. I've been to Sydney, Melbourne, Queensland, Great Barrier Reef, Cairns and Darwin.

 

7. Papua New Guinea---See if this is a tender port for you.

 

8. Japan---What city? Japan is generally pretty easy to get around but it's very crowded and may be tough for a private car.

 

9. South Korea--What city?

 

10. China

a. Hong Kong Overnight----You could have a problem here if your ship docks in the new terminal because it will be another tender port. The old terminal was on Kowloon, right in the middle of the city, and therefore very easy to get around. Let me know if you find out which dock you're using. HK is a fantastic city with great food and culture.

 

11. Vietnam---Again, a lot depends what cities you're visiting. Ho Chi Minh City is fascinating and you could do a city tour that includes a stop at their Vietnam History museum.

 

12. Singapore Overnight-- I recommend a tour of the old city area, a trip to Raffles, and at night there's a wonderful tour of their Zoo where the animals are much more active than during the day.

 

13. Malaysia---Where in Malaysia?

 

14. Sri Lanka---This is a difficult area as there is an ongoing civil war. When I was there, I made it a point to get to the Elephant Orphanage about an hour outside Colombo. It's a fantastic trip, if you can handle it. Once off the bus, it's a bit of a walk/ride on a dirt road to get to the riverbank where the elephants come to drink.

 

15. India---Where? What city or cities? Mumbai? Cochin?

 

16. United Arab Emirates a. Dubai, United Arab Emirates Overnight--An interesting city where you go for the shopping and sightseeing. I hired a private driver to take me to a few of the sites and the souks to do some shopping. I highly recommend going to the shopping mall that has a real ski resort inside. I was also able to do a picnic in the desert, which was a tour Crystal did.

 

17. Jordan----I did a trip to Petra, but in all reality, I think it will be impossible for you. Unless you're OK with taking a private car to the area of Petra, and seeing it from a distance, the only thing I can recommend is a tour of the city.

 

18. Egypt--What city? I'm not sure if the pyramids will be OK for you, but you might want to try and find a company that handles pyramid tours for the disabled. You might want to check a company called Egypt for All. I used them a few years ago and they are trustworthy.

 

19. Italy---Where in Italy? Some places aren't easily accessible and the ride from the ports to the cities can be two hours long. If you stop in Rome, get in touch with a company called Rome In Limo. They did a very nice job for me as I was able to tell them exactly what I wanted to see. Also, if you're going to Livorno, which is the port for Florence, a private car can take you to the city center where you can get into seeing the statue of David at the Academia (make sure you get time stamped tickets for this, and any other museum where you won't have to wait in line). If you have someone to push you, the old town of Florence is easily walkable. From Santa Croce square, you can get to just about anywhere in the old city, including the museums.

 

20. Spain--What city

 

21. Portugal----I'm assuming Lisbon? If so, it's an easy city to get around and I would have a private car take you to St Jeronimos Monistery and from there to the cafe that makes the incredible and amazing pastries called Pasteis de Belem. There's also an interesting tour of the factory that makes the very famous hand made tiles that you'll see all over the city. I had a private car there and my driver just took me to all the usual sites.

 

Hope this helps.

By crikey Kitty I am an absolute thicky.

I prepared a list of countries for my doctor and another list with the cities and STOOPID me copied the wrong one BUT.........

As per my original post I CANNOT ride in an ordinary car\taxi as I have to travel in my specific wheelchair

I understand we all have to disembark at New York for so called Border Control and if this is the case the trauma of doing this will prevent me from any further travel that day.

Take 2 :rolleyes::o:o

Sat Jan 18 New York (Brooklyn), NY

Sun Jan 26 Limon, Costa Rica

Tue Feb 18 Pago Pago, American Samoa

Fri Feb 21 Nuku'alofa, Tonga

Mon Feb 24 Tauranga, New Zealand

Sat Mar 1 Sydney, Australia Overnight

Sun Mar 9 Rabaul, Papua New Guinea

Sat Mar 15 Kochi, Japan

Sat Mar 22 Busan, South Korea

Mon Mar 24 Shanghai, China

Fri Mar 28 Hong Kong Overnight

Mon Mar 31 Hanoi (Halong Bay), Vietnam

Fri Apr 4 Singapore Overnight

Sun Apr 6 Kuala Lumpur (Port Kelang), Malaysia

Thu Apr 10 Colombo, Sri Lanka

Sun Apr 13 Bombay (Mumbai), India

Thu Apr 17 Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates Friday 18th Friday Dubai, United Arab Emirates Overnight

Sat Apr 26 Petra (Aqaba), Jordan

Sun Apr 27 Sharm-El-Sheikh, Egypt

Fri May 2 Naples (Capri), Italy

Sun May 4 Palma de Mallorca, Spain

Tue May 6 Lisbon, Portugal

You cannot transfer at all to a passenger car seat?? Do you have a high cervical injury? Do you have only a power chair? Most people with SCI in the thoracic or lumbar area can transfer to a car seat. My mother had MS, and was tetraplegic, but we traveled the world transferring her to cab and private car seats with a slide board. We always took her folding manual wheelchair for shore trips and put it into trunks (boot) or even strapped it onto car roofs. The power wheelchair stayed on board the ship in most ports.

You are not going to find wheelchair accessible lift vans or buses in most of your destinations for tours. If you cannot or will not transfer to a car, then you will be limited to things you can access from the pier on your own (wheeling down the street).

It has been more than 10 years since we were in Apia (Samoa) but we did dock there, and we went to a small park near the cruise pier with the wheelchair. My father and I snorkeled at a lovely reef, but my mother just sat in the shade and watched us. We were unable to get to any other tourist sites there due to the lack of transportation that was accessible, although if we had wanted to we could have transferred her to a cab. We did not stop in American Samoa (different island), but I very much doubt you will find van/bus lift transport there either.

We were also in Sydney many years ago, but were able to get a wheelchair accessible cab and arranged a city tour with that company on-line prior to our cruise.

Start out by contacting the tourism boards of the countries you are visiting, and then Google "wheelchair transport (city of your visit)" to start out on your search.

Start out by contacting the tourism boards of the countries you are visiting, and then Google "wheelchair transport (city of your visit)" to start out on your search.

Thank you very much indeed for that as it is something I had not thought of.

Many years ago I had to have surgery on an injury to my lower spine, sadly none of the surgery I underwent was as succesful as I had hoped. I can now only travel on a stretcher and at home I am practically bed bound. My pain is controlled by morphine and on a good day I can walk very short distances with the aid of crutches (30 - 50 metres) This is not a pleasant experience but something I insist on doing.

There is no way I can tolerate sitting, be that on a bench seat or an armchair. In an emergency I have reclined the front seat of a car and then crawled into the passenger seat. This might be something I am daft enough to consider if there are any really nice places to go!! But any type of travelling will take a number of days to recover from (sea days)

Forgive me for not understanding your limitations. I would also suggest contacting the Special Needs department of Cunard. They may be able to give you the name and email address of the shore excursion manager on board the ship. That person might be able to see where any accessible vehicles would be available to you.

I know from experience, the kind of vehicle you require will not be available in Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Tonga or Papua. You will have difficulty finding an accessible vehicle in India, Kuala Lumpur. Since they're going to have the Olympics and Para Olympics in South Korea, I would guess that accessible vehicles will be available. The Japanese are also very good as far as having fully accessible vehicles.

I still recommend Egypt for All for your tours in that country. They do have fully accessible vehicles.

Forgive me for not understanding your limitations. I would also suggest contacting the Special Needs department of Cunard. They may be able to give you the name and email address of the shore excursion manager on board the ship. That person might be able to see where any accessible vehicles would be available to you.

 

I know from experience, the kind of vehicle you require will not be available in Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Tonga or Papua. You will have difficulty finding an accessible vehicle in India, Kuala Lumpur. Since they're going to have the Olympics and Para Olympics in South Korea, I would guess that accessible vehicles will be available. The Japanese are also very good as far as having fully accessible vehicles.

 

I still recommend Egypt for All for your tours in that country. They do have fully accessible vehicles.

;)No need for forgiveness (unless you have a crystal ball) :)

Your post is most helpful and confirms what I had planned for.

I am determined to visit the chapel above the USS Arizona, I have found a company in Honolulu and to me this is a wonderful, and unexpected plus to this cruise.

I take onboard what you are saying about Egypt, the British Foreign Office state that there is not any security risks at Sharm El Sheikh. I understand this but I am someone that is very protective towards my wife and to be perfectly honest, I would want there to be a calmer situation in that country before I start driving around their highways and bye-ways!

Regarding your comment about the Special Needs Department.. I must confess they have been brilliant and once aboar ship and I have settled in, I will have a chat with the excursions manager but I do not expect them to work miracles ;)

I am fortunate enough to have a decent balcony, a very nice camera, great books and of course a brilliant wife... I'm a pig in clover

The boats that take you to the actual Arizona Memoral are fully accessible. Don't miss watching the short documentary in the accessible theater. And, if you're lucky, they may have someone who was actually there during the Pearl Harbor attack, relating their experiences. I've seen an army nurse and a Navy ensign give fascinating talks at the site.

My husband is paraplegic and most larger cities here have accessible taxi vans that have a ramp into the van and then they chain the chair to the floor so that it doesn't move around while the van is in motion.

My husband is paraplegic and most larger cities here have accessible taxi vans that have a ramp into the van and then they chain the chair to the floor so that it doesn't move around while the van is in motion.

I found a very large tourist type site in sydney that offers numerous types of vehicles for land tours but much to my surprise they do not have vehicles capable of carrying wheelchairs.

I have not posted this image to any site for fear of taxi firms having kittens but if I were to raise the back of this chair any further, I would not be able to use it.

My plan is plonk myself out on my balcony and get cooked to a frazzle!!! I am hoping to organise a trip on the waters in sydney Harbour and I will carry on with my quest, but finding transportation is proving to be a challenge.

Having worked and traveled extensively throughout Asia/Southeast Asia, accessible transportation will also be very difficult, if non existent for Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Malaysia, Sri Lanka , India, and Dubia. This is the main reason I no longer travel to these countries since becoming disabled.

Should you find something make certain that the vehicle has tie downs to secure you and the wheelchair. In China , seat belts are removed from the vehicle in order to fit more people. So having tie downs for wheelchairs is a concern. Having spent thousands of hours in China Taxis I can tell you that safety is not the first priority.

In India and China, someone may even try talking you into being lifted into the back of an open pick-up truck. Most definitely do not recommend doing this.

Having worked and traveled extensively throughout Asia/Southeast Asia, accessible transportation will also be very difficult, if non existent for Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Malaysia, Sri Lanka , India, and Dubia. This is the main reason I no longer travel to these countries since becoming disabled.

 

Should you find something make certain that the vehicle has tie downs to secure you and the wheelchair. In China , seat belts are removed from the vehicle in order to fit more people. So having tie downs for wheelchairs is a concern. Having spent thousands of hours in China Taxis I can tell you that safety is not the first priority.

 

In India and China, someone may even try talking you into being lifted into the back of an open pick-up truck. Most definitely do not recommend doing this.

Excellent advice and when signing up for this cruise I did it with my eyes wide open and had planned to be on the ship for the duration of this cruise. If I can get ashore it will be a very fortunate bonus but clearly common sense will be the order of the day and I doubt folks will see me being towed behing the local rickshaws :)

I have no personal experience with this company, but their website offers items that may be helpful to you:

http://www.disabilitytravel.com/access-network.htm

Perhaps others have had some dealings with them and can add in their opinions.

Happy travels.

I have no personal experience with this company, but their website offers items that may be helpful to you:

 

http://www.disabilitytravel.com/access-network.htm

 

Perhaps others have had some dealings with them and can add in their opinions.

 

Happy travels.

I have now found contact details for a taxi company in Sydney although I think I would prefer a River cruise of some type, but I at least have an option.

Thank you for that link, I appreciate you doing this. It looks like that site actually organises complete holidays for the disabled, as opposed to arranging excursions?

 

I have now found contact details for a taxi company in Sydney although I think I would prefer a River cruise of some type, but I at least have an option.

The company states that they also provide cruise excursions. Here's a link to that page:

http://www.disabilitytravel.com/cruise/accessible_shore_excursions.htm

As I mentioned before, I haven't used them so can't vouch for their services but they do seem to be one of the few larger companies I've encountered.

The company states that they also provide cruise excursions. Here's a link to that page:

http://www.disabilitytravel.com/cruise/accessible_shore_excursions.htm

 

As I mentioned before, I haven't used them so can't vouch for their services but they do seem to be one of the few larger companies I've encountered.

Thank you Travelgirl and I confess that when I red this extract, I dismissed them:

The service of arranging accessible shore excursions is reserved for passengers making their cruise reservation with Accessible Journeys.

I will however send them an email, as nothing ventured, nothing gained

Quick update.

Regarding the link supplied by Travelgirl87 I can now confirm we would indeed have to cruise with them to go on the excursions :(

Sorry we can't assist you. We have to handle to cruise to handle the excursions. Let us know next time.

Thank you Travelgirl for taking the time to post that link.

John

Egypt: Memphis Tours had a van with a ramp to visit Luxor when you are in Safaga. Hatchepsul, Luxor and Karnak Temples are accessible. Valley of the Kings not.

Maybe they can assist also in Alexandria. But maybe the Egypt ports will be cancelled.

Egypt: Memphis Tours had a van with a ramp to visit Luxor when you are in Safaga. Hatchepsul, Luxor and Karnak Temples are accessible. Valley of the Kings not.

Maybe they can assist also in Alexandria. But maybe the Egypt ports will be cancelled.

Are Cunard getting to be in the minority when it comes to cruise lines that are still scheduled to visit Egypt next year?

Here in the UK the newsis very much censored regarding this uprising which might give folks the impression all is nowwell in that part of the world :(

You cannot transfer at all to a passenger car seat?? Do you have a high cervical injury? Do you have only a power chair? Most people with SCI in the thoracic or lumbar area can transfer to a car seat. My mother had MS, and was tetraplegic, but we traveled the world transferring her to cab and private car seats with a slide board. We always took her folding manual wheelchair for shore trips and put it into trunks (boot) or even strapped it onto car roofs. The power wheelchair stayed on board the ship in most ports.

 

You are not going to find wheelchair accessible lift vans or buses in most of your destinations for tours. If you cannot or will not transfer to a car, then you will be limited to things you can access from the pier on your own (wheeling down the street).

 

It has been more than 10 years since we were in Apia (Samoa) but we did dock there, and we went to a small park near the cruise pier with the wheelchair. My father and I snorkeled at a lovely reef, but my mother just sat in the shade and watched us. We were unable to get to any other tourist sites there due to the lack of transportation that was accessible, although if we had wanted to we could have transferred her to a cab. We did not stop in American Samoa (different island), but I very much doubt you will find van/bus lift transport there either.

 

We were also in Sydney many years ago, but were able to get a wheelchair accessible cab and arranged a city tour with that company on-line prior to our cruise.

 

Start out by contacting the tourism boards of the countries you are visiting, and then Google "wheelchair transport (city of your visit)" to start out on your search.

Hi Splinter, can you please tell me what type of slide board that you use for your mother while traveling? Also, what european ports did you find the most accessible? Thank you.

We had two different slide boards. We had a Beasy Board, but it is very heavy and bulky, so difficult to pack for travel. We also used a good quality wooden board from UltraSlick. If you need one for car transfers, the longer boards are best for this.

I only went on one cruise to Europe with my mother (my parents did several others without me before my mother's MS had progressed so much) but we found Barcelona very accessible, and Athens is much more accessible now since they also hosted the Paralympics, but we managed Istanbul and Naples with a little creativity, and were able to get around in Kusadasi (but not Ephesus).