standing times for embarkation, muster drill and disembark

hi everyone! my husband and i are sailing on the royal princess 2/8 for 10 days. my husband is a diabetic and has neuropathy in his legs and can't stand for too long. should we rent a walker with a seat or just bring a cane? any suggestions would be appreciated. he can walk for a short distance and stand if he can lean on something. many thanks for any info you can give me.:)

My daughter has a mobility issue. For embarkation, use wheelchair assist. It is a rather long, steep walk depending on the ports. It is not worth using up all her energy just getting on the ship. In "normal" circumstances, she uses a rollator (walker with wheels) with or without braces depending on the circumstances. For embarkation and dis-embarkation we use wheelchair assist and I deal with the rollator. As to renting one....we purchased one for about $100 on Amazon. It is MUCH nicer than the things you see in nursing homes and probably didn't cost any more than what a rental would be for the length of one cruise. It flies free, as do all wheelchairs and medical devices. We do HA assist in airports as well, checking the rollator.

For muster drill, she brings the rollator. This gives her a chair "for sure." Depending on the muster station, you can be sitting or standing. Also, we are excused from the drill a few minutes before the general release, allowing her to get an elevator before the mob. This is a standard Princess practice--we never asked for it.

Enjoy your cruise!

Most of the muster stations (Princess Theater, Club Fusion, Casino, etc.) have ample seating available.

Some have limited seating. There will almost always be someone courteous enough to let your husband sit down.

In my experience sitting during the muster drill has never been an issue. If necessary, speak with a nearby crew member and they will assist in finding a place to sit.

No matter where muster is held they will find him a seat.

No matter where muster is held they will find him a seat.

Agreed. But for embarking and getting off, I would give serious thought to requesting a wheel chair.

Agreed. But for embarking and getting off, I would give serious thought to requesting a wheel chair.

Plus the wheel chairs move you to the front of the line on embarkation.;)

For those with mobility problems it is best to get to your station ahead of time. Check the back of your cabin door to find out where it is located and then go there before they announce the drill. The time is listed in the patter. The ones who come last are always SRO so it does fill up. It is now being reported by cruisers since last month that life preservers are no longer required. This will make it easier for you to get to the muster station. Although we don't have mobility problems (yet!) we now go maybe 20 minutes or so before the drill to avoid the herd.

hi everyone! my husband and i are sailing on the royal princess 2/8 for 10 days. my husband is a diabetic and has neuropathy in his legs and can't stand for too long. should we rent a walker with a seat or just bring a cane? any suggestions would be appreciated. he can walk for a short distance and stand if he can lean on something. many thanks for any info you can give me.:)

In a real emergency, the elevators cannot be used. After boarding, inform the Customer Service desk that your husband will need assistance in case of a real emergency. Princess will supply the needed assistance.

Plus the wheel chairs move you to the front of the line on embarkation.;)

I'm not sure which line you are referring to. We've found that there is often a priority line for security, but on our last 3 Princess cruises, there were more people needing wheelchair assist for boarding than there were chairs and "pushers." There was a separate seating area for those needing assistance and as each chair became available, they would take a guest from that section. There were many people boarding, both before and after we did. In no case did we move to to the front of any line.

I can walk better than I can stand. My sister has similar issues. The lineup at disembarkation usually has a few (very few) chairs, and we take turns with one in the line up and the other sitting. This has worked - so far. We always go early to Muster.

I've used wheelchair assistance on my last 2 cruises (S. America; Alaska). In both cases, there was an assigned "lounge" on the departure deck for us wheelchair folks. Vines was used once & the coffee shop beside the IC used once.

Princess handles this service very well, as they do the boarding service.

It's my experience at muster drill that a space is reserved for us near the entrance to the lounge. Yes, get there a bit earlier.

hi everyone! my husband and i are sailing on the royal princess 2/8 for 10 days. my husband is a diabetic and has neuropathy in his legs and can't stand for too long. should we rent a walker with a seat or just bring a cane? any suggestions would be appreciated. he can walk for a short distance and stand if he can lean on something. many thanks for any info you can give me.:)

A walker with a seat is a great idea.