Explorer of the Seas- Disabled Beware!

Just returned from our cruise (had a great time and perfect weather). Unfortuneately, a few problems kept this cruise from being perfect.

1. Explorer is the only ship we have been on that had NO area designated for handicapped seating in their theater. (We have been on 10 different ships). No signs at all meant having to ask people in the back row to move or finding an employee to find a place for my wife's wheelchair

2.Sale tables were set up right at the entrance to the Promanade making it very difficult to get by on foot (and impossible by wheelchair!!)

3. Debarkation was confusing , since we were told to report to one deck by one employee and then to a different deck by another and another deck by a 3rd employee. Not fun when you are trying to get an elevator that is not packed with people who won't (not can't) use the stairs to go up or down one deck.

4. When we ate in the Windjammer Cafe, my wife was immediately led to a table , instead of being helped through the food line. I was told I could go get her food!

Believe me , none of these things was enough to dampen our enthusiasm for cruising, but a little common sense on this particular ship would go a long way.

Been there done that. Our travel agent did not tell us the ship was not accessible or we would not have been on it. There are NO public restrooms that are accessible; therefore I had to return to our cabin each time I needed to use the restroom. Even to just wash my hands. That was frustrating. They were not very willing to help me either. I think part of their rationale was that the ship was built before the ADA went into effect so they felt like they were exempt.

Are you saying there are no accessible public restrooms on the Explorer of the Seas? Maybe we're not talking about the same ship? I've been on RCI's Explorer of the Seas and although I can't say with 100% certainty that *all* the public restrooms are accessible, there are accessible ones are every deck.

Also, the ADA technically does not yet apply to cruise ships (one appellate court says it does, one says it doesn't so it will be decided by the Supreme Court this session), so yes everything they (cruise industry) has done, they have done voluntarily.

The Supreme Court will determine once and for all if cruise ships that call on the US (no matter what their registry) are subject to the ADA. The US Access Board just released their draft guidelines for passenger vessels. So, right now there really aren't any rules and regulations for access, besides the "broad discrimination" rule.

Candy

Carnival's Explorer of the Seas is the only Explorer of the Seas that I know of. That is the one I was referring to. RCI does not have an Explorer.

Hi everyone.

I, too, have just returned from a cruise on Explorer of the Seas (Royal Caribbean). I agree with the assessment of this ship as not handicapped friendly. Although I am not in a wheelchair all the time, I do need to use a travel chair for some things and always use a cane if I'm not in the chair.

They had a way of setting up photos, sales tables, etc. that completely blocked entrances to dining rooms, promenade, etc. In fact, the ropes for the guest services lines were set up in such a way that one aisle to the promenade was always almost completely blocked.

Additionally, the dining room and Windjammer Cafe were set up with tables and chairs so close it was difficult for my husband to push me around without having to move chairs. In the beginning of the cruise, most employees were extremely helpful, but towards the end, they had a more cavalier attitude.

And I believe that although the restrooms had handicapped stalls, there was always a "lip" to get over to get into the restroom that prevented or made it difficult to access in a wheelchair.

I give a "thumbs down" to the Explorer of the Seas!

Lynn

Well I'm still confused. RCI does have an Explorer of the Seas. It is a voyager class ship and sister to Adventure, Navigator, Mariner and Voyager (of the seas).

Here is a link to the RCI page which describes this ship (sorry it's long but it goes directly to the page)

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/findacruise/ships/class/ship/home.do;jsessionid=0000imH1Vwhzxg8lLORLuGIy4PI:v29bc4qk?br=R&shipClassCode=VY&shipCode=EX

I'm not intimately familiar with the whole Carnival fleet, but I did go to their page to see if they also had an explorer ship

http://carnival.com/CMS/Ships/FunShips.aspx

I couldn't find anything close. So I'm just really cruious (Trina) what ship/line you were talking about in regards to the public restrooms not being accessible. I don't think we can be talking about the same ship, because I have been on Explorer (and yes the temporary tables can be problematic) but they most certainly do have a lot of accessible public restrooms (at least one on every deck).

Candy

OK OK I goofed. It was the Carnival INPIRATION we went on first and then just in August went on the Explorer of the Seas. Sheesh I'm sorry. I can't believe it just dawned on me what I said. I don't know what I was thinking. Sorry. The Inspiration is one you definitely do not want to go on in case anyone ever asks. It is one of Carnival's older ships and it was a nightmare. Like I had said, it had NO public restroom that was accessible and there were other things about it that were inaccessible. It has been a few years and I really cannot remeber what else. I do remember there were some exits that lead out to the outer decks that had a step going down and I would have to just keep pushing around til I found another one.

Again, sorry about my mistake earlier.

Trina

No problem Trina.

Hey, all the names sound alike.

I just really thought (from your description) that we were not on the same ship.

Thanks for your reply.

Candy

Most ships older then 1998 are not friendly for those in chairs of any description. I have been on the Princess Sun class and most spots are accessible but only one door is automatic by the Horizon court. Most of the rest have ramps to very heavy doors. The newer the ship the better it is for us.

Yes the Inspiration was built just before the ADA went into effect. But, Carnival was very misleading in saying we would have no problems in the public areas. Not to mention there were no public restroom that was accessible. They told us the pool was accessible, it wasn't. No lift. There were just so many things that were not accessible it was not even logical to put a person in a wheelchairs on that ship. Carnival should have been training their reps about these issues on the ship.

On the positive note, Carnival dealt with shore excursions a little better than Royal Caribbean. At least there were a few that we managed to do, but with Royal Caribbean, there was only one excursion accessible and they ended up calling us the night before in our cabin to tell us it had to be cancelled because the van was broken down. They also told us we could go on one tour (Rain Forest in Puerto Rico) as long as we could transfer into a vehicle. Once we got ready to take off, the tour guide told us the trail was impossible for wheelchair users.

All the cruise lines need to have better communication with the shore excursion companies. There are more and more disabled people as well as older adults who still want to get out and about in the world. Someday they may be one of us wheelchair users or a retired couple. Then they might think twice about how they handle these issues.

Just a FYI

When people say the pool is "accessible" that means the pathway to the pool is accessible (by ADAAG standards even though they don't yet apply to cruise ships).

It doesn’t mean they provide a lift or any way of getting into the pool. That is another question you need to ask "Is there a pool lift?" There is a big difference between "getting to the pool" and "getting into the pool".

Again, if you ask "is the pool accessible?" and they answer "yes", that means you will be able to get "to" the pool in a wheelchair (and nothing more).

It's all about asking the "right" questions.

Most pools on cruise ships (even though they are defined as "accessible") do not have lifts. Lifts are rare. You have to ask if they have them.

Candy

The raidance has a Lift in the main pool... I was just there last week. They also have Handicap restrooms on every floor.

Just a fyi - pool and spa access requirements are included in the Draft Guidelines for Passenger Vessels. These are very similar to those adopted by the Access Board in 2002 for land-based facilities; although I think it would be hard to have a pool with a sloped entry on a cruise ship. Of course, this is all dependent on the Supreme Court decision this session on if the ADA applies to cruise ships of foreign registry that dock in the US.

Candy

We have ran into a few ships where there is no wheelchair seating in the theatre. What I did was contact Guest Relation and asked that some seats be marked for Handicap. The signs were put there every show.

We have ran into a few ships where there is no wheelchair seating in the theatre. What I did was contact Guest Relation and asked that some seats be marked for Handicap. The signs were put there every show.

We did talk to guest relations the first night and were told that they had requested that signs be placed for handicapped seating but were still waiting for them. Since this ship has been in use for a few years their printer must be extremely slow (or maybe we were just being placated?) Anyway no signs showed up all week.

RC's Explorer of the Seas was very accessible to me and the staff could not have been more helpful.

The host/greeter in the Windjammer always found us an accessible table without us even asking her to and they were always offering to help me through the buffet line.

The Palace Theatre has accessible seating when entering on deck 3. There is a row of removable chairs with a sign designating them for handicapped. There are a couple of cut-outs for wheelchairs in the front row that a staff member will glacly bring you to.

I could easily get through the Prominade and around the sale tables.

Guest relations was happy to call the RC office to ask about accessible excursions.

The two main pools have lifts. The Solarium pool does not but there are steps going all the way down if you can scoot or be carried. The hot tubs do not have lifts.

I have sailed three times on RCCL (Explorer, Radiance, and Adventure) with a friend who is a full-time wheelchair user. There IS a way to get downstairs to the front of the theater, but not all of the RCCL staff appears to know about it. Enter the theater on Deck 3 with everyone else, then go around the seats on the right side toward the stage. You will see brown double doors with a sign indicating a handicapped accessible elevator. Someone from RCCL should be there to help you at this point. Go through the doors to the backstage area, and the accessible elevator will be on your right. NOTE: For the elevator to work, the downstairs elevator door must be closed. Take the elevator from level 3 in the theater to level 1, roll off and go through double doors to the front of the theater where there are w/c cutouts near the doors. It would be hard to make a quick getaway during a performance, but that was the only disadvantage of sitting down front. It was a fine place to see everything during the performances.

It amazes me that folks who are blind are not included in the Disabled Group.

It is a difficult disability when it comes on all of a sudden after you've been sighted all of your life. My husband lost his sight in minutes, unexpectedly, as the result of a stroke. Cruising was our favorite vacation, yet we find that there is little comfort for the blind aboard a cruise ship. Has anyone else who is blind found a ship that recognizes this disability?

We sailed on RCCL EXPLOER of the SEAS and believe me they were no Carnival, picnic either for that matter. The ship was beautiful and accessible for the most part. Shows you had no choice but to sit in the back row.

It amazes me that folks who are blind are not included in the Disabled Group.

It is a difficult disability when it comes on all of a sudden after you've been sighted all of your life. My husband lost his sight in minutes, unexpectedly, as the result of a stroke. Cruising was our favorite vacation, yet we find that there is little comfort for the blind aboard a cruise ship. Has anyone else who is blind found a ship that recognizes this disability?

My mom is visually impaired with a service dog. We ran into a lot of problems with RCCL and Celebrity (and will not cruise them again) but have found that Princess bends over backwards for us. We would like to try HAL.

I think being blind is not a disability just like if your in a chair you are automatically deaf and mentally impaired. I can't say I know what your going thru but I can imagine. Keep on bugging people and they will slowwwwly understand. Congrads on not giving up on your previous lifestyle.