First-timer Cruising Elation Has Questions

Hello, dear CC'ers!

I've been reading this board like a first-timer obsessed and have learned so much. Thank you. Absolutely invaluable info.

A month ago I booked my first cruise ever through United because of a triple miles promotion. Got an immediate email confirmation. Now what? When do documents usually arrive? Sailing in September.

You know, I expected there to be a little box to check Handicapped Accessible after choosing my room category like I do making hotel reservations, but now I know why they can't make it so easy (for the able-bodies). Well, I was planning on booking an accessible room, but after reading threads here I think I may just request a shower chair. When should I make the request? Now or later? I use a walker, not a wheelchair, and I would hate to take an accessible room from someone with a greater need. If I change my mind though, what do I need to do? Call Special Services before the documents are sent?

Do any of you have any advice for Elation? Shore excursions for the less-mobile? I'm a little anxious... not only am I a first-time cruiser and a "disabled" person, but am a solo traveler too. It's me, myself and I! ;)

I thank all in advance for any help offered!

I went on Elation solo last Dec. I did use a scooter and had a handicapped room. They are the same size as the other rooms, just don't have a step up to get into the bathroom and the door is wider. I was doing better on my cruise in March and didn't need the scooter, so I just got a shower chair. You still need to call their special services to reserve it. I am planning on just using a walker on my Thanksgiving cruise, but with my disability, you never know...I've just boked a regular room again, though. Already reserved the shower chair.

Edited to say that I didn't take any shore excursions--just enjoyed the ship.

As PiperMcB said, the HC cabins on the Elation are the same size as regular cabins. The primary differences are wider doors, no step up to the bathroom, a roll-under sink and a roll-in shower.

Definitely call Carnival's special needs dept to request a shower chair. Better still, email them if you can. I have found that it is always better to get the response in "writing."

Have you thought about renting a scooter for your trip. Ships are quite large and having a scooter would ease getting from one location to another.

As far as shore excursions are concerned, ask the excursion desk. Generally they will point you towards the scenic tours if you can get on a bus. My husband can not so we usually hire a taxi or join a van tour if he can get into the van. If I am correct, we have been to all 3 ports you are going to: Cozumel, Belize and Progreso. In Cozumel, if you like the beach, you could take a taxi to Chakanaub Park or Paradise Beach. There is an admission fee, but Chakanaub has a botantical garden, mini-ruin and a sea lion show in addition to the beach. You could also do some shopping near the ship or downtown. In Belize we went to the ruins at Altun Ha. We enjoyed it, but it is a long drive mainly because of the bad roads. In addition, the ruins require walking over uneven surfaces and up a small hill. If you are interested in ruins, I would suggest Dzubiltzan (sp) which are about 30 minutes from the pier. Not only were these ruins more impressive than Altun Ha, but there is also a small museum and you can hire a guide which greatly increases the interest of the site. There was some walking over uneven surfaces, however, including a gravel path from the initial building to the museum. Another possibility in Progreso would be to go into Merida. We have not been there, but I have read good reviews in the CC port section.

Thanks, Piper and Dale!

I'm grateful for the information. I will definitely make the shower chair request by email this week. You both mentioned the "step up" into the bathroom. What does that mean exactly? Is there a raised area at the doorway into the bathroom? Or do you mean a step up into the shower? By the way, are there bath/shower combos? Or are there just showers? And are there grab handles?

Piper, glad to hear your March cruise was easier for you. I wish you continued improvement in the future. Happy cruising!

Dale, I appreciate the details on excursions. Very, very helpful. Dzubiltzan sounds promising... I just need to figure out the correct spelling! ;) It's also nice to know scooter rental is available, but my legs need to move!

I'll look forward to hearing from you again. Hopefully you'll be able to answer my second round of questions.

In response to your questions:

- Its a step up at the entrance to the bathroom.

- There are showers only in most cabins on Carnival

- There are grab bars in the handicap cabin bathrooms. I do not know

about the non-handicap ones. You might ask on the Carnival board.

- I appreciate that you want to mobe your legs. My concern that ships

are very large and can require a lot of walking.

- I checked the spelling of the ruins on the Ports of Call Board. Its

Dzibilchaltun. To get there, you can rent a cab at transportation area of

the pier. I believe that it was $60 for the two of us, or $80 for 4. The

cab driver took us there and then waited for us in the parking lot.

Admission was about $10 (perhaps less) and the guide $25 (note. Do not

be afraid to bargain with the guide.) We went early - before the

excursions and school groups so we had the place to ourselves for the

first hour. I also took a dip in the ceynote - a small pond believed to

have been created by an asteroid. It was cold so it felt good on a

hot day.

mg93901:

Since last responding to you, we booked a cruise on the Elation for late next month. We have a handicap cabin, but our daughter has a regular one so I should be able to answer other questions if you have them.

One excursion I have started looking into is a Cooking Class in Cozumel. There appear to be 3. One of which is the Carnival excursion at Play Mia which is not practical for us because Carnival uses a bus for transport to Playa Mia and my husband can not get on a bus. In addition, I understand that Playa Mia was heavily damaged in the recent hurricane. Therefore, I am currently looking into the accessibility of the other two.

Hi, Dale

Thanks for reviving my thread. I'll really look forward to hearing about your sailing.

I've made my request for the shower chair. Thanks again for your help with that.

Now, I'm just sitting here trying to figure out what to do about excursions. There are so many pros and cons to book with Carnival or by private company. I'm, at the moment, leaning toward booking with the ship because 1) this is my first cruise and don't know what to expect, 2) I'm going alone, and 3) hurricane season.

If I book w/ Carnival and we have port changes due to weather, then a refund/rescheduling won't be a problem... but if I book with another outfit, what happens? I'll have to scramble to find a new set of activities.

It's also difficult to know what I could do, with my physical limitations. For example, I'd love to do cave tubing, but I read there's a hike to get to the starting point. If it's a somewhat flat walk, it'd be no problem... except I'd have to leave my walker behind. But if I have to get down a mountainside, at an incline... I'd end up rolling down! :D I'd also love to swim with the dolphins, but I don't know if I could really do it. I know they supply life vests...

Although I'd rather be out exploring, the cooking class has piqued my interest. I could really benefit from learning new ways to cook.

Anyway, I'd love any recommendations. Thanks again!

We have not done it, but it is my understanding that Cave Tubing requires about a half hour walk through the rain forest so I do not think that it would be a good idea for you. My husband has said that he does not want to get off in Belize because of the tender so my daughter and I will probably go snorkeling. You might look into the boat rides. Not Lamani because I understand there are steps from the boat and then you walk to the ruins, but the other one might be a possibility.

I assume you are talking about the Dolphin swim in Cozumel, they do provide life vests and I believe that Chakanaub is expected to be open again by Sept.

Swimming with the dolphins in Cozumel requires going up and down a steep (to me) set of metal stairs. I walk with a cane and I managed it, but not very easily.

I asked about the cave tubing in Belize, and was told that the path through the jungle would be extremely difficult for me. I talked to people afterwards that went, and they said it was difficult to navigate in places, with slippery mud. I wouldn't try it unless you are very stable on your feet.

We had a regular cabin on Elation. I don't recall running into any difficulties. I believe that the shower in there did have handrails.

If you are interested in trying to snorkel somewhere, I would do some web searches for those ports and contact the outfits directly. I have had much better luck with that than waitng until I boarded the ship. Some of those boats just have a vertical ladder as the only way to get back into the boat from the water. Stay away from those. Some of the larger boats have ramps going down into the water off of the back of the boat. Believe me, that ladder is almost impossible to get up if you have limited mobility, even with people helping you.

mg93901, being a new cruiser, you may not realize something else about shore excursions. If you book one with your cruise line, and it is delayed somewhere, the ship will wait for you. If you book on your own, and are delayed, the ship will not wait for you. Also, sailing during hurricane season, and you miss a port, or go to a different port, you will be instantly credited with your money by the ship, but if you book on your own, you may have a hard time getting your money back.

We have booked with the ship in the past because of the above issues. Our last cruise, we did rent a car in several ports, but of course, did not have to pay ahead of time, and were sure to get back a couple of hours before necessary.

Some of the other posters to this thread have suggested that you might look into a scooter rental because the ship is so big. When I was a new cruiser, I was so surprised at how big the ship was, and how far it was from my cabin to the dining room, or the show room, or anywhere. :) Ships are almost three football fields long, and almost a field wide.........so do think of that when planning. My Mom and I went on a cruise to Alaska and she did not want to rent a scooter, thought her walker would be just fine, and we ended up only going to our cabin, the dining room at the bottom of "our" elevator, and the casino, which was also at the bottom of our elevator.........it was just too much walking for her to go anywhere else. Of course, she was 80+, so it is probably different, but ships are big.

Whatever you do, have a wonderful cruise!!! I'll bet you'll love cruising as much as the rest of us, and will soon be popping in to Cruise Critic all the time. :)

I have never had a problem with being credited for canceled excursions booked before the cruise. In some cases, I didn't even have to put down a deposit. Of course, if you book with an operator before your trip, it is wise to be very clear on their policy should there be any reason to cancel your excursion. I also never schedule excursions late in the day where a delay getting back to the ship may cause a problem. You should not have problems if you book with a reptuable operator. You can check the boards at the ports you are going to as far as what experiences people have had with various operators. Personally, I NEVER book tours through the cruise ship. They are more expensive and there are a lot of other options out there.

Plan on your ship going out even if there is a storm in the Gulf or Caribbean. They will re-route to keep you safe. If there is a storm out there, bring your seasick medicine, though! You may be rockin' & rollin'! Only when the storm is very close will they not sail or sail but offer you a credit toward another cruise. We have been re-routed twice on Carnival with storms in the Gulf. They only offered everyone a on-board credit-but that was fine with us. We were just happy to be on a cruise to anywhere! It's good to be flexible and have a positive outlook when sailing during hurricane season. You usually get a better price on your cruise, but you might have to skip a port or be bumped around a little. They come up with LOTS of activities to keep you busy if you get re-routed.

Lindslea and DesrtDrmr, thank you for your replies! I really appreciate the info.

I'm really torn between which excursions to book and with whom. I now know cave tubing's out for me. That hike to the river wouldn't be possible. That's the one thing I would have loved to do/see. I'm not interested in snorkeling, but I guess that may be an option, if I can find a boat with a ramp. Another excursion I was thinking about was the jeep tour... but I can't drive anymore. Do any of you know if I'd be able to ride along with someone else or the tour leader? Steep metal stairs for the dolphin encounter wouldn't be a problem, as long as there's a handrail.

There are definite pros and cons for booking with the ship and with a private company. I'll just have to figure out which tours I want and could handle, then go from there. Since this is my first cruise, I just don't know what to expect. It's making me crazy! When I cruise Hawaii in December, I won't be as flustered. Gosh, I hope I like cruising... 'cause final payment is due two days before Elation. :D

I really think I'll be okay without a scooter. I don't have the opportunity very often, but when I walk the college track, I do 8-10 laps. I'm actually looking forward to walking the track on the ship on sea days.

Yes, I will take seasick meds 'cause I went out on a sightseeing boat in Alaska a couple months ago and it was rough. So rough, I felt queasy (with meds) and had to will myself to not get sick. We had to do a shortened version of the all-day tour and never got near where the glaciers were.

Thanks again. I'll look forward to getting more info.

Sounds like you will be okay without a scooter! Hooray!

On the cruises I have been on, there have been Singles meetings early in the cruise. Check your shipboard newsletter. That might be a good place to meet someone to share excursions with. We have also found that when dining in a traditional situation, the Maitre d' has been pretty good at seating us with people that we have something in common with............age, home area, or couples stuff.................you may find yourself seated with people you would be interested in doing stuff with..... Another possibility is to sign up for your cruise roll call. Just go to roll calls, Carnival, and look for your ship and your date...........there is usually a get together early on in the cruise, and you would meet folks you've been corresponding with.

We usually do bus tour type tours, so I'm not any help in that area.

Hope you have a wonderful time on BOTH of your cruises!

On the cruises I have been on, there have been Singles meetings early in the cruise. Check your shipboard newsletter. That might be a good place to meet someone to share excursions with. Another possibility is to sign up for your cruise roll call.

Thanks, that sounds promising! (as long as it's not meat-markety) :)

Just go to roll calls, Carnival, and look for your ship and your date...........there is usually a get together early on in the cruise, and you would meet folks you've been corresponding with.

I did early on. Was the second person to post. Doesn't look promising.