Free Limited Mobility Excursions

[OrpingtonT]

Also, from what I read of the river cruisers, many do not have lifts between decks and those modern ones which do, only have them between the lower passenger decks. The top, sun deck is, as far as I can see, only reachable by stairs.

 

I may be wrong on this as I have only read of a few.

[RachelG]

Ours had an elevator but very small.

[Gilly]

An observation on the updated set of excursions on Voyager, issued yesterday, for our HK to Beijing cruise: in almost every case, the level of difficulty has been regraded as "2 walking figures" (if you know what I mean). Even the Bingata experience in Okinawa, which is 4.5 hour practical fabric painting workshop has the additional information "includes 2.5hours of strenuous walking, uneven surfaces and a significant number of steep steps to negotiate" and i see that many of the short descriptions now include the number of steps involved.

 

It remains to be seen how accurate these grades are...perhaps those of us on board will be able to offer our opinion about that when we have had first hand experience. I am sure that, if I had any mobility issues, I'd feel these new descriptions would deter me from participating.

 

There appears to be very little for someone who uses a wheelchair or who feels less than 100% confident about their ability to manage 'moderate activity', for sure.

[nyfeds]

Our AMA vessel, (Amacello), did have a lift; however, the lift was "out of service" for the entire length of the cruise! In addition, the lift, even if it had worked, did not go up to the sun deck. A great disappointment for those who hoped to rely upon that lift in both respects.

[OrpingtonT]

There appears to be very little for someone who uses a wheelchair or who feels less than 100% confident about their ability to manage 'moderate activity', for sure.

 

Thanks. This bears out what we have been saying on this thread.

 

Our AMA vessel, (Amacello), did have a lift; however, the lift was "out of service" for the entire length of the cruise! In addition, the lift, even if it had worked, did not go up to the sun deck. A great disappointment for those who hoped to rely upon that lift in both respects.

 

An extra disappointment that the lift was not working so how on earth did those folks who cannot manage stairs deal with that. And all of the river vessels I have researched had only stairs to the upper (sun) deck.

[phillipahain]

Currently on Regent Singapore to Bejing and there are a very few disabled /wheelchair guests on board

 

both from a logistical point of view and the terrains /towns/situations faced on this cruise its really not at all easy for Regent to provide such tours

just getting off the ship with odd ramp arrangements would be problematic enough never mind the state of the cargo docks we have to use or the roads and sidewalks outside

 

Disabled Access simply is not a feature or situation thats even considered in many many countries

[symarb1]

Thanks. This bears out what we have been saying on this thread.

 

 

 

An extra disappointment that the lift was not working so how on earth did those folks who cannot manage stairs deal with that. And all of the river vessels I have researched had only stairs to the upper (sun) deck.

 

There is another issue with this. The lack of a working elevator puts those in wheelchairs or any other assistive device in danger. I was thinking of river cruising but I'm not so sure now.

[nyfeds]

Thanks. This bears out what we have been saying on this thread.

 

 

 

An extra disappointment that the lift was not working so how on earth did those folks who cannot manage stairs deal with that. And all of the river vessels I have researched had only stairs to the upper (sun) deck.

 

We were with friends who were hoping to rely upon that elevator. We selected AMA and Amacello (a brand new vessel at the time) for this specific reason - easy accessibility with use of the elevator. With some extra assistance, our friend somewhat managed, by being lifted, but it was difficult for her, at best. Getting up to the sun deck was simply out of the question, as the only access to that, elevator in use or not, were metal steps that were way too steep.

 

Even if a cruiseline says they have an elevator, there is no guarantee that it will be in good, workable order. In addition, the elevator is small, so no full size wheelchair would fit comfortably.

[Going Coastal]

The new Viking kingship are very accessible and on our trip in October there were wheelchairs, walkers and canes being used.

 

Sent from my KFTT using Tapatalk 2

[LHT28]

Also, from what I read of the river cruisers, many do not have lifts between decks and those modern ones which do, only have them between the lower passenger decks. The top, sun deck is, as far as I can see, only reachable by stairs.

 

I may be wrong on this as I have only read of a few.

Scenic tours have an elevator but not to the sun deck

That said the sun deck was closed most of the trip due to river levels

They do have balconies (though small) & a small space at the front of the ship to view the river

Read the fine print ...most river cruises do not allow people that depend totally on wheelchairs/scooters

We had one lady had a folding wheelchair that her SIL pushed her for some shore excursions

the cobbles made it so uncomfortable for her she just walked with her cane

Some stops some people just stayed on the ship while it sailed on to the port to pick up passengers that were on shore excursions

Just depends on your level of immobility if a river cruise will work for you or not

[OrpingtonT]

As I indicated in post 43 above, I did write to Kunal Kamlani, copied to Frank Del Rio, and included the helpful comments made on this thread.

I am pleased that he has replied saying :-

 

 

“I appreciate you raising the issue regarding the shore excursions available for limited mobility guests. Although I cannot promise you that our ground operators can provide suitable excursions in every port we call on around the world, we will look at where there may be opportunities to enhance the experience ashore for our disabled guests. As you alluded to below, this is not an issue that can be solved overnight but we are committed to reviewing how best to satisfy our guests’ expectations. Thank you in advance for your patience and I wish you another spectacular Regent journey on your Transatlantic voyage”.

 

In my acknowledgement I reminded him also of the importance of the provision of a step stool. I am happy to leave this now to the good offices of Regent and PCH and hope that eventually more excursions will be offered to those of limited mobility as part of the included excursion programme.

 

Thank you all.

 

 

Earlier this year, I wrote to Kunal Kamlani about the provision of "free" excursions for guests of limited mobility. You will remember (see above) that he promised to review the situation and he has now written to let me know what has been done so far :-

 

"I wanted to give you an update on the progress we have made regarding your concerns about shore excursions.

 

As a first step, our destination services team completed a thorough review of the shore excursions we are currently offering in Europe for 2013. They have identified 95 existing “free” tours in Europe that are appropriate for those who may have mobility limitations. Additionally, we have created 27 new tours for those with mobility limitations for the 2013 Europe season. The new tours will be available in major ports of call such as Barcelona, Berlin, Venice and Dubrovnik and in smaller, boutique ports such as Cadiz, Spain; Cork, Ireland; Kotor, Montenegro; and Porto Vecchio, Italy. They will be identified by a new icon so that they can be easily recognized on the Regent Seven Seas Cruises web site.

 

These 122 tours include very limited walking, which will be mainly at the guests’ discretion during stops. Some of these tours will also be available to wheelchair guests who have a collapsible wheelchair, are able to make their own way on and off the bus and have an able-bodied companion to assist them. This information will be noted in the shore excursion description.

 

Additionally, the web team is adding a legend describing each shore excursion icon to every shore excursion page so that the information is more readily accessible. These legends will appear on the web site by the end of May.

 

As for your concern with bus step stools, the destination team conducted an audit with every vendor in our system in Europe. Unfortunately, certain countries prohibit the use of step stools. For example, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Malta and Corsica all have laws that prohibit the use of these stools. If step stools are allowed by local law and appropriate for specific tours, the Destination Managers onboard the ships will work with the vendors to secure the use of step stools.

 

The team is in the process of reviewing other destinations and we will be updating the web site as we complete each review."

 

 

I am truly heartened by the consideration that has gone into this subject and I believe that these are improvements to the service Regent provides.

Management really do listen.

[Anna B.]

This is great news. I'm so glad your persistence paid off - these additions to the shore excursions are long overdue! Thanks to you, Orpington T and to Regent!

[WesW]

Kudos Tom for taking the lead on an important Regent cruise ingredient to limited mobility Regent cruisers.

[Patti22]

Does anyone have an explanation as to why step stools are not allowed? I am 5'1" tall and the step off of the bus is a long one for me! Sometimes the driver will assist but not always.

[RachelG]

Does anyone have an explanation as to why step stools are not allowed? I am 5'1" tall and the step off of the bus is a long one for me! Sometimes the driver will assist but not always.

 

Probably because someone tripped on a step stool and sued.

[symarb1]

Sy and I both thank you for your efforts Tom. On the last cruise we did have an issue when Sy fell during a tour because of the pace and duration. Next time I will bring his travel scooter and look for those tours that are accessible!!!

 

YEAH!!!! WHOOP!!!!

 

Thank you again

[bissel]

Thank you Tom, for pursing this. This is extremely helpful to everyone with mobility and endurance concerns and I am very glad Regent is recognizing this by providing more detailed information.

 

Carolyn

[Travelcat2]

It is great that there will be more limited mobility excursions! Bravo Regent! It does not surprise me that the first area Regent has looked at is Europe. It would be quite a challenge to provide limited mobility excursions in places like India as some places in India have difficulty finding buses in good enough condition for any passengers.

 

The one time I tripped when leaving a bus on a Regent excursion is when there was a step stool on uneven ground. As Col. Wes has mentioned, he fell on our India cruise and is not mobility limited. Tom's DW is fortunate that he will take every precaution to insure that she is safe at all times. Unfortunately, we can not depend upon tour guides or bus drivers. Between Regent providing special excursions and having friends, spouses, partners assisting, there should be great excursions available for everyone.

[OrpingtonT]

Sy and I both thank you for your efforts Tom. On the last cruise we did have an issue when Sy fell during a tour because of the pace and duration. Next time I will bring his travel scooter and look for those tours that are accessible!!!

 

YEAH!!!! WHOOP!!!!

 

Thank you again

 

Good to hear from you, Mary. Remember us to Sy.

 

Thank you Tom, for pursing this. This is extremely helpful to everyone with mobility and endurance concerns and I am very glad Regent is recognizing this by providing more detailed information.

 

Carolyn

 

I agree that it is heartening to see that Regent and Kunal Kamlani in particular, do take note of genuine concerns and try to improve the situation.

 

TC2. You are right in that not everywhere offer the facilities needed, but I am sure that ground agents will try to help when Regent are booking their services and in the long term this can do nothing but good.