First cruise. First disabled holiday.

[Chippet]

Hello

 

Apologies if this question is covered elsewhere.

 

My husband has real mobility issues following treatment for leukaemia. I've decided we need a holiday and some sunshine. We've never been on a cruise before, but my parents are regulars on P&O.

 

Is there a particular liner that is better equipped to deal with disabled passengers? Husband doesn't normally use a wheelchair, but would if we were to go away - he struggles to walk further than 6-7 meters without assistance.

 

We're wanting to cruise from Southampton and ideally visit Western Europe / Canaries. We are 31 and 27 yo if that makes a difference.

 

I'm struggling to find info on RCI website regarding tender requires at ports.

Thanks

[xxoocruiser]

Hello

 

Apologies if this question is covered elsewhere.

 

My husband has real mobility issues following treatment for leukaemia. I've decided we need a holiday and some sunshine. We've never been on a cruise before, but my parents are regulars on P&O.

 

Is there a particular liner that is better equipped to deal with disabled passengers? Husband doesn't normally use a wheelchair, but would if we were to go away - he struggles to walk further than 6-7 meters without assistance.

 

We're wanting to cruise from Southampton and ideally visit Western Europe / Canaries. We are 31 and 27 yo if that makes a difference.

 

I'm struggling to find info on RCI website regarding tender requires at ports.

Thanks

 

In theory the newer the ship the more accessible.

 

RCCL posts all information regarding tendering on its website . Here's the link

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/contentWithHero.do?pagename=getting_on_and_off_the_ship

[dorisis]

Welcome to Cruise Critic. We have found the newer ships of Royal Caribbean to be user friendly to wheelchair users.

[kassimer1]

its better if you can get an accesible room, they are larger for a scooter/wheelchair. they dont cost you anything more but are hard to get because there are not many of them. if he has trouble walking far you might want to rent a scooter. if he is in a wheelchair you would have to push him everywhere including the rest room. when you rent a scooter it is delivered to your room and you leave it in your room. all ships have accessible rooms. once you find the ship you want then see if they have the handi capped room. all cruise lines have a special needs department so once you chioose your cruise you can call them and discuss his special needs. if you rent a scooter its not done thru the cruise line, we have used special needs at seas and care vacations. good luck and have fun

[dolcengabbana]

I can highly recommend celebrity they were amazing with my husband who uses a manual wheelchair.

 

We saw people using celebrity manual chairs I would hire one that fits him best rather then use one from onboard.

[Enforcer]

Hi Chipper,

 

We have cruised many times from Southampton to the Baltic/Mediterranean/Canaries on RCI and other cruise lines and never had to use a tender. If you let the forum users know which itinerary you choose, people will give you specific answers.

 

The newer the ship the better the disabled facilities.

 

I use a mobility scooter and never had a problem.

 

Hope this helps

 

Pete

[cb at sea]

The ship's wheelchairs are just for boarding and departing...you can't use them throughout the cruise. You will need to either bring one, or rent one.

[dolcengabbana]

The ship's wheelchairs are just for boarding and departing...you can't use them throughout the cruise. You will need to either bring one, or rent one.

 

 

That was absolutely not the case on our last cruise.

[aweller88]

Hi iv mobility issues due to rheumatoid arthritis and we chose royal Caribbean for our first cruise (honeymoon next June), were 27&28 so the new big ships really appealed to us. We ruled out any itinerary that required tender as I couldn't even imagine having to deal with that. I think, especially with me, the best time is usually had by pacing yourself and planning out your day. We picked an itinerary that wasn't too strenuous and we aren't going to do excursions in some ports cos there's just so much to do I can't imagine doing it all when I can barely get dressed most days due to pain and fatigue lol. Did you decide on your cruise?

[searoses]

On celebrity and ncl it is clear that they can not supply you with a wheelchair outside of embarking and debarking....but that doesn't mean there aren't exceptions....if you injure yourself during the cruise you will be able to use one and i'm sure a crew member can use discretion.....but if you really need one plan to bring it...

I have long standing ra and traveling can really be unpredictable....I do use a scooter on the ship and this allows my husband to not worry while he is enjoying himself elsewhere....he will sometimes plan a challenging excursion while I get a cab to the beach....have a ship day planned for the first time for our next trip....you just have to accept what you can do today and enjoy it....not dwell on what you can't do.....learned yesterday my knees need to be replaced....doing the first one in april and hope to do well enough to do a med cruise next fall....