Disabled disembarkation in Greenwich

[DebbieMacG]

 

I’m considering booking the 28th May cruise on Journey that ends in Greenwich, but am a wheelchair user (I can walk a few steps) and am worried about the disembark does anyone have any information? Bonnie perhaps you could help? Many thanks

[BBMacLaird]

Hi DebbieMacG,

I’ve never been to Greenwich so am not familiar. Let me ask the ship personnel. 

[uktog]

A pontoon is used to transfer you to a Port of London Authority boat from the ship. At the shore/ disembark point it’s a steep slope up to dry land.  Given what you say I would not recommend walking it yourself but I recall assistance was offered to those who needed it. It’s not the easiest place if you have walking issues but it’s not impossible 

[BBMacLaird]

I've heard from the Journey's Hotel Director. His response follows; it mirrors what uktog has posted.

 

"Guests disembark via the Deck 4 gangway onto the pontoon. Once on the pontoon it is an even walkway to the local tenders. The gangway between pontoon and tender can be steep. But the guest states that she can walk a few steps so with help from the onboard team we will be able to get her down the gangways."

[Mrs Miggins]

All the Thames Clipper boats, which use the same gangways to shore as the shuttle from the ship, say that all their Clipper boats are wheelchair accessible.  I personally have seen many wheelchairs on this service.  The steepness of the ramp to the shore is of course dependent on the height of the tide.  

As Bonnie says access from the pontoon (large with a waiting area) would be OK and also from the tender onto large floating pontoons and then up the ramp to the shore,  will be fine too.  I believe Thames Clippers provide the short shuttle service from the Journey to land.  www.thamesclippers.com. for more information.

Enjoy wonderful Greenwich.

Edited February 8, 2019 by Mrs Miggins

[nordski]

1 hour ago, Mrs Miggins said:

All the Thames Clipper boats, which use the same gangways to shore as the shuttle from the ship, say that all their Clipper boats are wheelchair accessible.  I personally have seen many wheelchairs on this service.  The steepness of the ramp to the shore is of course dependent on the height of the tide.  

As Bonnie says access from the pontoon (large with a waiting area) would be OK and also from the tender onto large floating pontoons and then up the ramp to the shore,  will be fine too.  I believe Thames Clippers provide the short shuttle service from the Journey to land.  www.thamesclippers.com. for more information.

Enjoy wonderful Greenwich.

 

If my memory is correct Mrs. Miggins,  you reside in the Greenwich region.

 

In a separate thread, would you consider recommending a few of the highlights of the area to be visited when we dock there?

 

We need to be somewhat efficient since we have a limited time there.

 

I only suggest a new thread so as to not hijack this one.

 

Thanks.

[QueenP]

The naval dining hall is spectacular! The chapel is also beautiful, and the Queens House has some lovely art. All within easy walking distance. Just my 2cents!

[Redtravel]

The pontoon was easy to use. There is a slope if you go from the pontoon to the shore. It is not very steep.  If you take the river boat on the Thames, it is level.  We really appreciated being in Greenwich. It is a nice area.

[DebbieMacG]

Thanks very much for all your help,and answers.

[uktog]

14 hours ago, Redtravel said:

The pontoon was easy to use. There is a slope if you go from the pontoon to the shore. It is not very steep.  If you take the river boat on the Thames, it is level.  We really appreciated being in Greenwich. It is a nice area.

The slope to shore is tidal dependent and the Thames has quite a high low difference. If you think of Azamara it might be a deck 3-4 slope or a 3-5+ slope which is really challenging if your knees don’t like that - I find downhill more painful 

[DebbieMacG]

I’ve just booked this cruise so hopefully it will be ok, failing that I’ll just have to stay on 

[BBMacLaird]

41 minutes ago, DebbieMacG said:

I’ve just booked this cruise so hopefully it will be ok, failing that I’ll just have to stay on 

 

A double thank you is in order! The first for booking with us, and the second thank you for trusting in us. It cannot be easy traveling internationally with any type of mobility issue. I have great respect for those that do. 

I hope you have a fantastic cruise, and that you’ll check back in on this thread with a report.

 

[DebbieMacG]

Thanks Bonnie 😀

[DebbieMacG]

I emailed Azamara special needs department before I posted here and this is the reply.

 

 

Good afternoon, 

Thank you for contacting the Access Department. 

Azamara Club Cruises, There is no accessible route to the tender platform.

Guests with assistive devices who are unable to take a few steps will be unable to board tenders unless roll-on capability is available. 

Guests can inquire about tender roll-on capability at Guest Relations Desk once onboard. Please note roll-on capability is not guaranteed

 

 

My question is as a wheelchair user, what if I couldn’t take a few steps? (As in walk a short distance) The system has allowed me to book an accessible cabin and no mention of any issues regarding disembarkation were raised during the telephone booking. If I couldn’t walk at all how would I get off the ship! Not just for a port visit but to disembark the ship at the end of the cruise. So if  I or any full time wheelchair user get on at Barcelona then can’t get off at Greenwich? 

 

I’m a little concerned by this response from Azamara, it could be just badly worded or applicable to any port and not Greenwich itself, so not specific.

 

Bonnie Id be grateful if you could you please ask for further clarification

 

What the likely length and angle of the gangway from the ship to the pontoon please and if it’s will be a ramp or steps. How will my electric wheelchair get down?

 

Also from the pontoon to tender and tender to shore if possible. 

 

I believe they use the Thames clipper which is wheelchair accessible.

 

Thank you your help is appreciated.

 

Edited February 12, 2019 by DebbieMacG

[BBMacLaird]

1 hour ago, DebbieMacG said:

I emailed Azamara special needs department before I posted here and this is the reply.

 

 

Good afternoon, 

Thank you for contacting the Access Department. 

Azamara Club Cruises, There is no accessible route to the tender platform.

Guests with assistive devices who are unable to take a few steps will be unable to board tenders unless roll-on capability is available. 

Guests can inquire about tender roll-on capability at Guest Relations Desk once onboard. Please note roll-on capability is not guaranteed

 

 

My question is as a wheelchair user, what if I couldn’t take a few steps? (As in walk a short distance) The system has allowed me to book an accessible cabin and no mention of any issues regarding disembarkation were raised during the telephone booking. If I couldn’t walk at all how would I get off the ship! Not just for a port visit but to disembark the ship at the end of the cruise. So if  I or any full time wheelchair user get on at Barcelona then can’t get off at Greenwich? 

 

I’m a little concerned by this response from Azamara, it could be just badly worded or applicable to any port and not Greenwich itself, so not specific.

 

Bonnie Id be grateful if you could you please ask for further clarification.

What the likely length and angle of the gangway from the ship to the pontoon please and if it’s will be a ramp or steps. How will my electric wheelchair get down?

Also from the pontoon to tender and tender to shore if possible. 

I believe they use the Thames clipper which is wheelchair accessible.

Thank you your help is appreciated.

 

 

Hi DebbieMacG,

I must confess to being confused. You stated you can walk a bit. And the response from the Access Department is referencing those who cannot walk, for whom tendering would be very difficult if they must roll on to a moving tender, which you state is not your situation.

Given the information you gave me originally I asked the ship’s HD, who is familiar with the disembark at Greenwich, for his opinion. Since you can walk a few steps he felt that with ship personnel help you will disembark fine (see post #4).

Now that you’re in communication with the corporate Access Department I think it best you ask them, or our Customer Service Desk, for clarification on your new specific concerns. 

I hope it works out for you. We’d love to have you sail with us.

 

[DebbieMacG]

Bonnie, apologies I posted late and realise the way I’d phrased the question may be confusing.

 

My point is during the booking I didn’t discuss with the agent or anyone on the phone the fact that I could or couldn’t walk, I said I was wheelchair user and needed an accessible cabin. If I had been a full time wheelchair user unable to walk a few steps, how would I have got off the ship at Greenwich? I feel that where the embarkation or disembarkation port is a tender, booking agents should be telling guests booking accessible cabins at the time of booking, online bookings should also warn guests of this.

 

I won’t be reaching out to corporate again as I feel the answer they gave me was generic and wasn’t at all tailored in response to the actual question I asked or the port and the fact that it’s a disembarkation rather than a day trip that I have a choice over.

 

The reason for my further questions is although I have stated I can walk a few steps, I mean a short distance on a flat surface, not actual steps as in stairs, so I’m keen to learn if there is a ramp or steps and what the likely angle is. When travelling with a disability the more you know about your surroundings the better. Staff on all ships I’ve travelled on have always been so fantastic and I’m sure this is achievable.

 

Please if it’s not too much trouble could you perhaps ask these questions or give my email address to the journeys hotel director? ( debbie at lochness dot com) I understand if my request is too much, many thanks again.

[uktog]

As the pontoon and jetty are managed by the Port of London authorities a better option might be to email them- pla.co.uk is their website with contact details. They will be handling several cruise ships a month at Greenwich so the issues you raise will not be unique. 

[DebbieMacG]

49 minutes ago, uktog said:

As the pontoon and jetty are managed by the Port of London authorities a better option might be to email them- pla.co.uk is their website with contact details. They will be handling several cruise ships a month at Greenwich so the issues you raise will not be unique. 

I’ll do that, thank you.

 

I’ve just done some internet research on the pontoon and the boats, since Viking disembark at Greenwich I found some useful information there too. The boats are all wheelchair accessible and I’ve seen a video of the ramp shore side. Pontoon to boat and boat to shore look ok.

 

It’s  getting from the ship itself to the pontoon I really need to know about now , is it a ramp or stairs and how steep is it?

 

Thanks again for your help.

[uktog]

As I recall last year it was stairs but I remember there were lots of crew helping 

[DebbieMacG]

2 minutes ago, uktog said:

As I recall last year it was stairs but I remember there were lots of crew helping 

Thank you, stairs are easier than a steep ramp so that’s reassuring.

 

Im really grateful for your help and first hand experience