Our travel agent assigned us a handicapped veranda cabin on the Nordam?????

[Umbarger]

A dear, dear friend of mine, who's been on many cruises, confided to me the other day that she'd discovered that HC rooms were larger, so that's what she's booking for herself and her hubby.

 

And she's a TA.

 

My opinion of her, unfortunately, fell a notch.

 

I agree with other posters who believe in reserving HC cabins for those who require them. Availability of an HC cabin can mean the difference between a cruise and no cruise for many people...

 

Did you tell your friend the above?

[sixpackeddie]

Thank you everyone for your assistance in this manner, I did call the travel agency and have them change my reservation to a Guarantee Cabin. I am suprised at the travel agent that booked a handicapped cabin for her and her husband. Shame on her.

 

Craig

[Krazy Kruizers]

Good to hear that everything is working out.

[wander]

I guess a few questions I have is how often are people with an honest need for a handicap cabin denied passage because all of the handicap rooms are full? At what point should they be available to the masses? or Should the ships be expected to hold these cabins indefinitely and sail with them empty rather than use them for other passengers?

 

Not needing one at this time in my life, I would never book a handicap cabin because I would not want to "prevent" someone really needing one for taking a cruise. So, I am

not advocating someone doing such, just looking at the overall situation.

[sixpackeddie]

I believe only handicapped persons or elderly persons who really need it should be able to book HC cabins, end of story. If a week prior to sailing there are handicapped cabins available then they may be made available to the general public. The problem is cruise lines just want to fill cabins and i do not think they care who occupy's them. This is a very contraversial issue. What is the best solution?

[Oceanwench]

I guess a few questions I have is how often are people with an honest need for a handicap cabin denied passage because all of the handicap rooms are full? At what point should they be available to the masses? or Should the ships be expected to hold these cabins indefinitely and sail with them empty rather than use them for other passengers?

 

Not needing one at this time in my life, I would never book a handicap cabin because I would not want to "prevent" someone really needing one for taking a cruise. So, I am

not advocating someone doing such, just looking at the overall situation.

 

My husband is in a powerchair - unable to walk. We've been sailing HAL exclusively for several years.

It's gotten to the point where we book more than a year out, and even then we cannot always get our first choice of a cruise because all the HC cabins are booked. Sometimes we go to Plan B or C or even D, because everything is booked.

It is frustrating.

We sail primarily on Vista ships, which have 28 HC cabins out of more than 900 cabins.

DH could not use a standard cabin for so many reasons - the width of the doors, the limited floor space for maneuvering his chair, the inaccessible shower and balcony, a bathroom too small to accommodate his chair, etc. etc.

This handful of HC cabins is so important to us, to all cruisers who have a disability that requires the accessible features of these cabins.

 

When should these few cabins [if there are any in inventory] be made available to the able-bodied public?

I would guess sometime after final payment is due.

 

But look at the numbers cited by me and another poster -- do not delude yourself into thinking HAL ships will go out with scads of empty cabins.

If not a single HC cabin were booked, there would be a little more than two dozen empty rooms.

And in all my cruises, I have always seen many others in wheelchairs. I believe very few HC cabins are empty when a ship sets sail.

 

Oh - and an added note: HAL fills the HC cabins left over with GTY pax. So really, the worry that rooms will go vacant is unnecessary.

[ronvoell]

I am in a wheelchair and always book as soon as HAL opens its book for a cruise. HC cabins just fill up so fast.

 

What I don't understand with most of the post here is that I always need to fill out a form that HAL sends my TA about the nature of my handicap. I also get an email requesting the make of my wheelchair and its dimensions. I suppose that an able body could lie when they fill the form. I was asked on our first HAL cruise (I have almost 500 days) to have my doctor fill out a form on my handicap (I had childhood polio). My TA keeps that form on file.

 

So given the hoops I jump through I wonder how anybody gets a HC cabin who doesn't deserve it. Maybe I just have an honest TA.

[skypilot9]

Just want to add that it is my belief that if you book and handicap cabin and are not handicapped, HAL will bump you and put you in a different cabin in the event a handicapped person needs an HC cabin. This is what I was told once by a HAL agent. It sounds logical, fair and equitable and I hope this is the truth. If it is fact, you take a risk booking an HC cabin, but you could end up in that cabin if it is not needed.

[RuthC]

Just want to add that it is my belief that if you book and handicap cabin and are not handicapped, HAL will bump you and put you in a different cabin in the event a handicapped person needs an HC cabin. This is what I was told once by a HAL agent.

You may believe it all you want, but it is not correct. The HAL rep was mistaken.

To book a handicap cabin when you don't need it deprives someone who does need it. It is selfish, and there is a special circle of hell reserved for those who do that.

[Oceanwench]

Just want to add that it is my belief that if you book and handicap cabin and are not handicapped, HAL will bump you and put you in a different cabin in the event a handicapped person needs an HC cabin. This is what I was told once by a HAL agent. It sounds logical, fair and equitable and I hope this is the truth. If it is fact, you take a risk booking an HC cabin, but you could end up in that cabin if it is not needed.

 

ABSOLUTELY UNTRUE.

 

First off, a hotel manager on one of the ships -- perhaps a little more knowledgeable than a HAL agent -- confirmed to me that once a HC cabin was booked, it was completely out of inventory. Period. No bumping. No little note in the margin that the room is being occupied by an able-bodied person who can be moved if needed.

 

Second: When DH and I were frustrated at not being able to book the cruise of our choice more than a year out, and our second choice cruise was also showing no HC cabins, we asked HAL if there was a way to see if any of the HC cabins were booked by able-bodied folks who were willing to be bumped.

The answer was NO -- there is no system to indicate that the people who booked were able-bodied or really in need of an accessible cabin.

 

Third: It so happens that on one occasion we were not able to book our first choice, so we booked the following week. I was on the roll call board here and was reading the roll call for the week I had really wanted to sail. Lo and behold, one poster bragged she had booked a HC cabin for the extra space -- she even noted the cabin number. She claimed she would move if someone really needed it!

 

You can imagine how upset that made me! I told DH, who immediately called HAL to ask if that cabin were available. He was told NO. So he explained to the HAL agent how someone online was bragging about booking the room and said she'd be willing to be bumped if someone needed it. The HAL agent said HC cabins are not handled that way. Of course I went back to the roll call and posted my findings!

 

I think sometimes able-bodied people who deliberately book a HC cabin try to ease their conscience by claiming they'd be oh-so-willing to give it up if needed. But take it from me and those who have posted above ... it just isn't the case.

 

Leave the handful of HC cabins free for those who need them, those who cannot cruise without one. It's the right thing to do.

[Sundagger]

It would be instructive to some people to read the thread on the Disabled Cruise Travel board, entitled "Here we go again. AB booking HC cabins". It's a long thread because the problem never is resolved.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=311686

[sixpackeddie]

I agree it is just not right.

[JNCRUISEBUMS]

I for one need a handicap cabin and could NOT travel without one. Shame on that TA, she should be banned and lose her license! There a only a few handicap cabins available and they should NOT go to able bodied people! Nancie:mad:

[COTINGEY]

As the mother of a 12 year old dd in a wheelchair, it would be impossible for us to travel without a HC room. We have found the only way to get a HC room is to book within weeks of it being available. Hopefully a solution can be found so that those that need them, get them and those that don't, don't! Shame on the TA's that book these rooms for themselves or their clients. Thanks to all of you who recognize how important these rooms are for us! Robyn

[babyher]

Having an aunt who is handicapped and seeing some of the struggles she had getting around (especially in the days before so much was handicapped acessible) It just bothers me to see an able bodied person take a handicapped parking space or cabin or whatever.

 

I am really surprised that they allow anyone to just book an HC cabin without proof or a doctors note or a form of some type.