Frustration with non-accessible Canada/New England ports

We are on the Regal Princess in October with stops at Halifax, St. John's, Bar Harbor, Boston, and Newport RI. My husband uses his own mobility scooter but can walk for very short distances. It doesn't seem that I've been able to find good options for shore excursions.

Princess has only 1 accessible excursion at each port, and all are waitlisted. When we go to the Caribbean or other places outside the states, we can always find a van driver willing to take us around. The non-ship excursions I'm seeing online are not accessible.

In Boston- we can walk to the Silver Line and go to the Freedom Trail on our own.

Are there suggestions for the other ports? TIA.

Sounds like you would be receptive about doing things on your own.

First of all, Bar Harbor and Newport are tender ports. Thus it is unlikely that he can go ashore with the scooter. If you can get ashore, there are things you can do.

In Bar Harbor, we booked a private Lobster Boat Tour and just wandered around when we got back. Do not know if the Bar Harbor Trolley is wheelchair accessible. I believe the Lobster Boat was very close to the tender dock. You could write to the Lobster Boat or Whale Watch and ask just how far they are from the tender dock. It might be within walking distance for him.

In Newport, I'd suggest you take the city bus to the starting point of the Cliff Walk. Once you get to the 40 Steps, go a block inland and then head south to The Breakers. You can get city bus back to port area. Google maps to show the local bus stops.

In Boston we used a combination of the metro and city buses. The metro to Bunker Hill and the Constitution area and bus back across the river. Followed the Freedom Trail to Boston Common Visitor's Center area and then bus back to the ship. The hoho bus that has a stop near the ship is wheelchair accessible if you would prefer going that route.

Halifax has a nasty steep hill. Definitely not practical for scooter batteries. We took the city bus to the Citadel. Going the long way back to the ship (through downtown and along the sea walk) would be approximately a two mile walk.

Do not remember what we did in St. Johns.

Have a wonderful cruise,

Betty

Betty- thank you so much for your ideas. We have always been very lucky at tender ports and never had to stay on the ship. The attendants on the tender have helped us lift his scooter into the tender and he can step on. But I realize that every time is different, depends on the tender boats, waves, etc. We always just hope for the best and get in line!

At Halifax- is there any way to get up the steep hill in a vehicle? Like a cab? You are so right- those long steep slopes are murder on scooters.

I've contacted the trolley companies in Boston and Newport- neither can take scooters.

I'll keep looking ]online and maybe I can come up with some things. Thanks.

Yes, there are taxis in Halifax. Do not know if they offer wheelchair accessible taxis, but would assume so. Regardless, if it is a small scooter, chances are that it would fit in the trunk. When we took the bus, there was a stop at the Citadel. The Citadel is accessible. You might have to look for the elevators. They do have a procession, but I do not remember the time. Believe it is listed on their website.

If you are considering the walk / scoot back to the ship, take the south vehicle route from the Citadel to Sackville St. and turn left. Go to Brunswick St. and again turn left. Go all the way to the “Old Town Clock” and turn right on Carmichael St. That will take you all the way to the sea walk. You would pass through the center of things (Grand Parade). You will also see what I said about the steep hill. He will definitely go down the hill in “snail” mode.

We were also lucky at getting on tenders. On that particular cruise, there was guy with a monster scooter, thus the ship enforced their “no scooter” rule. However, crew members knew us from other ships and volunteered to carry both scooters to and from the tenders, thus we got to go ashore both places.

Newport: If you have not visited a mansion, The Breakers is definitely worth a trip. The Cliff Walk is also very nice. The bus we took, is no longer running. You could reverse the trip and take the bus to The Breakers first and then take the Cliff Walk down hill to Memorial Blvd and back to the tender from there. That would be approximate a two mile walk. The hill is a moderate incline. Or you could just go the the Cliff Walk and see a short bit and come back a block to catch the bus.

I'm bewildered, Old Town Trolley is accessible with limitations. They do have a weight restrictions, but the small scooters with rider normally meet the requirements. Here is the link to their page. https://www.trolleytours.com/boston/accessibility-services I was advised of the weight restrictions on a prior inquiry. Do not remember what it was.

Have a wonderful cruise, Betty

I wish that cruises would not go to Tender ports .I cannot use a tender and I am losing out on my vacation.

Halifax has a waterfront boardwalk that I was able to travel with my scooter. It has a Maritime museum and other attractions.

We did this exact cruise last year. My sister uses a Luggie scooter and walks with a cane. We had some bad weather in October so we didn't get off in Newport, which was fine since it was the first stop and gave us a chance to just unwind, relax, and enjoy/explore the ship. Good thing because the weather was so bad it took them hours to get the tenders back onto the ship, which made us late getting into Boston the next day. We did get off in Bar Harbor via tenders and took a tour up to Cadillac Mountain. Once we got back to town, there are shops and restaurants all over. I will say that she do have to walk down steps to get onto the tender (if my memory is accurate). My sister was able to manage the stairs at her own speed and the crew carried the scooter onto the tender. Once we got to the dock, it was an easy walk and once we got the scooter she was able to scoot up the ramp of the dock.

Halifax is fabulous, as someone else said. We were actually meeting a friend who was in the city so we simply walked the boardwalk and then had lunch. I will say that the restaurant was very accommodating and even let my sister plug the scooter in to recharge. The boardwalk is wonderful and a couple of miles long. There's also a market at the port with tons of shopping.

Have a great cruise.

My wife and I will be on the Anthem in October and I have a question about tendering in Bar Harbor. She is in a wheelchair and only able to walk 10 to 15 feet. Will she be able to get on the tender from the ship, and be able to get to dock once she gets off the tender? How helpful are they at the ship, and how helpful are the people operating the tender?

The Regal Princess uses a tender for Newport and Bar Harbor, but the ship has an accessible lift for scooters to it....a little hairy as the platform works similar to a chair lift for stairs, going down 12 steps while on the scooter..but does the job and gets you on the tender. In Bar Harbor, a steep hill to go up, in Newport, no problem.

In Boston, there is a nice brewery that is about 4 blocks away called Harpoon Brewery, accessible, $5 tour and enjoyable. Goggle it. One block after, a small Lobster Roll place.

In Saint John, there's a shopping tent, and a lobster testaurant called Steamers across the street. If you desire to go to The Market and avoid the steep hill, make the first left, to the vendor area instead of going straight. Ask the vendor to show you the accessible entrance for the pedestrian mall. Enter and there is a ramp by the leather shop to main floor. Then find the elevator and transverse the next level...interesting shops. The market is the third level of the complex...using accessible elevators all the way. It's challenging, but fun with lots of people, stores and eateries.

In Halifax, the Harbor Walk ends, about 1.3 miles and the tall building is a casino by the hotel. It's the Casino of Nova Scotia...playing in Canadian dollars. Nice, safe and fun. Very accessible. The Harbor WAlk winds, you can scoot to the sidewalk, 1 block over and go straight to hit it also. About 1.5 miles from port.

Take a look at the Port section on CC, lots of ideas. A fun cruise, great ship. V.

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Forgot to mention, the ship in Halifax docks at Pier 21 or 22. At Pier 21 there is a nice inside shopping area. Right by the front entrance is a sign for the Pier 21 Museum. At a small desk. You can easily miss it. It's the immigration museum of Canada. This is wonderful on a rainy, cold day. It's a nice display of old luggage, stuffed animals, dolls, etc, a short movie of a family coming in to Canada and various other sites. Loved it and I usually don't like museums. The Farmers Market up a little ways on the right before the Harbor Walk entrance is worth a visit too. The Titanic demo in the museum is about 3/4 mile up on the Harbor Walk. Interesting, but Titanic items scarce. Lots to do in Halifax. Just the weather varies so plan accordingly. V.

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Betty, Old Town Trolley answered my email that they are not able to transport scooters. Only folding wheelchairs. But I appreciate your advice very much.

From Betty:

I'm bewildered, Old Town Trolley is accessible with limitations. They do have a weight restrictions, but the small scooters with rider normally meet the requirements. Here is the link to their page. https://www.trolleytours.com/boston/accessibility-services I was advised of the weight restrictions on a prior inquiry. Do not remember what it was.

Have a wonderful cruise, Betty

Betty, Old Town Trolley answered my email that they are not able to transport scooters. Only folding wheelchairs. But I appreciate your advice very much.

Thanks for the info. My immediate thoughts were that maybe they had a mishap at some point and discontinued the service. At the time, they would only take one small scooter and both Ruth and I require a scooter. So we took public transportation. We had used Old Town Trolley in Savannah and was very pleased. That was the main reason we contacted them in Boston.

Something for thought: Every place I wrote to that confirmed they could accommodate us, I carried that confirmation with us. Many times I had to pull out the confirmation. Just last year in Alesund, the individual in charge refused to let us both on at the same time. I had purchased out tickets in advance based on the confirmation that we could both ride at the same time. He still would not allow us on at the same time, so I demanded my money back. He changed his mind and we both rode the same buses and all the drivers were aware of us.

Have a wonderful cruise,

Betty

Betty and vickila and raindrops- thanks for the advice. Vickila- especially for the tips at St. Johns. Sounds like we would never have found that secret way on our own! I've about decided we will do taxis at most ports. Except for Acadia National Park- need to do some kind of bus trip to see it I think.

I never dreamed I would have so much trouble in the US and Canada- we've cruised a lot of places and it's been really easy to find excursions ahead of time that would accommodate the scooter.

Yes, there are taxis in Halifax. Do not know if they offer wheelchair accessible taxis, but would assume so. Regardless, if it is a small scooter, chances are that it would fit in the trunk. When we took the bus, there was a stop at the Citadel. The Citadel is accessible. You might have to look for the elevators. They do have a procession, but I do not remember the time. Believe it is listed on their website.

If you are considering the walk / scoot back to the ship, take the south vehicle route from the Citadel to Sackville St. and turn left. Go to Brunswick St. and again turn left. Go all the way to the “Old Town Clock” and turn right on Carmichael St. That will take you all the way to the sea walk. You would pass through the center of things (Grand Parade). You will also see what I said about the steep hill. He will definitely go down the hill in “snail” mode.

We were also lucky at getting on tenders. On that particular cruise, there was guy with a monster scooter, thus the ship enforced their “no scooter” rule. However, crew members knew us from other ships and volunteered to carry both scooters to and from the tenders, thus we got to go ashore both places.

Newport: If you have not visited a mansion, The Breakers is definitely worth a trip. The Cliff Walk is also very nice. The bus we took, is no longer running. You could reverse the trip and take the bus to The Breakers first and then take the Cliff Walk down hill to Memorial Blvd and back to the tender from there. That would be approximate a two mile walk. The hill is a moderate incline. Or you could just go the the Cliff Walk and see a short bit and come back a block to catch the bus.

I'm bewildered, Old Town Trolley is accessible with limitations. They do have a weight restrictions, but the small scooters with rider normally meet the requirements. Here is the link to their page. https://www.trolleytours.com/boston/accessibility-services I was advised of the weight restrictions on a prior inquiry. Do not remember what it was.

Have a wonderful cruise, Betty

DW has bad knees and last year on NE/Canada- RCI-Rhapsody- She went everywhere with wheelchair= of course- I was behind her pushing - but Tour buses & Trolley in Boston was very accommodating . One stop - forgot which one- (think it was Nova Scotia) RAMP was very steep- RC had helpers who pushed the chair up the steep ramp. We had handicapped cabin, SO ENJOYABLE booked far in advance. Cruising Rhapsody April 2018- to WEST carribbean- Have 1 of the 4 Handicapped room booked.. Got us to head of lines- many times. Did not ask but places are so accommodating.