Nickymmm

Thanks everyone for your replies, that’s all very helpful.

I’m speaking with MSC again today so will double check port info.

very grateful for your advice.

Hello all,

We are looking at a 12 night Spain/Canaries cruise departing Southampton on 23 October.

Husband is a full time wheelchair user and we have found an accessible balcony room available on a Fantastica rate.

We would take a hoist onboard which we understnad would be fine in a reduced mobility cabin.

Ports are Lisbon, Funchal, Las Palmas, Santa Cruz Tenerife, Arrecife Lanzarote and Vigo.  I can't seem to find anywhere which might tell me which ports may be tender only - I appeciate this may change.

Does anyone have any experience of a similar itinerary?  We know that whhelchair accessible tours are difficult to find and so we are happy to do our own thing if shuttle buses are available into the towns etc.

Any other accessible tips or knowledge from MSC cruisers would be welcome too!

Many thanks.

Thanks Florry!

We're looking forward to it - I understand she is going for a refit shortly after we cruise, but I have heard lots of good things about her! Fingers crossed that the Norwegian weather is good!

Hi everyone,

looking forward to our first P&O cruise to Norway on Arcadia in September.

Quick question - we have an early boarding time of 12.30, can we get lunch on board? In-laws and my mother are travelling with us and they have a later boarding time of 2pm - will lunch still be available then or should I organise something for them in the terminal before they board?

Husband is a full time wheelchair user and we have booked cabin D1 mini suite (which I am reliably informed is miles away from the lifts....it was the only accessible one left!). Apparently it's a good size, has anyone stayed in it?

Many thanks

Thank you for your response Selbourne.

I can assist husband with pushing the chair up the ramps to the boat; I understand what you mean about people abusing the system - I have read many threads on here about it!!

Hopefully we will have a super cruise to the Fjords.

Thanks again.

Hi everyone,

I wonder if some of you seasoned P&O cruisers might be able to answer this question?

We are going on a Fjords cruise in September on Arcadia. My husband is a full time wheelchair user and we have booked a mini suite. We have his parents, my mother and my 18 year old step daughter in nearby rooms (2 insides and 1 balcony).

(We have only cruised once before for our honeymoon last year so forgive the stupid question!!)

So - we are all arriving together in 2 cars at the terminal. Will husband be asked to board early because of the wheelchair? And if so and the others have a later boarding time, will they possibly let them board with us? Doesn't really matter either way, I'm just trying to prepare parents (all in their 80s) and manage their expectations!

We all have Freedom dining - do I need to make the restaurant aware of his wheelchair or shall we just rock up and they'll sort us with a suitable table as and when available?

Thank you in advance.

Nicky

Loving your reports, you write very well!

Have a wonderful time, I cannot WAIT to get on Lizzie in exactly 2 weeks!!

Enjoy your trip and hopefully wonderful weather too!

Nicky :)

Don't worry about being overdressed, I am sure you will look fabulous.

The hairdryers aren't the best , if you are sailing from the UK and have the room in your case it might be worth taking your own. I have thick hair and usually regret relying on theirs.

Thank you Hattie, I am looking forward to every second of it!

I too have thick hair and as we are UK based, I'll take it to be safe I think. Those 'hold onto the button' ones make me look like a backcombed bush on a bad day!

Well, Nicky, all I can say is you won't be alone. I also have acquired an extra evening gown which I intend to wear on informal nights. We shall keep each other company. Also you will be on honeymoon so that is an even better excuse!

Haha!! I will look out for you, we can be overdressed together! looking forward to it very much!! Almost more excited about the cruise than the wedding...ALMOST!! :D:D

Hello all,

I am curious....can one be overdressed?

I seem to have acquired more 'evening' dresses than may be strictly necessary :rolleyes:

Do ladies sometimes wear long/sparkly/evening gowns (beaded etc, not ballgowns) on informal evenings? Or would those be frowned upon and should I stick with cocktail length for informal nights?

And can anyone tell me if the hairdryer so in PG suites are any use or shall I just bring my own to be safe!?

Thank you in advance, Nicky

https://ask.cunard.com/help/cunard/fleet/adapted_toilet.

 

A shame Cunard couldn't point you here!

Well that's very helpful, thank you! They aren't obvious on the deck plans I was looking at!

We're off on QE shortly and my (nearly!) husband is a full time wheelchair user. He needs me to assist in the bathroom. I'm almost certain we asked this question of the 'accessibility' department and they confirmed there are several disabled friendly bathrooms in the main ship areas to save returning to the cabin.

I'm now doubting this info and am off to check deck plans!!!

I'm fairly certain there would be disabled bathrooms available throughout a ship like QM2 or either of the others; as they advertise accessible facilities this would be a requirement.

I'll come back if I find out any more! :)

Nicky

Provided you have informed Cunard about your husband's requirements, which I assume you have, you won't be pushing him yourself. There are Mobility Assistants available to do the pushing, which can be a little steep at times.

 

Congratulations on your impending marriage and have a great trip.

Thank you Gill, we are looking forward to it so much!

I'm almost more excited about the cruise than the wedding :D haha!

This forum has been so helpful with our planning, I'm hugely grateful for it.

Nicky

Hi again Nicky

 

It is a Disney style zig-zag, but, you will have an assistant, AND you'll get priority. Obviously in PG you have it anyway, but you might find you'll beat the queue.

 

Aim to get to check in around 12:00, or even a little before.

 

We'll watch out for you.

 

Sftewart

Thank you again for your information Stewart, I thought it would be Disney zigzag style!

Looking forward to it very much!

Nicky

Hello all,

34 days and counting!!

Another newbie question for you lucky people who are familiar with Southampton and Queen Elizabeth!

My fiance (will be husband when we board!) is a full time wheelchair user, we have already sent the documentation to Cunard for this. Can anyone tell me; is there a long steep incline to get on board or is it a gentle slope? Or do we board at a level....I have no idea! Only asking as I know I'm going to struggle to help him push as well as carry a bag of essentials if it's one of those long zig-zag passageways. If I will need help with this, should I contact Cunard and enquire or wing it on the day?

Should add that he can push himself unless it is a long incline or particularly steep in parts! I'm not familiar with the set up at embarkation so would be grateful for your advice.

Nicky

We tried today too and got a similar response -we both tried different tacks and got nowhere fast. We were told 'at your card providers rate' and 'standard exchange rate' by two different operatives.

Having said that, we also tried our TA who didn't know anything about gift credit!! Very frustrating!

Hi Sarah & Andy

 

They're on the Spain & Italy one with us on 24 October.

 

Starting to think seriously about it now.

 

Stewart

I'm thinking about little else - oh, apart from the wedding a week before the cruise :D:eek:

These posts are so useful to us first timers, I really appreciate all the info and knowledge on here. I know one can overload one's mind with information but there seems to be one common mantra...take half the clothes and double the money!

Nicky

Oldcruiser,

Great to read your observations. We're on our first cruise on QE in October and we're really looking forward to it!

5 weeks today and I'll be ready and waiting to get onboard!

Thanks again for your info, Nicky

Fantastic! Thank you all so much for your input.

I can't wait, I'm so excited!

Nicky

Morning all,

We are taking our honeymoon on QE this October. We are booked into Princess grill and on the VP, our dining option is listed as 6.30pm on a table of 6.

We are thinking we might prefer to eat later. So should we change this in advance or wait and see what happens when we get on board? We're very sociable 40-somethings so quite happy on a table with others.

Sorry for thick newbie question....I'm sure this has been asked a billion times before!

Nicky

Oh how exciting! I will be following your journey, I am sure it will be absolutely wonderful! Have an amazing time, I am looking forward to reading more about it.

Nicky

Can I just point out that for a full time wheelchair user, who cannot walk or weight bear AT ALL is completely dependant on a wheelchair. We have no option but to book an accessible cabin/stateroom. (And this is great, because we need the facilities it provides!)

Scooters or wheelchairs or prams/strollers/room service trays/housekeeping carts, make getting through a hallway impossible (usually) to pass for a person in a wheelchair. Likewise for someone else in a scooter, or a parent pushing a child in a buggy.

Accessible cabins are limited, this is unfortunate for us all, as we want to enjoy vacations as anyone else would! They are booked up fast, because they are in high demand. It's one of those things, unfortunately.

I speak on behalf of my partner who is paralysed and as such, we have to plan and plan and plan way ahead!

We come across this issue in hotels and public facilities wherever we go. Cruise lines are no different. If you need an accessible cabin, book one. Make life easy for yourselves and enjoy!

They aren't more expensive, they are just in high demand, so sadly for us all we will never see them at rock bottom prices!

But you can ensure a great, happy cruise and all the facilities of a wonderful holiday knowing that you can benefit from all the great amenities your cruise will offer you.

Happy sailing!

I should add.....I have no experience of the cruise line you are speaking of, I'm just adding my experience of living with a disabked partner and all the difficulties that can bring. I agree that we get annoyed when we have to book things (concerts, hotels, holidays) and the access is more complicated! :)

Thanks for the comments so far, I'll see if I can do something to make it stand out a bit more. We have very few stickies compared to some boards but it seems it's being missed.

Hattie, I think the info here is well detailed. I do agree that stickies are clearly of huge benefit, and the more they stand out, the better!

I note that many of us newbies are often directed to stickies within threads, which is great, but a lot of the answers are already there so maybe they do need to be more prominent?

I'm dying to know exactly how many formal nights on our cruise and speakers etc, but I appreciate this information will be given nearer to the date of our cruise in October.

So I now know to check back to the stickies and that info will be readily available nearer the time!

This forum is a mine of information and as a new cruiser, I have learnt so much already. I truly admire and appreciate the advice and knowledge available and am looking forward to passing back info for others after our trip; particularly from the viewpoint of my partner as he is disabled. We are busily trawling the boards for additional info about our accessible stateroom and ports access etc.

So as and when done enjoying the delights of QE I hope to be able to update other travellers on the 'disabled cruise' section; this is invaluable for us!

Thank you for taking the time and effort to post the info in the stickie, I will remember to look for info here (when and if the Cunard website is behaving!).

Happy sailing (and Welsh wishes!) x ;)

Yes I found it very useful!

I had already discovered some of the info via the Cunard uk website, but really enjoyed looking through the daily programmes and menus too!

Thank you for putting all the info together in one place, it's so helpful! I will endeavour to check the sticky before posting (more) silly newbie questions! :D

Thank you all for your help, I am certain I will be posting a lot more questions!

My only concern now is that I have to wait 261 sleeps to get on this ship and I just can't wait to experience her and everything about the trip!

Great advice about Grills dining and I appreciate all your advice.

Happy sailing everyone! :)