Float Plane Question

I am thinking of booking a float plane tour on an upcoming cruise. The question I have is how easy or difficult is it to get in and out of the plane? I am bringing my mother who is older and has some knee issues. She can walk, and she can do stairs, but prefers to have a handrail. The problem might be if getting in and out of the plane involves some large steps up or down. Any info provided will be appreciated.

I think it will depend on the size and type of plane.

My mother was about 80 when we did a float plane trip on Vancouver Island. She didn't have any problems. The plane was small; just room for the pilot and the 3 of us. We stepped off the dock, onto the pontoon, then grabbed a small rail at the door. The pilot was standing there to assist if we needed it.

Maybe you would need to check with the vendor ??

I've been in a lot of floatplanes, IF the vendor doesn't have a "ramp" (the vendor I use does), it is ladder type climbing to get in/out the plane. No standing to get to your seat, so meaning you are going to bent over 90'. I would strongly urge you to book this direct and not through the cruise shore excursions. Then contact the vendor directly and fully disclose what your mother's limitations are and what she would need to get in/out of the plane. Go with the vendor's recommendations.

I've been in a lot of floatplanes, IF the vendor doesn't have a "ramp" (the vendor I use does), it is ladder type climbing to get in/out the plane. No standing to get to your seat, so meaning you are going to bent over 90'. I would strongly urge you to book this direct and not through the cruise shore excursions. Then contact the vendor directly and fully disclose what your mother's limitations are and what she would need to get in/out of the plane. Go with the vendor's recommendations.

Totally agree with this. Especially if you have to get into the back seat, you need to be flexible and can need some help.

That is really a difficult question to answer. Having flown commercial bush aircraft for over a dozen years making a living, a majority of which were in sea planes, I can easily say age is not necessarily a limiting criteria.

Also, it is not easy to answer simply by knowing the category and type of aircraft involved as some operators provide more steps from the floats up and into the passenger cabin.

I have flown folks not very agile without a lot of difficulty. If your mother is capable of doing what you indicate I wouldn't be discouraged. Matter of fact I bet it is not a big deal, so relax.

The best way to find out for sure is to contact the air taxi operator directly who is going to be designated to offer the air transport means.

Contacting a travel agent, travel broker or some other related tour enterprise is probably not going to get you much except an ignorant guess or estimate.

Thanks for the help, I will have to start making some calls.

Just returned from a B2B and did a couple of flightseeing tours. Flew with the regular Princess excursion from Juneau with Wings of Alaska and their plane was relatively easy to enter/exit and did the 5 glacier tour.

A much better flight was with Mountain Flying Service based in Haines, but I flew with Paul from Skagway over Glacier Bay on a spectacular day. Flight was 3 times as long and covered a lot more distance and sights and a lower cost. His plane required a little more effort/flexibility to board but he had a ladder and was willing to help if needed. I highly recommend checking him out