Aqua class-handicapped accessible cabins

[CruiserDoc]

Does anyone have personal experience with the handicapped accessible cabins in Aqua class on the Solstice class ships? These would be cabins 1522,1524,1526 and 1538 on Penthouse Deck?

Any information would be appreciated.

[floridacruisers]

Although I did not have any experience with the Aqua class handicapped cabins, I was able to look inside one and what I can tell you is that they are the size of suite!

Phil

[teajak]

Does anyone have personal experience with the handicapped accessible cabins in Aqua class on the Solstice class ships? These would be cabins 1522,1524,1526 and 1538 on Penthouse Deck?

Any information would be appreciated.

We just had cabin 1522, what would you like to know?

[CruiserDoc]

Was the room considerably larger than a normal room? Were the beds available either as twins or king? Did the bathroom have a bathtub? Was there a separate shower and did the water from the shower stay contained in the shower (we've been in some handicapped rooms where the water was all over the floor)? Were there loungers on the balcony or just chairs? Any problems with the room?

Thanks so much for input-if you have any pictures, I'd love to see them-you can email them to cruiserdoc at aol dot com. Thanks!

[tcher0619]

We had a look at an Access cabin on the Solstice last Feb. We have booked 1524 for our Oct. TA on the Equinox because of the ample size of the room. We managed fine last year, but the difference in size will make our Oct. cruise much more scooter friendly and over all more manageable.

[WheelieBob]

We are booked into cabin 1538 on the February 21st sailing. If there are specific questions you have, we will certainly check it out when we are there and report back to you on our return. I am also looking for info on these cabins before we go so anything anyone can shed light on would be fantastic.

 

Do the showers have the ledge for shaving your legs like the "regular" cabins?

 

Thanks

Mrs. Wheelie

[JSR]

Was the room considerably larger than a normal room? Were the beds available either as twins or king? Did the bathroom have a bathtub? Was there a separate shower and did the water from the shower stay contained in the shower (we've been in some handicapped rooms where the water was all over the floor)? Were there loungers on the balcony or just chairs? Any problems with the room?

Thanks so much for input-if you have any pictures, I'd love to see them-you can email them to cruiserdoc at aol dot com. Thanks!

 

May I inquire as to the reason for your questions?Do you or your traveling partner use a mobility device that requires the extra space? Do you have a disability that would not allow you to stay in a suite for extra space. If you are disabled I am sure others would be happy to answer your questions as I would be upon my return on Feb. 7. Check the disabilites board on this forum.

If you or your traveling companion do not have a mobility or other disability that requires you to have a handicap accessible cabin then you should not book one. You will be preventing someone who could not otherwise cruise from cruising. There are 20 accessible cabins on the entire ship, there are over 1400 non accessible cabins in 11 categories for you to chose from.

[teajak]

Was the room considerably larger than a normal room? Were the beds available either as twins or king? Did the bathroom have a bathtub? Was there a separate shower and did the water from the shower stay contained in the shower (we've been in some handicapped rooms where the water was all over the floor)? Were there loungers on the balcony or just chairs? Any problems with the room?

Thanks so much for input-if you have any pictures, I'd love to see them-you can email them to cruiserdoc at aol dot com. Thanks!

1.Much larger,big help using a walker all of the time.

2.No bathtub in H rooms

3.No seperate shower, we banked the rug mat but water gets around it.

4.Great loungers with seperate foot stools.

5.Beds can be seperate, next time we are asking for that.

6.Seat in shower is small, you can't bend over or your head hits the rail,take my word for it,it hurts.No shaving for the previous reason.LOL

7. No pictures sorry, the room was great,didn't care for Aqua class, not worth extra if you have a handicapped room, will stay with just a balcony next time.The couch in the room is very small barely room for one person.The room steward puts all of the extra bedding on it at night.We kept the small table clear and moved the bedding to that so there was a place to sit.

My only complaint about Celebrity is they release the handicapped rooms to the general public 60 days out and they will not keep a waiting list.We had to book only 3 weeks out bcause of DH emergency surgery and were just lucky I saw this opening on a different web site, it was such a big help. Someone must have cancelled , my TA really had to fight to get it, many phone calls and different answers every time.I really will never understand how an able bodied person would not give up a handicapped room if needed.Off my soapbox now.Any other questions,just ask.

[JSR]

didn't care for Aqua class, not worth extra if you have a handicapped room, will stay with just a balcony next time..

 

We are in Aqua class HA room. I am a T5 para and use a manuel wheelchair. I would like to know what you did not care for about Aqua class and why it is not worth it if you are in an accessible cabin?

 

Thanks

[teajak]

We are in Aqua class HA room. I am a T5 para and use a manuel wheelchair. I would like to know what you did not care for about Aqua class and why it is not worth it if you are in an accessible cabin?

 

Thanks

1.perks not worth it to us,didn't use Persian Gardens or relaxation room,didn't have canapes(early dinner,Michaels club elite),bottled water and iced tea nice.

2. Handicapped room does not have shower with jets.

3. We know we are in minority but we did not care for Blu, the food presentation was nice but the quality of the food was poor,very tough steak and lobster, etc. Many people disagree with this and we know it so I won't debate this.

Regular balcony handicapped rooms are just as spacious, Aqua class rooms are not larger.We tried this because the price dropped to below the price of a regular balcony.I would not pay extra for Aqua.JMHO.

[titansfanatic]

I appreciate the information you have posted so far. We have a AQ accessible room and I was hoping you could tell me a few more things. Mostly regarding the bathroom. Does the shower have a curtain or door? If I understood you correctly, it does not have the water jets? Basically, is there anything that is provided for normal AQ rooms that the accessible rooms do not have?

 

Thanks

[teajak]

I appreciate the information you have posted so far. We have a AQ accessible room and I was hoping you could tell me a few more things. Mostly regarding the bathroom. Does the shower have a curtain or door? If I understood you correctly, it does not have the water jets? Basically, is there anything that is provided for normal AQ rooms that the accessible rooms do not have?

 

Thanks

Do not have the shower jets,only a hand held adjustable shower head,curtain.I can't think of anything else except the large room, no over the bed storage, (I couldn't use that anyway). Bed is in the center.Tight in the shower with the seat but doabel( Is that a word?), just don't drop anything.1522 is a great room.

[titansfanatic]

Thank you for your timely reply. Our cruise sets sail in 4 weeks, May 9th, and we just upgraded to Aqua from a 2b category. They put us in a Accessible room, which we don't need and told them as much, and they said that was all that was available. I tried to find another room, but according to celebrity website, aqua is sold out. Concierge is still available.

 

The extra space is important for people who need it, but not a big deal for me. But I am stuck now, as I can't go back to my old room for the same cost as when I booked 3 months ago.

 

So from a selfish standpoint, would an able bodied person prefer an Aqua Class stateroom or Aqua class Accessible room? I don't want to downgrade to concierge class (looking forward to Blu) for about the same costs, but....

 

P.S. right word, wrong spelling: doable

Edited April 7, 2010 by titansfanatic

[teajak]

Thank you for your timely reply. Our cruise sets sail in 4 weeks, May 9th, and we just upgraded to Aqua from a 2b category. They put us in a Accessible room, which we don't need and told them as much, and they said that was all that was available. I tried to find another room, but according to celebrity website, aqua is sold out. Concierge is still available.

 

The extra space is important for people who need it, but not a big deal for me. But I am stuck now, as I can't go back to my old room for the same cost as when I booked 3 months ago.

 

So from a selfish standpoint, would an able bodied person prefer an Aqua Class stateroom or Aqua class Accessible room? I don't want to downgrade to concierge class (looking forward to Blu) for about the same costs, but....

 

P.S. right word, wrong spelling: doable

The room is much larger and so is the balcony in 1522, so you might as well enjoy it since Celebrity refuses to keep a waiting list for handicapped people.The perks are nice, free water,iced tea, flowers,access to Persian Gardens if you want.We did not care for Blu, much prefer the MDR but that is just our opinion. It was not the crew but the quality of the food we were very disappointed in.Great room steward also.

[titansfanatic]

The room is much larger and so is the balcony in 1522, so you might as well enjoy it since Celebrity refuses to keep a waiting list for handicapped people.The perks are nice, free water,iced tea, flowers,access to Persian Gardens if you want.We did not care for Blu, much prefer the MDR but that is just our opinion. It was not the crew but the quality of the food we were very disappointed in.Great room steward also.

 

TeaJak,

Thanks again for your input. Looks like we will enjoy the larger cabin. One last question, could you advise if the couch was the same size as the other room?

[kitty9]

Thank you for your timely reply. Our cruise sets sail in 4 weeks, May 9th, and we just upgraded to Aqua from a 2b category. They put us in a Accessible room, which we don't need and told them as much, and they said that was all that was available. I tried to find another room, but according to celebrity website, aqua is sold out. Concierge is still available.

 

The extra space is important for people who need it, but not a big deal for me. But I am stuck now, as I can't go back to my old room for the same cost as when I booked 3 months ago.

 

So from a selfish standpoint, would an able bodied person prefer an Aqua Class stateroom or Aqua class Accessible room? I don't want to downgrade to concierge class (looking forward to Blu) for about the same costs, but....

 

P.S. right word, wrong spelling: doable

 

I'm disabled and use a scooter, so I'm a bit concerned when AB passengers book accessible cabins. It's not anyone's fault when Celebrity changes cabins to give an AB person an accessible cabin, but for anyone to ever purposely book one just for the larger cabin is not right.

 

As for the amenities in AQ, the accessible shower is much smaller with the seat taking up a lot of the space. It's a hand-held shower head. Not all that comfortable for an able bodied person. No bath tub as a physically handicapped person usually cannot use a tub without a tub lift.

[teajak]

I'm disabled and use a scooter, so I'm a bit concerned when AB passengers book accessible cabins. It's not anyone's fault when Celebrity changes cabins to give an AB person an accessible cabin, but for anyone to ever purposely book one just for the larger cabin is not right.

 

As for the amenities in AQ, the accessible shower is much smaller with the seat taking up a lot of the space. It's a hand-held shower head. Not all that comfortable for an able bodied person. No bath tub as a physically handicapped person usually cannot use a tub without a tub lift.

Since Celebrity will not keep a waiting list for HC people that need an accessable room when they are released they go to anyone that wants it.It is not that persons fault, just the luck of the draw and no reason to refuse it because it wouldn't go to a HC person anyway.A very poor system that we have tried to get them to change.Since they don't have a list there is no way to know if someone needs it.

The couch in 1522 is a small loveseat,very small.

[tn.traveler]

just booked XA guara:confused:ntee cabin...within the hr i was given 1522....we are not handicapped. i am going to call celebrity and offer to change if someone needs this cabin. ship leaves mid mar so maybe they figured no one would want it.

[marieps]

just booked XA guara:confused:ntee cabin...within the hr i was given 1522....we are not handicapped. i am going to call celebrity and offer to change if someone needs this cabin. ship leaves mid mar so maybe they figured no one would want it.

 

That's a nice gesture.

[Lsimon]

...would an able bodied person prefer an Aqua Class stateroom or Aqua class Accessible room? I don't want to downgrade to concierge class (looking forward to Blu) for about the same costs, but....

 

I have not had an AQ Accessible cabin but was once assigned a Concierge Class accessible cabin years ago (Assigned it a week before sailing).

 

As an able bodied person, and all other things being equal, I would generally prefer a regular cabin over an accessible cabin. But if there were situations like yours where I was assigned an accessible cabin and alternatives were not as nice in terms of class or location then I wouldn't go to lengths to avoid the accessible cabin either.

 

The pros for an able bodied person is that accessible cabins are several feet wider to accommodate extra room for a wheelchair or scooter and a larger bathroom with a walk-in/roll-in shower. The extra space is nice but isn't a really big deal for an able bodied person.

 

The cons were that the accessible features of the rooms fixtures provided a little less storage than a standard cabin. For example the closet was the same size but had a fixture to lower the rod which effectively reduced the space for hanging clothing by a couple inches. The bathroom sink had no cabinets underneath in order to to allow room for a wheelchair to pull up. These were not big distractions but things that I'd prefer to have the standard features on if given a choice.

 

Again this was a CC cabin on a different ship but I presume the AQ accessible cabins would have similar features.

[amcnett84]

Hi all, we are heading to Eastern Carib in Sept on Allure. My fiance is paraplegic... we have an accessible room but have any if you booked wheelchair accessible activities in st thomas, st marteen, or nassau? Were they truly accessible for someone paralyzed?

[jasm8449]

Hi all, we are heading to Eastern Carib in Sept on Allure. My fiance is paraplegic... we have an accessible room but have any if you booked wheelchair accessible activities in st thomas, st marteen, or nassau? Were they truly accessible for someone paralyzed?

 

 

 

You may want to also check the following websites:

 

curbfreewithcorylee.com

 

sagetraveling.com

 

disabilityhorizons.com

 

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[Viktoria]

We booked a Handicapped A2 suite and were very disappointed. It was on the summit. I use a walker but can walk a short distance without it. There was no comfortable chair and the balcony did not seem any larger than a regular balcony. The worse thing was altho there was a seat in the shower which i did not use ( I use the bars) the floor was so slippery that I only took one shower and had to wash the old fashioned way. When I complained to the room steward, and asked for a bath mat, he told me to use the rubber soled slippers!! The room had a terrible sweaty smell and the pillows had to be changed 3 times. No more suites or Summit for me! I did complain to my TA and was given a $400 credit on my next cruise which had already been booked. Hopefully they have done something to make the shower safer.