Possible Wheelchair Need

[m*u*g*]

One tip: If one of your stops is Labadee, they will have these wheelchairs with large inflatable type wheels that will go over sand along with an attendant that will push you to where you want to go. They have these available just as you get off the ship. Don't know if this is a courtesy service or a charge. Probably just a tip is in order.

[GiannaD]

Just got off cruise with own wheelchair and we had no problem getting assistance from RCI to embark, disembark or any time docked.

 

 

This is great to know. Not sure why our family member had her husband push her.

 

The beach wheelchairs with inflatable wheels mentioned in a previous post are also available at Coco Cay.

Edited November 18, 2013 by GiannaD
addition

[cjdixon4]

OP here...

I have gotten some wonderful direction from everyone here. There's a little bit of time to decide whether a wheelchair will be necessary or not; still in the discussion stages right now. Thanks for all of the help! :)

[xxoocruiser]

Does RCCL have restrictions on WHO qualifies for those types of cabins? You may not know the answer, and I may need to call them directly but it's worth asking!

 

 

If the ship is embarking from a USA Port than RCCL must comply with the following restrictions as set forth in a Federal Law under the Department of Transportation that became effective January 1, 2012 which requires the cruise line to verify that the person occupying the cabin has a medical or physical need. The key points to this law are:

 

(g) To prevent fraud in the assignment of accessible cabins (e.g., attempts by individuals who do not have disabilities to reserve accessible cabins because they have greater space, you—

(1) Must inquire of persons seeking to reserve such cabins whether the individual (or an individual for whom the cabin is being reserved) has a mobility disability or a disability that requires the use of the accessible features that are provided in the cabin.

(2) May require a written attestation from the individual that accessible cabin is for a person who has a mobility disability or a disability that requires the use of the accessible features that are provided in the cabin.

 

Under this law the only time it's acceptable for an able body person to book an HC cabin is after the final payment period has past and any unsold HC cabins are than open to the general public for booking.

 

 

 

 

 

I would check with friends at home before you leave to see if anyone has one you can borrow.

 

 

Do not recommend borrowing a wheelchair from a friend unless you know for certain the width of the chair and the chair weight capacity relative to your friend. Wheelchair are not all equal and can vary in width and weight load capacity. Therefore if the chair does not meet the requirements of the end user you place the individual at risk of injury. It's best to rent one from the cruise line's preferred vendor that will ask all the pertinent questions to make certain the individual has the correct type of wheelchair.

 

 

 

 

some are truly WC accessible( wider doors, roll in shower, lower sinks, etc) and some are modified.. say a pulldown seat in the (larger)shower and somewhere in the wording it does stipulate only people with a real need may book them.

 

 

RCCL only has Fully Accessible Cabins.

 

Carnival and Holland America are the only cruise lines that have both Fully Accessible and Modified Accessible Cabins.

 

 

 

 

Thanks so much. Also, we'll be flying to Houston (if we decide on Navigator, which sails from Galveston), so I wonder whether Southwest will charge for storing the wheelchair in one of their compartments? Man, I didn't think about all of this other stuff!

 

A wheelchair is considered Medical Equipment As long as the flight is within the USA than ADA Law applies and the airlines cannot charge a fee.

[dep]

I'm nearing a final decision about our sailing for May 2014 (either Jewel or Navigator). One of my group may require occasional use of a wheelchair while onboard. She is mobile but has problems with her feet periodically, so a "set of wheels" could give her some relief from time to time.

 

Does anybody have prior experience with this? I'm guessing that RCCL doesn't offer wheelchairs onboard, and we'd need to supply our own. Is this the case? Thoughts/suggestions welcome!

 

We always book directly through Royal Caribbean and request pier Assistance which means a wheelchair. You can usually get a wheelchair at guess relations, However they do frown upon using it for the duration of the cruise. No problem with asking. You can also register at guest relations for Pier assistance when disembarking. If I remember correctly you have to be in the atrium for disembarking to get a wheelchair by approximately 7:30 AM.

[reallyitsmema]

 

 

Do not recommend borrowing a wheelchair from a friend unless you know for certain the width of the chair and the chair weight capacity relative to your friend. Wheelchair are not all equal and can vary in width and weight load capacity. Therefore if the chair does not meet the requirements of the end user you place the individual at risk of injury. It's best to rent one from the cruise line's preferred vendor that will ask all the pertinent questions to make certain the individual has the correct type of wheelchair.

 

Hopefully, this is a typo because I will not be lectured.

[dorisg55]

I too have issues with walking long distances. On our Oct. Explorer cruise we rented a wheelchair from Special needs at sea, we also used them for our January cruise. The wheelchair was in our cabin when we arrived and we just left it when we were leaving. We thought about bringing my wheelchair but decided it was worth the $125 for the week. We didn't need to juggle carry-ons. I used it when I needed to and when I didn't I left it closed in the cabin.

They have wheelchairs in the terminals and they will take you on the ship and then you can arrange for one for disembarkation. When leaving we waited in a special area and then they took us off, they also had a special line for Customs.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Doris

[cjdixon4]

I too have issues with walking long distances. On our Oct. Explorer cruise we rented a wheelchair from Special needs at sea, we also used them for our January cruise. The wheelchair was in our cabin when we arrived and we just left it when we were leaving. We thought about bringing my wheelchair but decided it was worth the $125 for the week. We didn't need to juggle carry-ons. I used it when I needed to and when I didn't I left it closed in the cabin.

They have wheelchairs in the terminals and they will take you on the ship and then you can arrange for one for disembarkation. When leaving we waited in a special area and then they took us off, they also had a special line for Customs.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Doris

 

It sure does, Doris. Thanks!

[mom says]

Hopefully, this is a typo because I will not be lectured.

 

I doubt that xxoocruiser was intending to lecture anyone. However the info that was given was completely accurate and very important from a safety standpoint. As both a wheelchair user and a former orthopedic nurse with years of experience caring for patients in wheelchairs, I would also like to say that (aside from the safety considerations) a chair that is too big or too small for the user is very uncomfortable if needed for more than a very short interval.

[bobinfl]

Fwiw, I also have difficulty walking distances and climbing stairs. Last year I cruised on the Freedom and rented a scooter from Special Needs at Sea. It was the heavy duty model and it was waiting for me in my cabin when I arrived. This was a standard balcony cabin, not a handicapped cabin. It was a tight fit, but it did fit through the door. When we debarked, I left the scooter in the room and got wheelchair assistance to the terminal.

 

These rentals are very common and the vendor is aware of the cabin door sizes. Just call them for confirmation.

[cruisequeen10]

They have wheelchairs on board that you can borrow. We did this on the Rhapsody and they said we had to put a $200 deposit down. They took my cabin number then delivered the chair to my cabin. My aunt actually used it and she was in the cabin next door to us. We also had handicapped cabins. You can only use the wheelchairs on board and you cannot take them off the ship. My aunt just needed it to get around the ship, because it was so big. They never charged the $200 to my account. I just had to bring the wheelchair back to guest services and they checked it off as being returned.

[riclop]

RCI doesnt require anything but a Special Needs form signed and faxed to the Special Needs dept.

 

Needing a wheelchair for limited mobility issues is a legit reason to book a HA cabin :)

 

I would hurry though as these cabins sometimes are filled a year in advance.

 

The form can also be filled out online at the link below.

 

https://secure.royalcaribbean.com/allaboutcruising/guestSpecialNeeds.do

Thanks for the link.

[MonDreamr1]

I'm not sure if the rental place has these, but for lesser mobility issues they make a hybrid wheelchair/walker (google Transport Wheelchair Chair Rollator Walker / rolling walker- I don't think it will let me post a link)

 

My grandmother and aunt used them mainly as walkers - but if they got tired it was easy enough for them to be transported or just sit somewhere until they were ready to go again. My dad was a below the knee amputee along with having RA. Some days he was fine, but if he had to walk longer distances and it was a bad RA day - no go. He'd use it as a walker, but it was also kept in the car (took up less space) for when he needed a wheelchair and the distance was too far for him to walk.

[cjdixon4]

OP here-

Didn't expect so many responses. Many great suggestions and things to consider; I greatly appreciate the input! :)

[ryano]

Hopefully, this is a typo because I will not be lectured.

 

I agree with you :) But that seems to be her mojo around here to lecture everyone on all things disabled cruising.

 

For someone that is a FULL TIME wheelchair user and confined to one, I would certainly agree with her lecture that the chair needs to be properly fitted. However, I doubt very seriously the vendors listed above are gonna take much time properly fitting someone to a rental wheelchair.

 

Its really no different on a cruise for someone using a wheelchair temporarily than it is using an amusement parks wheelchair where they are pretty much "one size fits all".

Edited November 20, 2013 by ryano

[reallyitsmema]

I agree with you :) But that seems to be her mojo around here to lecture everyone on all things disabled cruising.

 

For someone that is a FULL TIME wheelchair user and confined to one, I would certainly agree with her lecture that the chair needs to be properly fitted. However, I doubt very seriously the vendors listed above are gonna take much time properly fitting someone to a rental wheelchair.

 

Its really no different on a cruise for someone using a wheelchair temporarily than it is using an amusement parks wheelchair where they are pretty much "one size fits all".

After reading so many lectures to people when they innocently ask questions, that one just hit a nerve. No one is going to tell me "do not recommend...", if she meant "I do not recommend..." that is a different story but no one is going to tell me what I can and can not recommend.

 

If someone is going to occasionally use a wheelchair, a borrowed one is just fine. Common sense tells you that you wouldn't borrow a huge chair for a child or a child size chair for a large person. Borrowing a chair for someone who might have mobility issues is not a big deal. If the problem becomes chronic, then being fitted is important. A borrowed chair for a week on a cruise ship is going to allow the person to be included and enjoy their cruise like everyone else.

 

It is great that you answer questions in this forum about wheelchairs and accessibility. You give such positive help to all those that ask questions.:)

[xxoocruiser]

After reading so many lectures to people when they innocently ask questions, that one just hit a nerve. No one is going to tell me "do not recommend...", if she meant "I do not recommend..." that is a different story but no one is going to tell me what I can and can not recommend.

 

If someone is going to occasionally use a wheelchair, a borrowed one is just fine. Common sense tells you that you wouldn't borrow a huge chair for a child or a child size chair for a large person. Borrowing a chair for someone who might have mobility issues is not a big deal. If the problem becomes chronic, then being fitted is important. A borrowed chair for a week on a cruise ship is going to allow the person to be included and enjoy their cruise like everyone else.

 

It is great that you answer questions in this forum about wheelchairs and accessibility. You give such positive help to all those that ask questions.:)

 

First - My original post was never a lecture. It's unfortunate that you chose to take it that way

 

Secondly -what I stated in that post was accurate and I still do not recommend people borrowing a wheelchair if that the chair is not the proper width and weight load capcity for the end user.

 

Third - Borrowing a chair for someone who might only have a mobility issue IS a big deal. As stated in my previous post not all wheelchairs are equal. Wheelchairs come in varying weight load capacities generally beginning at 150 lbs annd than proceeding upwards. Common sense should also be used when borrowing wheelchair that has a weight laod capacity that does not meet the end users needs. Many times this information has been removed from a borrowed chair . If a person borrows a wheelchair that has a weight load capacity of 150 lbs and the user's weight exceeds that than the person is placed at risk of injury by a wheel collapsing due to the inability to withstand the users weight ...if not the whole chair collapsing. So yes even with mobiltiy issues not having the proper wheelchair fitted to that persons weight is a big deal. I have mobility issues due to MS and would never borrow my mother's wheelchair even if only on occassion knowing that the chair does meet my weight load capacity. I stand behind what I have posted and am not responsible if you choose to interpret this as lecture rather than for the safety information that it's meant to convey.

 

Have a good week !

Edited November 20, 2013 by xxoocruiser