Wheelchairs?

[Nancy48]

Hi, although I have cruised once before with Celebrity some years ago it was when I was fit and active. Sadly some five years ago I had a devastating illness which has left me disabled. A couple of years ago we bravely set out on our first cruise since then with P & O. I use a wheelchair part time, but find the long distances on ships too much, so use the wheelchair a lot, whilst on board.P & O were great, no problems. Last year we tried Princess, again everyone was really helpful.

 

So my question is will I find it just as easy on celebrity when we cruise with them next June in the Adriatic. My only problems on the previous two have been lift orientated at peak times, when it has been every man(or woman) for themselves. I guess that is common to all cruise lines.

 

Any reassurance that other wheelchair users can give me would be greatly appreciated.

 

Sue

[purpletequila]

Hi Nancy,

We're taking my disabled father on a cruise in November and in speaking to the special access department at Celebrity, they said assistance with embarkation and debarkation is available but other than that, they can not guarantee availability of wheelchairs to use onboard.

 

So, we are bringing our own transport wheelchair and renting a scooter through specialneedsatsea.com, one of Celebrity's partners in that they have access to the ship and deliver the scooter to your cabin so it's there when you get to your room.

 

I've been on several Celebrity cruises and experienced nothing but top notch service. They've always been very helpful with those of us in my family who have traveled with them and I certainly expect them to do what they can if we need some sort of reasonable request to accommodate my father. I'm trying to minimize that possibility through preparation but at the end of the day, the cruise line can only help if they have what we need.

 

If you are bringing your own equipment or renting like we are, I feel confident in saying that you'll be just fine. Can't control rude passengers who might try to cut you in lines or at the elevator but I'd like to think most were raised with proper manners so I'm not worrying too much about that.

 

Just take what you need for mobility and you'll have a great cruise!

 

Good luck!

[Johnno3c]

My wife and I both use wheelchair and a scooter and have found every cruise line we have been on has the same problem with the lifts/elevators at peak times. It is much harder to fit two wheelchairs in at the same time if there is only room for one, so we sometimes have to take separate elevators and meet up at our destination.

 

You should be ok with just one wheelchair needing to ride.

 

We have mentioned to Guest Services about having a dedicated elevator at peak times and sea days but I guess I was speaking to the agent with the deaf ear because nothing was done.

 

The only suggestion I can give is to allow an extra 10-15 minutes travel time to reach your destination on the ship.

 

Enjoy....

[notsomadhatter]

As a part time user who has traveled on Celebrity a few times with a full time user, Celebrity's ships are very wheelchair user-friendly.

[Going Coastal]

I have traveled on Celebrity by wheelchair, scooter, and now by rollator, and have found in each case it is easy sailing, with two provisos. Book an accessible cabin and speak to the special access department as far ahead of your cruise as possible. The ship's wheelchairs will be shuttled back and forth for embarkation but are not available during the cruise when they are used by the onboard medical center. Take what equipment you require and all will be well.

 

Sent from my KFTT using Tapatalk

[kitty9]

As a full time scooter user, Celebrity S Class ships are very disabled friendly. But, you must bring your own wheelchair for use on board, as the few they have are for emergencies only.

 

Yes, waiting for lifts can be long, but what you must do is learn to get to places earlier than you would if you were independently mobile. One trick I use is to catch an up lift when everyone is heading down, or a down lift when most are heading up. For example, at dinner time, I will push the up button on the lift, because everyone is heading down to the MDR. It's easier to get on to an empty elevator heading up instead of trying to squeeze on an already crowded lift that's heading down to the floors where the MDR is located, and it only takes a minute longer to ride up a few floors before heading back down.

[GUT2407]

No problems on Celebrity with a chair.

 

I just spent 5 years in a wheelchair.

 

Been back on my feet, sort of, for about a year, trying to decide should I take my chair this cruise or not.

[searoses]

I would.....the ship seems to get longer and longer as the day wears on....especially on sea days....enjoy!

[varoo]

Our family member who needed a wheelchair temporarily found it much easier and more enjoyable to rent a motorized scooter instead, allowing him to get around the ship independently and easily.

 

There was one thing that he did not anticipate though.

The scooter rental was expensive and he was willing to pay the cost, but then he was informed that they wanted to charge him an extra fee on top of that to insure the scooter in case of damage.

 

Is that a usual thing?

Do most people who rent wheelchairs and scooters also purchase the extra insurance?

 

 

As for the elevators (lifts), after events such as muster drills and theater performances we prefer to sit in a lounge and wait until the crowds clear out before heading for the elevators.

 

There are many passengers who will not step out of an elevator temporarily to clear space to allow a wheelchair or scooter to exit or enter.

Even if taking an elevator down to go up after a theater performance, it will be jam packed full on the way back up, and we prefer to avoid the crowds, even when not needing a wheelchair or scooter. To us, it is just not worth the hassle and we are usually not in any rush to get wherever we are going next.

 

 

 

[GUT2407]

Our family member who needed a wheelchair temporarily found it much easier and more enjoyable to rent a motorized scooter instead, allowing him to get around the ship independently and easily.

 

There was one thing that he did not anticipate though.

The scooter rental was expensive and he was willing to pay the cost, but then he was informed that they wanted to charge him an extra fee on top of that to insure the scooter in case of damage.

 

Is that a usual thing?

Do most people who rent wheelchairs and scooters also purchase the extra insurance?

 

 

As for the elevators (lifts), after events such as muster drills and theater performances we prefer to sit in a lounge and wait until the crowds clear out before heading for the elevators.

 

There are many passengers who will not step out of an elevator temporarily to clear space to allow a wheelchair or scooter to exit or enter.

Even if taking an elevator down to go up after a theater performance, it will be jam packed full on the way back up, and we prefer to avoid the crowds, even when not needing a wheelchair or scooter. To us, it is just not worth the hassle and we are usually not in any rush to get wherever we are going next.

 

 

 

 

 

I use(d) a power wheelchair that folded similar to a normal wheelchair, takes up much less room, can fold to fit through doors, easier to maneuver than a scooter.

 

I then get on the lift when I can no matter if its gong the right way or not.

[varoo]

I use(d) a power wheelchair that folded similar to a normal wheelchair, takes up much less room, can fold to fit through doors, easier to maneuver than a scooter.

 

I then get on the lift when I can no matter if its gong the right way or not.

Thanks for the recommendation.

We didn't even know they were available to rent on the ship, but will certainly try to get one when/if we need one again.

 

 

For people who do not regularly use a wheelchair or scooter, some do not realize that it is a good idea to practice learning how to control it in an open area first before attempting to use it in crowds.

 

We have learned to be extra careful when encountering a wheelchair or scooter while heading to dinner that first night as that may be user's first experience using it. ;)

 

[GUT2407]

Thanks for the recommendation.

We didn't even know they were available to rent on the ship, but will certainly try to get one when/if we need one again.

 

 

For people who do not regularly use a wheelchair or scooter, some do not realize that it is a good idea to practice learning how to control it in an open area first before attempting to use it in crowds.

 

We have learned to be extra careful when encountering a wheelchair or scooter while heading to dinner that first night as that may be user's first experience using it. ;)

 

 

 

Sorry don't think you can just rent once on the ship, you need to pre arrange through a rental agency. The ship will have some manual chairs for emergencies.

 

I own my own.