Handicap accessibility - Our experience - 12/15-1/5 Viking Sun

[carolinetodd]

I'm surprised by the comments saying that Viking Ocean doesn't have slow-walking versions of their excursions.  We were on Saturn from Istanbul to Barcelona in January and February, and on our first tour, we were assigned a bus with many older and slower folks without having to ask, and after that, every evening our original excursion tickets were replaced with new ones with a bus assignment already on them.  My stick and slow walking speed made me an obvious candidate for the slow bus, but I'm sure that anyone without an obvious disability could request to be assigned to the "leisurely" group.

[OneSixtyToOne]

15 minutes ago, carolinetodd said:

I'm surprised by the comments saying that Viking Ocean doesn't have slow-walking versions of their excursions.  We were on Saturn from Istanbul to Barcelona in January and February, and on our first tour, we were assigned a bus with many older and slower folks without having to ask, and after that, every evening our original excursion tickets were replaced with new ones with a bus assignment already on them.  My stick and slow walking speed made me an obvious candidate for the slow bus, but I'm sure that anyone without an obvious disability could request to be assigned to the "leisurely" group.

They do on Viking River. On our cruise last January on VO, we received a letter saying they were implementing a pilot program of “leisurely” walkers. I do not know if this was rolled out fleet wide.

[Syd58]

4 hours ago, Squawkman said:

Syd68 - maybe you should consider a Viking Mississippi cruise. 10 out of 194 cabins are ADA compliant and the cost is the same as the cheapest cabin even though they are larger. Plus, no foreign accessibility issues as all ports are in the USA.

Thanks for the suggestion, but we have booked Silversea, Seabourn, and Oceania cruises for the next couple of years as we have found them to be accessible-friendly.

[KBs mum]

On 1/24/2018 at 10:49 PM, H2Otstr said:

I don't understand why Viking does not have a "gentle walker's" group on the ocean cruises like they do on the river cruises. I am sure there would be enough people to join that group to make it worth having.

 

We had one very unhappy man on one of our excursions who had a very hard time keeping up because the terrain was very hilly and the cobblestones very uneven and bumpy, and he was very upset that the tour guide would not slow down to his speed. He would have been much happier in a slow/gentle walking group where he could have toured at his own pace instead of trying to keep up with the rest of the group.

We don't book group excursions unless we have to. We see more of the things we are interested in by being independent, and being able to stop to rest whenever we need to

[KBs mum]

On 4/28/2024 at 11:28 PM, Syd58 said:

I agree. Some of these comments are very harsh. They’ll likely think differently when they need assistance walking.  The lack of grace by some constantly amazes me…

I agree with those who ask that people do basic research and are then realistic about their capabilities. 

Having bought a lightweight folding wheelchair and after checking transport compatibility, it's annoying to have to wait for people too stubborn to accept they need mobility equipment

 

 

[KBs mum]

On 4/30/2024 at 2:32 AM, SantaFe1 said:

I just want to chime in here, because, as I get older, I do read the descriptions and ratings religiously.  So on our cruise to Hawaii, last month, I stayed away from a demanding rainforest hike in Maui that my husband did, for 7 hours.  Yes, good.  But I did a demanding 4 hour hike in Honolulu that was fine.  Last year in the Med we did cooking in an Italian Castle that was rated easy.  It was one of the most taxing excursions I have done.  An hour up and down stone staircases in the castle, the standing for two hours in the kitchen with no place to sit.  Pompeii and Herculaneum in Naples were marked demanding, but for me weren’t.  It’s just really hard to tell what you get.  I sometimes google the same shore ex and find that Princess has much better, hour by hour descriptions than Viking does.  But honestly, it just depends on what tires you, I guess.  I am fine walking, but standing and stairs are not great.  I don’t think I have held anyone up yet.  But I would hate to be the one who does that.  

The descriptions are so vague as to be useless, a proper accessibility statement for each is needed.

I use a wheelchair, distance on a level surface is no problem, a short distance on gravel is. For a lot of people the reverse is true.