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Wheelchairs on Board?


jldvestal
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Supposed to go on a 9 day cruise in 3 weeks, broke my ankle this week. Having surgery on Wednesday, but won't be able to put any weight on it for 4-6 weeks. Does anyone know if they have wheelchairs on the Navigator I can use for the cruise or if you have to rent one from a local company? Just looking for one you can push, not an electric one. Thanks!

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Supposed to go on a 9 day cruise in 3 weeks, broke my ankle this week. Having surgery on Wednesday, but won't be able to put any weight on it for 4-6 weeks. Does anyone know if they have wheelchairs on the Navigator I can use for the cruise or if you have to rent one from a local company? Just looking for one you can push, not an electric one. Thanks!

They do have wheelchairs on the ship, but only for temporary use, getting you on and off the ship. If you need one for the duration of the cruise, you need to supply one yourself.

 

 

Here's another rental company: https://www.scootaround.com/cruise-rentals/wheelchair-rentals

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the chairs on board are for emergency use only( someone gets hurt on board and needs to be transported down to deck 2 to the clinic) or for embarkation/disembarkation .

 

bring your own. renting locally is the best option as anything you rent for use on board will be in the cabin, which is not accessible until 1 pm and in the meantime they drop you off at a public area to be left to your own devices.

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My wife basically had the same problem on our last cruise this past Nov, purchased a transport chair which is a lot less expensive than a wheel chair.

I agree with this..as long as you have someone to push you. A transport chair has no wheels to push "yourself"...but they are extremely inexpensive (under $100) as apposed to hundreds of dollars to rent one. They do not take up much room and are easily collapsible. CVS, Walgreens, Rite Aid, Walmart .....all carry them. I don't know if you need to elevate your leg...but transport chairs, also do not have leg extenders.

Edited by champagne123
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A transport chair will not give you the independence that you probably want as someone always has to push you . Also because of it's small wheel size it doesn't handle the variable floor coverings on the ship all that well.

 

A standard wheelchair is better but personally as was mentioned in another post puchasing a knee rollator really is the better option. Keeps the weight off the ankle, keeps you upright and using your good leg and allows for total independence.

 

Regardless of the type of mobility device the issue that hasn't been addressed is that assuming you have standard cabin none of these devices will fit into the bathroom. You'have to to step up/down into the bathroom as well. Have you contacted RCCL to see if there is an accessible cabin still available for your cruise ?

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I use a wheelchair for long distances, and a cane for shorter - I also would recommend in your situation a knee scooter.

Some things people don't think about when they don't need a wheelchair, such as; being able to fit in smaller places and shopping with no defined rows would be much easier with a knee scooter than a full chair. Also being able to 'see' your choices at a buffet would be easier when you are not sitting down. You may need help with your plate but you can help yourself much better when you can get close enough to serve yourself. Independence may be lost a bit but you will be able to do more with a knee scooter than going in the direction that the person pushing decides. Also, one final point, with a wheelchair it gets lonely. The person pushing you cannot hear you well so you will have to turn around to chat and that gets tiring and lonely, if given an option I would take the scooter to a wheelchair any day but in my situation, I don't have an option. I would suggest you not get a motorized scooter - I feel you would need the practice to drive these and the Caribbean is not a good place learn it plus some of the sidewalks are narrow and hard to navigate.

I wish you the best of luck in healing that sounds painful!

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I agree with this..as long as you have someone to push you. A transport chair has no wheels to push "yourself"...but they are extremely inexpensive (under $100) as apposed to hundreds of dollars to rent one. They do not take up much room and are easily collapsible. CVS, Walgreens, Rite Aid, Walmart .....all carry them. I don't know if you need to elevate your leg...but transport chairs, also do not have leg extenders.

 

 

Walgreens sells these, regular wheelchairs and the knee scooters. Make sure you get the member card first because it saves a bunch off the price. Another option is places like Goodwill (although stock obviously varies). And you can donate whatever you get when you are done. The rental folks can get you one that fits a standard cabin (not much room, though) and leaves it in the cabin for you. Also see the handicap board.

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Walgreens sells these, regular wheelchairs and the knee scooters. Make sure you get the member card first because it saves a bunch off the price. Another option is places like Goodwill (although stock obviously varies). And you can donate whatever you get when you are done. The rental folks can get you one that fits a standard cabin (not much room, though) and leaves it in the cabin for you. Also see the handicap board.

 

The problem with purchaseing second hand mobility equipment at Goodwill is that generally all information regarding weight capacity has been removed. All mobility equipment is rated for weight capacity. Additionally mobility equipment needs to be properly sized to the individual so as not to cause more harm to the end user,

 

It's the Diabled Cruise Forum not the handicap board.

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I aslo had same surgery, a knee scooter will tire you out. The other leg will get tired from holding you up. Well mine did. I would get a electric scooter. It doesn’t take too long to learn to “drive” it. The other wheel chair requires someone to always push you. Our rental will be about $30 a day for electric scooter.

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