Parking scooter in Hall?

[Amy from Delaware]

Luv4dacruise,

 

I'm interested in what make and model wheelchair your mother uses. My DH's power chair doesn't come apart easily, and the batteries are close to impossible to remove/replace.

 

Thanks,

Three Rings

 

Have been on many cruises with my mother who uses a power chair. We always cruise in a handicapped cabin, however, they are not always as roomy as they should be. We have parked her power chair in the elevator/stairwell bank down the hall many-a-times. We always check with the pursers desk to make sure it is acceptable. Never had them say no. We remove the batteries at night and charge them in our room. I should also point out that the control arm (the most sensitive part of a power chair) is easily removable and we also bring that with us at night in case any vandals wish to play with the chair. 9 cruises under our belt since mom has been in the power chair and nothing has happened yet, guess i better knock on wood huh?....:p

[Gramsk]

I agree that if you use a power chair, wheel chair or scooter you should use a handicap cabin, but with that thought in mind I also suggest that able bodied people who are not in need of these items should not book a handicap cabin. If you can walk book a regular cabin, don't go for the handicap just because you have more room. There are very few handicap cabins and more and more people using chairs and scooters traveling these days. Please be considerate.

[Meredith22]

Just to reiterate what many have said here, please don't plan to park your wheelchair or scooter in the hallway outside your stateroom. On my last cruise I was barely able to get through the halls in my wheelchair as it was a true obstacle course of trays left from room service, a multitude of service carts, trash & laundry bags. Add a WC or scooter to that mix and there would have been times I wouldn't have been able to get through at all. The stateroom hallways on cruise ships are very narrow!

 

BTW, despite my wheelchair I was unable to book a HC stateroom because none were available. Yet the people assigned the HC stateroom right next to my regular room were NOT handicapped, adding to my resentment every time my husband tripped over my folded up wheelchair while in our room. And don't even ask what a nightmare it was for me to use the tiny regular bathroom! SHAME on those who are able bodied but book HC rooms for the extra space! And SHAME on the cruiselines for not filtering these low-lifes out!

[wizard-of-roz]

Meredith: I totally understand where you're coming from.....however, that said, I must remind you that not all handicapped folks are handicapped, equally.

My DH uses a wheelchair on "bad days" but on "good days" he can come walking out of the room looking like a perfectly healthy, walking, upright person.

You simply can not judge people from what your see or hear.......and don't!

In order to book a handicapped room, you really almost need to do this 8 months to a year in advance. I know that can be problematic for some....but, it's taught us a lesson in planning!

[Meredith22]

Roz, you're absolutely right. It was just particularly difficult not to judge in this case since the two young men occupying the HC stateroom appeared to be body builders from head to toe, very athletic in both appearance and prance to their step whenever they walked down the hallway or ran on the jogging track together. Okay, so there was no obvious disability for either of them. But neither did they bring along a scooter or wheelchair. According to the room steward who serviced both rooms, he didn't know why they were assigned the HC room and we weren't. We didn't ask the steward about this; he volunteered the comment. We saw these young men every day and whenever they saw me in my wheelchair they always rushed in and out of their room with very sheepish looks on their faces. My DH & I can only assume the cruiseline does not screen for those who really need HC rooms from those who don't. We booked our cruise 6 months in advance and kept asking right up to embarkation if there was any possibility of getting an HC room. Thanks for letting me know we'll have to plan much earlier than that to have any chance.

[Meredith22]

Roz, you're absolutely right. It was just particularly difficult not to judge in this case since the two young men occupying the HC stateroom appeared to be body builders from head to toe, very athletic in both appearance and prance to their step whenever they walked down the hallway or ran on the jogging track together. Okay, so there was no obvious disability for either of them. But neither did they bring along a scooter or wheelchair. According to the room steward who serviced both rooms, he didn't know why they were assigned the HC room and we weren't. We didn't ask the steward about this; he volunteered the comment. We saw these young men every day and whenever they saw me in my wheelchair they always rushed in and out of their room with very sheepish looks on their faces. My DH & I can only assume the cruiseline does not screen for those who really need HC rooms from those who don't. We booked our cruise 6 months in advance and kept asking right up to embarkation if there was any possibility of getting an HC room. Thanks for letting me know we'll have to plan much earlier than that to have any chance.

[Travelitis]

Just got back from the Mariner of the Seas (lots of kids and teens) and saw mobility devices parked in the halls. The halls were plenty wide to allow other chairs, scooters, room stewards, etc. to navigate easily around them. One of our neighbors, an elderly lady traveling alone, could barely open her stateroom door, let alone wrestle her walker through the doorway. We helped her and saw others doing the same, but it was really easiest for her to leave it by her door. I'm glad no one made it their mission to complain about her walker and beg those who think they should police this to reconsider unless you have actually have been put in danger or could not fit around the obstacle to get to your cabin. (Some, but very few can legitimately claim that.) A wider door wouldn't have solved her problem, as it was all a matter of strength. If you can navigate around the tables and chairs at the buffet, then a chair, scooter, or walker in the hall against the wall shouldn't be a problem on a newer ship. Of course, on older ships with narrower halls, it's a different story.