Cruisin with a Scooter

[Gram's Cruisin]

Has anybody rented a scooter to use onboard the ship. I have suffered a stroke since I booked the cruise and am determined to go; but will probably need to rent a scooter to aid in mobility. Questions: Can I get in and out the cabin door with one--have a minisuite booked--is it big enough or can I leave scooter in hall outside my door. Any suggestions?? Thanks.

Gram's Cruisin

[kaykay51]

On our Diamond cruise, we had an aft cabin. The person in the cabin next to ours had a scooter and it would be parked in the hall at night charging. A couple of nights when we came in, after a few cocktails, I would jokingly say I wonder if we'd get in trouble for taking the scooter out for a spin.

I don't know if you can rent them or not but I have seen people with them before.

Hope this helps a little

[Buddy604]

Has anybody rented a scooter to use onboard the ship. I have suffered a stroke since I booked the cruise and am determined to go; but will probably need to rent a scooter to aid in mobility. Questions: Can I get in and out the cabin door with one--have a minisuite booked--is it big enough or can I leave scooter in hall outside my door. Any suggestions?? Thanks.

Gram's Cruisin

Depending on the cabin type you have, you should have at the least at 24 inch width doorway. With a minisuite, you should have enough room to park the scooter inside, though you might want to talk to your travel agent and see if they have a handicapped access room available in your preferred class.

 

Officially, you are not allowed to leave your scooter out in the hall charging - the cruise answer book says "Mobility Devices of any kind, like other items, may not be left outside of the stateroom."

 

If you don't already have a scooter arranged, you can contact Care Vacations at http://www.cruiseshipassist.com/ and they can arrange to have one waiting for you at the port.

 

I gave in and finally used my first scooter this year when visiting Disneyland and what a difference it made.

 

Happy cruises!

[katisdale]

I would suggest you look at the disabled cruising section here at cruise critic. There is a wealth of advice there. Where is your cruise going? Will you have tender ports? Do you plan to get off the ship in tender ports? Leaving your scooter in the hall can be a problem for other cruisers who use wheelchairs/scooters as the halls are very narrow. They are also a hazard for blind cruisers and in an emergency like a fire. Can you do the step up into the bathroom since your stroke? Can you get into the bathtub? If you have trouble with either of these you might want to contact your TA to see if a handicapped cabin is available.

[prarie cruiser]

Looking at the disabled board on this site is good. However, I investigated scooters for my 80+ cruising mother. Some general info is: They cost between 200 to 300 dollars for the cruise, if you can use a small size scooter they will fit in the rooms, if you need a large size scooter you have to park it in the elevator area and it will have a key so no one runs away with it.

 

The scooter will be available in your sea cabin room when you arrive, and the battery will already be charged. You leave it in the room when you leave the ship.

 

In the past, the crew have been helpful when they can, to assist disabled travelers tender to shore or get off the ship. However, once you are on shore you are on your own. Some of the sidewalk areas are not very scooter friendly, but generally you can get to some of the areas near the dock. Check ahead of time whether your scheduled tours can accomodate a scooter or your disability.

 

Scooters are wonderful for getting around the ship and they are very easy to use. Hope your cruising is wonderful!

[SadricAmber]

I saw a poor guy in a scooter on the last AFTERNOON onf our Crown Princess ship he said he needed to go back to his cabin and sit all night. They want the luggage in the hall before you go to dinner which effectively ended his going up and down the hall at all. it was real bad for him. He told me that he had a hard time the whole cruise because the cabin steward left their carts in the hall all the time (which was true). It was impossible for him to get through the halls without assistance.

[dbdave]

My Dad took his scooter on his cruise. He had a handicap-accessible room so keeping it in the cabin was not a problem. The crew was very helpful to him with getting onboard and off.

[coiran]

try this placeb http://www.cruiseshipassist.com/html/scooters.html they will deliver to your stateroom an pick it up from your stateroom. and they are reasonable.

 

Ron

[cherylandtk]

First choice: Book a handicapped room.

Second choice: Book a room no more than two doors down from the elevatory lobby. Hallway navigation can be really tricky, and even some of the narrow scooters have a hard time fitting through the cabin doors. Even if you get it inside there is the problem of where to park it in the room without being in the way.

 

Having a scooter already on board through the rental company is a reasonable option; and makes the embark/disembark process less onerous. You can temporarily borrow a wheelchair (pre-order) for those two days when the scooter is unavailable, if it is needed for mobility.

[cruznliz]

My mother has a small, narrow scooter that easily fits past the room steward carts and can be parked inside a mini suite. A bigger scooter would not fit past the carts, so getting a room near the elevator lobby is an excellent idea. The hardest part about getting the scooter into the cabin is having someone to hold the door for you. As far as tendering, I don't think they allow scooters, but you can borrow a wheelchair from the Pursers Desk that can be used on shore (if you have someone to push you). When docked at a port, the crew is very helpful in getting you and the scooter up and down the gangway. I have only seen very large scooters that people have rented, so keep in mind that the larger they are, the harder they are to use in crowded areas.