Hello fellow travelers.
Cruising is a ‘canned’ vacation, and therefore perfect for someone with a mobility impairment. Access to hotels, restaurants or entertainment is not an issue. Picking a destination is. For my first cruise I chose Alaska. People I trusted told me this was the most scenic cruise. I was not disappointed. Alaska is, without doubt, the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen. After talking to my travel agent about accessibility on cruise ships I was convinced that the Princess line had the newest ships and were, therefore, probably the most ADA compliant.
I flew to Vancouver, B.C to pick up the Princess Ocean. This particular ship had only been christened a few months before. When the cab stopped at the dock I sat there in awe. I was told that cruise ships are huge, but that is an understatement. This ship was eight hundred and fifty-six feet long, weighed seventy-seven thousand tons, and had fourteen decks. When my travel agent and I were comparing cruise lines her sources told her that this particular ship had been designed with disabled passengers in mind. In hindsight I have my doubts.
At first glance Princess seemed to have made an effort to make this ship wheelchair friendly. My stateroom was the size of a standard hotel, not the tiny cabin that most people who take cruises often talk about. The cabin had all the amenities and very little of the annoying clutter that normally gets in the way of a wheelchair. The bathroom, which is almost always a problem when I travel, was great, once I got over the narrow, steep ramp that preceded its door. The vanity had enough clearance for my legs to fit under it. That was a rarity. The roll-in shower was perfectly suited for me. The peephole on the cabin’s door, though, was too high for someone in a wheelchair.
The accessibility problems that existed on the Ocean were relatively small compared to other places I’ve been, but they were glaring. The doors onto the deck were spring-loaded and very heavy. I was told this was done to avoid flooding in case of rough seas. I found it difficult to roll myself up the short, steep ramps while trying to open the doors. Around each deck was a rail for passengers to lean on and look over, but the top of the rail was just at my eye level. Viewing the landscape and taking pictures was somewhat of a challenge. I was constantly forced to find places where the rail was out of the way. I’m sure that a taller person wouldn’t have had this problem even from a seated position. In the casino all the gaming tables were standard height. None were geared toward wheelchair users. The Disco was set up very well, with plenty of space to roll around, but the dance floor had a single step leading up to it. There was no reason I could see for these minor, easily correctable problems. Whenever I ran into one of these problems on this otherwise accessible ship I had to ask myself ‘Why?’
I haven’t taken another cruise since 2001, but I have to think that the ships have become more accessible. The lawsuits against the various cruise lines, discussed in my last entry, go a long way toward standardizing the accessibility features of cruise ships. My advice is to compare each cruise line to see which best meets your needs. If you use a wheelchair take measurements of its width and compare that to the widths of doorways, if they are known. Ask about ramps and steps. I’m sure you’ll find a ship that suits your needs.
Stay tuned to this blog. Next time I will talk about access to the air. Till then, happy traveling.
