I am looking at going on a group cruise and the price is quite a bit more for an accessible room than the group price from regular rooms. I need to take my GoGo scooter with me, can I get by with a regular room?
I had a friend who had a regular inside cabin. They put the scooter in the bathroom. Inconvenient but at least they could move around their cabin.
This is a really good question. I have been thinking about taking a cruise as well; but I haven’t looked up any prices yet to see if there was a difference in prices for accessible rooms vs non-accessible.
The problem with the regular cabin are the bathrooms, specially shower they most of the times are not accessible
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If you need a roll in shower and grab bars in the bathroom, you need the accessible room. If not, a regular room will be tight and finding a place to put the scooter may be more difficult. Accessible rooms are usually a bit bigger than regular rooms.
Not only will there be less floor room in a standard room, the doorway will be much narrower. Check the width of your scooter to be sure it fits. I did it a few years ago, and had a wonderful time, but getting in and out of the cabin was trying.
First…there is something wrong here. I use a mobility scooter and am a Travel Agent. There is no additional charge for an accessible cabin in any category. The problem may be the group pricing obtained. If you can book an accessible cabin through the cruise line directly at a lower cost then you should do so. You are still on the same ship. You can then may have to advocate in order to join your group for any group activities planned which may be why the cost is different.
Second…you cannot park any accessible vehicle in the halls at it is against Maritime Law. Trying to fit a scooter into a regular cabin can be very tricky especially if the door is not wide enough. This needs to be confirmed (width of the scooter at the widest part vs door width). The cabins are narrow without not alot of extra room. I have seen some bathrooms and you’d never get a scooter in there.
Book the accessible room and get your group organizer to accommodate you for the group activities.
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I have taken a couple of cruises and we have had to utilize the accessible rooms. I believe they charge more for these rooms as they are usually connected with some type of upgraded package, i.e.: concierge service, suites, etc… Cruise companies tend to pick these types of rooms for modifications as they are already larger then the standard room. So they won’t loose money by combining two rooms into one accessible one. Also if they are modifying a suite, they can legally charge the suite rates, another way the disabled community must pay more for the same amenity. Individuals who want the same experience as their non disabled peers are forced to pay more for that experience. If you require the accessible room/bathroom, your forced to pay more. (Sorry for the rant). Anyway, in a standard room there is usually a step between the bathroom and the main part of the cabin. My retired Navy father explained them as “knee knockers”. you have to step over them to get into the bathroom. If you have mobility to the point where you can maneuver around your cabin with out your scooter you might be alright. What I would check to see if the door way opening into the cabin is wide enough for your scooter. You can contact the cruise company and speak with one of their representatives about your accessibility needs, most cruise lines have a special phone number for these questions. You can also find out when the ship was built. The newer the ship, the more accessible they are overall. Personally I would not risk leaving my mobility aid in the hallway while I was in my cabin. Just because your on a ship does not mean it will be there when you need it. there are idiots everywhere. Good luck with your trip. I hope you have a great time.
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I have taken several cruises booked directly with the cruise company (called not thru internet) and have never had to pay extra for an accessible room. Took a cruise with a group and the organizer understood that I had to book the room myself. You do have to call in advance because they have a limited number of handicap rooms, the farther away the sailing date the better. We tend to cruise with Royal Caribbean because we have found them the most helpful and the ships are more handicap friendly. If the person in charge of your groups telling you that you have to pay more for your room just tell them that you feel more comfortable booking yourself because of your handicap.
Hi, It shouldn’t be more expensive than the others, you should check on that. But the real reason is that I had an accessible room & quite enough room for your scooter but the regular rooms are very small & you couldn’t store it.
I have been on one cruise and just booked another. Yes the Accessible rooms are more unless you want an inside room. Since I want a balcony, to relax on while the others do shore excursions I can’t, I have to pay more. I do think the extra is worth it though. I had room for my scooter and personal manual chair. I needed the roll in shower too. Be sure to double check what ports are “tender ports” as those were not accessible.
The accessible
If you book early enough on royal a inside hca room is the same as a regular one
Just a heads up, we were on American cruises from New Orleans up to Memphis Tennessee. It was a fantastic trip because the staff was so fantastic. Our room was extra large, with a walk-in shower, and they provided handicap rails for me in the shower, as well as forthe toilet. We got a state upgrade from the cruise line, I believe because of my disability. I traveled with my pride scooter, which fit through the doorways to my room, down the hall into the elevator, and on the different floors. We stayed in the US as I have a bunch of medical situation is going on. I will tell you the food was OK, appetizers pretty good. They offered all sorts of alcohol included in the fee, which unfortunately I’m not a big drinker. The most important thing of the trip was how well the staff treated myself and my wife. They couldn’t do it just for me to help with my scooter from the ship to the roadways up to the buses, where they put my scooter down under the bus, and we took a lot of day trips. I don’t know what you’re planning to go, but I will say it was absolutely beautiful without a balcony which I was able to work on to with the assistance of my life and sit there and sleep in the sun when we cruise the Mississippi River if you didn’t go to the dining room for food, they would bring it to your room, whatever you needed, including alcohol. All tipping was included, but we also donated to the kids that really took care of us. One lady even did a movie for us. It just made the trip really enjoyable. Me personally, I find of a gogo scooter as my pride is top of the line and is very comfortable on bumps cobblestone streets etc. good luck in your endeavors. Joe R.
Wanted to say that we asked one of the staff members if they could do laundry for us. She did not hesitate, even had Tide free that we use at home. She folding our laundry, put it in our room on the bed for us. Even the tour bus drivers, the two women we had.we’re exceptional (Renee and tammy)
Sorry had to correct my previous response. Good luck on your cruise.
Plan a head ADA rooms are few on ships,
A scooter and in some cases a wheelchair will not be able to enter the cabin as the entry way is narrow. Our friend recently booked a mini suite and I was unable to get into their room because my air hawk wheelchair would not through the door.
Sounds like cruises are out for me. If you can’t use the Mobility device, then there’s no reason to try to go on a cruise. After all, when you’ve got a device that you need to use in order to get around, there’s no other alternative.