{"id":1196,"date":"2018-02-05T00:24:41","date_gmt":"2018-02-05T05:24:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/spintheglobe.net\/dir\/?p=1196"},"modified":"2020-01-12T17:06:27","modified_gmt":"2020-01-12T22:06:27","slug":"best-cruises-disabled-wheelchair-users","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spintheglobe.net\/dir\/2018\/02\/05\/best-cruises-disabled-wheelchair-users\/","title":{"rendered":"Best Cruises for Wheelchair Users and the Disabled"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Going on a cruise is easily the best way for wheelchair users to see the world! Cruise ships are becoming more accessible every year, and ports of call are increasingly aware of the need to cater to disabled visitors who both use wheelchairs and have money to invest in their economies. However, picking the right cruise ship AND itinerary can be a bit of a science. You want to find the best combination of wheelchair friendly ship, an itinerary where the ship will dock at ports where you can easily get off the ship, and ports of call with available wheelchair accessible tours – or at least accessible sidewalks and transportation. Here’s my list of the best cruises for wheelchair users and the disabled that include all three of these features.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Royal Caribbean 8-Night Scandinavia and Russia<\/a>. <\/strong>I went on this itinerary with Cory Lee of Curb Free with Cory Lee in August 2017, and it was fantastic! The Jewel of the Seas departs from Copenhagen (Denmark) and docks in Stockholm (Sweden), Tallinn (Estonia), St. Petersburg (Russia), and Helsinki (Finland). The ship is very wheelchair friendly, with large accessible staterooms, no-threshold balconies, pushbutton access to public toilets, and designated wheelchair spaces in the theater. Wheelchair accessible tours are available at each port of call, and while independent travel will be difficult to impossible in St. Petersburg (for both visa and logistical reasons), visitors can use accessible taxis, the Hop On-Hop Off bus, or public transportation at the other stops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"nyhavn<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

2. Princess 7-Day Alaska Inside Passage<\/a>.<\/strong> I went on a slightly different version of this cruise in May 2016<\/a>, and it was honestly one of the best travel experiences of my life. This itinerary is available on four Princess ships – the Island, Star, Coral, and Golden – depending on the departure date. It’s a round-trip itinerary out of VERY wheelchair accessible Vancouver (which is worth an extra day’s stay pre- and post-cruise) and stops in Juneau, Skagway, Glacier Bay (cruising), and Ketchikan. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Technically<\/em> Princess will tell you that you can dock or anchor at Juneau and Ketchikan. However, in my capacity as a travel agent, I learned directly from Cruise Lines Agency of Alaska<\/a> that Princess has priority over other cruise lines when it comes to docking. So while a rare emergency may occur that requires Coast Guard vessels to take up precious docking space, chances are you’ll be able to roll off the ship at every port with Princess.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"star<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

3.<\/strong> Celebrity 12-Night Israel and Mediterranean<\/strong><\/a>. It’s true that Celebrity is geared more towards bigger spenders. However, there’s no doubt that the upper-tier cruise line keeps wheelchair users in mind when designing their ships. I went on a slightly different version of this cruise<\/a> in November 2017, and everywhere I went on the ship (the Silhouette at the time), it felt like it was made just for me! The public spaces had more than ample room and designated spaces for wheelchair and scooter users – which is good, because there were a lot of us on that cruise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ship for this itinerary is the Infinity, which departs out of Rome (Italy) and ends in Athens (Greece). All ports of call are docked and include Naples (Italy), Catania (Sicily), Valetta (Malta), Rhodes (Greece), Ashdod\/Jerusalem (Israel), Haifa (Israel), and Souda\/Chania (Crete). Various tour operators offer wheelchair accessible shore excursions at every stop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"wheelchair<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Using a mister is a great way to stay cool on hot port days. This mister also works as a portable shower and water bottle. Lunatec Aquabot sport water bottle<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n