Keep on traveling - tips for the mobility impaired

As a child, I had a very mild case of polio. While I never had any trouble breathing, I did have trouble walking for a few weeks, but after a week or so in the hospital and a few weeks of being carried around by my father, I regained my ability to walk and all seemed well. 

Fifty years later, I was astounded to have to deal with post-polio syndrome. I can still walk but only for 15 to 20 feet before I become short of breath, and I have to walk very carefully, since I fall much more than I would like. 

Stairs are very difficult, and I avoid them when possible. Around our one-level home I use a rolling walker, sometimes referred to as a “rollator.” For errands outside our home, I use an electric scooter. 

These accommodations help at home, but I am not yet willing to give up my travel addiction. Over the past 10 years, as I have become more disabled, the way my husband and I travel has changed. I can still travel by car, but I need to stop frequently so I can stretch and move a bit. 

Air travel is more challenging, given the poor legroom and general discomfort I find when flying in economy class. 

Train travel is a nice compromise, if I can snag a seat in a car with an accessible restroom. 

Cruise ships are almost ideal, given my limitations, as they offer accessible cabins with convenient grab bars in the bath and adequate turn- around space for my scooter. I use my completely collapsible, 35-pound TravelScoot (800/342-2214, www.travelscoot.com) scooter outside the cabin and a standard collapsible walker inside the cabin. 

However, what you do not get from a cruise are in-depth visits to any destination. It is the sampler approach to travel.

A European trip

During July and August 2014, my husband and I traveled to Europe with our daughter and grandchildren for a trip that included some independent touring and a cruise on the Regal Princess, leaving Barcelona, Spain, with stops in France, Italy, Turkey and Greece. 

We began planning this trip almost a year in advance. First, we had to find a cruise that fit everyone’s schedule. Although my husband and I are retired, our daughter works and both of her teens are in school. We therefore found ourselves looking at a trip in the heat of the summer. The higher the ambient temperature, the more trouble I have walking, so this was going to be a challenge. 

Of additional concern was the air travel to Europe. Having flown there in the past, we decided that this would be the trip to put our frequent-flyer miles to good use. Our daughter and grandchildren had seats in economy, while my husband and I had business-class seats on American Airlines on the outbound leg and on Iberia and American on the way home. 

We decided to fly into London, then take the Eurostar to Paris and, finally, a train to Barcelona, where we would board the Regal Princess.

Getting there

We used a local shuttle service, Hickory “HOP” (828/327-2340, www.hickoryhop.com), to take us from our home in Hickory, North Carolina, to the airport in Charlotte. This cost $210 round trip for all five of us, which was less than it would have cost us to park our car at the airport for three weeks. 

The price was not our only reason for choosing this transport. It also meant that we didn’t have to worry about our car while we were gone, we didn’t run the risk of having a dead battery when we returned home and we wouldn’t have to drive ourselves home after a long trip back from Europe. 

We packed my scooter into a hard-sided golf bag, and I used two canes to walk to the shuttle from our front door. 

We left Hickory at 10:30 a.m. for the 75-minute ride to Charlotte, arriving early so we could be sure we were in time for our luggage to be on the same flights we were on. This is very important when traveling with mobility equipment. If I arrive without my scooter, I will be confined to the hotel until such time as the equipment catches up with me. 

I had arranged for wheelchair assistance when I purchased our tickets, and that part of the process was flawless. Once inside the terminal, we were assisted all the way to the door of the plane. 

First I was taken to check-in, through security and on to the waiting area. Later, the attendant came back to escort me to the door of the plane, and from there I used my canes to reach my seat. 

Speaking of security, I am always thoroughly screened by TSA. I have had three knee replacements and one hip replacement. Also, I must wear my shoes and use my canes if I am to stand. Therefore, I am given a pat-down as part of every screening. 

Our first flight was from Charlotte to Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas. The seats we were assigned were comfortable, with generous legroom. After landing, I was met with another wheelchair and transferred to the correct gate for our flight to London. 

On that flight, we had the recline-flat seats. I did not find these seats comfortable, as the flat position still left my legs lower than my head, although they were worlds better than the economy seats we had experienced on previous flights to Europe. The food in business class was also much, much better. 

Although we had left Dallas about an hour late, we arrived at London Heathrow on time at 11:15 a.m. Once again, I was met by a wheelchair attendant, who stayed with us until we left the airport. 

We did have to go to the “large” baggage claim area to get the scooter, which, thankfully, arrived with us.

After checking into our hotel, we went to The British Library to see the Magna Carta. The library offered full access, with ramps and elevators. 

We got to see not only the Magna Carta but a Gutenberg Bible, an early Beowulf and lyrics handwritten by one of the Beatles. There was no cost for admission to the library, although donations were accepted.

Accessibility in London

Our London hotel, Premier Inn King’s Cross (26-30 York Way; www.premierinn.com), cost $1,454 for two rooms for three nights, with daily breakfast included. It was close to both the King’s Cross and St. Pancras train stations and within walking distance of The British Library. 

We had not been to London for seven or eight years, and we discovered that the access offered by this wonderful city has grown by leaps and bounds. Every street corner had ramps with rumble strips to let you know when you were close to the street. Sometimes there were even ramps in the middle of the block, and they were not blocked by cars parked across them. 

If only our hotel had been as well designed, as our room was only minimally accessible. The entry door was less than 36 inches wide and required a tight turn to enter. 

I requested a shower chair, which was delivered but was not usable, as the grab bar in the bath was so low, it would not allow the chair to fit in the tub. The room was clean and quiet, and, other than having to take sponge baths, I found the room acceptable for a disabled person; for example, there were adequate grab bars near the toilet. 

I would recommend this hotel to an able-bodied person who is looking for a low-cost (for London) hotel in the King’s Cross area of town. We had three breakfasts and one dinner at the hotel and found the food very good.

We took the Big Bus (eng.bigbus tours.com/London) hop-on, hop-off tour of London over two days. This was an excellent choice for me, as most, but certainly not all, of the buses were accessible, usually with automatic ramps but sometimes with a ramp that the driver had to manually put out. The buses came by every 15 to 20 minutes, so if one arrived without a ramp, we could wait for the next bus. 

The cost for this was £150 ($235) for all five of us for 48 hours of touring. Included was a short cruise on the Thames, which we enjoyed. We did not have time for the optional walking tours. 

We also purchased 2-day London Passes (phone +44 20 7293 0972, www.londonpass.com), primarily for the “fast pass” feature, as the cost (£68 each) was almost equal to what we would have paid for individual tickets to the sites we used it to see. We also purchased tickets to The London Eye (£26.55 each for fast-track tickets purchased in advance). 

All of our visits throughout London were at least moderately accessible, with some being very easy indeed. The most challenging was our visit to the Tower of London, with its cobblestoned areas and buildings with steps. However, I greatly enjoyed seeing the Crown Jewels and also enjoyed sitting in the shade while my family took a Yeoman Warder tour and visited several of the buildings. 

The London Eye was completely accessible, with ramps that made entering and exiting the capsules very smooth. 

We also visited the British Museum, Kensington Palace and Westminster Abbey and saw Buckingham Palace and Trafalgar Square in passing. We ran out of time before we had seen every site on our wish list. 

Train to Paris

Leaving London, we traveled to Paris on the Eurostar train, leaving from St. Pancras Station and arriving at Gare du Nord. The Eurostar was easily accessible for me; my family took care of the luggage. Our cost was £38 each for second-class seats. We used Loco2.com to purchase our tickets. 

We had a comfortable journey, leaving in early afternoon and arriving just under 2½ hours later. What a civilized way to travel! 

After our arrival, we paid €104 ($130) for the transfer from the station to Hôtel Terminus Paris (19 Boulevard Diderot; www.hotel
terminuslyon.com). This cost seemed quite high for a less-than-20-minute travel time, though it was during rush hour and, given our number of passengers and luggage, we otherwise might have needed to take two regular taxis. 

Regardless, we were dropped off right in front of our hotel, which was directly across from Gare de Lyon, from which we would be leaving in a few days for our trip to Barcelona. 

Our hotel ($1,060 for two rooms for two nights) was in an excellent location for our onward travel, but it absolutely failed in accessibility. There were no steps at the entryway, but all access ended once the lobby was entered. 

There were two very steep steps from the lobby level up to the elevator entry, and the elevator, itself, was a strange crescent shape, allowing only two people to ride at a time. Even collapsed, my scooter would not fit. 

Additionally, the hallways on the floors with the rooms were too narrow to use my scooter, so we had to leave it at the front desk. 

The room we were assigned was very small, and a requested shower chair was not provided. When I asked at the front desk for a shower chair, I was told to use the upholstered chair that was in the room. Of course, I did not do that, once again resorting to basin baths. 

For our tours in Paris, we chose to use L’Open Tour’s hop-on, hop-off buses (phone +33 [0] 142 66 56 56, www.paris.opentour.com). For a one-day pass, we paid €32 each. The company advertises that about half of their buses have ramps, but about three-quarters of the buses we traveled on had them. 

The streets in Paris were not as easily accessible as those in London. Curb cuts were harder to find, and if we found one, the road in front of it often was under repair. The cuts, themselves, were sometimes too steep and would, I think, be difficult for a solo mobility-impaired traveler to use, as my family had to assist me in those instances. 

We greatly enjoyed all the sites we visited in Paris, and I had little difficulty at any of them. Notre Dame had an accessible route. To get to it, we went to the regular entrance and then were escorted to the exit door, where there was a flat entry point. The stained-glass windows were wonderful! 

We also went to the Louvre, entering near the Inverted Pyramid. There were no barriers in that area, although when it was time to leave we had great difficulty finding our way out of the building. 

We did not want to wait in the extremely long line for the elevator to go up in the Eiffel Tower, so we saw that site only from the outside. 

Barcelona

Our onward travel was on the TGV train, leaving Paris at 7:15 a.m. and arriving in Barcelona, Spain, just before 2 p.m. We paid €90 each for our first-class tickets. My husband and I selected seats on the lower level of this 2-level train. 

The train access in Paris was seamless. I was escorted to the train before general boarding began. My escort boarded the train and raised the entry threshold until it was even with the platform. I rode my scooter onto the train and then used canes to transfer to my seat while my husband collapsed the scooter and stored it. 

The train ride was wonderful, with lots of scenic views throughout the trip. 

Upon arriving in Barcelona, the transfer off the train was not seamless. I was unable to ride the scooter off the train, as, even with the entryway raised, there was a large gap and at least a 6- or 7-inch rise between the train and the platform. I had to use my canes and walk up the ramp, then use the scooter to leave the station. This was scary, as the ramp was unsteady.

Our hotel was the NH Barcelona Calderón (Rambla Catalunya, 26; www.nh-hotels.com). After the previous days of basin baths, this hotel was heaven! Our completely accessible room cost €139 per night, while our daughter’s room (for three) cost €185. We all were happy to find that my daughter and her children had been upgraded to a junior suite with balcony at no additional cost. 

Barcelona, too, was a very accessible city. I would note that London and Barcelona (as well as Athens, which we would visit later) have hosted the Olympic Games, which I think is one of the reasons the access was excellent. 

We went to dinner, then strolled to Plaça de Catalunya, which, with its with many fountains, was lovely. I had no difficulty getting there. 

For our tour of Barcelona and transfer to the Regal Princess, we chose Barcelona Day Tours (phone +34 931 815 287, www.barcelona daytours.com). They provided both a driver and a guide for a half-day tour (€295 for all five of us). 

In addition, we paid €17 each (for three of us) for entry to La Sagrada Família cathedral. The price included a tour to the towers, but it was canceled because of high winds, so a total of €24 was refunded to our credit card. My husband and I were not charged at all, due to my disability. 

Barcelona was an outstanding city, both for sightseeing and for accessibility. 

Boarding the ship

After our tour we were delivered to the port terminal, where we boarded the Regal Princess for our 12-day Mediterranean cruise. 

We had reserved inside cabins. Our daughter’s room cost $2,150 each for the first two people and an additional $1,311 for the third person. Their cabin had two lower beds and one upper berth. 

Also included in everyone’s cabin was a bathroom with a shower, interactive TV, a small refrigerator and more than adequate storage. 

Our room, for which we also paid $2,150 per person, was fully accessible, with a wider entry door, adequate turn-around space, a roll-in shower, a slightly raised toilet, a shower seat and grab bars throughout the bathroom. 

We find it advantageous to unpack everything and put the empty suitcases under the bed. I need a clear path to get around in the room, and storing the suitcases helps with this.  

The Regal Princess was sailing in her inaugural year, and she was quite bright and shiny, with no signs of wear whatsoever. 

Before the muster drill we took the opportunity to explore the ship. We were most impressed with the piazza-style atrium and with the buffet area, which was expansive in comparison with those on the other Princess ships on which we have sailed. 

We also took a short stroll down the SeaWalk, a cantilevered passage that allows you to look down through the glass floor to see the sea beneath your feet — definitely not for anyone with a fear of heights. 

Our first port was in Toulon, France. I was very tired from our previous travels and elected to treat this day as a rest day. Our daughter enjoyed walking through the city and taking the cable car to the top of Mont Faron for a tour of the big-cat breeding center there. 

Time in Italy

Our next three days were spent in Italy. We used Rome in Limo (Miami, FL; phone 855/873-8358, www.romeinlimo.com) for private tours to Florence, Rome and Pompeii/Amalfi Coast. We paid a total of $1,500 for the three full-day tours, including a discount for paying in advance. 

Each of our drivers was outstanding. We got to every site we wished to see as well as some extra spots that the drivers suggested, including gelato shops, a special viewpoint in Rome and great viewpoints all along the Amalfi Coast. 

Each driver was responsive to our desire to eat at authentic restaurants that could provide both easy access and tasty food. We were very pleased with this company and would use them again if we were in Italy. 

They met us at the port with a Mercedes van and provided ice water for us throughout the hot days. Our only additional costs were entry fees at the various sites. 

When traveling by cruise ship, it is important to figure in transport times from the port to the city you wish to visit. 

Our daughter treated us to a guide for our Pompeii visit. Paula, also from Rome in Limo, was excellent. (I do not know the cost of her services.) We chose the “family friendly” tour, which provided the opportunity for the mobility impaired as well as people traveling with young children to have a glimpse of these ruins. The walkways were a bit challenging but certainly able to be conquered. 

We felt especially sad to see the plaster casts of the people who had not been able to escape the volcanic eruption. 

At the end of the family tour, our daughter and grandchildren accompanied Paula to other places in Pompeii while my husband and I sat in a lovely shaded area to wait for them. 

Of course, it is also imperative to know the time you must be back on board your ship, as it will sail without you if you don’t arrive on time. We had no problems with this. 

Our next day was at sea, and we were so happy for the extra time to sleep before taking part in some of the many activities offered on board. This was also the first formal night, so we had time to clean up and don our finery. 

Greece and Turkey

Next on the itinerary was the Greek isle of Mykonos. Our daughter and grandchildren took the ship’s tour to the nearby island of Delos, which they enjoyed. Although listed as a possible tender port, we did end up docking. 

Tender ports are another challenge for me. As my disability has progressed, I have stopped attempting to leave the ship at tender ports, as navigating the steps down into the tender and back up to the ship on the return has become very difficult. 

Sometimes there is an opportunity to access a “ride on” tender, but that’s never been guaranteed on any ship I’ve been on, so I plan on staying on board, and then if I am able to make it off, it’s a bonus. I did not leave the ship at this port, but I could have. 

On this ship, Princess typically set up two gangplanks and announced which one was for people with mobility problems. This was very helpful, and the access was easier due to the use of a flat gangway rather than one with raised strips.

Our next two stops were in Turkey: Istanbul and Kus¸adasi (for Ephesus). We used Ekol Travel (phone +90 256 614 45 73, www.ekoltravel.com) for these cities. 

These were, again, quite busy travel days with challenges, but they were well worth the minor difficulties. Each of the tours was approximately six hours in length and included transportation with a driver, a guide and admission to the various sites. 

The tour in Istanbul cost $346 for all five of us. Our guide, Samil, was excellent. He spoke fluent English and was very informative. 

We visited on a Friday and had to wait until the Blue Mosque was opened for touring in the afternoon, after services were complete. 

We also visited Topkapi Palace, the Grand Bazaar and Hagia Sophia. Our only extra cost all day was for lunch. 

In Kus¸adasi we were met by our guide, Sevengul. We did not arrive at this port until 12:30 p.m. and had to be back on board by 6:30, so we really needed to be aware of the time. Sevengul was outstanding. Even though I did not attempt to actually enter the grounds at Ephesus, I was able to see more from the car than I had seen on a previous visit. 

We also went to the House of the Virgin Mary and the Temple of Artemis and enjoyed the drive along the way.

Our next stop was in Athens, Greece, where we arranged a tour through Michael Sterianos of Athens Taxi Tours (phone +30 210 93 42 222, www.athenstaxitour.com), whom we had used previously during a land trip to Greece. The cost for a full-day tour was €340 ($426). 

We were met by our driver, George, who was excellent. I did not attempt to go to the Acropolis; even though it is at least somewhat accessible, with an elevator up to the site, it is difficult to get around once there. 

We visited the Acropolis Museum and the National Archaeology Museum and found each to be well worth the visit. 

We also went to the Temple of Zeus and saw the guards at Syntagma Square, where they watch over the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. 

For lunch we enjoyed a delicious pita wrap, then took a trip to the Ancient Agora. 

Venice venture

On the way to Venice we enjoyed a second sea day. Again there were many activities to participate in, including a culinary demonstration and a tour of the galley. This was also our second formal night.

Our last port was Venice, where we had an overnight before debarking. We were scheduled to arrive about 12:30 p.m., so we went to the buffet area for lunch at about 11:30 to watch our approach. It was wonderful to see all the sights as we cruised down the Giudecca Canal. 

I understand that ships the size of the Regal Princess may not be able to do this in the future, so I feel fortunate to have had this experience. 

After docking, we made our way to the People Mover tram for the trip to Piazzale Roma, where we could get a water bus to the main tourist areas. The distance to the People Mover was not short, but I had no trouble, since there were paved sidewalks and ramps. 

Accessing the People Mover was not so easy. There was an elevator, but it would not come when called. We were able to find an attendant after about 15 minutes, and he had a key to call the elevator. 

The transport, itself, worked well. We visited the Doge’s Palace, one of my favorite places in the whole world. I especially love the map room. 

The accessible entry is hidden, but on seeing me using a scooter, a staff member directed me to the “cloak room,” where an attendant assisted me to an elevator. The tour was then done in reverse order, from the top floor to the bottom. As we finished on each floor, we notified an attendant, who then escorted us back to the elevator. 

Our trip back from St. Mark’s Square to the ship included a trip on the water bus and then the People Mover. This time the elevator at Piazzale Roma was out of order, and there was no attendant to be found. 

My husband decided to stop the escalator using the red stop button so I could step on, and then he hoped to restart it; that didn’t work, but it did bring an attendant. 

The attendant couldn’t get the elevator to come, but he could work the escalator. He stopped it so I could get on, then started it again until I reached the top. I was afraid I was going to fall, but I managed. 

On our way back to the ship, we were greeted by a lady who was arranging taxi transfers for passengers debarking the next morning. We signed right up.

The next morning we left the ship for our transfer to Mestre and the Hilton Garden Inn (Via Orlanda, 1) for a one-night stay before our flights home. 

We chose this hotel because it offered an easy transfer back to Venice and was close to the airport. We paid €115 for an accessible room for two and €165 for the room for the other three in our group. 

We found Venice much more accessible than one might suppose, given its many canals and bridges. I would avoid the water taxi services, as there are steps in and out of these boats. The water buses (vaporetti) are fully accessible if marked with a wheelchair on the front of the boat. They put down a ramp and you can roll right on. 

Once you’ve reached a particular vaporetto stop, you’ll need to know where you wish to go. Before your trip, I recommend visiting www.comune.venezia.it, the website for the city of Venice, as they produce a map of accessible Venice. You can use the map to find the best way to reach your destination. 

Some bridges now have ramps that are wide enough for a scooter or a wheelchair to traverse them. However, these ramps are also used by the able-bodied and people with strollers, so it’s a good idea if someone in your party can walk ahead of you to clear the way. 

The islands of Murano and Burano can also be reached by vaporetto. 

We got up at 4 a.m. to transfer to the airport. We spent 24 hours traveling back home, from the door of the hotel in Venice to our front door. We were exhausted but so pleased to have been able to enjoy this trip, even with the limitations imposed by my disability.    ✦