Comments on: Anchorage, Alaska, USA http://abilitytrip.com/north_america/usa/alaska/anchorage/anchorage-alaska-usa/ abilitytrip.com Tue, 17 Jan 2012 04:00:21 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Dustin Steeve http://abilitytrip.com/north_america/usa/alaska/anchorage/anchorage-alaska-usa/comment-page-1/#comment-115 Dustin Steeve Thu, 23 Sep 2010 05:30:08 +0000 http://abilitytrip.com/?p=337#comment-115 My grandmother and I took a trip to Alaska this past summer. She is on oxygen and only able to walk short distances so we used a wheelchair for most of the trip. We traveled with Royal Caribbean on their ship "Radiance of the Seas." My a...ssessment: PROS: + Staff was very accommodating and willing to help my grandma in and out of her wheelchair when needed (at meal times, when boarding smaller vessels, etc) + If they take any excursions where they need to travel by smaller vessels to reach land, the smaller vessels abord the ship had wheelchair "parking" and they had a ramp for my grandma + A wheelchair ramp and crew assistance was always provided upon entering/exiting the ship + On a few occasions we had to take a bus or taxi. Official bus drivers of Royal Caribbean (those responsible for shuttling you to and from the airport) had wheelchair accommodations and knew precisely what to do to help us. + The ship was well equipped with wheelchair accessible restrooms and several family restrooms. Because my grandmother had some mobility, we did not stay in a room designed for a wheelchair so I cannot comment on that. CONS: - The hallway to our room was VERY narrow. There was enough room to push a chair through, but hardly enough room for use to maneuver around people standing in the halls leading to the rooms. I'm not aware if the hallways leading to the wheelchair accessible rooms are different. - If you're traveling with batteries, be ready to have some spares on hand. Because my grandma had oxygen and the tours would take us far from the ship, we carried around 8, dry cell batteries with us at all times. That was a hassle. - Icy Straight Point (Royal Caribbean's own port of call) had wheelchair accessibility in the main shopping area, but accessibility is limited if you want to watch people go down the zip line or eat at the main restaurant. - In Juneau there are numerous tour buses ready to take you on (overpriced) tours, however it did not appear that many of these had good wheelchair access. We opted for a taxi - a much better option from the reports we got from our friends on the cruise. - Most of the excursions were too rigorous for my grandma. Additionally, many did not seem to be very wheelchair friendly. OVERALL: Royal Caribbean is great and we'd all do the cruise again! However, if you're looking to really get off the ship and have some adventures, be sure to look carefully at the accessibility since many excursions take you into the wilderness and off the beaten path. My grandmother and I took a trip to Alaska this past summer. She is on oxygen and only able to walk short distances so we used a wheelchair for most of the trip. We traveled with Royal Caribbean on their ship “Radiance of the Seas.” My a…ssessment:

PROS:
+ Staff was very accommodating and willing to help my grandma in and out of her wheelchair when needed (at meal times, when boarding smaller vessels, etc)
+ If they take any excursions where they need to travel by smaller vessels to reach land, the smaller vessels abord the ship had wheelchair “parking” and they had a ramp for my grandma
+ A wheelchair ramp and crew assistance was always provided upon entering/exiting the ship
+ On a few occasions we had to take a bus or taxi. Official bus drivers of Royal Caribbean (those responsible for shuttling you to and from the airport) had wheelchair accommodations and knew precisely what to do to help us.
+ The ship was well equipped with wheelchair accessible restrooms and several family restrooms.

Because my grandmother had some mobility, we did not stay in a room designed for a wheelchair so I cannot comment on that.

CONS:
- The hallway to our room was VERY narrow. There was enough room to push a chair through, but hardly enough room for use to maneuver around people standing in the halls leading to the rooms. I’m not aware if the hallways leading to the wheelchair accessible rooms are different.
- If you’re traveling with batteries, be ready to have some spares on hand. Because my grandma had oxygen and the tours would take us far from the ship, we carried around 8, dry cell batteries with us at all times. That was a hassle.
- Icy Straight Point (Royal Caribbean’s own port of call) had wheelchair accessibility in the main shopping area, but accessibility is limited if you want to watch people go down the zip line or eat at the main restaurant.
- In Juneau there are numerous tour buses ready to take you on (overpriced) tours, however it did not appear that many of these had good wheelchair access. We opted for a taxi – a much better option from the reports we got from our friends on the cruise.
- Most of the excursions were too rigorous for my grandma. Additionally, many did not seem to be very wheelchair friendly.

OVERALL: Royal Caribbean is great and we’d all do the cruise again! However, if you’re looking to really get off the ship and have some adventures, be sure to look carefully at the accessibility since many excursions take you into the wilderness and off the beaten path.

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