Accessible Med Help

Hello All!

<I posted this on the Celebrity board but then i saw this board and thought I might get more help>

This may turn out to be a rather long post and i apologize in advance and thank you for your help! I am finding little to no help on the www and I am pretty good about surfing/searching travel info, as that used to be a large part of my job at a cruise agency.

I will be traveling on the Millie for a 12n Med in June05. Accompanying me will be my senior parents (early 70s) and my quadriplegic sister. We have all been on at least 12 cruises, most of them together, all over the Caribe and also, Alaska. This will be our 3rd X cruise (Summit & Century) so we know what to expect on the ship and from X

As far as on land...we are realistic to the fact of steps, stairs cobblestones, etc... and realize that Linda, my sis, will not be able to do everything such as at the Parthenon or Pompeii or the Bridge of Sighs. But I need viable info, preferably first hand, as to what is possible.

My family can not stand "drive by" or shopping motorcouch shore tours. We have done shore tours that I have booked privately over the web/phone since our 3rd cruise and have had great success with some fantastic experiences. I have tried to contact some tour operators over in Europe but with limited luck. Bob's Limo seems to be a good way to go but the email address on the website is not deliverable (according to Yahoo). It sounds like that may pick us up in all 3 of the Italian ports. That would be a big plus! Anyway.....

First, I need your help as far as accessible info to and around the sites. Secondly, help with tour operators that you have used, especially if they helped with a disability or even mobility problems. Thirdly, links to any websites that you think may help me. I have gone to tons of them but maybe someone out there can direct me to a new one.

My Itinerary is Barcelona, Villefranche, LIvorno, Civitavecchia, Naples, Mykonos, Piraeus, Santorini, Dubrovnik, and Venice.

Again, thank you so much for taking time to read this post and know that any help you can give is greatly appreciated!

CruisinD

[KLD]

Check out the disabled cruisers website at ***Edited for commercial content*** esp. the archieved information about Europe.

In Barcelona we found wheelchair accessible cabs (left over from when the Paralympics where there). Our cruise line (Princess) was able to arrange these for us (we had to pay though). They may not have English speaking drivers though, so know exactly where you want to go. The Rambles is fairly accessible and you can walk around the old Gothic area from there (not all buildings are accessible though). I believe the Christopher Columbus museum and the Picasso museum are accessible. You can find some information on Spain here:

http://spainforvisitors.com/sections...siblespain.htm

Since the Paralympics are in Athens later this month, I would expect to find much better access there by the time you arrive. In fact, the Parthenon is NOW accessible with a temporary elevator that is being replaced with a more permanant structure. You may be able to find more about tranporation as the Paralympics evolve....perhaps contact some returning athletes??

In Italy there are some private companies but they are VERY expensive.

http://www.accessibleitaly.com/home_standard.htm

http://www.tour-web.com/accessibleitaly/

http://www.coinsociale.it/tourism/

If you can transfer to a car, then you may consider taking a cab in Livorno to the train station, which is accessible, and taking the train to Florence. You will need to plan your time carefully to be sure you don't miss the ship coming home. You can get around much of Florence with a manual chair, and some of the museums have elevators or lifts.

Venice is not very accessible as most of the bridges have many steps, so be prepared to both tender here and to need to get help lifting a manual wheelchair if you want to see anything beyond San Marco square. I understand that some of the vaporettos are accessible so a boat ride around the canals may be the best bet. Here is an article to review:

http://europeforvisitors.com/venice/...ble_venice.htm

http://www.geocities.com/Paris/1502/...tinations.html

In Naples you dock right downtown and can push around the shops downtown (see the Galleria at least) and over to the old fort, which is partilly accessible. We did go to Pompeii....it was quite an expedition. We lifted my mother into a regular bus, then bumped up a few steps and a very long and steep ramp in Pompeii. The cobbles, etc. were VERY difficult even with a manual chair, and we made the mistake of not going out the entrance, but down the 6 flights of stairs to the marked exit only to find a non-accessible turnstyle. Never want to do that again, but my mother got her wish to see Pompeii! Many people in Naples had a good time on the drive on the Amalfi coast, which might be a better option.

Check these out:

http://www.access-able.com/dBase/index.cfm
http://www.geocities.com/Paris/1502/
www.wunago.com
www.gimponthego.com

[popoune]

Helllo from Canada!
I just came across your message. I am wondering how you made out on your cruise regarding accessibility. My husband and I are plan a cruise to the Med. next summer (I hope) and we do not want to waste any time going places that have too many stairs or are simply not accessible.
I would appreciate your input.
Thanks.
Sincerely, Lillian

[Jillian20]

I think you have figured it out. :o)