World's best cities to travel to if you're disabled

Sam_Scope

Scope community members @emilyroseyates and @Mik_Scarlet are talking about accessibility and travel in the independent sharing their favourite holiday destinations.

Emily chose Barcelona, Singapore and Berlin while Mik loves Cardiff.



From the Independent: “Holidays and adventures mostly require good planning and preparation to ensure that our flights, accommodation and activity providers are aware of our additional requirements and that we ourselves have everything we might need for the journey ahead,” says Yates, who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at a young age and is a full-time wheelchair user. 

But, she adds, “As frustrating as it can be to know that just booking a flight and jetting off without a care in the world probably isn't the best of ideas, advice and suggestions from other people in similar situations can be really helpful.” 

So what are your favourite holiday destinations and what advice and suggestions would you give to others?

Sam_Scope

I recently travelled to India and had to use a wheelchair while I was there, I'm sure it won't be a surprise to hear that it is not accessible at all!! The roads are barely ok to walk on, let alone use a wheelchair. 

It was really tough and it made me realise how many barriers there are in place for physically disabled people.

Fundamentalist

Hi from Fm. It's ok for those who CAN travel all over the place, but what are folk like ME supposed to do with severe misophonia and severe heat intolerance? This is disability from hell! For me just travelling on the local bus to the next town is often a brutal ordeal and is often brutally disrupted. How on earth could I go on a plane for hours on end with a whole plane load of rowdy passengers and then there's the unthinkable baking frying heat at the destination which for me would be like entering a kiln! This is why I joined this forum to try and highlight this kind of appalling disability which is all too often ignored and far too many folk including a lot of those who work in the disability field have no idea that such folk and such disabilities even exist which is just too unacceptable and needs to seriously change. I also of course couldn't possibly go in a hotel because of all the excruciating noise. Fm.

Sam_Scope

That's a shame you don't feel able to go on holiday @Fundamentalist - my friends arranged a "staycation" for themselves last year as they couldn't go on holiday. 

They stayed home and planned to do something nice for themselves each day, perhaps that is something you could think about? 

You have spoken about your disability before and I can see it is really tough for you, there are so many different disabilities and each person faces their own personal challenges.  I hope you can find a way to live happily with yours.

Fundamentalist

Hi from Fm. Thanks for your comment. Could you realistically sit and talk to someone with white noise blasting out which I often have to have, see my post about "innovations that help", I have to have it on demand at the touch of a button. The state I'm in turns just about everything that should be enjoyable into absolutely intolerable torturing hell. I've now also got to build myself an extra loud speaking phone so I can hear it over the white noise which drowns out my TV so I can't listen to it when using the white noise and normal "loud" speaking phones are nowhere near loud enough and I thank the Lord that I can do electronics so I can build myself some gadgets to counteract such brutal conditions. And I'm currently building an extra powerful ultrasonic blaster to give the dogs outside a taste of their own medicine and as it's inaudible to humans I can probably leave it on 24/7 if it's running cost isn't too high. I'd like to hear if there are any other folk out there in the UK suffering similar conditions which absolutely destroy entire lives and make just about all remotely "normal" life well nigh impossible. It's those kind of folk who always fall "through the net" when it comes to disability legislation. Fm.

Sam_Scope

I found this information about misophonia, perhaps it would be of interest to you?

http://www.misophonia-uk.org/dealing-with-misophonia.html

Have you tried noise cancelling headphones? 

Fundamentalist

Hi from Fm. Thanks for that. I've seen misophonia-uk.org but I don't like their site, I can't say why as it would land me in serious bother. I have tried writing to them several times by just about every route only to be totally ignored every time. And I can't understand how folk with misophonia can attend the mass gatherings that they hold. I couldn't go to such an event it would be absolutely intolerable. And no electronic devices work for me, Back in the 90's I tried using a cassette Walkman type thing, the loudest one I could find and it did no good at all, everything just went right through it like it wasn't there. And I can't lay down in bed with earphones! I know, I've tried. The only thing that does work is white noise which I can only use at home and I'm currently building a large and very powerful white noise blasting appliance to use outside to drown out the neighbour's dogs so I can get on with my essential home maintenance and repairs and improvements. It will have to be really powerful to drown out anything outside and if anyone complains I will tell them don't tell me, go and tell them with the dogs, they're causing the problem. Fm.

catchacold2

Just had an interesting online conversation with Euro star to highlight the fact that their 280 day pre booking ticket service is not working for wheelchair users.
I highlighted that wheelchair users using their dedicated online wheelchair booking tool are only able to book 120 days ahead and not the recently introduced 280 days ahead that is now available to able travelers.
I was told that they will now look into this..

Sam_Scope

Where would you all recommend for holidays? I really like Lanzarote, it's quite flat and there are lots of wide flat walkways.  The only issue I found was a lack of public toilets, but I think that is the same all over the world!

Les

My favourite areas are The Netherlands and the coast of Belgium, because of the flatness.

I am fortunately still able to drive myself.

What we did as a family of 4, was to drive from Market Rasen to Canterbury and stay the night in the Premier Inn. Excellent disability rooms. Next day, get the train through the tunnel  and then drive to Ostend. We booked a flat on the seafront with a lift. Did the same coming back. Stayed in Ostend for 7 days. We had a lovely time. Excellent food and drink and so much to see, along that coast as well as places like Bruges and Ypres in France. Even went across the border into the Netherlands.


Thoroughly recommended and something you can so easily organise yourself. We even used Tesco vouchers to pay for the Eurotunnel and for meals whilst in Canterbury. :-)

nanof6

sam, ive been nearly housebound for 2 3 years need a holiday,dont like lands a grotte, i no the plane is fine, its finding a hotel with disabled toilet,  im finding hard, i dont want to book disabled holiday they are 3 times the price, ive always done it myself, but since im in a wheelchair mostly now i need dropted curbs dtoilet, then i will manage, but i find a hotel and there are steps to the dinning hall or to the lift, im now looking at benidorm, because i see they use a lot of motor scooters, but do you no anywhere,?  it has to be warm as we can only manage 1 case,i wont take my electric wc incase some thing happens to it, i dont think the wheelchair service would be very happy,so manual chair, i have to be pushed, thats why 1 case, a warm place because i cant pack jumpers coats in the case, only things that can be washed through and dryed quick, 1 case for 2 people, hope you have some ideas,also i would go for 3 weeks,im terrified to fly, i realy could do with the help.

Sam_Scope

Hi @nanof6 have you thought of seeing an independent travel agent? They are experts in the field and can work to your budget and your requirements though you should ensure they are registered with the ABTA to keep yourself safe.

Les

@nanof6 Have you looked at this link

http://www.disabledholidays.com/search/europe-l27/spain-l38/costa-blanca-l145/benidorm-l189/


It may help you to find somewhere suitable, and you don't have to book with them just use them to find hotels.

nanof6

les, i had a look but they are not putting the names of the hotels there

nanof6

thanks sam.

Sam_Scope

My friend's brother is an independent travel agent (dont worry I am not trying to sell him to you!) but it was only in talking to her, that I even realised that their were independent travel agents and that it doesnt cost any more to use their services. 

It might be worth a look round at your local ones?

From the experiences on this community, it seems that accessible holidays cost so much more and that is really unfair 

Les

nanof6 said:

les, i had a look but they are not putting the names of the hotels there

That's strange. I can see the hotels when I click on the link. Did it show this at the top

Disabled Holidays in Benidorm

Disabled Holidays> Europe> Spain> Costa Blanca> Benidorm

If not, there is a search box on the left, and if you type Benidorm in there, it should come up with the hotels. It found 35 hotels for me.

nanof6

yes it did, but when i clicked on each indevidule hotel it doesnt say the name of the hotel

Sam_Scope

I can see what you mean @nanof6 I can see the hotels and the spec but not the name of the hotel.  I suppose they do that so you have to book through them?

nanof6

Sam, yes just another way to make disabled people through the nose, its a joke, as if we dont have enough of the expence just to try and live.

Les

Sorry I haven't responded. In the middle of doing my wife's self assessment tax returns.

I see exactly what you mean. I hadn't selected the information button. They are dead crafty and I don't like that sort of thing. My apologies about that. I am going to try and get in touch with them and see what hotels they mention and see what I come up with. They won't be getting a penny out of me :-)

Les

Well that was interesting. I called them and had a great chat and got the name of the hotel, that was first on the list.
They said the area around was flat, etc. The Hotel itself had wide lifts. They have a adapted rooms, with Wet Rooms etc, so sounds perfect.
The Travel company said that they arrange everything, including the support needed to get people on board etc. So it is a bespoke holiday rather than a package holiday. There are so many airports in the Uk that you can fly from. They  will also arrange the hire of  things like hoists etc, but that is an extra cost.

So a breakdown of one weeks holiday for high season, being school summer holidays is around £4300 for 4 people, 2 rooms, one of them adapted, including flights and private adapted transport to and from the hotel. They will arrange with the flight company for assistance at the airports and getting on and off the plane. Half board.

Personally, if they did all of that, then £2400 for 2 people in an adapted room, with all the above, would seem to me, to be not that bad.
In June/July it would cost around £1800 for 2 in adapted room.

From what they told me, it is the best hotel for dealing with people with more severe disabilities.

Anyway, this is the hotel. It is called Hotel Helios, Benidorm. which is an accessible beach hotel. http://www.hoteleshelios.com/en/home/helios-benidorm/services-costa-blanca/

So you could look and see if it would be any cheaper doing it yourself.

Trip Advisor says https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g187525-d264419-Reviews-Hotel_Helios_Benidorm-Benidorm_Costa_Blanca_Province_of_Alicante_Valencian_Country.html

Is that any help,@nanof6 ?

Fundamentalist

Hi all, Fm here. I wonder what those baking hot places are like in the winter when it's not even warm never mind hot. I wonder if you can get some great rough sea trips anywhere there. That's if you can find anywhere to stay in the winter when there would be far less demand. And have you seen those inside video's of some cruise ships in storms on you tube with all those chairs and tables and even a dangerous heavy piano all sliding about? That could kill someone. There's no excuse for anything like that, it's been known for thousands of years that the sea gets rough sometimes so the stuff should all be properly fastened in place so it can't go lurching about and put people in danger of serious injury or worse and all that stuff sliding about could even make the ship seriously unstable, just what you don't need in a storm at sea. Fm.

Les

The answer is to get in your cabin and enjoy the ride smiley: