Cruiseline cracking down on ECV

[Lewisc]

Carnival, and probably other cruise lines, are having problems with pax leaving scooters in the hall. Probably even worse then leaving them in hotel corridors.

Carnival will measure scooters prior to boarding. Pax can rent appropriate sized scooters from a vendor.
https://www.cruisehive.com/carnival-cruise-line-cracking-down-on-mobility-scooters/125481

 

[lanejudy]

Most cruiseship hallways are narrower than standard US hotel hallways. Plus most non-HA stateroom doorways are also much narrower (21" - 23"), with many standard ECVs or even some manual wheelchairs too wide to fit.

I know that DCL has designated parking areas for those who have booked a regular (non-HA) stateroom. Unfortunately, these tend to be 1 or 2 areas per ship and are often on a different deck, thus requiring a degree of mobility to get between parking area <--> stateroom.

 

[Evita_W]

The question there becomes what counts as an "oversize" scooter? Also, if I book a cabin that can accommodate a larger scooter, for example I book an accessible cabin, will they still deny boarding even though my cabin can accommodate the scooter that I have?

Of course the two cruise lines we prefer are Disney and Royal Caribbean, Royal has staff that will take your scooter to a parking area when needed and bring it back if it won't fit in the cabin, which is also a reasonable approach. Disney can do this if you need to, but they take a lot longer to do so.

This also brings another point though, when we went on Symphony of the Seas, we had originally booked an accessible cabin, but DH put on the paperwork that the only reason he needed it was for the wider door and to have space to put his scooter, as neither of us needed the other accessible features. A bit before our cruise, our travel agent called us and Royal Caribbean asked her if we would be willing to take a free upgrade to a suite that was not accessible, as their suites on that ship had a wider door and there would be room for the scooter in the room, the only thing we would miss out on was the door being automatic, but we got all of the advantages that a suite had to offer, including Coastal Kitchen, which turned out to be a huge benefit. They even gave us extra onboard credit for the inconvenience. Of course we accepted and had a nice suite for a week long cruise for our 16th anniversary. So would Carnival's policy also account for things like this? On a side note, always be honest on those forms and tell them what your needs are, we came to find out they offered us this deal because someone who really needed an accessible cabin with all of the features, such as roll in shower, etc. wanted to book and this allowed them to put the person in that cabin and allowed us a nice suite, everyone won in the end and was extremely happy with the solution.

But I wouldn't suggest ever leaving a scooter in a hallway or other public area, except maybe if you just needed to run into the room to get something. Of course if you have an accessible cabin on most ships the door will be powered anyway, making it easy to take the scooter in and out.

The other thing we found interesting on Royal is they have staff that can and will do minor repairs if needed. They do make it clear that the repairs are intended to be temporary to get you through the rest of the cruise and that you need to get proper repairs done as soon as possible and that they aren't responsible for additional damages, but if you agree, they will help you. Never had an issue while on a Disney cruise, so I am not sure if Disney would do similar.

 

[lanejudy]

The question there becomes what counts as an "oversize" scooter? Also, if I book a cabin that can accommodate a larger scooter, for example I book an accessible cabin, will they still deny boarding even though my cabin can accommodate the scooter that I have?

My understanding is it will depend on the stateroom you have booked and the mobility equipment you have. That's why they haven't stated specific measurements. If the ECV will fit into the stateroom you booked, no problem. If the ECV is too large for the stateroom you booked and a larger stateroom isn't available, that's when they'll offer a rental or deny boarding.

I'm not particularly familiar with Carnival but did some research this morning. Apparently Carnival offers different "accessible" staterooms depending on the needs, and some will accommodate larger mobility devices than others. I do find it interesting that notification was only sent to those booked in an accessible stateroom, but maybe that's already a requirement on Carnival? I know on DCL many folks do not book HA cabins unless they truly need the roll-in/walk-in shower.


ETA: https://www.carnival.com/about-carnival/special-needs/wheelchair-users

 

[Lewisc]

My understanding is it will depend on the stateroom you have booked and the mobility equipment you have. That's why they haven't stated specific measurements

I agree. Fit also means the ECV can't block cabin egress. Carnival says this can be accomplished with a folding scooter.

It sounds like Carnival won't store scooters outside the pax cabin.

 

[mamabunny]

...The other thing we found interesting on Royal is they have staff that can and will do minor repairs if needed. They do make it clear that the repairs are intended to be temporary to get you through the rest of the cruise and that you need to get proper repairs done as soon as possible and that they aren't responsible for additional damages, but if you agree, they will help you. Never had an issue while on a Disney cruise, so I am not sure if Disney would do similar.

I had an issue last year when we were at AKL Jambo House, and I ran by Bell Services to ask if they had any tools. The folks there said they no longer kept tools, but they did call Engineering, and a very helpful CM was dispatched with tools, WD-40, silicone spray and a white fluffy towel to set my chair on. He was able to get the grit out of the wheel bearings (very lucky) with little effort, and it kept the bearings from locking up.

Got caught in an *epic* rainstorm at EPCOT, and the next morning - when all the water dried out of the bearings on my chair wheels - one of them had just enough soil/silt/dirt/organic material that it was sounding reaaaalllyy "crunchy".

No one had to send that Engineering CM; they certainly could have said that it was outside their abilities/scope to work on my chair. But they did, and I remain very grateful for the assistance; it got me through all the way through that trip to home, where the hubs had the tools and ability to install new bearings all the way around.

 

[Evita_W]

You know, we should probably start a thread somewhere of just the good and positive experiences like this, no matter what company it is, it is always good to acknowledge the good

 

[Groot]

Does anyone know how big the hallways are on DCL? Because when I went on the Wonder 2 years ago, they seemed pretty narrow (tenfold when housekeeping would leave the carts out and of course the aforementioned scooters, some of which were Vic 10’s), leading to me coining the phrase (and game) “Hallways With Obstacles”.

 

[Evita_W]

Does anyone know how big the hallways are on DCL? Because when I went on the Wonder 2 years ago, they seemed pretty narrow (tenfold when housekeeping would leave the carts out and of course the aforementioned scooters, some of which were Vic 10’s), leading to me coining the phrase (and game) “Hallways With Obstacles”.

People are not supposed to leave ECVs in the hallway on Disney either, but they often do.