Ponders Travel MD Clare Dudley discusses cruise lines’ recent accessibility policy changes and their impact
I enjoyed the accessibility features in Travel Weekly published earlier this year and was more than happy to write my latest column on the topic, as it is something we, at Ponders Travel, are very passionate about.
These days, we are expected to ask our clients some pretty personal questions to establish their specific needs. I am fully aware that we must know and understand this, but recent changes now require us to ask more-intrusive questions, which I find quite overwhelming.
An example of this is a repeat client of ours who recently decided to book a cruise on a line we use regularly. Typically, her accessible needs are a walk-in shower and assistance at the port or airport, due to the often long walks required.
She has no other needs and just takes a small collapsible walker frame with her to help on bad days.
Stairs or chair?
In light of recent changes on this cruise line, it is now mandatory for an evacuation chair to be on the ship when such a client is on board; otherwise, we would have to be certain they could walk two flights of stairs, unaided, in an emergency. I understand this is all in the interest of our client’s safety, but does anyone else fear that most of our clients over 70 are going to need this if they answer that question on the pre-cruise questionnaire honestly?
I think I would be happier with this change at the cruise line if there was more availability of evacuation chairs. When I called the other day, I was told there were probably only about three cruises that have one available in 2025! I was also informed that the only way I could find one was by going through every cruise on their system and trying to find one. Anyone who has done this will know it’s quite a job.
I called again to check a system issue once I thought I had located a cruise with an evacuation chair available, and was greeted by a lovely lady who said, ‘I can just tell you the availability of the evacuation chairs throughout the year if you like’ and then proceeded to help me quickly and efficiently.
Why couldn’t the first person I spoke to have offered this service and saved me a wasted hour?
There is also a catch when you select a cruise with the evacuation chair: it will show you the availability and then, when you go to book, it won’t let you. Did you know that if you are booking
a cabin for two, it will show as available, but that means you can’t book as there is only one chair available? This, of course, is OK if you only need one, but it’s not the easiest process to navigate.
Difficult decisions
We had another similar client recently who previously only ever required assistance at the port.
This year, their Christmas cruise has been cancelled because, after reading the client’s completed accessibility form, the line deemed that they would need the evacuation chair. There was no refund offered and only three cruises available in 2025 that they could swap for!
We have agreed, as a team, that we now need to ask every client who books a cruise with us the staircase question. It feels horrid, but it has to be done.
Cruise is one way to beat taxman
The sweetest couple ever came in yesterday to book their first cruise. The chap was 88! He told me their reason for booking was due to the recent change in government, which he fears could mean they will lose some of their money. They said they would rather book a trip than let the government have their money! This dear gentleman was also very hard of hearing. I was very empathetic to this and made sure I spoke clearly and slowly so he could understand me. I then asked him a question which I immediately realised was rather silly: I asked him if he would like a cabin in a quiet location!
PICTURE: Shutterstock/Mulevich