Cruising with Special Needs

Special Diets

pinkbarbie — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 15:33:35 GMT

Has anyone ever had to deal with a special diet on the cruise? Was it hard to deal with?

My daughter is on a GFCF Diet and we are going to bring on some snacks for her.

I read somewhere that other cruise lines (RCI and Cel) will cook pasta and frozen waffles that you bring on board. Will Carnival do this?

Traveling with Cpap

vacruiser — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 12:40:18 GMT

Has anyone taken a cpap on a Carnival cruise? I "not so friendly" agent told me by phone that I would have to bring my own distilled water to use in the machine! How am I suppose to do that when flying in? She also told me they couldn't provide an extension cord so that I could plug in my machine which needs to set beside the bed. Has anyone experienced this problem?

GETTING INTO THE TENDERS FROM WHEELCHAIR

ablejan — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 05:39:20 GMT

How are the accomadations on the Carnival Pride when you have to transfer into the tender boats to go to the islands? Thank you

Alzheimers Challenges

CruiseswithKids — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 01:43:02 GMT

Are there any suggestions for my mother-in-law in late 80's? She is the most intelligent nurse, masters in psychology, realtor, lived in China and South Africa, coolest mother-in-law in the world. She is so excited about the cruise. However, she is use to going and going and going. I have to hire someone to take her shopping daily while I'm at work. She has Alzheimer's and wanders off down the street when we aren't watching constantly. I'm afraid, no, I know, she will leave the room while we are sleeping or her room mate is not in the room. She is so intelligent, but she will not remember how to get back or where she should return. I have thought of some sort of unremovable bracelet with name and room # maybe but don't know how to make it happen. I will also notify our room steward but I need suggestions how to ensure she is returned to her room. Thanks so much!

Traveling with a service dog

giggleykim — Sun, 31 May 2009 23:54:05 GMT

My husband and I have been on a few cruises together, but this is our first with our service dog. Has anyone traveled with there compainion and how did it work out on Carnival. How was the dog treated? How was the area that they desinated for the dog to do there bussinness??

Anyone have pics of an accessible room?

mslinnet — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 02:02:49 GMT

One of my gusets has booked an interior on the Lido Deck of the Destiny room 9137. If anyone has pics I would appreciate it.

Autism

capuni — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 01:48:35 GMT

According to the website you need to email them if you have a special needs passenger that needs special accomodations yet we email the special needs form and Carnival Cruise line never even replied to us. They didn't care.

Excursions ochos rios and grand cayman w/scooter

xmanswan2 — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 01:31:11 GMT

My cousin is joining me on the Destiny 12/5/09, he wants to go on excursions anyone have any sugesttions or info about getting to port he has a scooter, do we need to book in advance, do we need special lifts?

Thanks for any help n advance. I want this trip to be as magical for him as it will be for me.

WHEELCHAIR USER ANY ACCESSIBLE PORT ACTIVITIES

ablejan — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 20:23:21 GMT

Hello I'm in a wheelchair, is there anything to do at Ports: Grand Tuck, Half Moon Cav, or Freeport. I don't want to stay on the ship for 7 days. Thank you Janice.

Cozumel Excursions w/ wheelchair

spcrobbins — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 21:19:58 GMT

I am cruising with my Granny who can walk very little on her own and will have to use a scooter for most of our cruise. Are there any excursions that she can do in Cozumel? She really wants to see the ruins but we are not sure if that is handicap accessible. Any help would be appreciated.

Handicap accessible cabins questions

jcf — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 18:49:32 GMT

I have heard from several others that Carnival's handicap cabins are NOT really accessible and in some photos I've seen posted there is no way I could get around the cabin in my wheelchair or scooter.

Is this true of the newer ships as I'm interested in the Splendor to Mexico in July but I am very worried as I have both my wheelchair and scooter with me and I use an extra wide wheelchair. Plus there will be 3 in my cabin. I also need a wheel in shower.

I have had no problem on Celebrity or Princess both of which had wonderful cabins but after talking to one of your res agent's (which wasn't a pleasant experience) I'm pretty much resigned to haveing to pay the higher price for Mariner of the Seas.

Do you have photos and floor plas with measurements of the accessible cabins?

Thank-you

"Autism on the Seas" and Carnival

autismontheseas — Sat, 09 May 2009 20:10:46 GMT

Hi all,

This is Mike Sobbell from "Autism on the Seas". We have recently starting working with Carnival, and I just want you all to know, that we find Carnival accomodating our clients extremely well.

If you have any questions for me, let me know...

Sincerely,

Mike

18 yr Old Son with Autism

lisa — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 01:53:18 GMT

My family is set to sail on Oct 3. on the Glory. We are excited and a little anxious with our Son/ He does not do well in closed in crowed spaces. I have booked a suite to help speed the check in process( I hope) What else can I do to limit his time waiting with large groups of people? the last cruise I did was without him and the check-in was long,but the muster station drill would have been a nightmare with him had he been with us. What can I do to pre-arrange some alternative to the crowed space? Also does anyone know how well "walkie talkies" work on a ship? He likes to stay in his room some and thought this might be a good way to get a hold of us if he needed something.

Since he has just turned 18 he is no longer eligible for the camp programs. Any insight to what others have done will be most Grateful!

IV Antibiotis

baw — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 22:29:49 GMT

My father is booked on an upcoming cruise in about 3 weeks. He just got out of the hospital from being treated for an infection in his knee. He found out he has to be on IV Antibiotics for 4 more weeks which makes his last week the week of his cruise.

Is there any problem bringing these anti-biotics onboard to be self administered?

Any help would be appreciated.

Acessible Rooms

Charleyann — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 20:50:06 GMT

We have a balcony on the Carnival Valor on Dec. 6/09. I am travelling alone with my 13 year old son who uses a wheelchair. We have a balcony room. Unfortunately we were unable to secure an accessible cabin because there are only two rooms with balconies and they were already taken. We are on wait list....

Is it possible that Carnival will upgrade to a higher category with an accessible room if available? Same price? I am hoping it will work out for my son. Neither one of us can stay in a room without a window....claustophobic....

Many thanks

charleyann

Flying

mayle — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 05:07:22 GMT

I'm thinking about flying into Miami from Knoxville, TN with my handicapped child and was wondering if it would be worth it. We will be flying in the day before the cruise, booking the flight myself and I'm trying to figure out how to handle all the luggage we will have since there will be only me, and I will be pushing his chair. Are there people to help in situation like this? We will have to change planes in Atlanta, and was wondering about how to handle that. Also what should I take for his ears, I know that some people have problems with the taking off and landing, and not sure if it would bother him or not. I know that I will have to get a note from his doctor about the two rods in his spine, in case the alarm go off when we go through security. He has a feeding pump which I'm going to do as a carry on, should I get a note for that also, don't want to pack it with the checked luggage, it would be really hard to replace it, and we got to have it. What about his can food, it is like ensure, but is in cans, not bottles, would I have a problem there?As you can tell I have not flown with him and this will be a big learning experience, should I drive by myself to Miami or fly.

Hearing Aids

musicteech — Mon, 04 May 2009 01:45:24 GMT

I'm hearing impaired and where behind-the-ear hearing aids in both ears. I want to spend a lot of time by the pool and also in the pool. I also wear contacts. Obviously I can't wear the hearing aids in the pool so will have to leave them by my lounge chair at the pool. These are very expensive & less than a year old. I don't want them to walk off. If I don't wear them at the pool then I won't be able to carry on a conversation with anyone especially if it's really noisy.

Any suggestions for me??

Cruising with Back Problems

Tonya J. — Tue, 12 May 2009 02:52:59 GMT

This is my first cruise (Conquest 8/16/09 out of Galveston). I am 37 years old. I had a 360 Spinal Fusion in December then returned to work in January. I fell at work April 17, and I am currently undergoing tests to find out what I may have damaged. don't know exactly what condition I will be in by the time we set sail. If I have my way about it, I will not have any further surgery until after the cruise..so will opt for pain management if that is the direction that it goes in.

I am having trouble walking long distances. I don't currently use any special equipment such as a cane, walker or wheel chair. I'm just wondering if anybody else may have had similar issues and any suggestions you may have and what shore excursions, etc...you were able to do.

I feel like I could not be going on a better vacation considering my condition. Just looking for information of how to make the best of this situation. We booked before I fell, however I knew that b/c of my former problems with the surgery, etc..that there was a possibility that I may be having issues as I am at higher risk for injury or for further damage to other levels of my back.

Heart devices

mamamo — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 13:17:32 GMT

I thought I'd ask on this site since when our TA asked she didn't get a clear answer. If one has a pacemaker or an implanted defilibrator do you need a special note from the DR. or is the little registration card enough to get on board. Our TA called tomake final payment on our cruise and the person she talked to said it wasn't something to worry about. I find this hard to believe since there is a metal detector you have to go thru when going on ship. If I am still unsure I will call the special needs dept and see if they will talk to me(the last time I called Carnival with a question they wouldn't answer me directly because I had booked with a TA) but maybe this would be different. We just don't want any surprises.

Poor Mobility

mrsunclebill — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 03:30:24 GMT

Due to health issues I use a scooter but I can walk a short distance. I know that I can rent a scooter and they'll deliver it to the ship. Question- are the cabin doors on the regular rooms wide enough for a scooter to get in? As long as the scooter will fit in the door I can function in a regular room - I don't need all the other accessibility items. Also am I correct in assuming that the fully accessible rooms are more expensive?

Best thing to do in Eastern Carribean in a wheelchair?

cruzjunkez — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 21:01:36 GMT

Hello all. This is the second cruise we are taking my father-in-law on who is paralyzed from the middle chest down. We went to Key West and Cozumel and had no problem with finding things to do. The national park in Cozumel was a blast for him. They have special wheelchairs there, so he was able to be pushed on sand and see the ocean and the neat things on the trails. However, I'm not finding to much for him to do on our next cruise. We are visiting Half Moon Cay (which has sand wheelchairs, so thats a plus), San Juan Puerto Rico, Grand Turk and St. Thomas. If anyone has been to any of these places and can help me out it wuold be a great help! It makes my whole vacation to see the people I love having a great time!

Thanks

Lindsey

Fragile X and cruising

fab4fromal — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 02:44:49 GMT

We recently sailed on the Fantasy on 6/18/09. Our 10 yr old son has Fragile X, we usually try to do all that we can without having to ask for special assistance. We had read how accomodating Carnival was to people with special needs, so anyway long story short, during the check-in line at the terminal we sensed our son had just about had all the crowd and waiting he could stand (after a 6 hr. car ride to boot), we kindly explained our situation to the nearest Carnival employee who immediately took us out of line and put us at next in line to be checked in. This was just the start of the kindness we enjoyed our entire trip.

Review of Carnival Triumph (Canada/NE) with wheelchair and scooter both.

nanabarb — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 00:07:37 GMT

Hi My son and I just returned from a Carnival Triumph cruise to St John, NB. He is non-mobile and must use a transfer board to transfer from bed to w/c, etc. I am a disabled senior and can no longer do any lifting. ( I am the one using the scooter). I emailed the special needs department prior to request his bed be raised to 22 inches. Our cabin steward (Rodney) had already placed blocks under his bed before we got on board. The whole crew was very accommodating with him and me. the inside stateroom was a little crowed with his wheelchair and my scooter but we fit. Bathroom adequately met our needs. Our travel agent booked us on the lido deck which we greatly enjoyed because of the closeness to the food, pools and activities. Went off board in St John but there were no excursions for w/c users, however, there is a dockside gift market and about 2 blocks away was a market. So he got to buy his suvenoirs. Casino onboard was very accessible. Food was good. Cruise elegant dinner was disappointing since about half of the people were in real casual dress. One guy even had on a t-shirt with a marijuana theme and shorts and he was let in. Cruise elegant dinner was on the second night and people who did not read their daily brochure (Capers) assumed it would be the last night. Carnival staff took very good care of the check in and out with special lines. No need to wait with long lines of people. All in all it was a very nice trip.

Gluten free

scubaswife — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 20:47:27 GMT

We just got back from Carnival Legend on 6/21 cruise and had a disappointing experience. My 7 year old daughter must eat gluten free. We booked our cruise 10 months in advance and faxed the special needs form 6 months in advance. We received a call from Carnival's special needs dept confirming they had her set up as gf. They said she would be able to get bread, pancakes, cookies, pasta, etc...We arrived first night in dining room and asked for hostess as told to do. She said that they had my daughter down as gf but would not be able to accomodate her the first night. I was so upset. I just don't understand when they know you are coming but can't help you first night. Later on in cruise we learned from the hostess they had 27 gf people and over 200 other people with allergies. THat is alot of people not to be able to accomodate the first night.

We were able to only get gf bread, pancakes, spaghetti and a chocolate cake. They also offered a sorbet which tasted awful even to us adults. We learned to ask for extra bread at dinner and then took it in morning with us to Lido deck at Unicorn Cafe for breakfast. We ended up eating there every morning because the 1st morning we ate in dining room so my daughter could have gf pancakes and she got sick one hour later from them. Very limited in food offerings. She basically ate an egg every morning (scrambled or hard boiled) and bread we brought from dinner with some sort of fruit. THe hostess told me to go to omelet line and ask them to get a clean pan to make her an omelet and the guy said he couldn't get a clean pan. Bacon and sausage were not gf, nor any other breakfast offering. For lunch we found the chef at Unicorn cafe to help us. We could only get her hamburger and fries each lunch as nothing else was gf. He would personally go get it from kitchen as the grill fries were not gf. We were so thankful to him and tipped him well at end. Dinner was a bit better, They did have spaghetti and could get any fish gf. Baked potato, veggies and fries. No pizza which we were disappointed in. Also they said they could not make us cookies as they flour they used for bread did not work well for pizza and cookies.

We went 2 years ago on a Princess cruise and they bent over backwards for my daughter. She could basically get anything she wanted on menu as gf and made her all sorts of different pastas and pizzas and desserts. Carnival only had one pasta, one dessert, no pizza. Also they said the ice cream was not safe on Carnival. Very disappointing and since eating gf is a major issue for us we will not be travelling on Carnival again.

Shows were good and crew nice. But food mediocore compared to the 4 other cruise lines we have been on.

limited mobility

Italia555 — Sat, 30 May 2009 01:49:09 GMT

Hi everyone.

We are booked on the Carnival Dream October 15th Meditteranean Cruise. I have a few concerns, because we don't know what to expect. I am trying to consider all possible factors relating to my husband's medical issues.

He is a Type One Diabetic. He is insulin dependent. He also has heart disease, and can only walk up perhaps 12 to 13 steps at a time. He has had several serious foot surgeries that required removal of many bones, including one last year that removed more than half of the bones in his foot. He can walk, but shouldn't walk for long periods. He cannot stand in line for long periods of time...over 15 minutes, or so would be too long.

I have tried to book excursions that required limited walking. My concerns are our Pisa by Trolley excursion. Will there be anywhere to sit down and rest during the one and half hour stated tour of the Cathedral and Baptistery? He will not be able to be on his feet for one and half straight hours.

Also, the Best of Dubrovnik tour says that a fifteen minute walk will be required to get to the point where you board the motorcoach for the excursion. This will be entirely too long as well, and I was wondering if Carnival would allow us a wheelchair to use just to get to the motorcoach and back to the ship.

I tried to book the less walking tours, but some of the options were very limited.

Also, with embarking, disembarking, and the drill. He will not be able to stand for hours for these parts of the cruise either. Can he sit through the drill? Can we embark and disembark using a Carnival wheelchair? Like I said, he can walk and stand independently, but needs to limit how much he does so.

If anyone can help with these questions, or has insight into some tips for us as first time cruisers, it would be appreciated

Thank you,

Donna