We reserved a room a full year before the sailing date, with our travel agent, and still, all the handicapped access rooms were booked. The earliest out is about 16 months. Alaska is currently very popular, so it is best to plan ahead. We chose a ship that went round trip out of Seattle, so no planes as we were trying to bring my scooter and walker and a plane would have been harder to manage.
Cruise companies have toll free numbers for disabilities, so I got that from my agent and called several times. I needed a fridge for my meds and a sharps container. They happily provided both. We told them we had a walker and scooter and they made sure there was space. They even upgraded us to a larger room for this need. We crammed 2 adults, 2 big kids, luggage, fridge, and the equipment in the room! My parents both went with us and were impressed with how large our room was (they had previous cruise experience). I couldn’t believe that was ‘large’ until I saw theirs. Ship cabins are tiny!
We paid extra for an ocean view room, but it was a waste of money. We spent all day out and about. There are sofas and chairs all over for reading, game room, library, computer room,
etc. on the ships. The window wasn’t very clean for photos and at night, it didn’t matter much. Inside rooms are just as big and cost a lot less. I loved to sit out on deck and watch the ocean or land pass by. How else will you see whales if you don’t go outside? (side note: it is soooo hard to photograph whales. They start to breach, you click, and they are almost gone. No giant jumps like on TV. When they are in their daily lives, much less exciting. So I have pix of little hump shapes in the water. But in my mind's eye, they are there!)The best thing for me about Alaska was that the weather was no warmer than 70 or so. I have MS and can’t be in the heat or I get sick. Wearing a jacket on deck was sufficient. Rain can be an issue in Alaska, so be prepared for that. We didn’t see rain on our entire trip.
There are elevators for up and down on the ships, but nothing for end to end travel. I had to plan out or I got too tired roaming the ship. Learn the ship layout!
While waiting for the cruise to come, we shopped the excursions. They tend to be very expensive, so we tried to shop wisely. Some people at cruise critic.com said you could book excursions at the dock from other providers. We didn’t see any in some ports and they don’t carry guarantees of on-time returns. The ship will NOT wait for you. Be cautious; they make all the excursions sound authentic and adventurous. We were cattle, over 2000 per ship. Which isn't to say it's not fun. Just know what to expect. Authentic Alaska is hard to find from a cruise. Book early as some do fill up. We did pretty well in the end:
Juneau: free excursion to Hubbard Glacier. Shopping downtown was easy to get to from the ship. I used my scooter for the glacier and downtown. Glacier was federal, so all ADA compliant. Downtown was level. Stores were tight, however. I had to leave the scooter outside the doors and walk in. Short distances like that were okay for me. Wheelchairs would be hard indoors.
Skagway: This was most everyone’s favorite stop. We liked the aura of the town. Much less congested than Juneau, even with 3 ships in port together. Lots of excursions available. We took train ride up into the mountains and bus ride back, stopping at fake mining camp and gold panning. My parents did only the train round trip for $50 less a person or so. My kids really enjoyed the camp, so for them it was very good. I like the photo ops available from the bus on the way back. Unbelievable views. The tour guide told us lots of interesting things as well. $150 a person?
Hoonah/ Icy Strait Point: This was the most authentic stop. We didn’t do an excursion, just wandered around the port and shops. I wish now we had bought the bear watching excursion. Other people saw many bears on theirs.
Victoria: Scooter was invaluable here. Waterfront was
awesome. No excursions. There are many choices down by the Empress for free or nearly so. British Columbia museum is awesome and cheap. Butterfly garden a block away.On the ship tips:
Gambling was a loser proposition for everyone we saw and everyone in our party. See the nightly shows. They are fun and FREE. The fine dining dinners are free and exceptional. We didn’t do the formal nights, you know, kids and fancy clothes don’t all go together. The buffet in our ship was amazing, however. We discovered all the game show type things in bars around the ship, all day long. They were fun even just to watch and laugh.
Access and accommodation on the ship was excellent. They know how to help and are amazing. This was my first trip since my recent setbacks. I was so scared about venturing into new places, but they were awesome. Ships have tons of experience with disabled and elderly. Cruising is now my favorite kind of travel because I didn’t feel like I missed out on anything. That has been the worst part for me, feeling like I am on the sidelines watching everyone DO things. I didn’t feel that way after this trip. We have saved our money and gone on 2 more (much cheaper) cruises and I had the best time. I will tell you about those trips later. Alaska was my ‘Trip of a Lifetime’.
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