Accessible Travel

My husband, Leon, and I went to Rome for five days and then on a Mediterranean cruise for two weeks in October ’08. Leon uses a wheelchair, though he can walk a bit when he needs to.

I like to travel. As a full-time wheelchair occupant, having had a stroke 10 years ago, I want to pass along a few observations for handicapped travelers.

We spent two weeks just walking around in Venice, Italy, in September-October ’07, not entering a single church or museum but going to a lot of dead ends and making sure we didn’t miss anything. It was rewarding and I would like to do it again.

Getting around Venice on foot is cheap and immediately available, but sometimes it’s a confusing time-waster because of the often missing and sometimes contradictory signage plus having to find a bridge to cross a canal.

A reader mentioned taking a disability pass to Europe in order to park in spaces for the handicapped (Dec. ’07, pg. 103). At the website www.globalaccessnews.com and after clicking on “Travel Archives,” under “Trips, Tips and Resources” I found the following item:

“Great news! European countries now honor disabled parking placards from the U.S. and Canada. The placards must display the international symbol for disability and state the name of the document holder. Prominently display your documents inside your car’s windshield.”

As ITN readers know (July ’07, pg. 26), British Air will not give seat assignments more than 24 hours in advance of a flight — regardless of class — unless the purchasers have fully flexible tickets or are Gold or Silver Executive Club members (another exception — families with young children).

My husband, Leon, uses a wheelchair, and on our 3-week visit to Israel we found that most places tried to accommodate people with disabilities.

by Sarah Rosenbloom, Chicago, IL

My wife, Patricia, has severe arthritis and walks with two canes. On a trip to Russia a few years ago, we encountered the following issues as regards accessibility.

I took an independent trip to Egypt, Oct. 26-Nov. 3, 2007, especially to see el-Amarna, where Nefertiti and Akhenaten had their City of the Sun.

With two friends, I traveled from New York’s JFK to London Heathrow on British Airways flight No. 112 on Sept. 15, 2006. Three hours after arriving at Heathrow, we were to connect with British Midland (bmi) flight No. 163 to Mallorca, Spain.