Has anyone any experience of travelling abroad and renting a mobility scooter that is delivered to your cabin ( cruise ) or hotel ?
This is what i am pondering.
If we book a cruise, i am thinking of hiring a scooter for the week ( totally new experience) and wondered if anyone else has experienced this.
I want my husband to enjoy his holiday not push me all over the places we visit ( he retired last year and is 10 years older than me )
Thank you in advance
No experience of this. But I would suggest you try hiring or borrowing /hiring one first at a shopping centre or tourist attraction to gain some experience/confidence. They are not difficult to use, but some basic skills learnt in a place with more space would help when you are faced with closer confines.
Good luck and enjoy (from an infrequent scooter user)
I’ve bought an electric wheelchair rather than a scooter but they do the same sort of thing thought the chairs are more compact - having an open front and no steering column.
If you can afford one, buy one! There will be lots of occasions when you can use it because you have it. Otherwise you will find yourself talking yourself out of doing things. We’re going on a cruise in October and my walking is such that I might make it up the gangplank without the chair but be in a bit of a mess thereafter, so it was a no-brainer. Bought mine as my “insurance policy” in case I got myself into trouble. So far in 4 months I’ve used it 3 times: twice planned and once unplanned.
Just do it! You’re in the zone now and let’s face it, we’re going to need them more in future, not less!
Thank you for your replies…
Yes, i own my own mobility scooter but it would be a right faff to actually take on holiday, so i thought i will travel in my wheelchair to the ship then hire a scooter for the duration of the holiday.
The fold up, travel mobility scooters are perfect and would take the worry out of travelling but the cost is beyond belief.
Thank you again…
Hello Tally
I’ve not hired mobility scooters, but do hire other equipment for cruises from Cruise partners | Mobility at Sea. If you have a look at their website and/or give them a call to talk about it, they’ll give you the information you perhaps need. (Including costs!)
Sue
I’m going on my first cruise in October but experienced cruisers (the boat kind, not kerb-crawlers 
) we know have recommended a cruise-only, where apparently you can pretty much rock up to Southampton with all your worldly goods and it will be loaded aboard. This would of course include your own wheels. Very different proposition doing a fly-cruise as the plane bit limits what you have available to stick on the boat.
P.S. My wife has just read this and tutted. Apparently it’s a ship, not a boat. Who knew? 
Ohhhh fantastic Sue thank you very much. Yes i will make a note of that. Despite the fact you havent actually hired a scooter, its good yo know that you have had experience of hiring SOMETHING when on holiday.
Thank you very much.
So why do you go there on a boat train?
In navy terms a boat refers to a submarine I think.
There is a distinction between cruise ships and liners for those in the know.
I like things with sails and get confused how you can call something without sails a yacht.
So where does this leave Brittania?
I hated the whole idea of a cruise. Really detested the notion. Then Mr Sssue and I saw a deal that we thought we’d just try. Given that we live an hour from Southampton it seemed a bit too good to miss! It was a week to the fjords (ie Norway for those who cocked up their Geography O level / GCSE!)
We saw the ship (!) and we’re horrified. The immensity of the ginormous boat. ‘What the 
have we done! Still, only a week!’
It was amazing. A great cabin, enough space for a wheelchair (slightly older ships apparently have bigger cabins). A reasonable balcony. The food was fabulous. (Btw, we don’t do buffets. We tried the main dining room but felt like sharing a table with strangers made us feel like when we worked and had to attend conference dinners! Solo tables were ok. We also don’t do dressing up!) The speciality restaurants were really great.
We’re not major fans of many types of cruise style entertainment either.
What we do like is the sea, and omg, the fjords. I totally recommend going to Norway on a cruise:
Very mobility friendly. Oh and yes, you arrive at the port, they take your luggage, you check in and are on board 30 minutes later. Obviously these days Covid testing has to happen first (LFTs sat in the car, easily done). We’re a little bit nervous at the moment because of Covid, but we still have a cruise booked for June and another for November, plus possibly one for August (different cruise line, we’re waiting for their decision as to whether they’ll allow profiling beds on board).
Sue
Yes i must admit that the fjords are 1 cruise that has been mentioned, it looks absolutely stunning. I have been on a number of cruises and mobility has never been a problem, until now, so its either a) b) or c).
A) wheelchair.
B) mobility scooter.
C) i stay on the ship for the
duration if the cruise.
A) i don’t want my husband pushing me about, i don’t call that a holiday for him.
C) i don’t want to be hauled up on the ship for 7 days.
Sooooo, B) is the option for me.
It will most certainly be a new experience for me. I will be able to walk around the ship using my stick and having the knowledge of plenty of seats to sit down on, so that is taken care of, its just the mobility scooter situation…
Thank you for your reply.
Btw there are Facebook groups related to accessible cruising. I don’t actually belong to any so can’t recommend, tho Mr S is involved with one. Generally it seems quite helpful and you should be able to find pictures of accessible cabins on many of the ships / cruise lines.
Sue
My wife went on a cruise (without me) and said it was full of people using mobility scooters and electric wheelchairs. Subjectively, she said it was younger people who used the chairs. As I am a mere 59, I went for a chair. They are more compact too, being open-fronted and without a steering column (armrest attached joystick instead), so easier to carry in a car.
Have a look on https://livingmadeeasy.org.uk/, an impartial, charity-run database of products & services to promote independent living.