United Kingdom useful info for disabled visitors
Accessibility in:
Accomodations
in the United Kingdom, expecially in London, it is usually
expensive. London is a very wide town and to stay in a centrally
located hotel it will help you to move easily. Many hotels
in London have "adapted" rooms but sometime these
rooms can not be suitable for anybody expecially if the adaptations
were made many years ago.
The hotels we are dealing with are fully accessible, they
have no stairs or steps on the way to the rooms, the lifts
are wide and our disabled guests will be able to move all
around the buildings. The rooms we book for people with disability
have usually roll-in shower and WC with grabs. The hotels
have usually 1 or 2 accessible rooms but there are hotels
with many accessible rooms up to 10..
The
public transport system in the main United Kingdom towns are
generally well organized and in London the network includes
the underground railway.
London
Underground
Unfortunately the London Underground was built over one century
ago and at that time accessibility was not considered as important.
In recent years London Underground has decided to improve
accessibility and the works to adapt the main stations are
on the way. The District line has accessible stations and
is connected with the Piccadilly line accessible stations.
The Jubilee line is accessible too. The Heathrow airports
terminals 1,2,3 & 4 are conected by accessible passages
to the Piccadilly line. The Docklands Light Railway (DLR)
on the right river Thames side is fully accessible and all
the railways staions have free access by lifts or ramps.
Taxis
and cabs
The traditional black English cabs are widely available and
their fares are cheaper than in other European towns. A large
portion of them are easily wheelchair accessible and by the
end of the years 2000 all of them are supposed to be accessible.
The most accessible are the Metrocabs and you can stop them
in the street while running if they are free.
Minicabs are easier to use for a wheelchair traveler but you
must book in advance.
Buses
The traditional 2 floors English buses are not accessible!
But the London Transport Authority is improving the accessibility
of the London standard buses. The main accessible bus service
is Stationlink which links the main London railway stations
by vehicles with a lift. There are also on some lines special
low-floor buses and the access is easy due to an extending
ramp.
Minivan
with driver
We can book for our guests minivans with lift and with and
English speaking driver. We use for our guests special vans
with powered lift, in few cases we use vans with ramp. The
vans can transports up to 8 passengers plus our driver. We
calculate our rates for maximum 7 pax, because during the
sightseeings and the excursions a guide'll use the seat near
the driver. In case the party doesn't ask for the guide the
available seats'll be 8. In few case the vans can transport
less than 8 pax. Usually vans can take in up to 2 or 3 wheel
chairs.
Rent a Car
We can rent a car from many companies like
Avis, Hertz, Maggiore, at very competive rates. Cars
with hand controls are very
few andt available on
demand. Minivans with lift to be rented for self driving
(by an ablebodied driver)are available too.
Trains
The Eurostar
train from Paris is accessible (2 chair spaces each train)
and bring you to the Waterloo railway station, downtown located
in the center of London. The Waterloo station is fully accessible
too.
Ferries
Ferries
from France, Belgium, Ireland and Netherlands are accessible
too by lift access from the car deck to the upper decks of
the ship..
SIGHTSEEINGS
AND ASSISTANCE
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On
request we can supply expert guides for your sightseeings
or excursions in all major languages and handling by experienced
staff on arrival and departure in each British
port of call.
We can provide medical and nurse assistance, book for you
manual wheelchairs, electric wheelchairs or scooters to rent,
provide tickets for any artistic show, event or fair all around
Italy, in few world we can provide you what you need.
Information
subject to change without notice; please click
here to feedback about wrong links and information, thank
you!
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