The wheelchair traveller
Tips for a trouble-free time
Speaking as an able bodied person caring for my daughter in a wheelchair with special needs, and having travelled extensively in Egypt over the last 15 years, I’m always thinking of the problems facing disabled people when travelling to Sharm.
So, I have put together some travel tips, which will hopefully help in planning a holiday for a wheelchair user in Sharm el Sheikh. A lot is purely common sense, but there may be one or two tips you have not thought of.
Hotels and location
· Select your hotel and location in Sharm el Sheikh carefully. There are many cliff top hotels, so unless you have strong muscles, find a hotel in a flat area.
· Check if the hotel you’ve chosen has disabled rooms. Get email confirmation of availability from the hotel, (and a reference code).
· At the same time, get confirmation of the hotel’s door widths, including the bathroom. There’s no point in getting there and not being able to get through any of the doors!
· If the disabled room has a roll-in shower, ask if they can provide a show wheelchair as well. If not, you can improvise. With a manual chair, put a bin liner over the backrest and wrap one over the cushion to keep them dry. But be careful, soapy water on bin liners can make the seat very slippery to sit on!
· Warning – only try showering in your own wheelchair as a last resort and at your own risk. Never attempt this in an electric powered chair for risk of damaging the electrical circuits and/or getting an electric shock.
· Be aware of check-in and check-out times. If you’ve a late flight departure, see if you can get an extension on your room, so you have somewhere to lie down, relax and freshen up before your journey. Most hotels in Sharm are very accommodating.
· Have a fabulous holiday!
Contact me if you have any special needs queries about your holiday in Sharm. Or, if you have any travel tips or holiday experiences of your own that you would like to share, good or bad, please email them to info@thebook-sharm.com
