3-day Cruise with elderly Mother-in-law

[PrincessDeb]

This is our first cruise and we (me-34 and DH-39) decided to bring along my 80-yr. old mother-in-law as a special treat for her 80th birthday. She has wanted to cruise for years and never had the opportunity so is thrilled to be going. She is very active for her age but has a hard time walking long distances so we are planning to take everything at her speed. Does anyone have any special tips for travelling with someone elderly and is there anything that we should absolutely see or do with her (besides Disney Dreams)? We know that we won't be seeing everything that we want to ourselves but we don't want to miss the highlights. Thank you for any help that you can offer!!!

 

[taswira]

I am considering taking my mom on a 3-day in November for her 80th birthday. She has never cruised but loves everything Disney and still does the WDW parks with me, but like your MIL has problems walking long distances. When will you be going? I really enjoyed Castaway Cay in January, but found it WAY too hot in May. An older person might not be able to take it in the summer. Of course Disney Dreams is a must. If your MIL likes fine dining, Palo would be a treat. She would probably like the entertainment at the Promenade Lounge, Duelling Pianos (maybe), and Who Wants To Be A Mouseketeer (if she is a real Disney fan). She'd likely enjoy the fun of watching the Sailaway party as long as you weren't too close (if she is hard of hearing it could be an advantage ;-). There are movies. If you have a verandah, spending time together talking and watching the sea might be a real pleasure for her. Most of all I'm sure she would appreciate that you did this for her, even if she might just sit around a lot. As long as she isn't made to "rush" anywhere, she's bound to enjoy it.

 

[PrincessDeb]

We are taking MOL on the Feb. 6th sailing. She can't handle the hot weather very well and neither can my DH! We brought her to WDW in March of 2000 and ended up borrowing a wheelchair for her from our hotel- she was huffing and puffing just getting from the Disney bus to the gate in MK the first day. Thankfully, the push kind was free from All-Star movies so it saved us having to wait in line at each of the parks. She loved the shows and the dining and she can be a real ice-breaker as she is little and cute and everyone talks to her! She is thrilled that we even asked her. Thanks for your advice!