Fish extender use for nearly-blind man to find room?

[taishartrueblood]

THREAD ANSWERED- No more response needed, starting to get a little heated.


Good evening, my dad has central serous retinopathy (similar to macular degeneration) and is nearly blind. He can see shapes but finding the one room that is his among a row of rooms that all look alike... VERY daunting for him. Last year I would make sure to help him get to his room, but he didnt want to have to rely on me and ended up staying in his room more then i would like so as not to be a "burden".

Can anyone think of something that is distinctive, easy to see from a distance, and not likely to be stolen that we can use to help him locate his room? I was thinking of hanging a towel or something on the Fish outside his room? Do you think Disney would have any ideas?

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Good evening, my dad has central serous retinopathy (similar to macular degeneration) and is nearly blind. He can see shapes but finding the one room that is his among a row of rooms that all look alike... VERY daunting for him. Last year I would make sure to help him get to his room, but he didnt want to have to rely on me and ended up staying in his room more then i would like so as not to be a "burden".

Can anyone think of something that is distinctive, easy to see from a distance, and not likely to be stolen that we can use to help him locate his room? I was thinking of hanging a towel or something on the Fish outside his room? Do you think Disney would have any ideas?

How about a big magnet to put on the door? Or you can certainly make a big red bow (or some such thing) to fasten around the fish message holder, if you wish.

 

[Tay N Evie's Mom]

I would use magnets and post something very large and colorful on the door for him to see. I post pictures from all 13 of our cruises along with various smaller DCL related pictures on the door whenever we cruise, so our door is always full. You can always see our door way down the hall and it makes it easier for us to locate our cabin.

 

[C6PT7]

Could something like this little $10 lantern that changes color help your father identify his room?

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Dorcy-Mini-Lantern-LED-AA-Purple-Yellow-Red-Blue/40250527

They say it runs for 70 hours on one set of batteries and you could zip tie the handle to the fish to stop people taking it?
I would also ask dcl if they have any experience assisting blind or nearly blind pax to their cabins.

 

[taishartrueblood]

Great ideas, thank you!

 

[belac]

http://www.amazon.com/TEKTON-7476-Compact-Worklight-2-Piece/dp/B000NPPBYM/ref=pd_sbs_328_1?ie=UTF8&dpID=41orpF8gAVL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160,160_&refRID=1G6MT1TJ4JMC6G0DFFJN#productDetails
Or
http://www.amazon.com/Ullman-Devices-ULLRT2LT-Rotating-Magnetic/dp/B003Y3VAYA/ref=pd_sim_469_2?ie=UTF8&dpID=41XJBPyWgcL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160,160_&refRID=1SFW7HPVFYX55B95RW9V

You may need to bring extra batteries. I would put it at the top of the door and add a self made sign magnet that this is a visually impaired guest.

 

[annabug]

im not sure what they are called, but they look like small bicycle reflectors. They are red and you can turn them on to blink. Its a red light. I know cyclist wear them to be seen when riding at night. They are small and light weight but can be left on all day and turned off at night. About the size of a button that Disney gives out for birthdays and such. I would also contact guest services in advance to inform them, they may have a nice way to help out. Good luck, and I really hope your dad enjoys his cruise!

 

[taishartrueblood]

Thanks all, I think I will go with a large bow and a magnet light.

THANKS!

 

[MunFam]

Its called a door spotter. That way people won't get confused that it is part of a FE, but it hangs from the fish, and you can put a ziptie around the ribbon when you hang it over your fish if you are concerned about it getting stolen. We used a ziptie to hang ours.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/209211...y=Disney Cruise door spotter&ref=sr_gallery_1

Honestly, I am not sure they would allow you to have a light outside of your door. It may interfere with "emergency exit" lighting and procedures. A flashing beacon would be really annoying for your hall mates too.

 

[Krissy22222]

I use battery operated fairy lights, like little Christmas lights, but I get them in DCL colors cheaply on eBay. We leave them on all the time to make the room easy to identify and festive. They hang from the fish nicely and the battery pack fits into the top pocket of our Fish Extender.

 

[MunFam]

I use battery operated fairy lights, like little Christmas lights, but I get them in DCL colors cheaply on eBay. We leave them on all the time to make the room easy to identify and festive. They hang from the fish nicely and the battery pack fits into the top pocket of our Fish Extender.

Did you do this recently? Light strings are on the DCL prohibited list (second from the bottom)
https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/faq/prohibited-items/list/

 

[belac]

I think that is for plug in lights, like Christmas lights powered by electricity, not the battery operated kind.

 

[C6PT7]

Its called a door spotter. That way people won't get confused that it is part of a FE, but it hangs from the fish, and you can put a ziptie around the ribbon when you hang it over your fish if you are concerned about it getting stolen. We used a ziptie to hang ours.
Honestly, I am not sure they would allow you to have a light outside of your door. It may interfere with "emergency exit" lighting and procedures. A flashing beacon would be really annoying for your hall mates too.

Did you do this recently? Light strings are on the DCL prohibited list (second from the bottom)
https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/faq/prohibited-items/list/

How annoying would it be if as belac said a small sign to advise why it was there.
Also how much do you know about emergency lighting procedures? Let alone that that battery operated light strings have been allowed on dcl for many many years?

Your idea isn't the only valid one, so no need to shoot everyone else ideas down

 

[MunFam]

How annoying would it be if as bleak said a small sign to advise why it was there.
Also how much do you know about emergency lighting procedures? Let alone that that battery operated light strings have been allowed on dcl for many many years?

Your idea isn't the only valid one, so no need to shoot everyone else ideas down.

Whoa, calm yourself.

First of all, my partner has a law background in maritime ship building and maintenance...so I know enough about maritime practices to simply suggest that the red flashing beacon placed on a random door MAY not be allowed as it MAY interfere with safety and emergency evacuation procedures. Allowing flashing beacons on doors screams potential law suit in an emergency...Thank you for asking.

And by the way...click on the link I provided. Someone suggested using battery operated lights...those ARE prohibited. FACT! I provided the link as proof. I was curious when the person had sailed last because either a) it is an unenforced rule or b) its a new rule and the person suggesting it may not be aware of the item being prohibited.

It would be a darn shame if the OP showed up to the ship, planning to use lights as a marker for her father only to find out that it is prohibited. Then what?

And finally, why are you accusing me of shooting everyone elses ideas down? I simply provided a link to DCL's prohibited items list. If you think that is shooting EVERYONE's ideas down...you should probably walk away from your computer for a while or reread a post before making overly sensitive and outlandish accusations.

 

[Krissy22222]

Did you do this recently? Light strings are on the DCL prohibited list (second from the bottom)
https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/faq/prohibited-items/list/

Yes, did in November, the lights were battery operated.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

those ARE prohibited. FACT! I provided the link as proof.

Well that link just says:

• Seasonal and/or celebratory light bulb strings

which is what it's said for years. It doesn't really specify "battery-powered" or any specific type. In the "normal" Disney-way with such proclamations, battery-powered light strings have been allowed, but plug-in lights have not.

 

[C6PT7]

Whoa, calm yourself.

First of all, my partner has a law background in maritime ship building and maintenance...so I know enough about maritime practices to simply suggest that the red flashing beacon placed on a random door MAY not be allowed as it MAY interfere with safety and emergency evacuation procedures. Allowing flashing beacons on doors screams potential law suit in an emergency...Thank you for asking.

And by the way...click on the link I provided. Someone suggested using battery operated lights...those ARE prohibited. FACT! I provided the link as proof. I was curious when the person had sailed last because either a) it is an unenforced rule or b) its a new rule and the person suggesting it may not be aware of the item being prohibited.

It would be a darn shame if the OP showed up to the ship, planning to use lights as a marker for her father only to find out that it is prohibited. Then what?

And finally, why are you accusing me of shooting everyone elses ideas down? I simply provided a link to DCL's prohibited items list. If you think that is shooting EVERYONE's ideas down...you should probably walk away from your computer for a while or reread a post before making overly sensitive and outlandish accusations.

Firstly, I'm not sure I am the one who needs to calm themselves. You are the one feeling the need to capitalize words to express your point of view further than just lower case.
Secondly, if your partner has a background in maritime ship building and maintenance, that means you do not. No qualification by association. And neither do I before you ask or accuse me of any.
A static light such as belac suggested could no more cause confusion than an emergency light IMO. Yours will differ obviously. And your objection to a flashing light was that it as a beacon "would be really annoying for your hall mates too.". Not could. Would.

So in summary, I think you should calm down, and not try exert any kind of authority regarding maritime laws, regulations, what is allowed or not, and represent your views just as a passenger. Just like the rest of us.
And as I've just seen, Krissy22222, has just proven to you that battery powered celebratory strings are indeed allowed, permitted, authorized, accorded consent due to being battery powered, and not plugged in. And have been for many many years and still are.

Enjoy the rest of your evening.

 

[ForeverAlice]

I don't have any new suggestions but I hope you and your father have a nice time!

 

[Krissy22222]

All I know is it was up for 14 days and no one said anything. I plan to bring them again. If it is not acceptable, to DCL or my hall mates. DCL may take them from me and I will happily oblige.

 

[MunFam]

So in summary, I think you should calm down, and not try exert any kind of authority regarding maritime laws, regulations, what is allowed or not, and represent your views just as a passenger. Just like the rest of us.

I'm sorry, I am having trouble finding the words in my post where I exerted authority of maritime laws? If you translated me questioning if a specific type of light being on a door was safe/legal/allowed as me exerting maritime authority, I sincerely apologize.

Clearly we all have a common goal and its to come up with creative ideas for the OP's father to find his room. I questioned the safety and legality of one of the suggestions. You got defensive. Ultimately, I want the OP to have a great time and for her father to be able to locate his room as easily as possible without any issues and I am going to assume you do too.