Port tendering with mobility issues?

[dskib]

My mom has problem with her ankles making it very difficult for her to walk. She uses a cane and can't do steps. Long distances are tough. The cruise I'm looking at tenders at Grand Cayman. What is the process like? Is it doable for someone pretty disabled?

Thanks!

 

[PrincessShmoo]

My mom has problem with her ankles making it very difficult for her to walk. She uses a cane and can't do steps. Long distances are tough. The cruise I'm looking at tenders at Grand Cayman. What is the process like? Is it doable for someone pretty disabled?

Thanks!

It can be pretty difficult for someone with mobility issues to tender. You're going from a large ship (moving with the motion on the ocean) to a small boat (also moving, and usually rougher). And there's typically stairs up or down to the tender platform.

While this is Cabo San Lucas, you can get an idea of the steps/platform and distance across to the small tender boats:

 

[dskib]

EXACTLY what I needed to see. Thank you .

 

[PrincessShmoo]

EXACTLY what I needed to see. Thank you .

I might have photo of one of the Grand Cayman tenders (Fantasy), but I'll have to look for it tomorrow (different computer).

 

[cmwade77]

I don't have mobility issues (other issues yes, mobility, no) and if a port is a tender, I will stay on the ship. I don't enjoy the tenders at all.

 

[MunFam]

Im a normal, healthy, long distance runner and travel a lot. The one time I tendered, I thought to myself, I am not doing the again. That was tough!

 

[SteveMP]

Some cruise lines use their life boats for tendering. Can't remember which ones i've seen do that. I guess it depends on the mobility issue and how bad they want to try really. If its just "some trouble" you may ask them at the gangway and see if they can grab an elbow and help them on. Once sitting I guess they would be ok?

 

[DLM1980]

It can be pretty difficult for someone with mobility issues to tender. You're going from a large ship (moving with the motion on the ocean) to a small boat (also moving, and usually rougher). And there's typically stairs up or down to the tender platform.

While this is Cabo San Lucas, you can get an idea of the steps/platform and distance across to the small tender boats:
View attachment 249080

Was this a Disney ship? I never experienced this before. Looks interesting like you either come out of the door and go down a flight of stairs to the second tender. I've only experienced the little arched ramp from vessel to tender

 

[bbel]

Was this a Disney ship? I never experienced this before. Looks interesting like you either come out of the door and go down a flight of stairs to the second tender. I've only experienced the little arched ramp from vessel to tender

Yes, this is what it's like in Cabo and vilefranche. You go out on deck 1 and then down again to a kind of ramp that comes out the side of the ship and then into the tender.
I think in GC, because they use 'double decker' tenders you go out on deck 1 and right out on the the tenders top deck.

 

[lizabu]

My parents both have canes and we did the Grand Cayman tender. The Disney ship lines up with the top floor or the tender. Once we got on the tender boat is bumping up and down. I held on to my mother and my husband held on to my father and we sat them down and once they were seated they were ok. It's just those precarious few steps between the gang plank (don't know if that's the right word) and the closest seat. There were already families sitting there but when they saw 2 old people with canes they were nice enough to slide over. Coming back is much easier and the boat isn't bumping as much. My parents actually did the return tender by themselves as they didn't want to wait for us and they said it was fine.

 

[Anchors Away 2016]

The tender boats for Grand Cayman are bigger. When we did it, there was a person on a wheel chair. The CMs held that person on the Cruise Ship until the Tender Boat was fully loaded, then brought the wheel chair on, to a spot near the front without benches. They were also the first person off. It seemed to work fine for them.

 

[kiford]

My mother had knee issues so never really liked tendering because she wasn't very steady. Eventually, she just never got off at ports where there were tenders and let my father go off on his own (to be honest, I think she was always happier staying on board anyway; it was my dad who was more interested in the ports). I have to admit I find them a pain. Not difficult, just time-consuming and annoying. We didn't get off at Grand Cayman the last time. We'd been twice before and seen what we wanted to and were not interested in shopping or beaches.

If she does want to still go, my suggestion is to wait until the bulk of the people are off the ship and take one of the later tenders so there's not so many people potentially jostling them. They do help you over the ramp and onto the tender. Usually the crew will grab forearm to forearm rather than holding your hand as it's much more stable. Coming back well before the last tender leaves will also be a much less populated one. Getting on and off at the port is usually at ground level with very wide flat ramps so not too difficult.

 

[Rabb it]

When we tendered in Grand Cayman in February it was a straight shot from the Magic onto the Tender boat a ramp that was at a tiny decline, no steps like the ones in the photo. BUT, the tender boats are double deckers and to get off the tender boat you need to go down a small flight of stairs to the bottom deck and then onto the dock.

 

[MunFam]

Was this a Disney ship? I never experienced this before. Looks interesting like you either come out of the door and go down a flight of stairs to the second tender. I've only experienced the little arched ramp from vessel to tender

That is what it looked like tendering in Cabo on the Wonder. When we returned, the seas had picked up a bit and the waves were crashing over the platform and first two steps, so we had to time when to jump off and scramble one by one. We had a 4 year old with us and we had to send her up solo...THAT my friends...was TERRIFYING!! There were cast members, but yikes.

 

[jrabbit]

Here are a couple of pictures of the Fantasy tendering in Grand Cayman

 

[jrabbit]

And here is the Wonder Tendering in GC ...
(Not the "RED" coloring - is where you enter the Wonder from the top deck of the tender)

 

[jrabbit]

and Finally ... just what I think is a cool picture of the ship that's hard to get if you are not tendering...

 

[bbel]

When we tendered in Grand Cayman in February it was a straight shot from the Magic onto the Tender boat a ramp that was at a tiny decline, no steps like the ones in the photo. BUT, the tender boats are double deckers and to get off the tender boat you need to go down a small flight of stairs to the bottom deck and then onto the dock.

Do they not have the ramp anymore so you can get on and off the top deck? That sucks.
I never once had to use the tenders stairs...

 

[Anchors Away 2016]

Do they not have the ramp anymore so you can get on and off the top deck? That sucks.
I never once had to use the tenders stairs...

Ditto. I remember a ramp, not going down the stairs within the tender. But that was last summer. Maybe it has changed.

 

[SteveMP]

Do they not have the ramp anymore so you can get on and off the top deck? That sucks.
I never once had to use the tenders stairs...

Do you mean from in port?