Disabled Friendly Dive Destinations?

[iain53]

My wife and I had plans to dive Belize this coming February, but it looks like there are very few lodging places that accommodate wheelchairs, so we are just going to have to move on to another spot...

So where do we go? We dove Key Largo this spring, which was great. Somewhere with nice beaches, good diving, and accessible lodgings. Accessibility for me basically means that where we stay has wider doors, grab rails in the bathroom, and some way to take a shower that doesn't require a four foot leap though the air

I can manage getting aboard a dive boat, and can do just about everything except muscle tanks across the boat so that end of things is no problem.

Any first-hand experiences?

iain

 

[Wookie]

Oh yes. One option is to contact Dive Pirates.org. They are a group for disabled soldiers, and stay on Cayman Brac at the Brac Reef Beach Resort, which is now rebuilt from Hurricane Ivan. Give Brac Reef Beach Resort a call. Brac Reef

 

[mike_s]

I would say Aruba is one of the more "handicap accessible" beach destinations I've seen.

There is a boardwalk/sidewalk that runs between all the beaches and hotels on Palm Beach. so moving around in a wheelchair would be a breeze there. some of the resorts even have a "boarded walkway" off of it to some shade huts that were put in for people that couldn't go across the sand.

Unique Watersports on that stretch of beach has a pier (next to the Radison) that you could access w/o having to roll a chair across the sand.

this might be an area that you could research on. aruba.com has a forum where you can ask questions about that island that would be better than here also.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Divi Flamingo in Bonaire has accessible rooms with showers, wide doorways, elevated toilets, and boats that you can just about roll onto. My wife is in a chair and does not dive but goes out to bubble watch. The staff is great and very accomodating. At the airport they even carried her down the stairs since they have no jet way and if you are in a chair you go to the head of the line when entering immigration. No waiting. The ground transport is a pain but if you rent your own vehicle not bad. There are no buses or vans with lifts that I saw.

 

[pasley]

Talk to Jim Gatacre of HSA at Handicap Scuba Association He is the head of Handicapped SCUBA Association and they take several trips with that group every year to SCUBA dive. They just did Hawaii a few months back and is in the process of planning their next trip. A look at there past trips will give you a good idea of locations and hotels that are wheelchair accessible. Bonaire is I am told a great place to go. Tonga would also be a possiblity. HSA has instructors and dive buddies in many parts of the world if you desire a guide who is also knowlegable about adaptive SCUBA diving and your needs.

 

[DocVikingo]

Ditto what Jim Lapenta indicated. Just returned from a trip ther with a handicapped diver (MS), our second together, and the dive op and resort are quite accommodating (Welcome to Divi Flamingo Beach Resort & Casino Bonaire - Divi Resorts)

Also Bay Island Beach Resort on Roatan (Come dive Roatan at the Bay Islands Beach Resort. We have diving, snorkeling and vacationing packages for the day or for the week.) and Cobalt Coast Resort/DiveTech on Grand Cayman (Grand Cayman scuba diving cayman island scuba diving cayman island scuba resort cayman scuba training cayman cayman island scuba grand cayman scuba dive cayman islands scuba diving scuba diving in grand cayman scuba diving cayman scuba diving on gran) are well set up for this.

Regards,

DocVikingo

 

[c5diver]

i am in wheelchair and just returned from cozumel. stayed at hotel cozumel. was pretty accessable used dive paradise was very happy with them. cozumel has taxis that have lifts so trans is easy.

 

[maryruth1035]

I really like staying at the Cozumeleno in cozumel, Mexico. Their ramps are a little steep--but I can manage them (and I'm a weekling!). Their elevators work well, thier rooms are plenty large, and you can go anywhere in the resort in the chair. I assume that it collapses easily for the cab rides? I really have had no trouble on the island for the most part. Aqua Safari was very accommodating, but did prefer we use our own guide ($50 for a 2 tank) to help with equipment, getting in & out of the water, etc.

Also, we stayed last summer at the Mayan Palace near Playa Del Carmen (S. of Cancun) and their rooms and grounds work well for a wheelchair as well. They will place you nearer the beachfront so you don't have to wheel out so far. The gard part is getting from the Scuba hut to the boat--I had to have 2 guys--1 on either side of me to "carry" across the beachto the boat

 

[deeplove]

I have seen disabled people in wheel chairs at UNEXSO in the Bahamas

 

[addh2o4fun]

I have been to Bonaire with a newly certified physically challenged diver. He had CP and had little use of his body from his waist down. We went by recommendation to the Divi Flamingo on Bonaire in 1993. The resort grounds were accessible as were the rooms and the showers. The dive boats needed some fanagling but the crew was extrememly accommodating! Can't remember anything regarding ground transportation with an electric wheelchair so I can't help you there. There was a restaurant within walking distance called Richard's that was great so don't miss out. I know that there are several "Divi" locations so you could contact them for which other properties are accessible as well. By the way, the diving was great too.
Good luck and happy diving!

My wife and I had plans to dive Belize this coming February, but it looks like there are very few lodging places that accommodate wheelchairs, so we are just going to have to move on to another spot...

So where do we go? We dove Key Largo this spring, which was great. Somewhere with nice beaches, good diving, and accessible lodgings. Accessibility for me basically means that where we stay has wider doors, grab rails in the bathroom, and some way to take a shower that doesn't require a four foot leap though the air

I can manage getting aboard a dive boat, and can do just about everything except muscle tanks across the boat so that end of things is no problem.

Any first-hand experiences?

iain