There were two other power wheelchair users on the ship. I’m talking real power wheelchairs, not the Hoverounds or scooters.

One of the wheelchair people was a sweet lady who was there with her husband and some other couples – similar to my situation. I spoke to her on several occasions, and we compared notes on ship accessibility. She liked getting in the swimming pools, so she had some concerns that I didn’t.

The other was a gentleman about my age who had been in a motorcycle accident four years earlier. He lived in Canada and explained to me the benefits that he was given, even though he had plenty of financial assets. For starters, he came on the cruise accompanied only by his paid caregiver. He had to pay her cruise fair, but the government paid her hourly wages, like they do every week. They also provided him with a custom-built wheelchair van and paid for all of his home modifications, including an elevator.

I asked Kim which province she would like us to live in.

I sent a letter to my friend, Damien the cruise director, outlining the deficiencies I found in Celebrity Edge’s accessibility features. Unfortunately, there were more than a few. Here’s what I wrote to him:

Damien,

This is Mitch Sturgeon. I was the wheelchair user you met on the Western Caribbean cruise last week, and I had mentioned that I wanted to relay some accessibility suggestions. Here they are:

On several decks, there were no private bathrooms where my wife could assist me. Instead, there were rooms that were designated only for baby changing, not for family bathroom use. I hated that. It’s something new that I’ve never seen before. Why not just make that same area a private bathroom for families and disabled people who need assistance, and for baby changing as well? 

When I traveled on Royal Caribbean’s Anthem last year, I could wear a wristband which, when I waved It close to the key device on the outside of my wheelchair accessible cabin, the door would unlock and open for me. There was no such device available on the Edge. Supposedly I could’ve done something with my phone to help open the door, but it didn’t matter because the cabin’s key device was too high. On Anthem, it was at wheelchair level. On the Edge, it was at standing height. See photo.

Light switches in the cabin were not at wheelchair level, and one of them was stuck in the corner such that even if it had been lower, someone in a wheelchair couldn’t have reached it. See photo.

On previous Celebrity and Royal Caribbean ships we’ve enjoyed, in the wheelchair accessible cabins there were appropriately placed buttons to activate door openers for the bathroom. On Edge, there was no such button and the door was extremely heavy, rendering it impossible for me to get into and out of the bathroom myself.

In the shower, the bench seat was tiny and uncomfortable. On other cruises with Celebrity and Royal Caribbean, it was much larger. I borrowed the room chair in order to have a more comfortable shower. See photos.

The floor transition piece between the main area of the cabin and the bathroom isn’t smooth enough. This becomes an issue when using a personal lift. My wife would pick me up from my chair in the main area, and while bringing me into the bathroom it was extremely difficult for her to drag the lift over the transition piece. There should be zero elevation change between main area and bathroom.

Damien, other than these issues, we found the Edge to be a wonderful ship, and your crew was top-notch. But I had expected accessibility issues to have improved from previous ships, not regressed.

Thanks in advance for sharing this with the appropriate people at Celebrity.

Mitch Sturgeon

Cabin 9108

Celebrity Edge Cruise: February 17 – 24, 2019

As usual, we did not allow the shortcomings to materially affect our enjoyment of the cruise. We powered through. But it sure is disappointing when you know a company has the capability of getting it right, and they don’t. Let’s see if my letter has any positive effect.

Click here to see Cruise Post #4