Mobility Policy

Ambassador Cruise Line warmly welcomes guests with disabilities, including those with mobility restrictions as well as restricted sight and hearing. However, with the very different nature of a cruising holiday when compared to one on land, and purely for safety reasons, such guests should be accompanied by an able-bodied, or a fully sighted/hearing companion (as appropriate), who will be responsible for providing any assistance that you may require both onboard and ashore.

Prior to booking, we kindly suggest that guests with any mobility requirements consider the proposed ship’s layout and consider their needs when making a booking. Please note that the ships’ crew are not required to lift guests or push wheelchairs. Guests may have to walk down/up steps and ramps without a walker or wheelchair when boarding/disembarking in ports of call, as local gangways/ramps may not always be wide enough to accommodate all mobility devices.

The number of guests either reliant upon the use of a wheelchair/scooter, or with reduced mobility, that we can accept is governed by the number of crew we can assign to assist disabled/mobility-impaired guests in the unlikely event of an emergency. This is in accordance with the International Maritime Organisation’s convention on 'Safety of Life at Sea' (SOLAS), governing the safe evacuation of a vessel within 30 minutes of the emergency alarm being sounded. This regulation is not superseded by the EU Passenger Bill of Rights Regulation 1177/2010, effective 18 December 2012, concerning the rights of passengers when travelling by sea or inland waterways.

CABIN INFORMATION

Guests who may need to use their mobility aid to manoeuvre around the cabin and who require the use of an adapted bathroom must occupy a Disabled cabin. Standard cabins have raised door sills to enter the bathroom, with some having a bathtub rather than a walk-in shower. The doors of our standard cabins are also narrower than those of Disabled cabins, so larger mobility aids may not be able to pass through.

Guests are required to store mobility devices in their cabin and will not be permitted to leave them outside in corridors and stairwells, or have them stored elsewhere on board.

Ambience has the following cabins which have been adapted for those with mobility difficulties:

1 x DLX11MID (Oslo - 11116)

2 x SUI11MID (11138 & 11139)

4 x OUT08MIDO (8101, 8103, 8104 & 8106)

5 x INS11FWD (11105, 11122, 11124, 11125 & 11129)

1 x INS08MID (8109)

Ambition has the following cabins which have been adapted for those with mobility difficulties:

2 x INS09MID (9051 & 9052)

ONCE ONBOARD

Any mobility device being taken onboard, must not weigh more than 45kgs in total and must not exceed 75cm in width, if occupying one of our adapted cabins. 

For those guests occupying a standard cabin and taking a mobility aid for general support whilst moving around the vessel, the device must not exceed 55cm in width. This is to ensure the mobility aid can manoeuvre through a standard cabin door, without any difficulty.

Each individual component of the mobility device must not weigh more than 25kg, and this restriction is applicable to guests in both our standard and adapted cabins. Crew and shore staff may not always be able to assist with loading mobility aids, particularly onto tender boats, and guests and their travelling companions are advised that they may need to load their own mobility aids where necessary.

Any guest with mobility restrictions needs to be able to manoeuvre through doorways and into our elevators in normal operation to enjoy their holiday. In addition, the mobility aid needs to be moved up and down gangways to allow guests on and off the ship. Guests may have to walk down/up steps and ramps without a walker or wheelchair when boarding/disembarking in ports of call, as local gangways/ramps may not always be wide enough to accommodate all mobility devices. As gangways vary in each port, we must limit the weight of mobility aids, so that crew can assist with on or offloading in case of any unlikely emergency situations.

Guests booked into one of our Disabled cabins, will be able to use their mobility aid throughout the vessel; however, those taking a wheelchair or scooter for temporary use only, may be asked to park or leave their mobility aid in designated areas near certain public venues, including the restaurants and show lounges, in order to leave access routes clear. Guests who are not booked in a Disabled cabin must be able to walk short distances in some venues, without the support of larger mobility equipment (eg scooters). Please note that any mobility equipment left unaccompanied will be at the owners' risk and Ambassador cannot be held responsible.

Once onboard, we are unable to offer any sustained or long-term assistance. If you opt to travel alone, but it transpires that you are unable to cope on board you will be required to meet with a senior officer to discuss the situation, and in extreme circumstances may be asked to disembark the vessel at your own expense. If in any doubt prior to departure as to whether we can safely accept the guest for passage, we do reserve the right to insist a guest is accompanied by an able-bodied companion.

Electrical power supplies on board for recharging mobility aids are available at 220Volts and 60Hz frequency.  This is different to the standard frequency at home which is 50Hz.  A lot of electrical equipment can still work safely at 60Hz, but please check with the equipment manufacturer if you are in any doubt.  

INFRARED INDUCTION LOOP SYSTEM - AMBITION & AMBIENCE

Ambassador has now installed an Infrared Induction Loop System on both ships within the Palladium show lounges. This infrared hearing system is an assistive audio system to aid communication with hearing-impaired guests.

Guests are requested to visit the ship reception to sign out and in each system for use. Headsets or Neck Loops which connect so guests can use their telecoil-enabled hearing aids or cochlear implants are both available. Should guests not return or damage the pack, a fee of £350 will be charged for the pack replacement. Guests will need to return the systems each evening as they require to be charged for use. A portable loop system is also available for each ship reception, which will connect directly to the guests’ hearing aid. If you have any further questions, please contact Guest Services on guestservices@ambassadorcruiseline.com

EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE

Only those guests who have booked a Disabled cabin, are eligible for enhanced crew assistance during an emergency situation. We must be confident that we can safely evacuate guests in the unlikely event of an emergency. A guest with restricted mobility who is booked in a Disabled cabin, would need to be assisted up and/or down stairs and into a lifeboat. If the mobility aid is needed for Musculoskeletal support, then it must be a weight that can be safely moved by crew (45kg) and a guest could be at serious risk if crew are not able to manoeuvre a mobility aid due to excess weight.

We welcome guests who wish to bring a lightweight wheelchair/scooter with them for temporary use onboard and/or shore use., These must be stored in your cabin when not in use. You will be responsible for taking the wheelchair/scooter on and off the ship at each port of call.

Those guests taking a mobility aid for support, but not occupying a Disabled cabin, will need the support of an able-bodied travelling companion who is willing to be responsible for the mobility device when embarking and disembarking the vessel and to assist you in the event of an emergency.

TENDER BOATS

All guests must be comfortable with stepping on and off a tender boat to go ashore in tender ports. We will not embark/disembark any guest who is seated in a wheelchair into a tender boat, as the risk of an incident is too great. Crew may offer limited assistance and support to guests boarding or disembarking from a tender boat, but guests must be able to stand and walk a short distance independently or with the assistance of their travelling companion to steady them. Guests (other than small children) must not be carried or lifted into a tender boat.

Small/foldable mobility aids, such as a folded wheelchair or frame, will be accommodated on tender boats. Folding mobility scooters, which can be carried in one piece and weigh less than 25kg, will be accommodated where possible but may have to be transported outside peak operating times. Larger scooters where any part weighs more than 25kg or which disassembles into more than two parts, cannot be accommodated in tender boats.

Where there is any doubt, a guest’s mobility may need to be assessed by a ship’s officer once onboard. Their decision on the safety of transporting any guest in a tender boat will be final.

CONTACT AND ASSISTANCE

We want to support Guests with mobility difficulties as much as we can, but do need to recognise the particular constraints of ship construction and marine regulations.

If you find that your mobility aids do not meet our criteria, Mobility at Sea may be able to assist you and accommodate your needs - please click here for more information.

Should you have any queries regarding our mobility policy but have not yet made a booking, please contact our Reservations Team on 0808 102 8030 (Mon-Thurs 0900hrs to 2000hrs, Fri 0900hrs to 1800hrs, Sat 0900hrs to 1700hrs, Sun 1000hrs to 1600hrs).

If you are already booked and your mobility needs have changed since the time of booking, please contact our Guest Services Team on 0808 102 8031 (Mon – Fri 0900hrs to 1730hrs, Sat 0900hrs to 1700hrs).