15 replies to this topic

[Vanessamaee]

Ill be 18 next summer. Since I didnt go on vacation this summer (Preoccupied in the hospital) I have money saved up. Im going on a Senior Vacation (Senior Trip) next summer but am having trouble trying to choose where to go. Many of my friends are going to the beach for their trips, Im not sure how beaches and wheelchairs work since I live in the middle of the United States no wheres close to an ocean. So I was wondering if anyone has any ideas for a FUN vacation (perferably not historic/educational, not that its not very interesting! I just want a RELAXING vacation) for a FULL time wheelchair user. Im a T3/T4 complete para. I have thought about going to Texas a lot, but Im not sure what to do there besides the beach, also Nashville, KY. But Im at a loss of ideas
Thank You!

[Taylor818]

Sounds like you've got quite the vacation to make up for and plan!! I live in Florida, about 10 minutes from the beach but I have yet to figure out how to get down to the water, short of dragging myself or being carried . So, while I'm useless in that respect, I too was looking for alternative vacation spots. I don't know exactly how "relaxed" you want to be but there is a place in Tennessee called Pigeon Forge. I've never personally been, but my boyfriend is from there and has been a few times. He is a T10 complete and has no problem with the lodging or most attractions it has to offer. It seems to be the kind of place where you can do everything or nothing, depending on your mood. Sorry I can't offer a firsthand experience but here's a link you can check out to get a feel for it. Wherever you end up going, I'm sure you'll have a great time!

http://www.mypigeonf...mmodations.aspx

[Vanessamaee]

Thank You! (: Ill definatly have to look (:

[bruceofmaui]

The island of Maui is a truly exotic holiday which is more then just a beautiful beach. I have a wheelchair accessible condo with roll in shower which is located on the beach of Maui. Just sitting on the complex's lawn underneath a swaying palm tree watching the ocean is really relaxing and recuperative to the mind and body. Mix this type of relaxation with an assortment of accessible activities, be it accessible kayaking, accessible helicopter tours, lovely day drives through rain forests or up to a 10,000 foot volcano crater, world class shopping and art galleries, accessible boardwalk over natural reserves or in front of beautiful resorts. Dining of all types from 5 star, to great ribs or bbqing at the condo. Check out my website at www.mauiaccessiblecondo.com to preview my acc4ssible condo and to see accessible activities on Maui check out my google map at http://maps.google.c...1e760b6e69&z=10 Good luck with your planning and e-mail me at bruce@mauiaccessiblecondo.com if you have any questions. Aloha Bruce

Attached Thumbnails

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

[KayDub]

Okay I know I'm always trying to rep Colorado, but as far as distance and price and everything you can do, you can't beat it. Hawai'i is gorgeous, but my dad lives there half the year now and I can never seem to go visit him because plane tickets cost sooo much. I've done the drive from Denver to Ontario along I-70 sooooo many times, if you add on the time from your place to KC and Denver to the mountains, it's about 10 1/2 hours.

Summer in the mountains, in my opinion, is more fun than the winter. Just because hiking isn't an option doesn't mean kayaking, whitewater rafting, camping, horseback riding, ATVing and going to the national and state parks are options.

The National Sports Center for the Disabled (http://www.nscd.org/) is in Winter Park, CO right at the foot of Rocky Mountain National Park (http://www.nps.gov/romo/index.htm)an hour max from Denver. That gives you an option to go camping (there's lot of good car camping areas with easy trails you can take your chair on with maybe a friend to get through some of the harder spots) As far as NSCD, this is a list of their summer options:
Rafting
Therapeutic Horseback Riding
Mountain, hand-crank, and tandem biking
Fishing
Camping
Hiking
Resort Activities
Sports Camps
Canoeing
Rock Climbing



If you don't want to tie yourself down to NSCD there's loads of other things to do. All the major ski resorts, Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone, Aspen, turn into mountain biking and horseback riding areas and most mountains have an adaptive center that can help in the summer if you make sure to call ahead. That gives you the ability to try out handcycling, both on the road trails and possibly on some easier mountain bike trails. The Breckenridge Outdoor Education Center (http://www.boec.org/) is the main adaptive center for Summit County (Breck, Keystone, Copper Mountain, etc.) about an hour west of Denver. The BOEC has some SWEET handcycling programs as well as kayaking I believe, and you can't beat the scenery up there. There's great summer deals at the super nice hotels they charge fortunes for in winter and there's also really great camp sites you can use in a chair in both the White River National Forest and Arapaho National Forest.

All the ski towns are really accessible and put on a lot of fun activities in town in case you want to explore places other than the outdoors. They give you a great chance to relax and shop and get around tiny little villages so they're not killer in the wheelchair. There's also LOADS of really great mountain lakes and reservoirs (both in the mountains and in the Front Range, where Denver and the other cities are) to swim, have someone else paddle boat you, or just veg out next to.



My buddy is a raft guide for Royal Gorge Rafting (http://www.royalgorg....net/index.html) in the Arkansas River down in the Canon City area (southwest of Denver, but southeast of the major ski areas, it's just east of and closer to Colorado Springs, which is a straight hour and a half south of Denver on the interstate). It's known as some of the best rafting in the entire US and he offered to have a set up for me to raft with him this past summer. Timing got the best of me so it's on the to do list for next summer. They also run a really cool zip line.



If you want to go even further you can go towards Glenwood Springs, which has natural hot springs that are accessible. They're a little pricey so I'd recommend Idaho Springs if you want to go to the hot springs. Both towns are along I-70, Idaho Springs is an old mining town that's fun to check out about 30 minutes west of Denver and Glenwood is another great historic town surrounded by gorgeous red rocks almost 3 hours west of Denver and 45 minutes west of Vail. Don't worry they're not historical trips, just really cool buildings in cool towns. Most everything in Colorado that I know has lots of adaptive programs is along I-70 which makes it really easy for a road trip from KC. Places like Royal Gorge are just south and Rocky Mountain National Park is just north, and if you want to go see qbounce he lives in Steamboat Springs, about and hour north of Breckenridge.

Since you'll inevitably be driving through the major towns in Colorado, it's a great idea to also check out Denver and Boulder (about 45 minutes northwest of Denver). Both towns have loads of awesome stuff to do and are really accessible. The area transportation system (RTD) was the first in the US to become completely handicap accessible and since Craig Hospital is in the area there's lots of accessible programs. If you don't want to limit yourself to "accessible" things you don't have to. There's ghost towns to check out in the foothills just west of Denver, really cool artsy college town stuff in Boulder which is a gorgeous town and Denver itself has TONS of parks, museums and fun stuff. Water World is in Denver and I think it's the largest water park in the entire country and it's accessible. So even though there's no oceans that combined with the reservoirs and rivers and lakes gives you a change to swim and cook off.

You can also check out a concert at Red Rocks, the only naturally occurring major amphitheater in the foothills just outside of Denver. The 2012 concert calender will be updated here (http://www.redrockso...m/Calendar.aspx) and there's also Film on the Rocks once a week, for $10 they play fun popular movies like Pulp Fiction, Fight Club, Office Space, etc. and have a local band open. Everyone brings food and blankets and sneaks booze in and has a good time. Sunset there is gorgeous.



So if you want an inexpensive vacation that lets you do all sorts of fun accessible outdoorsy things, camp, get great hotel deals, hang out in the mountains, check out really cool cities, and a lot of other options, I'd totally recommend a road trip to Colorado.

I mean if you can get to Maui for cheap, do that. But for something much more affordable and VERY awesome (IMO) come to Colorado!

*This has not been written by the Colorado Tourism Bureau, I promise! But I think I know where I should start looking for a job LOL.

Whatever you choose, have a total blast!

Edited by KayDub, 02 November 2011 - 08:06 AM.

[tsh3406]

What Kay said, and if you are in CO for a few days, drive another 8-10 hours into Las Vegas or Arizona for a couple nights.... road trips are the BEST

[BillS]

You're probably too old and too young both at the same time for this but maybe try out Walt Disney World?

Personally I love vacationing at Walt Disney World and it's the most accessible place I've ever visited.

[Vanessamaee]

 BillS, on 02 November 2011 - 08:03 PM, said:

You're probably too old and too young both at the same time for this but maybe try out Walt Disney World?

Personally I love vacationing at Walt Disney World and it's the most accessible place I've ever visited.

My aunt and uncle actually work for disney! She works for disney cruise lines and he is an event planner for magic kingdom (: I LOVE it there but didnt know how accessbile it would be or if many of the rides were accessible. Every time I go I stay at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, I LOVE waking up to all of the animals (:

And thanks Kay! I will definatly have to look into going to Colorado (: Its weird I got on and read that becuase I jsut got back from the doctors and they are talking about transfering me to another therapy institute becuase they are less than happy with the one I go to now. They mentioned Craig and Kenedy Kreiger, So we'll see what happens! (:

[KayDub]

 Vanessamaee, on 02 November 2011 - 08:22 PM, said:

 BillS, on 02 November 2011 - 08:03 PM, said:

You're probably too old and too young both at the same time for this but maybe try out Walt Disney World?

Personally I love vacationing at Walt Disney World and it's the most accessible place I've ever visited.

My aunt and uncle actually work for disney! She works for disney cruise lines and he is an event planner for magic kingdom (: I LOVE it there but didnt know how accessbile it would be or if many of the rides were accessible. Every time I go I stay at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, I LOVE waking up to all of the animals (:

And thanks Kay! I will definatly have to look into going to Colorado (: Its weird I got on and read that becuase I jsut got back from the doctors and they are talking about transfering me to another therapy institute becuase they are less than happy with the one I go to now. They mentioned Craig and Kenedy Kreiger, So we'll see what happens! (:

Come to Craig!! I'm on the waiting list there right now. Maybe we can be there at the same time. That would be soooo awesome!!!

[quadinva]

 Vanessamaee, on 02 November 2011 - 08:22 PM, said:

 BillS, on 02 November 2011 - 08:03 PM, said:

You're probably too old and too young both at the same time for this but maybe try out Walt Disney World?

Personally I love vacationing at Walt Disney World and it's the most accessible place I've ever visited.

My aunt and uncle actually work for disney! She works for disney cruise lines and he is an event planner for magic kingdom (: I LOVE it there but didnt know how accessbile it would be or if many of the rides were accessible. Every time I go I stay at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, I LOVE waking up to all of the animals (:

And thanks Kay! I will definatly have to look into going to Colorado (: Its weird I got on and read that becuase I jsut got back from the doctors and they are talking about transfering me to another therapy institute becuase they are less than happy with the one I go to now. They mentioned Craig and Kenedy Kreiger, So we'll see what happens! (:

I was about to put in my votes for Disney or a cruise, lol...looks like you have a good resouce for both. Many rides are burdonsome for us quads to jump on, but I love it anyway. There are so many other things to do, I could roll around epcot and the magic kingdom for days. Plus your arms get a sick workout, entertaining exercise cant be beat. The Animal Kingdom Lodge is awesome, as you know, with great bus access and very helpful/concious drivers. Only negative about the place (and a very minimal one at that) is the climb back up to the lodge from the bus depot (i youre in a mc).

Cruises are great and relatively cheap. Many have beach wc's for your day excursions. Im not sure if Id go on a cruise if I were not of drinking/gambling age. But I think there are plenty of activities for the less sinful.

Good luck planning and enjoy whatever you decide on!

-Bags

[Makedo]

 Vanessamaee, on 01 November 2011 - 09:53 PM, said:

Ill be 18 next summer. Since I didnt go on vacation this summer (Preoccupied in the hospital) I have money saved up. Im going on a Senior Vacation (Senior Trip) next summer but am having trouble trying to choose where to go. Many of my friends are going to the beach for their trips, Im not sure how beaches and wheelchairs work since I live in the middle of the United States no wheres close to an ocean. So I was wondering if anyone has any ideas for a FUN vacation (perferably not historic/educational, not that its not very interesting! I just want a RELAXING vacation) for a FULL time wheelchair user. Im a T3/T4 complete para. I have thought about going to Texas a lot, but Im not sure what to do there besides the beach, also Nashville, KY. But Im at a loss of ideas
Thank You!

San Diego has been great for me as a C6 quad in an electric wheelchair. Lots to see & do, easy access via streetcars, buses and other transport.

[wheeliebear75]

MY vote is of course for California!

Which BTW if you come to San Diego; go to Mission Beach by the big roller-coaster (it's a land-mark) you can leave your chair & state I.D. (+ you fill out a small form) with the lifeguards & pick out either an electric chair (you can choose right or left hand controls) which can go on sand but not get WET....OR there is a manual version that friends/family can push you all the way into the shallows with (But only to about knee deep then you'd have to be carried or float in the surf) & they're free to rent from 9-4 all summer long....or it could be 9-5 I can't remember. There are also things to do aside from the beach;Sea World, San Diego Zoo, museums, there is (OMG drawing a blank ) a large area along the bay with lots of shops & restaurants + mimes & jugglers, there are also some boat tours of the bay like for whale watching but I do NOT know if those would work for you or not (I think I read some of those tours have lifts so people in chairs CAN still go).

And then just north of us is L.A. with Disney Land & California Adventure (get the hopper pass if you go there), Universal Studios, Knott's Berry Farm, Six Flags + a couple of water parks. I've gone to the Disney parks + Knott's as a para but NOT Six Flags so I couldn't tell ya there....the other places I've been all had the same rule of if you can or can't ride "If you can get yourself on the ride you can ride at your own risk" including the water park. We're cheaper than Hawaii & more conveniently located.

Edited by wheeliebear75, 19 November 2011 - 03:52 AM.

[wheeliebear75]

SEA PORT VILLAGE!

I asked Mom "Hey Mom what's that big shopping & eating spot ON the bay where my sister hated cuz of all the mimes?".
(My little sister has always hated clowns.)

[janefaire]

 Vanessamaee, on 01 November 2011 - 09:53 PM, said:

Ill be 18 next summer. Since I didnt go on vacation this summer (Preoccupied in the hospital) I have money saved up. Im going on a Senior Vacation (Senior Trip) next summer but am having trouble trying to choose where to go. Many of my friends are going to the beach for their trips, Im not sure how beaches and wheelchairs work since I live in the middle of the United States no wheres close to an ocean. So I was wondering if anyone has any ideas for a FUN vacation (perferably not historic/educational, not that its not very interesting! I just want a RELAXING vacation) for a FULL time wheelchair user. Im a T3/T4 complete para. I have thought about going to Texas a lot, but Im not sure what to do there besides the beach, also Nashville, KY. But Im at a loss of ideas
Thank You!

Hi; I believe the best place in the U.S. is Disney World. It is very wheelchair friendly. They rent out wheelchairs and scooters, so a lot of people that don't need them, use them anyway, because they don't want to do a lot of walking. Most of the attractions are equipped for wheelchairs, but not scooters. For someone your age, it would be a lot of fun. (I'm 65 and still enjoy it.) I have gone there for the last 10 years!

They have great Hotels in the park itself, which is a lot of fun. They have buses that will take you to the various parks. There are also a lot of cheaper Hotels outside of the park, that also offer transportation to the various parks. Be sure that when you make your reservations that you tell them you need "wheelchair friendly" accomodations.

If you fly into Orlando Airport, they also have transportation to Disney.

I wouldn't consider it "relaxing", but you will leave with a great big smile! I call it the "Happiest Place" in the World!

If you want to email me (I'm not sure how that works, because I'm new to this), I would love to give you some really good tips. I don't want to do it in this forum, because it would be considered advertising.

Maybe, if you go, I'll meet up with you!

[Vanessamaee]

Thanks everyone! SO We've started planning our trip (: My parents and I (and a couple of my friends might be going) and possibly my brother. But were starting out going to Key Largo (WHICH IM SUPER PUMPED ABOUT! I've done all this myself and am super proud (: ) There we will be swimming with the dolphins ( I found a place that alows people with mobility disabilities to do it and talked to them about it!) then we are going snorkeling ( I really wanted to go scuba diving but don't have the time to get certified really :/ I only have 2 weeks during the summer I have totally nothing going on.) Then we are spending a day kayaking and fishing etc. THEN were working our way bakc to the mainland and visiting disney world for three days! Since both my aunt and uncle work there and we've been there a lot (I havent been since I was 11 though) we kind of have an idea of what we want to do, where we want to go, and my uncle is helping us with what rides are most accessbile and what places do what for wheelchair users (my aunt was hit by a truck when she was 8 and is paralyzed on her right side do to a brain injury, so their pretty familiar with it all.) Thank you so much for the ideas! It was super hard to choose between California and Florida. Plans for California was adaptive surfing, snorkeling, Disney Land, Sea World and San Diego Zoo (: OH! and I am also going skydiving either before or after all of this thanks to TSH3406 and telling me where he went (: Now its all the details of what days were going and doing what and hotels etc! yay! (: Thank you all so much! and if you have anymore ideas about whats in Florida! Feel free to add! (:

Edited by Vanessamaee, 20 November 2011 - 03:18 PM.

[Taylor818]

 Vanessamaee, on 20 November 2011 - 03:17 PM, said:

Thanks everyone! SO We've started planning our trip (: My parents and I (and a couple of my friends might be going) and possibly my brother. But were starting out going to Key Largo (WHICH IM SUPER PUMPED ABOUT! I've done all this myself and am super proud (: ) There we will be swimming with the dolphins ( I found a place that alows people with mobility disabilities to do it and talked to them about it!) then we are going snorkeling ( I really wanted to go scuba diving but don't have the time to get certified really :/ I only have 2 weeks during the summer I have totally nothing going on.) Then we are spending a day kayaking and fishing etc. THEN were working our way bakc to the mainland and visiting disney world for three days! Since both my aunt and uncle work there and we've been there a lot (I havent been since I was 11 though) we kind of have an idea of what we want to do, where we want to go, and my uncle is helping us with what rides are most accessbile and what places do what for wheelchair users (my aunt was hit by a truck when she was 8 and is paralyzed on her right side do to a brain injury, so their pretty familiar with it all.) Thank you so much for the ideas! It was super hard to choose between California and Florida. Plans for California was adaptive surfing, snorkeling, Disney Land, Sea World and San Diego Zoo (: OH! and I am also going skydiving either before or after all of this thanks to TSH3406 and telling me where he went (: Now its all the details of what days were going and doing what and hotels etc! yay! (: Thank you all so much! and if you have anymore ideas about whats in Florida! Feel free to add! (:

Sounds like you have a great trip planned. I live in south Florida and if you're interested and have the time I would definitely recommend visiting Miami beach and the coconut grove area. There's everything from museums, art exhibits, great food, even better shopping, gorgeous beaches, and some of the best people watching you'll ever find. I'm confident you'll have a great time in The Keys. The drive from island to island in itself is beautiful, not including the cool places to stop along the way. Have you thought about parasailing?