There are
organized
tours and holidays
specifically for people
with disabilities - the
contacts we've listed
will be able to put you
in touch with any
specialists for trips to
Barcelona. Remember, if
you use a wheelchair to
have it serviced before
you go and carry a
repair kit.
Read your travel
insurance small print
carefully to make sure
that people with a
pre-existing medical
condition are not
excluded. And use your
travel agent to make
your journey simpler:
airline or bus companies
can cope better if they
are expecting you, with
a wheelchair provided at
airports and staff
primed to help. A
medical certificate of
your fitness to travel,
provided by your doctor,
is also extremely
useful; some airlines or
insurance companies may
insist on it. Make sure
that you have extra
supplies of any drugs
you need - carried with
you if you fly - and a
prescription including
the generic name in case
of emergency. Carry
spares of any clothing
or equipment that might
be hard to find; if
there's an association
representing people with
your disability, contact
them early in the
planning process.
Transport is
still the main problem
in Barcelona, since
buses are virtually
impossible for
wheelchairs and the
metro system is perhaps
the least
wheelchair-friendly that
can be imagined. Hertz
has
rental cars
with hand controls
available in Barcelona
(with advance notice),
and taxi drivers are
usually helpful. The
Brittany Ferries
crossing from Plymouth
to Santander offers good
facilities (as do most
cross-Channel ferries
and hydrofoils).
The Institut
Municipal de Disminuits
, c/Llacuna 171, 3° tel
934 811 141, has
information on most
aspects of life and
travel in the city for
disabled residents and
visitors. It produces a
booklet called Guia
d'Accessibilitat ,
available from tourist
offices (or from the Generalitat
information office at
Avda Drassanes 6-8),
which, among other
things, details the
number and height of
steps, width of doors,
availability of ramps,
lifts and adapted
transport for a variety
of museums, theatres,
cinemas and other
attractions in the city.
If you're coming for the
showpiece attractions,
note that only the
Fundacío Joan Miró,
the Museu de la Ciència
and the Palau de la Música
are fully accessible;
the Museu Picasso has a
step. The city
information line -
on 010 - also has
accessibility
information for hotels,
restaurants, museums,
bars and stores in
Barcelona. And you can
obtain a map showing
accessible routes for
disabled tourists from
the Ajuntament
information office in
Plaça Sant Miquel, or
the Transports
Metropolitans de
Barcelona (TMB) office
in Universitat metro
station.
The Organización
Nacional de Ciegos de
España (ONCE) , c/Calabria
66-76, Barcelona 08015 (tel
933 259 200), sells a
braille guidebook to
Barcelona, provides
information about
restaurants which have
braille menus, and can
arrange trips for blind
and visually-impaired
people; write for
details.
AUSTRALIA
ACROD (Australian
Council for
Rehabilitation of the
Disabled) , PO Box
60, Curtin, ACT 2605 tel
02/6282 4333; 24
Cabarita Rd, Cabarita
tel 02/9743 2699. Lists
of travel agencies and
tour operators for
disabled people.
BRITAIN
Holiday Care
Service , 2nd floor,
Imperial Building,
Victoria Rd, Horley,
Surrey RH6 9HW tel
01293/774535.
Information on all
aspects of travel.
Tripscope ,
The Courtyard, Evelyn
Rd, London W4 5JL tel
020/8994 9294, fax 8994
3618. A national
telephone information
service offering free
travel advice.
IRELAND
Disability Action
Group , 2 Annadale
Ave, Belfast BT7 3JH tel
028/9049 1011.
Irish Wheelchair
Association ,
Blackheath Drive,
Clontarf, Dublin tel
01/833 8241, fax 833
3873. A national
voluntary organization
working with people with
disabilities, with
related services for
holiday-makers.
NEW ZEALAND
Disabled Persons
Assembly , 173
Victoria St, Wellington
tel 04/801 9100.
NORTH AMERICA
Directions
Unlimited , 720 N
Bedford Rd, Bedford
Hills, NY 10507 tel
914/241-1700. Travel
agency specializing in
custom tours for people
with disabilities.
Jewish
Rehabilitation Hospital
, 3205 Place Alton
Goldbloom, Chomedy
Laval, Quebec H7V 1RT
tel 514/688-9550 ext
226. Guidebooks and
travel information.
Mobility
International USA ,
PO Box 10767, Eugene, OR
97440; Voice and TDD:
tel 541/343-1284.
Information and referral
services, access guides,
tours and exchange
programmes. Annual
membership $25 (includes
quarterly newsletter).
Society for the
Advancement of Travel
for the Handicapped (SATH)
, 347 5th Ave, Suite
610, New York, NY 10016
tel 212/447-7284.
Nonprofit
travel-industry referral
service that passes
queries on to its
members as appropriate;
allow plenty of time for
a response.
Travel Information
Service tel
215/456-9600. Telephone
information and referral
service.
Twin Peaks Press
, Box 129, Vancouver, WA
98666 tel 360/694-2462
or 1-800/637-2256.
Publisher of the Directory
of Travel Agencies for
the Disabled ,
listing more than 370
agencies worldwide; Travel
for the Disabled ;
the Directory of
Accessible Van Rentals
and Wheelchair
Vagabond , loaded
with personal tips.
