Doll
Unregistered User
(2/6/03 10:40 am)

?'s re:wheelchairs,insurance, clothes

---

Hi Michele-my sister will be glad to hear someone else spells her name as you do!!! I have some questions obviously about a trip we are taking to Ireland in September. We are doing the Irish Legends CIE tour, 9 of us are going including my mother in law. Would you know if certain sites (ie Waterford Crystal Factory) have wheelchairs available if needed? Or can they be rented for a day or two in Dublin, Kilkenny and Galway?Some of us plan on staying longer and self driving and staying at B&B's so your book will be helpful. Do you recommend getting the CDW or super CDW insurance? And one last question-do most hotels in Ireland have elevators? Thank you in advance for your time.

wojazz3
Registered User
Posts: 155
(2/6/03 5:17 pm)

Re: ?'s re:wheelchairs,insurance, clothes

---

Hi Doll:

You will definitely need CDW. It is dicussed at length on almost every travel board you can find, but the nuts and bolts of it is that you can use a Gold or Platinum MC with most rental agencies in Ireland and have your CDW waived. The deductible will be $0. Insurance from the rental agency will usually have a E500-900 deductible. You can buy it down to $0, and it is very expensive. Lot's of people take the buy down though becuase it is not unusal to clip a mirror of a car when you aren't used to that side of the road. Repairs can be very expensive. My advice is to use a Mastercard.

Bill

Michele Erdvig
ezOP
Posts: 1099
(2/6/03 5:58 pm)
 
Re: ?'s re:wheelchairs,insurance, clothes

---

Hi Doll,

There are a few of us out there who have lost an "l" from Michele. Glad to hear your sister is one of this elite group!

Many hotels in Ireland have elevators but not all. You will want to check in advance about this before making reservations. Go to my "Links" page below and under "Accommodations" click on "Be Our Guest". You can also check with CIE to be sure the hotels you will be staying at have "lifts" as they call elevators in Ireland.

I have never seen wheelchairs for rent at the Waterford Factory, however, that is not to say they aren't available. If this is part of your tour, I suggest contacting CIE for details. Otherwise contact Waterford Crystal: www.waterford-usa.com/

For details on renting a wheelchair see these web sites:

www.iwa.ie/
www.iol.ie/~dfi/
www.travelmedintl.com/
www.access-able.com/

I also suggest calling Tourism Ireland at 1-800-223-6470 (US & Canada) for the following publication: A Guide for People with Disabilities.

Bill is correct about CDW and waiving it by using MasterCard. But please call your company for all the details. If you do not want to do this then whether you choose CDW or super CDW (no deductable) is really a matter of choice and what you feel comfortable with. Personally, I would pay the extra and get the no deductable just for peace of mind. But even super CDW many times does not cover things like tire damage or windshield dammage. Check with your car rental company for exact details.

Michele