For many travellers, it's not just a swimming pool or pillow menu that swings
their hotel choice - facilities such as a wheel-in shower or a stair-free
restaurant are crucial for disabled and elderly travellers.
Helping these travellers find a hotel that meets their needs is Tourism
for All UK, a charity that provides infomartion about tourism services
to disabled people, people in a wheelchair and their carers.
The organisation's accommodation guide rates 500 hotels, B&Bs,
guesthouses, self-catering homes and camping and caravan parks across the
country. Each property is rated for its facilities and services, with each
review including photos, contact information, prices and directions.
The guide is called “Easy Access Britain: The Guide to Accessible Places to
Stay and Visit - the official guide to accessible accommodation for elderly
and disabled people”. Here's a selection of the best properties:
Tugford Farm B&B in Shropshire is
quality rural accommodation deep in the Corvedale Valley on a traditional
working farm. They have spacious en-suite rooms with wheel-in shower, and a
hearty breakfast served in their beamed farmhouse dining room.
Park House Hotel in Sandringham
is a country-house hotel with a difference. Located on the Royal Sandringham
Estate, the hotel is adapted for people with mobility difficulties and is
fully wheelchair accessible. Care is on hand if required and charged for
accordingly. Optional entertainment and excursions are also available.
West Shore in Llandudno is a
Grooms Holidays property specially adapted for disabled customers. They have
seventeen bedrooms with wheel-in shower, and some equipment available,
including hoists. They also have a tail-lift bus for outings.
Cringletie House Hotel in Peebles is
a fabulous Scottish baronial castle in stunning surroundings, 28 acres of
gardens and woodlands with waterfall and paths throughout. They have an
exceptionally well adapted room for wheelchair users and guests with
impaired hearing, which has a wheel-in shower.
Rothay Manor in Ambleside is a
regency county house hotel in its own landscaped gardens, in the heart of
the Lake District. Renowned for the warm, comfortable, friendly atmosphere
this hotel has dedicated wheelchair access, with wheel-in showers and
disabled parking.
Titchwell Manor Hotel on the North
Norfolk coast has views to the golden beaches and RSPB reserve. 16
contemporary style bedrooms are situated on the ground floor for easy
access.
Overcombe House is between
Tavistock and Plymouth with beautiful views over the village and Dartmoor.
Offering a warm, friendly welcome in relaxed comfortable surroundings, they
have ramped access and two ground floor accessible rooms.
Incleborough House Luxury B&B
in Cromer is a Grade II Listed country house which oozes charm and elegance.
The ground floor room, named Oak Leaf, which also overlooks the common, has
been sensitively designed for easy wheelchair access both in the bedroom and
in the large en-suite bathroom.
The Copthorne
Tara Hotel in Kensington, awarded as the hotel with the best adapted
facilities in the UK at the M&IT Awards 2006, features 10 adapted rooms
with wide doorways, open frame beds and automatic doors. The ten rooms are a
mixture of singles, twins and doubles, some with level-floor showers, some
with baths and two with hoists from the bed to the bathroom. The rooms have
quite superb facilities for ensuring a pleasant, untroubled stay.
Wheelchair accessibility is excellent all around the hotel; vehicles can stop
within feet of the main entrance which is level and has automatic sliding
doors. The lobby area is completely level and there is a lower section at
the front desk to facilitate wheelchair users. Conference & banqueting
facilities are also accessible with assisted listening systems available for
those with hearing impairments.
The Holiday Inn London - Kensington Forum is
two minute's walk from Gloucester Road tube station, and close to Harrods,
the Royal Albert Hall, the Natural History, Science and V&A Museums, and
Kensington Palace and Gardens. This hotel has 906 guest bedrooms and a
ceiling track hoist in one of its eight accessible guest rooms. Adapted
guest rooms have wheelchair turning circles, low-level facilities and
adjoining rooms for carers, as well as step-free access to bars,
restaurants, and conference rooms, and menus in large print on request. A
range of auxiliary aids, including induction loops, is available for people
with sensory impairments, and assistance dogs are welcome. Both hotels also
have designated blue badge parking.
For more information, or to book a discounted hotel stay or order a copy of
Easy Access Britain, email info@tourismforall.org.uk
or call 0845 124 9973. Tourism for
All UK offers preferential rates with some hotels. For a discounted
price of £7.50 (RRP £9.99) quote Times Online.
