Travels with wheelchair

I'm not disabled but I can't get away from wheelchairs!

My partner is disabled and uses a wheelchair. I run a unique property website called The Accessible Property Register www.accessible-property.org.uk. So I get to know a lot about wheelchairs. We have three - well four if you count the shower chair. Conspicuous consumption of wheelchairs!

The Accessible Property Register (APR) has a pretty good wheelchair accessible holiday accommodation section so I thought I would write a little bit about how we manage to overcome the barriers involved in taking a holiday, or even staying away overnight.

My partner can't move at all apart from her head. Her head works fine. Her brain is as razor sharp as it has always been but the body is another story ...

She has to be transferred to a chair or a bed using a hoist. And she can't sleep on a conventional bed because she needs one that profiles (you can raise the shoulders and legs). Just to add to the problems, the kind of hoist that we use needs around 10 cm space under the bed. So the divan beds that you find in most hotels are useless.

So just for starters, when we are choosing somewhere to stay even for one night, we need wheelchair access including bedroom, a profiling bed, a ceiling hoist or space under the bed for a manual hoist (bring your own!). And if Christine wants a shower, we need a level access (roll in) shower with a wheeled shower chair.

If you know any hotels like this, do let us know....