Myf is planning her first trip to Tokyo, and her power chair battery does not always last a full day. She asked whether she would find places to charge it, or whether she should buy a portable power station when she arrives.
Members who have been to Japan had quite different experiences. One said there are plenty of outlets in public places, and that staff will usually help if you ask. Another took a spare battery, carried in a small tote bag hung from the back of her chair. A third was stuck in a Tokyo subway station at midnight in June, because staff would not let her use their outlet. Her advice is to take extra chargers with you, and not to count on finding somewhere to charge.
If you use a power chair, it is worth reading all three before you plan a long day out.
Read the Tokyo wheelchair charging discussion
Can you help?
You don't need to know everything. One detail from your own trip could help.
Cabo San Lucas with a wheelchair. Carol and her husband, who uses a wheelchair, have two days in Cabo on a November cruise. One day is for whale watching. They don't enjoy shopping and are not sure how to reach the public beach. What would you do with the other day? This is one of the first questions in our new Mexico group.
Accessible hotels in Lisbon and Funchal. Jan and Steve need a roll-in shower with a bench, in a three or four star hotel. Have you stayed somewhere in Lisbon or Funchal that worked for you?
A first trip in a wheelchair, to Mauritius. Steve is new to using a wheelchair, and Mauritius will be his first trip in it. Have you been there with a wheelchair?
Worth reading
A wheelchair built for a world trip. A new member plans to visit 50 countries next year. They are building their own travel chair for the trip by joining an off-road electric scooter to a carbon-fibre wheelchair, so the two can be separated and put back together. Members liked the idea and asked the practical questions: will airlines accept it, and will it fit in hotel lifts? If you have flown with a large power chair or a scooter, your experience could help. See the scooter-wheelchair build and join the discussion
A pet-friendly room or an accessible one. Michelle chose a hotel in Niagara Falls, Canada, because it had accessible rooms, allowed pets and had views of the falls. She asked more than once if she could have an accessible room with her dog, and was told yes. When they arrived, pets were limited to one floor, and the room was too small for her electric wheelchair. What she was told did not match the room she got. Read Michelle's Niagara Falls hotel story
A question from me
In October I am joining a committee that looks at accessibility at Haneda Airport's international terminal (Terminal 3). This time the focus is signs and pictograms. If you have used the terminal, was anything hard to find or hard to understand? I will take your comments to the meeting.
Share your Haneda Airport experience
Thank you for being part of tabifolk. If you have a trip coming up, come and ask. If you have just come back, come and tell us how it went. And if you know someone planning a trip who could use some help, please send them our way.