Boston with Mom (73)
Apr 5th, 2007, 04:17 PM
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Boston with Mom (73)
I am planning a vacation for my family (boys 8 and 14) and my 73-yr old mom, starting in NH and ending in Boston. She is recovering from cancer and a recent hip replacement. What can we do in Boston that doesn't require a lot of walking or stairs?
Apr 5th, 2007, 05:49 PM
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My mother (75) with a recent knee replacement, really enjoyed the whale watching cruise we did with Boston Harbor Cruises - it's a great activity that everyone in the family should enjoy. (http://www.bostonharborcruises.com/whale_main.html) Your mom can find a nice window seat or a seat outside and enjoy the show! There would be some walking on the dock to get to the boat, but if you get there early, she can take her time. There are also Boston Harbor boat tours which go around to all the historic sites. (same website, click on Harbor Tours).
Apr 5th, 2007, 08:30 PM
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The whole family might enjoy a Duck Tour (I am not kidding - don't immediately assume I am crazy). If she can do steps at all, there are a few steps onto Duck Tour boat. Then she sits.
Make sure she has/you get a handicapped placard for the car. I am assuming you will have a car because of your itinerary. You can get it from your home state Motor Vehicles agency - but it usually takes 4-6 weeks.
Call the various museums (Fine Art, Isabella Stewart Gardner, Science, Aquarium) and see if they have wheelchairs for loan. If you go to either of the first, bribe your boys with something if they let Grandma go to the Museum - perhaps a tour of Fenway Park while she rests back at hotel.
For a trip like this, it is essential that you stay right in Boston. Then she can rest back at hotel. Commuting into Boston by car would be too nerve-racking (or wrecking) and the elevators at many MBTA stations are unreliable. (A suit was filed and settled by local agency dealing with those with disabilities versus MBTA - since then elevators have improved, but I would not risk it yet).
Plimouth Plantation (with a wheelchair) would work for all, as would Old Sturbridge Village - both day trips from Boston.
While I have no personal knowledege of tours in Boston, we have taken Gray Line tours for a city tour in other cities and there have always been some people who stay on bus at various stops.
If she is a people-watching type person, would she be happy parked at a cafe or table at Quincy Market/Faneuil Hall for an hour or so while you and boys do some of the Freedom Trail?
I do not know when the trip is or how close hip replacement surgery will be to trip, but most people are amazingly mobile sooner after hip replacement than they expect - knees are far worse for recuperation than hips. Or if she is feeling ill from cancer or treatments related to. Or how motivated she is to make trip.
If even above suggestions or similar activities seem way too much for her, I would reconsider trip unless she really wants to make it - Boston is traditionally a walking city, MBTA is not as disabled-friendly as it should be, cabs not as easy to hail from street as in some other cities. Renting a wheelchair is obviously another option, but not as easy to push as it would seem.
Hope the trip works out for all.
Make sure she has/you get a handicapped placard for the car. I am assuming you will have a car because of your itinerary. You can get it from your home state Motor Vehicles agency - but it usually takes 4-6 weeks.
Call the various museums (Fine Art, Isabella Stewart Gardner, Science, Aquarium) and see if they have wheelchairs for loan. If you go to either of the first, bribe your boys with something if they let Grandma go to the Museum - perhaps a tour of Fenway Park while she rests back at hotel.
For a trip like this, it is essential that you stay right in Boston. Then she can rest back at hotel. Commuting into Boston by car would be too nerve-racking (or wrecking) and the elevators at many MBTA stations are unreliable. (A suit was filed and settled by local agency dealing with those with disabilities versus MBTA - since then elevators have improved, but I would not risk it yet).
Plimouth Plantation (with a wheelchair) would work for all, as would Old Sturbridge Village - both day trips from Boston.
While I have no personal knowledege of tours in Boston, we have taken Gray Line tours for a city tour in other cities and there have always been some people who stay on bus at various stops.
If she is a people-watching type person, would she be happy parked at a cafe or table at Quincy Market/Faneuil Hall for an hour or so while you and boys do some of the Freedom Trail?
I do not know when the trip is or how close hip replacement surgery will be to trip, but most people are amazingly mobile sooner after hip replacement than they expect - knees are far worse for recuperation than hips. Or if she is feeling ill from cancer or treatments related to. Or how motivated she is to make trip.
If even above suggestions or similar activities seem way too much for her, I would reconsider trip unless she really wants to make it - Boston is traditionally a walking city, MBTA is not as disabled-friendly as it should be, cabs not as easy to hail from street as in some other cities. Renting a wheelchair is obviously another option, but not as easy to push as it would seem.
Hope the trip works out for all.
Apr 6th, 2007, 05:19 AM
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Hip was replaced in December and her recovery is going well. She is eager to travel, so I want to make the best of what she can do. We have reservations at the Radisson which includes parking for a rental car, which I think we'll keep for the days we are there. I'll remind her to bring her handicapped placrd from home. The trolley seems like a good flexible option since it looks like you can't get on and off the Duck.
Thanks everyone.
Thanks everyone.
Apr 6th, 2007, 05:59 AM
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It's true that the Duck is a tour, rather than a hop-on-hop-off service. But it's lots of fun for all ages!
If Mom might get tired or have trouble with steps, then IMHO you'd be bettter-off with taxis rather than waiting around for the Trolley, climbing up into them, and hoping there are 4 seats.
Parking is expensive and sometimes unavailable in Boston, so do some research before setting out to any destination in your rental car. Generally, larger museums (Fine Arts, Science) will offer parking but smaller attractions and in-town shopping places don't.
If Mom might get tired or have trouble with steps, then IMHO you'd be bettter-off with taxis rather than waiting around for the Trolley, climbing up into them, and hoping there are 4 seats.
Parking is expensive and sometimes unavailable in Boston, so do some research before setting out to any destination in your rental car. Generally, larger museums (Fine Arts, Science) will offer parking but smaller attractions and in-town shopping places don't.
