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Philippines
Share information and ask questions about accessible travel in the Philippines.
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BORACAY ACCESSIBILITY REVIEW
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BORACAY ACCESSIBILITY REVIEW
Here’s a quick review of my recent travel to Boracay in terms of accessibility. Also sharing here some of my shots
First of all, it takes quite a bit to travel and ‘hop in and out’ of different kinds of transportation to Boracay. Starting from Manila, we flew with Philippine Airlines (PAL). Although the plane is not parked near the jet bridge thus we have to climb up the stairs to the entrance. Fortunately, PAL got a great solution to accessibility which is to have me and my wheelchair (plus a companion) to board via a scissor lift (normally used for loading supplies to the cabin). It was a breeze and smooth boarding procedure by PAL overall. See video below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mip0dFY5B6Y
When we arrived at Caticlan Airport, there’s no scissor lift. Fortunately, there are the awesome ground crew who are ready to assist. Now of course, the travel does not end there.
Boracay is actually an island away so you’ll have to ride a shuttle to the port, ride a boat, then ride another shuttle to the hotel. This may looks like a lot of work but if you have arrangements already with the hotel, they’re kind enough to help out with the accessibility.
Now, in terms of moving around the beaches of Boracay, well you’ll need a more specialized wheels for your wheelchair that’s able to survive the sandy terrain. Unfortunately for me and my travel wheelchair, it didn’t worked as I don’t have any of those. Lesson learned anyway.
So to sum it up, Boracay is a great place! I had lots of fun. The beach is great, swimming in the ocean is also amazing. Accessibility’s quite limited but with the right gear and the right people, your trip to one of the best beaches in the world maybe one of the best one.
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5 Replies
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Thank you for sharing this! I used a scissor lift once too! A great solution.
So, when you arrived and they didn’t have a scissor lift, did they carry you down?
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Yes sir! They’re able to assist me to disembark by carrying me down the stairs along with your travel wheelchair. However, you’ll have to wait for everyone else to disembark first.
Caticlan airport’s really small so they don’t have any scissor lift or other special equipment a usual airport has.
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In the boats and shuttles you mentioned, can you stay in your wheelchair, or do you need to transfer?
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Well, for one, I’m already used to climbing up the shuttles/van by holding onto the seats, car handles or anywhere else so that I’ll be able to climb up. For the boats, they told me to piggyback. That’s alright since the entrance to the boat’s at the front so he has to climb up the narrow stairs and into the narrow front door of the boat. Overall, a unique experience.
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So, may work for some, but not others. Always great to know these things in advance – thank you!
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