best places to travel in europe for people with problems walking?

Question

Hi! I'm looking for places to take my mom in europe. She doesn't need a walker or anything like that but she has difficulty walking up lots of stairs or on bad roads. Any ideas of places to go/avoid?

Answer 1

Well, someone mentioned London - not too bad apart from the miles of walking in the underground.

Quite a bit of Glasgow and Edinburgh are flat; same with Dublin.

The area around Cambridge and Sandringham - also quite walker friendly.

There was some lovely walking in Salzburg - although it's surrounded by mountains. Sound of Music countryside :)

Although the Bavarian Alps (Southern Germany) are high, there is some great walking on tracks which are graded for ease of accessibility.

Holland has loads of flat countryside - very pretty and very enjoyable ...

I guess it depends on what you want to do when you're in Europe.

Have a great time.
M

Answer 2

Don't go too Zurich.
My elderly Dad had a rough time. In fact most of Europe is hard with lots of elevations and climbs.

But London is REAL FLAT! and the tube is nice and has many elevators.
Paris is flat as well except for Sacre Coeur.

Rome and Athens aren't
The countryside inland is quite hilly and mountains. The coast is porbably better.

Again public transportation is very good, everywhere in Europe.
http://www.raileurope.com/us/index2.htm

Answer 3

I agree with t_maia2000, travel by car or even better by river-cruise.
My parents recently have done 2 river cruises and they enjoyed them, and there was little walking involved while they did see a lot.

If you do want to go to the big towns, (Paris London, Rome,.....) look for a bus tour designed for elderly people. There are many of those and they cater for people who do not want to do a lot of walking.

If you want to travel by public transport, take your time, make sure you have at least 30 minutes when you have to change train, use taxis and have a good travel agent book central town hotels, with lifts.
I have been in London and Paris, and if you take your time your mother can do it, even using Metro and Underground.

But I think that river-cruise or car and smaller towns are better options.

Answer 4

It depends upon your style of travel. Typically you travel in Europe by train and public transport.

But if your mom can't walk very well, it would be best if you would rent a car and get around this way. You should avoid big cities like Amsterdam, London, Cologne, Florence - basically all cities that are hard to navigate driving. Focus on those small cities instead where it is easy to get in and around by car. (Check before you go!) With a car you could stay in Formule 1 and Etap hotels. These are very cheap and similar to US motels so no steep stairs to climb in old buildings.

My grandma is 79, she has similar problems to your mum, so I know how it is. I've recently been to Venice and while the idea of getting around there by boat sounds great, it is not. Venice has lots of stairs and cobblestone streets and you actually need to walk quite a lot or you don't see all that much.

A route that might be worth investigating are river cruises. From St. Petersburg to Moscow and from Passau to Budapest is quite nice. My Granny did the one from Passau to Budapest 5 years ago and she still talks about it. :-)
I've seen offers for 2 people for Passau-Budapest for 7 days from 1400 EUR on, which is a good deal since it includes all food and accomodation (4 star).

Another thing that is popular with older people is the spas in Germany. Look for places with "Bad" in their name.

http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/destinations/germany/thermal.htm

My grandma likes Bad Bevensen, primarily bc there is a special hotel catering to the needs of the elderly. They have free shuttle service to the spa, lifts on their stairs, diet cooks that cater to special diets and trips to sights nearby that are designed for people with walking disabilities. There are more hotels all over Europe like this, my granny has a catalogue - email me and I will check it out for you.

Answer 5

Avoid Switzerland and any other mountainous regions. I heard that Belgium and the Netherlands were as flat as a pancake so that can always be a possibility. The problem is that the cobblestone won't be easy on her feet and you find it all over Europe!

Answer 6

Lourdes France

Answer 7

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Answer 8

you could go to venice. they have a lot of canals, so she wouldn't have to walk far, and there aren't many stairs.

Answer 9

Stay home