If you plan to take a holiday with a senior there are some things you should know and things you can do to make traveling an enjoyable experience for everyone in your family.
Preparations for Senior Traveling
If you are traveling by plane, try to avoid booking flights during peak hours. This will cut down on your stress level - and the stress level of your senior. Also, ask the airline if they have a tram available that will take you and your senior from the parking area to the airport entrance. Also ask if a cart will be available for your senior once he/she is inside the airport.
If you are traveling by ship, alert the ship if assistance will be needed to get your senior on board. You should also alert the ship liner ahead of time about any health conditions your senior has which may require special equipment, such as oxygen, or special food.
If you will be staying at a resort or hotel, make sure you book a room on the ground floor. If a ground floor room is not available, confirm the resort/hotel has an elevator before you commit to the stay. You should opt for rooms that have a refrigerator and microwave and plan to keep food and drinks on hand in the room. When possible, choose a resort/hotel that offers a continental breakfast. This will enable your senior to have something hot to eat if the family should be running late in the morning.
When possible, purchase tickets to any events you will be attending in advance and call ahead for meal reservations. This will cut down on the wait-time that your senior will have to experience.
What You Should Bring
You should make a list of your senior’s medical conditions, medications, medication dosages, emergency contact information and physician contact information. Keep one copy with you, one copy in your luggage and one copy with your senior. If you are separated from your luggage, or your senior gets separated from you, this will ensure that this necessary information is still available.
Keep your senior’s insurance card with you and keep a photo copy of it in your luggage in case you should misplace your wallet.
Keep your senior’s medication with you. Do not place it in your luggage. If your luggage should be displaced your senior won’t be forced to go without his/her medicine while you try to get it replaced.
Take an extra jacket for your senior and have snacks on hand for long trips.
If you are traveling by car, obtain a handicap sticker from your senior’s physician. This will enable you to park close-in to where you are going so your senior won’t be forced to walk too far. You should also take along extra pillows and/or seat padding so your senior will be comfortable.
What You Should Know About Traveling With Oxygen
If your senior requires oxygen, know that your holiday/vacation can still be enjoyable. All it requires is a bit of pre-planning to ensure that your senior’s time away from home is enjoyable.
Air Travel with Oxygen
Anyone who needs oxygen can fly on a commercial airline if they have a statement from a physician that it is necessary for the health of the individual. However, you should know that your senior won’t be allowed to bring his/her oxygen tank into the cabin area. The oxygen for your senior will be supplied by the airline itself. You should make arrangements for on-board oxygen at least a week in advance of the flight and you should know that you will generally be charged a small fee for the use of the oxygen.
You should keep in mind that if you and your senior will be changing planes that you will have to make arrangements for oxygen on each flight and that a fee will be applied for each flight. Another thing to consider is that if you have a long lay-over between flights, oxygen is not provided inside the terminals. You will have to make arrangements for your senior to have oxygen between flights.
Traveling on Cruise Lines with Oxygen
The good news is most cruise lines have no problem with guests bringing their oxygen on board, as long as they have advance notice. All you need to do is find out what the cruise liner’s policy is in regards to oxygen before your book the cruise. Some cruise liners require that a doctor’s statement be turned in before you and your senior board the ship with oxygen tanks.
Traveling on Trains with Oxygen
People who need oxygen and who are traveling by train are welcome to bring their oxygen on board. However, most railways require that passengers bring their own power source - so don’t plan to rely on the train’s electrical power. The easiest way around all of this is to bring oxygen that doesn’t require a power source.
You should contact the railway that you will be traveling to find out the requirements and details for oxygen travel. The worst case scenario is that you may have to arrange for new tanks to be picked up at stops along the way if you are planning a long railway excursion.
Happy travels!
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