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Wheelchair
Access & Special Needs
We have taken many clients who use wheelchairs on tours in
and around London. Your expert guide
will collect you from your London hotel - the itinerary is
suited to your interests. Please note that we cannot take
wheelchair-bound clients on our usual driver-guide
tours.
Wheelchair
access in London
 London
-3 hours
A Panoramic tour of London will give you a good
overview of all the major sights including Buckingham
Palace, St Paul's Cathedral, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben and
the Houses of Parliament, the River Thames and the Royal
Parks, Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus, the Changing of
the Guard, Tower Bridge and the Tower of London.
London - 7 hours
In a full day combines panoramic sightseeing with
visits inside some of London's most important attractions.
Suggested attractions with good wheelchair access
include...
- The British
Museum, with collections of archaeology, prints,
drawings, coins and medals and various exhibitions. Good
access, with lifts.
- The National
Gallery with an unrivalled collection of Western
painting from 13th to 20th centuries. Very good
access.
- The National
Portrait Gallery with a fascinating collection of
portraits and photographs of Britain's most important
subjects. Good access and helpful staff.
- Westminster
Abbey - the resting place of Britain's monarchs and
the setting for coronations. Apart from The Henry VII
Chapel, there is a small step into the Abbey and most
other areas are quite accessible by wheelchair.
- St Paul's
Cathedral - Christopher Wren's masterpiece built
after the Great Fire of London has many memorials to
famous figures and popular heroes, such as Lord Nelson in
the crypt. All areas are accessible including the crypt
where there is a lift between floors. Only the Whispering
Gallery is not accessible.
- London
Zoo - up to 90% accessible to wheelchair users. Some
areas need help to access from members of staff.
- Madame
Tussaud's - Wax portraits of famous and infamous
world figures on display in such settings as The Garden
Party and the Grand Hall. Nearly all areas are accessible
by wheelchairs; timed tickets need to be booked in
advance.
- Victoria
& Albert Museum - contains one of the world's
widest collections of art, clothes, sculpture,
watercolours and musical instruments. Only 5 galleries
are inaccessible by wheelchairs. The museum has lifts and
is at least 85% accessible.
- The Tower of
London - the ground level of this historic fortress
can be visited by wheelchair. 'So-so' accessibility. The
White Tower and the Crown Jewels are also accessible by
lift.
Wheelchair
access outside London
 Cotswolds
and Blenheim Palace - 9 Hours
This is a popular tour because it gives one the
experience of genuine English villages - it also has the
advantage of being an 'outdoors' tour and villages like
Broadway and Burford can be easily seen by wheelchair.
Blenheim Palace, the magnificent home of the Dukes of
Marlborough and birthplace of Winston Churchill, is also
practically 100% accessible. There is a ramp outside and
once inside everything is flat and wide open. This is one of
England's most stunning Stately Homes. Only the private
apartments on the second floor are inaccessible.
Windsor, Eton & Hampton Court - 7 or 5 hours
Visit Windsor Castle, England's largest royal
residence with magnificent State Apartments which clients
can see in full as there is a lift. Queen Mary's Dolls'
House is not accessible by wheelchair.
Hampton Court, built in 1514 and beautifully situated on the
Thames, was a favourite residence of Henry VIII. There is a
lift to the first floors.
A panoramic tour of the famous public school where boys are
still dressed in traditional black tail coats is included
too.
 Stratford-upon-Avon
- 9 Hours
Your guide will drive you via the beautiful
University City of Oxford (the colleges have varying
accessibility) , and Blenheim Palace, birthplace of Sir
Winston Churchill (good accessibility) to Stratford,
immortalised by William Shakespeare. The Shakespeare
Properties have a fair degree of accessibility. The
Exhibition, Garden and Birthplace can be visited in a
wheelchair but not the first floor. The ground floor of
Hall's Croft and Mary Arden's House can be visited too. Anne
Hathaway's Cottage is not suited to wheelchair users but the
gardens are.
Thames Valley - 5 hours
Like the Cotswolds and Blenheim Palace this is a
scenic and panoramic tour. It follows the River Thames along
its historic route through small pretty towns such as
Windsor, Eton, Maidenhead, Cookham, Marlow, Soning and
Henley. Enjoy a pint of beer in a riverside pub or
traditional afternoon tea and scones in one of the many
quaint tea shops.
 Leeds
Castle & Sissinghurst Gardens - 9 hours
Visit one of England's most famous fairy-tale
castles, built over 1,000 years ago in the middle of two
lakes and surrounded by magnificent gardens. The castle can
be accessed by wheelchair but there is no lift to the first
floor. The lovely gardens at Sissinghurst, created by Vita
Sackville-West around the tower of Sissinghurst Castle, can
be visited easily.
Bath, Salisbury & Stonehenge - 10 Hours
Stonehenge - 6 hours
Although some of the sights in Bath are difficult to
access by wheelchair, Stonehenge, Europe's most important
prehistoric monument, has no steps or obstacles, making it
one of the most accessible attractions in Britain. 13th
century Salisbury Cathedral also has good access.
Virtual
Reality Images:
Leeds
Castle, Blenheim Palace, the Tower of London, Stonehenge ...
Requires Quicktime
from
Apple.
A
more comprehensive version of this article has been written
for gimponthego.com
- see their Travel Reviews
British
Tours Ltd
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49 Conduit Street, London W1S 2YS
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