What are the challenges of staying or living in a small space?
By maximax8
@maximax8 (31042)
United Kingdom
December 4, 2018 5:24am CST
I went on a trip to Portugal with my two children. In Porto our accommodation was described as a mobile home. It was a very small yacht and we had to keep my son's wheelchair on the deck. We had a very hard time getting my disabled son on and off the yacht. There was no room to put our luggage. I slept in a double bunk. My children slept in single bunks either side of the narrow gangway. It felt cold and on a stormy night we felt sea sick. Luckily my son's wheelchair stayed safe.
10 people like this
9 responses
@Porcospino (31365)
• Denmark
4 Dec 18
Your accommodation in Porto sounds really small and I can imagine how challenging it was to handle the practical things with the wheelchair and everything else while staying there.
I once stayed in a botel (a boat that had been turned into a hotel) The room was very small, there were two beds and not much else. It was okay since we were only staying there for a short time. Another time we stayed in hotel in Amsterdam. We had the smallest bathroom I have ever seen. It was hard to brush our teeth in front of the sink because the space between the sink and the toilet was extremely small.
2 people like this
@maximax8 (31042)
• United Kingdom
4 Dec 18
Another challenge was we had to leave the yacht go to the marina toilet block to brush our teeth. The sinks were fine however the showed looks horrible. We couldn't risk taking a shower there. When we visited Amsterdam we stayed at an airport hotel. Prices for accommodation can be high in Amsterdam. If we go back to Porto we won't stay there again.
1 person likes this
@Porcospino (31365)
• Denmark
4 Dec 18
@maximax8 If the showers look so bad it is best to stay away. I wouldn't take that risk either. Yes, accommodation in Amsterdam is often expensive. We stayed in a budget hotel, it was very old, but at least it was clean. It was very far away from the train station, next time I would like to live in another area. I hope you can find a better place to stay if you visit Porto again.
1 person likes this
@maximax8 (31042)
• United Kingdom
4 Dec 18
@Porcospino I loved the airport hotel in Amsterdam because it was perfect for trains and buses. It was right next to the bus terminal. It was a short walk to the train station. It was much cheaper than staying in the centre of Amsterdam. I love Porto and Madeira however both have challenging hills for my son's wheelchair.
1 person likes this
@maximax8 (31042)
• United Kingdom
5 Dec 18
@LadyDuck I wish I had discovered Madeira before because it is tropical looking with its flowers and small bananas growing. Funchal is a very pretty city and I can keen to return there. It was so lovely to do the East Tour and the West Tour.
1 person likes this
@maximax8 (31042)
• United Kingdom
4 Dec 18
On the stormy night I worried about my son's wheelchair. There was a rope around the yacht and you would have to set over it onto outside seats. Then go down into the very small space. The door was hard to close. My son's wheelchair has broken 3 times: in Morocco, in Poland and going between India and Sri Lanka.
@maximax8 (31042)
• United Kingdom
4 Dec 18
We suffered three nights there on that tiny yacht. We didn't have enough Euros to find alternative accommodation. Our next stop was the island of Madeira. I loved the modern house over there and the studio flat. In my home country we use British Pounds.
2 people like this
@maximax8 (31042)
• United Kingdom
4 Dec 18
@Janet357 Yes, Portugal delighted me with its lovely river and beautiful buildings. We were so cold we went into a suburb to buy warm clothing. We went to Madera after we were in beautiful Porto. The flowers and tropical plants like bananas made me so happy with our destination.
1 person likes this
@responsiveme (22923)
• India
4 Dec 18
That was tough.
I think I will ask to see pictures from next time
1 person likes this
@responsiveme (22923)
• India
4 Dec 18
@maximax8 where did you visit?
Actually I meant that I would like to see photos of the place where I would be staying
1 person likes this
@KOLAMsegaran1 (4137)
• Bekasi, Indonesia
4 Dec 18
Why are you looking for and boarding a small cruise ship,
why don't you look for a slightly bigger boat.
1 person likes this
@maximax8 (31042)
• United Kingdom
4 Dec 18
Years ago I stayed on a ship outside a youth hostel in Stockholm. This was amazing experience and I even stayed in a train in South Africa which was small and I was with my son. I was around 20weeks pregnant on that trip. We thought it was a mobile home at a marina. The small yacht and steep way to and from it was a shock.
