03/08/08

Copyright Michael Coatesworth.

Last revised: March 08, 2008

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"Click on my picture above to be taken to my short autobiography"

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My "First Hand" experiences with Disabled Access in

Hotels, and with most forms of transport

See below

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Hotel Griego Mar

Torremolinos

Not suitable for independent wheelchair users

As I manoeuvred my wheelchair through the doors and entered the “Hotel Griego Mar” and saw the step in front of me, alarm bells began to ring in my head. I had been informed that the Griego Mar was a wheelchair friendly hotel. With assistance I wheeled backwards down the step only to be faced with a few more steps that led up to a bar and other hotel facilities.

The receptionist greeted my wife and me with a smile and after taking our particulars, he handed us our room key. We went down a hallway that inclines steadily and we reached the lift. There was no problem with the lift and a few moments later we were facing our room door with dismay. My wheelchair would not fit through the door. I changed over to a smaller electric wheelchair and managed to get into our room, only to find that I could not fit through the doorway into the bathroom as it was even smaller than the main door.

I went to the receptionist and explained the situation. I was offered a total of three different rooms, but all to no avail as none of the rooms were suitable for a wheelchair and the problem was that all the doorways were too small. So I rang my travel agent and arrangements were made to move me to a different more suitable hotel.

While I was waiting for the arrangements to be put into action, I took a look around the hotel Griego Mar and found that there were steps and a steep slope up to the swimming pool, a large step up to the bar in the entertainment room, and the rest of the facilities were off limits to me because of half a dozen steps. I searched for a wheelchair friendly toilet and I couldn’t find any at all.

I was informed that there were a few rooms that were being renovated for wheelchair users and they would be ready the following week, but that was not good enough for me as there was no way that I could not go to the toilet for a week! It would also not be good enough as there are still all the steps in the other parts of the hotel to contend with. Until the hotel has been completely renovated and fitted with more accessible ramps and wheelchair user friendly toilets have been fitted, I would not recommend wheelchair users to book a room at the Griego Mar.

Overall, the Hotel Griego Mar is not suitable for wheelchair users, assisted or independent.

Mike Coatesworth

My rating for the Hotel Griego Mar

Independent wheelchair access on ground level: 2/10

Assisted wheelchair access on ground level: 3/10

Wheelchair Access in Accommodation (Bedroom): 2/10

Wheelchair Access in Bathroom / Toilet facilities in accommodation: 0/10

Bathroom / Toilet facilities on ground level: 0/10

Visit my other disability access pages

http://www.btinternet.com/~mikeco158/disaccess2.htm

http://www.btinternet.com/~mikeco158/disabacc.htm

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