Mobility

Much of Europe is tough for the mobility challenged. I'd say you'd do best taking an organized tour on your first itinerary.

None of the three are the best of choices, however.

She did not want an organized tour
So we just wanted to know of the three which would be best and which worst
We like the hop on hop off buses so that should help

pepper,

Of the three, I'm leaning towards No. 2 (Milan / Florence / Rome) because.....

• all three have good public transit (Trams, Buses or Metro). The Metro stations have some Escalators, but some stations only have stairs.
• the centre of Florence is fairly compact and level.
• if you stay close to Termini in Rome, you'll have ready access to transportation, including the Hop On / Hop Off Buses.

London also has good transit and of course the famous Black Cabs. The Royal Mile in Edinburgh is on an incline so that might be more difficult for your wife. Can't provide any comments on Glasgow.

Madrid seemed more "spread out" to me, so that may mean more time getting around, climbing on and off Buses, etc. Can't comment on Lisbon, but from my trip research I vaguely recall more hills there.

Thank you for your response

Glasgow is also hilly, and walking can be difficult in some areas.

Madrid has a good hop-on hop-off bus system, and the old city center is pretty compact, but there is no easy way to get to Lisbon from there unless you fly. Toledo and Segovia are also hilly and cobblestoned (as someone with knee issues when I visited there, it was painful).

I like your second option best, for the reasons already stated.

Very appropriate...quoted from "Mother's Little Helper" ( 1966.)

There is also good surface transportation in Milano and Roma (you don't really need it in Firenze), trams, buses, and taxis.

Last summer in Roma a woman in our seminar group wanted to see the monuments at night, but had some mobility issues. I arranged with a taxi driver to take us on a "tour" for about 90 minutes for €50 (including tip). We told him the six or seven places we wanted to see. He stopped for photo ops, threw in a few extra sights, but best of all, he could get closer to the monuments than public or private tour buses.

Your questions earlier this spring were about Italy and more recently have been about Britain. Have you really not yet decided?

When Rick and friends collaborated on Easy Access Europe, they chose London and other northern cities for their focus, with the knowledge or expectation that Spain and Italy were less user friendly.

I have a hard time believing that Spain and Portugal will be any better than these, and the main transportation between Madrid and Lisbon is either fly, overnight train, long bus ride, or drive yourself and deal with possible 2nd-country car rental drop fees.

Yes we have had to put it off due to family emergenies (so far all turned out ok)
so this trip is next year by now
that is why we still have not decided.

Did not realize the only train is an 11 hour overnight

One way to deal with mobility issues is to set less ambitious daily itineraries. While there is sometimes a desire to see everything a place offers, it's neither relaxing nor practical for many people. If there is a mobility impairment, that makes for an even greater challenge - and a higher likelihood of frustration or disappointment.

So my $0.02 would be to look into your desired trips and judiciously choose your daily goals. Given there's time for you to prepare, get maps (e.g. OS and A-to-Z maps for the UK), and learn the lay of things. Plan in a decent amount of time between sites so you're not time-strapped. Plan to simply look around and soak in the sights, sounds, and culture of the area.

I realize that, for many U.S.-based travelers, these trips are exotic and often the "we're only going to get here once" affairs. But that doesn't necessarily mean there's a need to rush-rush-rush everything on a strict timetable. Take advantage of the ability to relax while on holiday. Recharge your physical and mental batteries.

Having taken both approaches - the "hurry-up offense" strategy and the "take things slowly, as they come" way - I'll choose the latter every time.

Good luck!

Diet,
I agree.We had already figured on an extra day at each city to allow us to take it slower

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If you have ANY problems with hills, forget Lisbon. Like is said of San Francisco, "if you get tired of walking around Lisbon, you can always lean against it." Parts are flat, but other sections would be very taxing.

I'll add one comment regarding Edinburgh. Basically it is compact with hills, but the bus system is pretty good and there is a day ticket. So, as the poster suggested figure out what you want to see, develop a slower itinerary for each day, and check out the public transit.

BTW most of the buses don't have lots of steps. They are more like the new NYC buses rather than the older ones with three steps up and then down. As someone who had to live and travel in NYC with a torn meniscus, I know the problems. I avoided the subway for months if not a couple of years!

Pam

I would suggest the London/Glasgow/Edinburgh option, mostly because it's likely to offer fewer "surprises" that can make it more challenging to get around. There's more of an element of unpredictability in Italy and Spain, in my experience. Also, I think it is easier to find out what accommodations are available when you speak the language.

You mentioned liking hop on – hop off buses. In London the hop on – hop off bus is supposed to be quite good. Rome and Florence are not particularly amenable to hop on – hop off buses. They have to stop relatively far from many tourist attractions. Also, I found the Rome hop on – hop off buses to be fairly unreliable.