Cyprus and disabled facilities

This topic is not a rant and I hope it will be helpful.

I have now lived in Cyprus for a year and I have some problems with my mobility. I am an above knee amputee and I am unable to wear a prosthetic leg for a number of reasons. I get around either using crutches over short distances or a wheelchair over longer ones.

Here are my views on disabled access for people with limited mobility. First of all in my experience Cypriots and other nationalities that live here are always helpful when needed.

Parking.

parking can be a problem, though most public car parks at supermarkets and in the tourist areas have a plethora of disabled parking spaces. Outside of these areas, access to disabled parking can be a bit of a lottery. On the plus side I have found that local people of all nationalities respect the use of disabled parking spaces, tourists less so I am afraid. A lot of beaches have disabled parking as well.

Bars and restaurants

here we go from the sublime to the ridiculous. A bar or restaurant can have excellent disabled facilities which can be accessed by even the most disabled person. Others can have good facilities but you either can’t get in them because they are stacked with tables, mops, buckets, kiddies high chairs etc. or the route to that toilets are inaccessible to wheelchairs. Other places just don’t have any facilities at all. Finally, some places will proudly tell you where the disabled facilities are but they are either up or down steps. Nearly every bar or restaurant I have visited have ramps for wheelchairs, some are great others you need the help of a Sherpa to negotiate the slope.

Shops

Access to shops etc, shopping malls and newer supermarkets normally have nice level access but most others shops have no access for wheelchairs. You often find a shop will have a wheelchair ramp but when you get to the door there are still steps to be negotiated. Some shops can be really difficult to navigate in a wheelchair as there is just insufficient space between aisles.

Pavements

in the tourist areas the pavements tend to be in very good order with plenty of drop kerbs. Just about everywhere else pavements can be broken, too narrow, with no drop kerbs. Sometimes you can be on a nice pavement which suddenly just stops and you have to turn your chair around because you can’t get off it.

Please don’t misunderstand this post, when we arrived we knew most of the pitfalls outlined above and we do manage very well. You just have to be prepared and accept that currently disabled facilities in Cyprus leave a lot to be desired, but there are signs that they are improving albeit slowly. Think of the UK 30 or 40 years ago.