Lisbon, Portugal Waterfront Hotel

Galé Ópera is the second-largest hotel chain in Portugal, and in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, the Hotel Vila Galé Ópera is located right next to the 25 Abril Bridge along the Tagus River. A ramp in front of the hotel provides access to the lobby. The front door has an automatic roundabout as well as a standard glass door, and once inside, the floors are smooth tile and the front desk is lowered slightly.

Amenities

The restaurant is open for breakfast and dinner, which is also on the ground floor, and nearby is a wheelchair accessible toilet with grab-bars. Breakfast is commonly served ala cart, but hotel employees stand by to assist guests. Dinner is a more formal dining experience featuring Portugal classics.

The indoor pool is also located on the ground floor but is a little challenging to access due to the size of the door lip going out of the lobby area as well as the door lip across a small courtyard and into the pool area. * To the right of the front desk are the hotel elevators that are big enough for one wheelchair at a time.

Rooms

Several rooms have been modified to be wheelchair accessible for guests traveling to Portugal. Nonetheless, though possible, there were still some obvious challenges to staying at Hotel Vila Galé Ópera in Lisbon. The main barrier for most may be the shower setup. Although the shower is step-free and with a hand-held nozzle, the glass door may be challenging to maneuver a wheelchair around when getting in and out. Plus, there are no grab-bars or a shower chair. *

Soap/Shampoo are mounted along with a small corner shelf. Moveable grab-bars are around the toilet. A roll-up sink is in the bathroom, but the makeup mirror is mounted out of reach. Below this is the hair dryer, which may be accessible for some. The towel rack has been lowered a bit but two hooks near the toilet are mounted too high.

The bed was a good height for my manual wheelchair and very firm. Two twin beds were pushed together to make a full or queen-size bed. The most accessible power outlets were near the desk, across from the bed. The closet next to the bed had lowered shelves as well as a lowered closet bar with hangers.

*Tourism for All provides a pool chair/lift as well as shower chairs portable grab-bars, or prepare to bring your supplies.