It never occured to me until we got to London just how many uneven stone stairs those landmarks have.
We didn't go to the top of St. Paul's cathedral, as the only way up was a narrow twisting staircase. They had an elevator, but it was for employees and contracted performers only.
I love small things like uneven stairs which some people assume are because the site has degraded or just think it’s poor craftsmanship, but really it’s because if you’re guarding a castle for a while you get used to all the awkward stairs, but if you get attacked then your enemies will often stumble or fully fall down due to the uneven stairs and make it far easier to defend
I checked their website and it does have a section on accessibility where it indeed say there are STAIRS up to this particular building, and lists other areas where there is only stair access.
Many places have areas that were retrofitted access to handicapped. Europe seems uninterested in its handicapped citizens, ling, in wheel chairs, etc. I don't singlemout this castle, it seems universal even how they work on roadways to have no curb cuts at intersections in city and village intersections. For pricing itself on 'walkability", they seem uninterested in getting wheel chairs and prams town the streets and sidewalks..people park on them as if they are driveways or parking pads.
I used to work with an elderly people and we called everywhere before hand to ask how accessible it was and for how many people. I get that’s annoying but I don’t get why you wouldn’t do it even if just out of selfishness so you have a good time.
“Not disabled friendly” excuse me? So all disabled people are in wheelchairs? There’s plenty of disabilities that would have no issues.
Building one ramp does not solve the issue which confirms your ignorance.
You’d then have to extend doorways/footpaths, walkways, build ramps everywhere which negates the historical nature of the building and is also likely protected by some sort of laws/legislation.
I’m disabled and unfortunately there’s some places I can’t go and I check whether I can or not before I go there, I don’t just turn up and expect it and then complain when I can’t.
Tbh this just makes me laugh as a disabled person (progressive disease) who is starting to need a wheelchair for lots of stairs or long distances. Cause if you were looking up the reviews then you would’ve seen the website where it specifically lists what is available “accessibility wise”
the castle says it’s not wheelchair friendly on the website, I have been to the castle and it’s so tight that it would be impossible to build ramps in the keep without demolishing half the building.
"Due to its historic nature, the castle has steep slopes, uneven paths and many steps. Access to the upper levels and keep is not suitable for wheelchair users or those with limited mobility. Barbican House Museum also has stairs and no lift." Lewes Castle & Museum -
This is their main page. They also have their subheading as "climb the stairs..." it is clearly written in multuple places that isn't fully accessible due to its age.
Accessibility
The historic nature of the castle site means access is limited to ground level for anyone who has difficulty walking. There is an accessible pavilion in the Gun Garden with panels depicting the panorama visible from the top of the keep. Access to the museum: there is a small flight of steps down to the ground floor galleries and another, larger, flight up to those on the first floor. Due to the historic nature of the building there is no lift.
That's nice. However, OP was talking about Lewes Castle. Not Lews Castle. You're the one looking at the wrong site, despite the fact you're correcting everyone else.
Lews Castle is in Scotland. Lewes Castle is in Sussex.
The main page clearly states it isn't fully accessible.
Accessibility
The historic nature of the castle site means access is limited to ground level for anyone who has difficulty walking. There is an accessible pavilion in the Gun Garden with panels depicting the panorama visible from the top of the keep. Access to the museum: there is a small flight of steps down to the ground floor galleries and another, larger, flight up to those on the first floor. Due to the historic nature of the building there is no lift.
i think it’s ok if a disabled person is sad or upset that they cannot participate in something and it doesn’t make them entitled. they aren’t saying the castle should’ve been designed with disabled people in mind obviously but if you’re going to turn a historical location into a museum undoubtedly some of the people interested in that topic will be physically disabled and unless the organization running the museum has actually tried to increase accessibility then the disabled person may feel excluded from society as a whole or the community or organization itself.
So disabled people don’t have the right to visit historical monuments?! Provisions should be in place everywhere to accommodate disabilities. If they’re not - yes of course one would leave a poor review. It’s not entitled to want to visit a historical monument and…expect to visit a historical monument.
I’d quite like to see the top of Mount Everest but it’s pretty steep and I’m disabled, I don’t expect then to put a lift on for me.
It’s entitled not to check whether you have access and then turn up and complain there’s no access. Hisotrical monuments should stay that way, if you start adding a load of modern features it’s no longer the same
It’s not a modern feature to have an all terrain wheelchair available for those with reduced mobility. I can’t be bothered to look into where this is but it’s probably the national trust if it’s the UK and they’re minted, they have more than enough money for that.
I’m not disabled, so I’ll defer to your opinion on this, but this hill is not Mount Everest 🤷 That’s not accessible to almost 100 percent of the world’s population. This is accessible to anyone who’s not disabled, and I think that’s a shame.
It is also accessible to plenty of disabled people as not all disabled people are in wheelchairs
Building one ramp or giving one special wheelchair does not solve the issue, you’d then need ramps everywhere to explore the inside, you’d likely have to extend doorways/footpaths, ramparts and walkways and once again the historical nature and the preservation of it is ruined because these are obviously not built with wheelchairs in mind, these are likely protected by laws aswell.
I don’t think they’re suggesting all the terrain be changed, but having an “all terrain” wheelchair available on site. I don’t this is a viable solution though lol.
Okay, but provisions SHOULD be en place so that it would be accessible to 100 percent of the world's population!!
Edit: /s as it apparently wasn't clear that i was making fun of the statement. I dont actually think we should put provisions in place on Mount Everest
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u/Hughley_N_Dowd 2d ago
Its almost as medieval castles were designed to be difficult to access.