Cebu, Philippines Travel Guide
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Accessibility in Cebu
Wheelchair access in Cebu
Overview: On Cebu’s Mactan Island, I saw a middle-aged American gentleman (my scuba instructor informed me en route to my scuba lessons) riding one of those adaptive, hand peddle bicycles along the side of the streets, exercising. The expat lives on Mactan Island. The bottom line is that Cebu City IS becoming wheelchair accessible, with some areas better than others. But you can make it comfortable if you spend time exploring.
Even though the sidewalks and streets can get rough (broken concrete, potholes, sometimes no ramps at intersections), most of the tourist sites are wheelchair accessible, and more often than not, businesses, good restaurants and hotels have ramps. And as mentioned in the introduction, the ease of getting Cebu’s cabs to take you around on longer distance hauls (i.e., from the city center to Magellan’s Cross) makes Cebu wheelchair accessible.
General Maxiloms Street in Cebu
On General Maxilom Ave, formerly Mango Ave, there is a newer plaza called One Mango Avenue. The plaza is very wheelchair accessible. There are handicap signs indicating ramps throughout the plaza. If you are willing to put up with some inconveniences, then Cebu will be a great place for you to visit.
Wheelchair access in Cebu
City Center, Uptown
The streets and sidewalks of Cebu are semi accessible. The sidewalks in the city center around Fuentes Osmena have ramps at the corners and there are signals. However, the sidewalks and streets do get rough at times the further east you veer from Fuente Osmena. There are many spots on General Maxilom where there are potholes and gaps between curbs and the streets. And, sometimes, the curbs don’t have ramps. General Maxilom, by the way, is a busy thoroughfare. Some of the crosswalks on Maxilom also don’t have signals so you will definitely have to wait for a clearing and dodge some traffic.
B. Rodriguez and Osmena Blvd are less congested streets and B. Rodriguez has pretty wide shoulders. The streets are a bit more even and it’s easy to wheel along the side of the street on B. Rodriguez. The locals walk on the sides of this street. Sometimes you will have to wheel on the streets in Cebu City. Osmena Blvd, north of Fuente Osmena rotunda, is the cleaner, more well-kept street. It leads to and ends at the Provincial Capitol of Cebu.
Commercial District
Cebu’s commercial – financial and retail – district is about 5 to 10 minutes east of Fuente Osmena. The area is newer so it is cleaner and better maintained. Streets like Mindanao Ave have more consistent sidewalks and ramps.
Historic Sites, Downtown
The historic center of Cebu City, which includes the newly established Sugbo Plaza – Magellan’s Cross is located here – and Basilica del Santo Nino – is wheelchair accessible. The grounds are laden with flat bricks and complete with ramps. I found the historic center in Cebu City as accessible as any place in I’ve been to. Be sure to take a cab there if you are not lodging near by.
Mactan Island
Mactan Island resorts are the easiest to wheel around. The Mactan Shrine and the surrounding area are wheelchair accessible. Storefronts are small and on ground level. But, you will have to deep with dirt at times if you venture away from the Mactan Shrine and decide to stroll along the streets. As well, there is traffic – mainly jeepneys.
Bohol
Bohol’s main streets seems surprisingly accessible as far as wheeling around is concerned. Pedestrians walk on the streets and the streets do not seem as busy in Bohol as they are in Cebu. From the sidewalks, businesses do have a step at the entrance.
Buildings and Curbs
As in Manila, there are a surprising amounts of ramps at the entrances to more modern and popular buildings. The ramps, however, like in a lot of Asian countries, can be steep and short. The ramps, I believe, serve more as a convenience for the locals who lug stuff up on carts.
Locals and Help
The locals in Cebu are kind, helpful and service oriented. At some of the restaurants that had steps, the staff quickly jump to attention and help. Same with hotels and even at convenience stores.