Renting mobility equipment on the Costa del Sol: what visitors should know

If you are coming to the Costa del Sol for a holiday, a long winter stay or to visit family, bringing your own mobility equipment is often more trouble than it is worth. Renting locally is usually cheaper, simpler and avoids the risk of your scooter or wheelchair being damaged in transit. Here is what is worth knowing before you book.

What can normally be rented

• Mobility scooters, from compact models for getting around town to larger ones for longer trips.
• Manual and electric wheelchairs.
• Rollators and walking frames.
• Profile beds, hoists and bathroom aids for longer stays or when caring for someone at home.

Book ahead, especially in high season

Summer and the winter months, when many northern Europeans spend long periods on the coast, are the busiest. If your dates are fixed, reserving in advance is the safest way to get the model you actually want rather than whatever is left.

Questions worth asking before you book

• Delivery and collection. Can the equipment be delivered to your hotel or apartment, and picked up at the end?
• Minimum rental period. Some equipment is rented by the day, other items by the week or month.
• What happens if something fails. Ask who to call and how quickly a replacement can arrive.
• Condition and servicing. At Senior World every item is checked after each rental before it goes out again.
• Access at your accommodation. Lifts, steps and door widths matter more than people expect.

Measure the doorways

This is the single most common problem with holiday rentals. Apartment bathroom doors are often narrower than at home, and a wheeled commode or wheelchair that works perfectly in your own house may not fit. If you can, measure the narrowest door before you book, or at least ask the accommodation.

Getting around the Costa del Sol

The promenades along much of the coast are flat, wide and well suited to scooters and wheelchairs, which is one reason the area is popular with visitors with reduced mobility. Older town centres are a different matter: narrow pavements, steps and steep streets are common, so a compact model is usually the safer choice if you plan to explore them.

Renting first, buying later

If you are still deciding whether to buy, a rental is the most honest test there is. A couple of weeks of daily use tells you far more about the right size and type than any brochure.

You can see what is available in mobility scooters, wheelchairs and home care solutions.

Not sure what you need? Senior World has been based in Fuengirola since 2008 and covers the whole Costa del Sol. Call us on +34 952 66 31 31 and we will talk it through, no obligation.