Limitless Travel was started in 2016 by Angus Drummond who was diagnosed with Muscular Dystrophy aged 22. He created a company that would enable people with disabilities to travel without limitations.
I found out last year that Limitless Travel was doing a wheelchair accessible coach trip to Holland, there was no question about booking as
I had always longed to see the bulb fields. The team enabled me to have the holiday of a lifetime where disability disappeared and allowed my parents to have a total break from our normal life. To find out more about Limitless Travel visit www.limitlesstravel.org
Our journey began at the Ramada Hotel South Mimms where we met two of the other travellers and discussed how excited we were! We were met by the six Limitless Travel team members who immediately made us feel safe and at ease. They helped take all our luggage to the specially adapted coach where we met Stewart our lovely driver. I drove onto the lift and felt really high up as I went onto the coach which had space for four wheelchairs to be clamped down. We picked up the rest of the passengers in Dover then and headed for the ferry to Calais. We were then a group of 16, with varying needs. Unfortunately we weren’t able to go out on deck on the ferry but we sat near the windows and watched the White Cliffs getting smaller.
We drove for two hours then had a rest stop at a service station in Belgium. It was really interesting to see all the different snack foods on sale; pots of salami and cheeses as well as bouquets of sweets! As a lifelong collector, I was also thrilled to see Playmobil in the shop! The last stage of the journey took over 3 hours and was all in the dark. We felt as if we were in a plane whizzing along the runway without the take off!
We finally arrived at our hotel in the village of Der Rijp, 40 minutes north of Amsterdam after midnight. Even though we were all feeling quite exhausted, we were kept buoyant by our lovely tour manager Hannah. The hotel was just like a museum – full of quirky and interesting things from old buses and trams, to Meccano fairground rides! We were provided with a feast of delicious soup before heading
to our room. It was the biggest hotel room we have ever had with so much space and I even had a profiling bed! The bathroom was also
huge, which is always a bonus. Once we’d unpacked we went to bed but my body felt as if we were still moving!
In the morning Hannah took us all into the village, a 10 minute walk along smooth cycle tracks. It was so interesting looking at the old buildings (some 17th century!), canals and visiting the museum where we did a bit of souvenir shopping! After lunch we went to Amsterdam for a private canal boat trip. I wondered how I would get on the boat as all the ones I had seen were very low down. I didn’t have long to think about it, as a ramp was put down on the jetty and the floor of the boat magically lifted up; the only scary part being no edges to the lift! All the team and the captain were nearby though so I felt sure nothing could go wrong! The boat trip was 90 minutes and we all had a wonderful time seeing all the buildings and looking down all the canals which stretched off into the distance. We had time after the boat trip to have a drink in a very busy square of cafes watching all the bicycles whizzing by – they didn’t stop for anyone and crossing roads was quite challenging! In the evening we got to know the group better over supper in a lovely restaurant near the zoo. When we finally got back to the hotel we couldn’t believe how much we had fitted in on our first day in Holland!
The next day we went to Keukenhof Gardens. It was a beautiful drive, with wide fields and bright stripes of tulips; we didn’t even mind
getting stuck in a traffic jam as the scenery was so interesting. On arrival we were just a small group in the thousands of tourists, but the Limitless team were so calm and kept us together until we were safely through the entrance. Immediately there were enormous flowerbeds
of brightly coloured tulips, daffodils and hyacinths with lots of “wows” and breath-taking views!! There was a stunning water fountain made like a dandelion clock and people were sitting peacefully around the pond listening to a fairground organ. I felt very independent driving off by myself along the smooth paths. I couldn’t believe my eyes and we couldn’t stop taking photos; more bright colours were round every corner and a huge windmill with the sails turning.
Back at the hotel my parents hired a bicycle and we set off, along wide tracks across fields next to beautiful canals with ducks and geese with their babies. I was able to go at full speed while one of my parents cycled and the other walked. We had to force ourselves to turn
around in order to get back to the hotel in time for supper! It was another jolly evening, chatting at a huge round table sharing our travel
stories with Hannah.
After breakfast on Easter Day we all boarded the coach back into Amsterdam. On the way Hannah handed out bunny ears and masks
to the Limitless staff so they would be clearly visible to us through the day! By now the Limitless team were getting very expert at fastening me and the other two wheelchair users down. It felt just like a Formula One pit stop with the buzz of clamps and seatbelts all being put on so efficiently, then being removed when we arrived. Each time I had to come down forwards on the lift, I felt a bit braver as Stewart was so calm.
We were surprised both times we went into Amsterdam the public loos had opening hours and on this visit we had to wait until 11.30am for it to open (it closed at 5pm!). We went to the museum shop and explored the market before going to the Van Gogh Museum. I was so happy to buy the special edition Rijksmuseum Playmobil sets that I had discovered on their website before we came away! First we went to the Hockney – Van Gogh: The Joy of Nature exhibition - incredible! Many of the works on display were done on his iPad which has really inspired me to do more art on my computer. After lunch we did 3 floors of work by Van Gogh and his friends. It was so crowded and some pictures were hard to see but we were finally found his Sunflowers and The Bedroom at the end!! There was just time to sit in sun in the
park before heading back to the coach and our final supper in the hotel, when Hannah gave everyone a chocolate bunny. We all sat outside on our last evening and watched a beautiful sunset, chatting more about our memories and hopes for future trips.
There were more stunning views with tulips and windmills as we zoomed along on our drive home. Our ferry was sailing from Dunkirk and we were on a DFDS boat. We all preferred the port and the shiny ferry. We were able to get out on deck and enjoy the sea air as we waved France away. At the Dover drop off point, everyone said really sad farewells to five of our new friends. The coach felt empty on the way back to South Mimms and we did final goodbyes with the remaining two travellers and Hannah and the team, before waving the coach off into the night back to Birmingham. We couldn’t stop talking about everything until our heads hit the hotel pillows.
Now we are home we feel as if we had a wonderful dream! There are many memories and we really miss all our new friends. Luckily we are keeping in touch on Facebook and have been sharing photos and missing each other. We all hope we’ll meet again on another Limitless Travel adventure; I couldn’t recommend the company more highly!
Lizzie Baily 2019
I found out last year that Limitless Travel was doing a wheelchair accessible coach trip to Holland, there was no question about booking as
I had always longed to see the bulb fields. The team enabled me to have the holiday of a lifetime where disability disappeared and allowed my parents to have a total break from our normal life. To find out more about Limitless Travel visit www.limitlesstravel.org
Our journey began at the Ramada Hotel South Mimms where we met two of the other travellers and discussed how excited we were! We were met by the six Limitless Travel team members who immediately made us feel safe and at ease. They helped take all our luggage to the specially adapted coach where we met Stewart our lovely driver. I drove onto the lift and felt really high up as I went onto the coach which had space for four wheelchairs to be clamped down. We picked up the rest of the passengers in Dover then and headed for the ferry to Calais. We were then a group of 16, with varying needs. Unfortunately we weren’t able to go out on deck on the ferry but we sat near the windows and watched the White Cliffs getting smaller.
We drove for two hours then had a rest stop at a service station in Belgium. It was really interesting to see all the different snack foods on sale; pots of salami and cheeses as well as bouquets of sweets! As a lifelong collector, I was also thrilled to see Playmobil in the shop! The last stage of the journey took over 3 hours and was all in the dark. We felt as if we were in a plane whizzing along the runway without the take off!
We finally arrived at our hotel in the village of Der Rijp, 40 minutes north of Amsterdam after midnight. Even though we were all feeling quite exhausted, we were kept buoyant by our lovely tour manager Hannah. The hotel was just like a museum – full of quirky and interesting things from old buses and trams, to Meccano fairground rides! We were provided with a feast of delicious soup before heading
to our room. It was the biggest hotel room we have ever had with so much space and I even had a profiling bed! The bathroom was also
huge, which is always a bonus. Once we’d unpacked we went to bed but my body felt as if we were still moving!
In the morning Hannah took us all into the village, a 10 minute walk along smooth cycle tracks. It was so interesting looking at the old buildings (some 17th century!), canals and visiting the museum where we did a bit of souvenir shopping! After lunch we went to Amsterdam for a private canal boat trip. I wondered how I would get on the boat as all the ones I had seen were very low down. I didn’t have long to think about it, as a ramp was put down on the jetty and the floor of the boat magically lifted up; the only scary part being no edges to the lift! All the team and the captain were nearby though so I felt sure nothing could go wrong! The boat trip was 90 minutes and we all had a wonderful time seeing all the buildings and looking down all the canals which stretched off into the distance. We had time after the boat trip to have a drink in a very busy square of cafes watching all the bicycles whizzing by – they didn’t stop for anyone and crossing roads was quite challenging! In the evening we got to know the group better over supper in a lovely restaurant near the zoo. When we finally got back to the hotel we couldn’t believe how much we had fitted in on our first day in Holland!
The next day we went to Keukenhof Gardens. It was a beautiful drive, with wide fields and bright stripes of tulips; we didn’t even mind
getting stuck in a traffic jam as the scenery was so interesting. On arrival we were just a small group in the thousands of tourists, but the Limitless team were so calm and kept us together until we were safely through the entrance. Immediately there were enormous flowerbeds
of brightly coloured tulips, daffodils and hyacinths with lots of “wows” and breath-taking views!! There was a stunning water fountain made like a dandelion clock and people were sitting peacefully around the pond listening to a fairground organ. I felt very independent driving off by myself along the smooth paths. I couldn’t believe my eyes and we couldn’t stop taking photos; more bright colours were round every corner and a huge windmill with the sails turning.
Back at the hotel my parents hired a bicycle and we set off, along wide tracks across fields next to beautiful canals with ducks and geese with their babies. I was able to go at full speed while one of my parents cycled and the other walked. We had to force ourselves to turn
around in order to get back to the hotel in time for supper! It was another jolly evening, chatting at a huge round table sharing our travel
stories with Hannah.
After breakfast on Easter Day we all boarded the coach back into Amsterdam. On the way Hannah handed out bunny ears and masks
to the Limitless staff so they would be clearly visible to us through the day! By now the Limitless team were getting very expert at fastening me and the other two wheelchair users down. It felt just like a Formula One pit stop with the buzz of clamps and seatbelts all being put on so efficiently, then being removed when we arrived. Each time I had to come down forwards on the lift, I felt a bit braver as Stewart was so calm.
We were surprised both times we went into Amsterdam the public loos had opening hours and on this visit we had to wait until 11.30am for it to open (it closed at 5pm!). We went to the museum shop and explored the market before going to the Van Gogh Museum. I was so happy to buy the special edition Rijksmuseum Playmobil sets that I had discovered on their website before we came away! First we went to the Hockney – Van Gogh: The Joy of Nature exhibition - incredible! Many of the works on display were done on his iPad which has really inspired me to do more art on my computer. After lunch we did 3 floors of work by Van Gogh and his friends. It was so crowded and some pictures were hard to see but we were finally found his Sunflowers and The Bedroom at the end!! There was just time to sit in sun in the
park before heading back to the coach and our final supper in the hotel, when Hannah gave everyone a chocolate bunny. We all sat outside on our last evening and watched a beautiful sunset, chatting more about our memories and hopes for future trips.
There were more stunning views with tulips and windmills as we zoomed along on our drive home. Our ferry was sailing from Dunkirk and we were on a DFDS boat. We all preferred the port and the shiny ferry. We were able to get out on deck and enjoy the sea air as we waved France away. At the Dover drop off point, everyone said really sad farewells to five of our new friends. The coach felt empty on the way back to South Mimms and we did final goodbyes with the remaining two travellers and Hannah and the team, before waving the coach off into the night back to Birmingham. We couldn’t stop talking about everything until our heads hit the hotel pillows.
Now we are home we feel as if we had a wonderful dream! There are many memories and we really miss all our new friends. Luckily we are keeping in touch on Facebook and have been sharing photos and missing each other. We all hope we’ll meet again on another Limitless Travel adventure; I couldn’t recommend the company more highly!
Lizzie Baily 2019
