| Europe is a place of kings and queens, and the former (and current) royal residences make for great tourist destinations. Many of these buildings are hundreds of years old and accessibility can be poor. There are still some great options for disabled tourists...here are my Top 4 Wheelchair Accessible Palaces in Europe. Versailles Palace near Paris - The "Sun King" Louis XIV (the great-great-great-grandfather of the Louis that lost his head) built one of the most impressive palaces anywhere. To me, the most impressive part is not the size of the palace or even the famous Hall of Mirrors...it's the enormous gardens located behind the palace. Wheelchair access at the palace and gardens is pretty good, although getting there by public transportation from Paris involves a long walk/roll. Buckingham Palace in London - Home of the Queen of England, Buckingham Palace is easy to reach in central London and within walking/rolling distance of popular destinations like Westminster Abbey and Piccadilly Circus. It's only open to the public for short while during the summer so you may want to choose your travel dates carefully. Catherine's Palace in St. Petersburg - The Amber Room is the main attraction here and, as you might guess, it's covered in amber that was collected across the region. Wheelchair access is possible but it requires a somewhat hidden route to use a special elevator for disabled visitors. Russia has an extremely tedious visa process so nearly all cruise passengers visit St. Petersburg with a tour guide who handles the visa process. A few wheelchair accessible St. Petersburg tours visit Catherine's Palace. Doge's Palace in Venice - It's funny how some people prioritize their sightseeing. You'll often see long lines to get into St. Mark's Basilica and short lines to get into the nearby Doge's Palace (which is more impressive and more important) merely because Doge's Palace has a small entrance fee. You paid a lot of money to travel to Venice and now you're going to stand in line for an hour to save a few euro? Sage travelers who are short on time will know to make the Doge's Palace a high priority and make St. Mark's Basilica a lower priority. Each of these palaces have hundreds of years of hidden history, and they are best visited with a tour guide. For a guided tour led by knowledgeable, certified tour guide using wheelchair accessible routes, contact us several weeks in advance of your arrival. Meet the Team Each of the next few months I'll be featuring one of our team members. This month it's Leah Spurlock. Leah joined Sage Traveling last year and is our first employee from Scotland! As you might expect, she does a great job with the UK and other Northern Europe destinations in her region.
 "My favorite part of planning accessible vacations is getting to know each individual client, reassuring any concerns they may have about traveling overseas, and sharing the excitement of their upcoming trip! I work with many, many wonderful tour guides and operators in Northern Europe who help ensure our clients are taken care of and provide them with long lasting memories of their vacation!!
The best part of all is when clients return from their trip and tell us how fantastic it was, and they're ready to book their next one!!
- Leah Contact us to speak with Leah or any of our accessible travel consultants. Travel Wisely, John Sage, Founder and President of Sage Traveling | 
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