Accessibility at Wynd Cottage
Whitby in General
Whitby in many parts is steep, if you want to see everything on offer you will have some uphill climbs and have to contend with often uneven steps. If you want to get around without walking everywhere, the open top tour bus is great value with a ticket lasting all day.
All the approaches to the cottage are either up or down hill but not too arduous. However getting to and from the cottage does not need to involve any steps. The gentalist route from town to Cliff Street is via the Khyber Pass, the road from the West Pier end of dock side built in Victorian time for easy access to the West Cliff.
Wynd Cottage
There is a low threshold from the road plus two small steps in the hallway. There are three steps from road level into the passage way at the side. Once in the cottage proper all of the ground floor is level. There is a low threshold at the back door. There is one step down into the external cloakroom / WC. There are two low steps down from the outer back door to the outside space and a small step up to the terrace area.
The stairs to the first floor are slightly steeper than modern standards but no steeper than your average Victorian terrace. The hand rails will help you on your way, note: these are not continuous, you will have to change hands halfway up. The first floor is entirely level.
The bathroom has a traditional free standing cast iron bath. This is deep and high sided compared to modern fitted baths. A mobility step with handrail is stored in the cupboard next to the T.V. if required. A non-slip bathmat is provided for use in the shower, please use it as the bath is rounded on the bottom.
The access to the second floor is via a spiral staircase but, probably, not what you think in the usual sense. The risers are of similar depth to the lower staircase with the tread wider if you keep towards the right hand side of the runner, there is a hand rail on the right going up. The second floor is all on the level.
If you can manage stairs generally then Wynd Cottage shouldn’t pose any particular problems to you, but please make your own assesment. A consideration has to made for speed of egress in an emergency, we would certain recomend the 1st floor bedroom for any guests with any mobility impairments.
Wheelchair Access to Wynd Cottage
You can get to Wynd cottage by Wheelchair or Mobility Scoter but you will not be able to get inside. You would have to disembark on the roadside and manage the steps as mentioned above. There is no room in the road to leave any mobility aids. Inside the doorways and the hallway are narrow.
Visually Impaired
Let us know at the time of enquiry / booking so we can do what we can to assist. We hope you have found the website reasonably easy to read, let us know if we can improve it.
Please note the steps and thresholds mentioned above, these are not highlighted or high contrast.
Apart from the passageway and some of the outside space the cottage is well illuminated. The front of the Cottage is partially illuminated by street lights overnight.
We are working towards having all the basic house and simplified appliance operating instructions in .pdf format, suitable for screen readers (see below). Please call us if you have any requirements that we can reasonably provide for.
PDF Download documents
Basic instructions for the cottage and appliances
Wood Burning stove instructions
Terms and Conditions of Booking
And if you are really interested (current versions are in the cottage) :
