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First, we try to look online. This is usually a futile attempt because 99% of places do not list this information online. The next step is to inquire via email, if possible. If this does not yield a reply (the replies are mostly template emails with little useful information), we call the entity. On the call, we try to ask some version of “do you have glass lifts to the rooms, because I’m claustrophobic and have trouble with regular lifts?”. We are met with a bewildered representative who doesn’t quite understand what is being asked. We try to rephrase asking whether or not they have “open lifts”, “capsule lifts”, or “panoramic elevators”.
I can go on and on with my travel stories and struggles and the suffering of my family because of my infamous antics but let’s leave that for another time. It takes a certain temperament, a positive resolve, a decent amount of time and plenty of luck to find to find the answers (hotels with glass lifts).
Saadia Haseeb
Islamabad, Pakistan
As the clock ticks, the anxiety increases. Panic sets in and the resolve to avoid stepping into the elevator intensifies.
At the same time, the realization that others cannot comprehend your fear is pronounced too. For them it’s just a means of going from point A to point B. But for me it’s always a cause for palpitations, suffocation and sweaty palms. It is something that hovers in my mind for hours before I take that 30 second ride in the lift. At times, I try to delay it as much as possible and at other times I try to avoid it completely. Nonetheless, it’s never the simple practice of reaching a place as it is for every other person around me.
There are countless instances where I have missed on opportunities: from a holiday to first class stays, because of this fear which is always holding me back.
When looking for suitable accommodation for a trip, it takes so much longer (and consumes much more energy!) in finding a place where we don’t have to have to either use a lift at all or find a place with glass lifts. Sometimes we succeed and sometimes we don’t.
On our recent trip to London, we booked a renowned 5-star chain hotel and they assured us that the room can be accessed through stairs. On arrival, we found the room to be on the 4th floor, which meant that taking the stairs for every trip was not always an option. On the same trip, the next stay was another chain hotel where we managed to get rooms on the 1st floor. This meant climbing only two stories to get to our room, which I happily did and never saw the inside of the lift at the hotel.
For an upcoming trip to Dubai, I contacted an agent to find short-term accommodation. The brief was simple: it had to be a place ‘with glass lifts or no lifts’. First, she didn’t quite understand my requirement and when she did, it was met with laughter. Did I feel embarrassed? No, not at all. I felt angry. Angry at myself for having this shortcoming which makes things just difficult for me, as well as my family. And angry at her, for its people like her who don’t want to understand what we feel and go through. Having said that, not everyone has the same response; there are others who are empathic and helpful.
So how does one go about finding out whether a place has glass elevators or not?
First, we try to look online. This is usually a futile attempt because 99% of places do not list this information online. The next step is to inquire via email, if possible. If this does not yield a reply (the replies are mostly template emails with little useful information), we call the entity. On the call, we try to ask some version of “do you have glass lifts to the rooms, because I’m claustrophobic and have trouble with regular lifts?”. We are met with a bewildered representative who doesn’t quite understand what is being asked. We try to rephrase asking whether or not they have “open lifts”, “capsule lifts”, or “panoramic elevators”.
Still no luck. We give up.
We have even tried the world of social media, asking for suggestions on several different online groups, both large and small. To say it was disappointing may be an understatement. I tried a very famous Pakistani Facebook group with thousands of members who are always ready to give their two cents on every useless topic under the sun, from the rate of aloo piyaz to character assassination of saas & nand to clandestine affairs of their spouses there is no stopping them (or shall I say no stooping them, pun intended). My query was responded to by a meager 3 people and that too with the suggestion to Google it!
I can go on and on with my travel stories and struggles and the suffering of my family because of my infamous antics but let’s leave that for another time. It takes a certain temperament, a positive resolve, a decent amount of time and plenty of luck to find to find the answers (hotels with glass lifts).
Yes, you can be lucky and at times the search can be speedy and successful but that’s very seldom.
I hope that this platform will support the people who have this fear (which according to research is estimated to be 4% of the global population!) to find the right accommodation, places of interest (you want a bird’s eye view of the city, worry not you can certainly do that from the top of the tower because it has glass lifts) and conveyance (the majority of the metropolises have over as well as underground trains; and from experience I can tell you it’s very very difficult, if not impossible, to find which stations and routes are over ground and which are not. With our database you can rest assured about specific overground routes). Don’t worry we have done all the homework and have it sorted for you. We are here to make your next trip as anxiety free as is possible.
Shahneez Haseeb
Dubai, UAE
I recently returned from a spiritually refreshing trip. Our hotel surpassed expectations, boasting an incredible location and great food. It was my second time at this hotel, and both times I had a wonderful stay.
The highlight of this property is its immediate proximity to the Haram. You step out of the elevator, and you’re at street level, just across from the Haram.
My mother’s experience however, sharply contrasts with mine.
She had a terrible experience staying here a couple of months back when I booked her the place based on my pleasant stay. The location was the same, as was the food and the rest of the facilities. What made it a nightmare for her were the elevators.
When I was confirming the booking, she was aware that the property didn’t come with glass lifts, which she was not happy about but nonetheless accepted. Though I asked her to request a lower floor upon check-in, the rooms of the hotel started from the 6th floor.
To add to her troubles, in order to access the Haram from street level one has to go to the lower ground floor, which is an additional three floors below ground level.
She sought an alternative route, even if it meant a longer journey to the Haram. Strangely, no walking option was available from the ground floor, the entrance on which is dedicated for vehicular transport. The only access to street level and the Haram was through elevators to the lower ground floor. The hotel, along with others nearby, is situated on the mountain called Jabal Omar.
Fortunately, the numerous elevators ensured minimum waiting times. The lifts were modern, smooth and highly convenient. However, for my mother, each time she entered the lift, it felt like a descent into the belly of Jabal Omar, conjuring fears of being trapped amidst rocks if the lift were to stop unexpectedly. This anxiety led to her feeling trapped and experiencing severe panic attacks every time she entered the elevator.
In conclusion, what proved to be a wonderful stay for me and likely many other guests, was a markedly different experience for her, solely due to the elevators descending three floors beneath the mountain.
Just to avoid this feeling of being trapped, anytime she travels, she is ready to swap the comfortable, clean accommodation with great food and service for a shabby and run-down facility as long as it offers glass lifts that do not make her anxious during elevator rides.
Asjad Khan
Makkah, Saudia Arabia
I had never thought to be claustrophobic until I made a surprising discovery after my accident.
While travelling many years ago, I sustained some injuries to my knee joint when I fell at the airport. I had to have an MRI, which made me realize my surprising anxiety to enclosed spaces. An MRI procedure requires you to lie in a narrow stretcher that moves into a tube.
You are alone in the room while the machine is working and taking images, a panic button is handed over which is really sensible or more so necessary. The room is usually cooled for the machine and the patient has to lie still for 10 to 15 minutes. The radiology tech made a cheeky joke and said that it would feel as if you are in a grave and here, I have to agree, he was spot on.
That incident did give me a brief glimpse into what it would feel like of life after death. In that moment, I was tempted to press the panic button but persevered and those few minutes seemed like an eternity, but I held on. The experience made me realize of my dormant fear and apprehension, I try avoiding MRIs and enclosed spaces now as a result of that.
Fatima Amin
Islamabad, Pakistan
Claustrophobia is the irrational fear of confined spaces. People affected by claustrophobia often go out of their way to avoid closed or confined spaces such as elevators, trains and public toilets.
For me, the feelings of claustrophobia started in my student days when | was forced to use the London Underground as a means of transport to get to university and back.
For the blissfully ignorant, the London Underground can be described as the nome of the Great Unwashed and the bane of my existence in those days (the Northern line never worked)!
The tube (as it’s commonly known as) is a total assault on the nervous system.
You are thrust in a metal contraption; hurtling down dark tunnels at breakneck speed – packed like sardines – usually squashed up against a stranger’s back especially during rush hour – morning and evening.
Usually you can smell what a person ate for their dinner last night. This daily onslaught on my senses left me reeling and forced me to look for coping mechanisms.
This involved a scarf doused with perfume; earpods and a book in an attempt to shut off the noise and smell the best I could.
I also tried leaving the commute a little earlier than usual to avoid being so tightly packed in.
The fear and disgust of confined spaces brought upon from this commute then also translated into hating using elevators.
I used the stairs religiously and was very fit because of their regular usage.
An interesting fact about claustrophobia is that it’s more prevalent amongst females.
lf I had to hazard a guess as to why this is so, it would be that females are more intuitive, some are empaths and generally women have more spatial awareness hence their surroundings impact them more.
Claustrophobia is also relatively common and is also defined as an anxiety disorder.
Exposure therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy are the two main treatments for claustrophobia (as per the NHS guidelines).
If you suspect you or a loved one has claustrophobia, seek advice and help from a medical professional and know that you are not alone.
