Hillside Streets · Steps · Coastal Villas
Ramps, handrails and accessible bathrooms for Altea's hillside old town houses and coastal villas, where steps and slopes come with the view.
Altea is built on a hill, and nearly everything about living here involves going up or down. The old town climbs in steps and narrow lanes, and the villas along the coast and in the slopes above are reached by drives, terraces and flights of stairs that were never designed with a walking frame or a wheelchair in mind. For anyone whose mobility is changing, that is the first problem to solve.
So in Altea we usually start outside the front door. A home with a beautiful bathroom is not much use if you cannot comfortably reach it, and the answer might be a ramp, a re-formed set of steps, a handrail or a better-lit path. Only then do we look at the bathroom, the kitchen and the rest of the house.
Dragon Reforms has worked across the north Costa Blanca since 1999. The quotation is free and our work is guaranteed, with the scope set out in the quotation.
Hills and steps
A villa on one of Altea's slopes might have a drive that is steeper than anything you would choose, then a flight of steps to the door, then more steps inside between the living area and the bedrooms. Each of those is a place where a fall can happen.
A ramp works where there is room to lay one at a gentle gradient, and we build them with a firm, grippy surface and handrails the whole way. Where there is not enough room, we look at making the steps themselves easier, with more even risers, a landing to stop and rest on, a rail on both sides and good lighting.
In the old town the options are narrower still. Many houses open directly onto steep lanes, with a high step at the door and a hallway beyond. Where we can, we adjust the threshold and add rails. Where the street itself is the obstacle, we tell you so honestly.
Old town houses
Old town houses in Altea are often tall and slim, with rooms stacked on several floors and steep internal stairs. A bathroom may be on a different level from the bedroom, and the stairs between can become a daily worry.
A handrail on each side of the stairs, non-slip nosings on the treads and better lighting are modest changes that make a real difference. If the house has a room on the ground floor, we can look at turning it into a bedroom with an accessible bathroom next to it, so that living on one level becomes possible.
These houses have thick, old walls, and fixing rails or building a new shower needs more care than in a new build. We check what the wall is made of before drilling, and fix to something solid.
Bathrooms and kitchens
Once the way in is dealt with, the bathroom is next. In Altea we often convert a bath or a high tray into a walk-in shower with a fold-down seat and grab rails, and fit a raised or wall-hung toilet with a support rail beside it. We choose slip-resistant tiles for shower, floor and any terrace that you step onto from the house.
Many homes here have tiled floors that are lovely to look at and slippery when wet, particularly near the kitchen door and out onto the terrace. Changing or treating those surfaces is often one of the most effective safety improvements available.
For a kitchen, we can lower part of the worktop, add deep drawers and move sockets and lighting to suit, so that someone seated can still cook for themselves and the family.
How it works
We come and walk the route with you, from where you park to the front door, through the house and out to the terrace. We look at the gradients, the steps, the surfaces and the lighting, then at the bathroom and kitchen, and we ask what you find hardest. You receive a free written quotation that sets out what we propose.
Access to some Altea properties is awkward for builders as well, so we plan deliveries and working times ahead. Larger jobs can be staged, tackling the entrance first and the bathroom next, so that you can use the house throughout.
Questions
If there is space to give it a gentle gradient, yes, with a non-slip surface and handrails. If the plot is too steep, we can improve the steps, add landings and rails, and show you the options at the survey.
Usually. We can add handrails, non-slip edges and lighting, and in some cases reshape the steps. We check the walls first because old construction needs careful fixing.
Yes. We find out what the wall is made from and fix into a solid backing so that the rail will take real weight. We then repair or re-tile around it.
Yes. Walk-in showers, seats, raised toilets and rails are all part of what we do, and we can usually fit them within the existing bathroom.
Across the area
Altea is one of eight towns with its own disability living page. The main Disability Living Costa Blanca page covers the whole service in full.
Walk-in showers, rails and wider doors for Benidorm apartments and old town homes.
View Benidorm →Wet rooms, ramps, rails and pool access for La Nucía's inland-hillside villas.
View La Nucía →Ramps, handrails and safer bathrooms for Finestrat's steep hillside villas.
View Finestrat →Walk-in showers, ramps and safer kitchens for Calpe's apartments and hillside villas.
View Calpe →Accessible bathrooms, rails and ramps for Alfaz del Pi and Albir villas and apartments.
View Alfaz del Pi & Albir →Safer bathrooms, stairs and entrances for Polop's village houses and hillside villas.
View Polop →Ramps, level showers and safer floors for Benissa's fincas, old town houses and villas.
View Benissa →Get in touch
Tell us where the difficulty is, whether it is the steps, the bathroom or the whole house, and we will visit. The quotation is free.
Our work is guaranteed, with the scope set out in the quotation, and we are open Monday to Saturday, 9am to 8pm.
Customer reviews
Genuine Google reviews from Dragon Reforms customers.
Bathroom Renovation
Original Spanish review
“Muchísimas gracias por su trabajo. Una reforma de baño espectacular y muy limpio trabajando.”
English translation
“Thank you very much for your work. A spectacular bathroom renovation, and very clean and tidy while working.”
Apartment Renovation
Original Spanish review
“Hace poco reformó el apartamento. Ha quedado espectacular. Además sin imprevistos, cumpliendo los plazos y muy formal.”
English translation
“They recently renovated the apartment. It looks spectacular. What's more, there were no unexpected problems, the agreed timescales were met, and they were very professional.”
More from Dragon Reforms
Everything Dragon Reforms does in Altea, each with its own page.
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