Wheelchairs

[mom of four]

One of my sons will probably need a wheelchair when we go to Disney in April. He was in a car accident three weeks ago, and although he should be walking by April, he won't be able to put in the miles required at the parks. If I rent a wheelchair when we go to a park, like MK, will we be allowed to take it to Artist Point at the Wilderness Lodge and then back to MK? We were hoping to do all this using the boat. Would I be better off to just rent a wheelchair for the entire trip through an Orlando company? :confused:

[Whitequeen]

You won't be able to take the wheelchair out of each park I'm afraid.
I would be easier to rent from an offsite company. If you look on our Disabilities page it will give you companies that will rent and deliver a wheelchair to your lodging.


Disability Pages (http://www.wdisneyw.co.uk/disab.html)

[Babymischief]

When I stayed at Pop Century in October I went to the baggage/taxi ordering desk and they let me use one from there for the whole stay for my DD and I could take it anywhere I liked all over the parks and all around Florida. It didn`t cost me anything, all I had to do was leave my credit card number at the front desk. They didn`t even take a deposit off me. I`m hoping to do the same at Coronado Springs resort this October too.

[mom of four]

We'll be staying at Coronado Springs, so I'll call ahead to see if they have wheelchairs available. It would be nice to have one to use at the resort, so we could walk around the entire place. I'm requesting a room near the main building so that we don't have to walk really far to the food court and front desk.

[Babymischief]

When you get an answer from Coronado Springs will you please tell me what they say? It really does make all the difference having a wheelchair to take your son/daughter to and from the parks. The distances were just too much for my DD. A big plus was that we got onto the air conditioned buses first! There is a place in the lines for the buses that have a wheelchair symbol on the ground and you wait there for the bus... as the bus pulls up the doors halfway down the bus open (right where you are waiting) and the driver hops out and a ramp lifts you all up first.

[Breeze]

A word of caution here though, if for some reason the hotel you are staying at is low on wheelchairs (too many loaned out already, people not returning them, etc) they may not let you have one for the whole stay. If that happens and you have not made prior arrangements with a rental company, you could end up with a problem. If it were me, I'd rather go the "better safe than sorry" route then be stuck scrambling at the last minute.

[mrs t]

We stayed at Coronado springs and were able to rent a wheelchair for our length of stay, they did'nt have any at check in but it was delievered to our room within the hour. Maybe you could ring ahead and let them know you will be needing one.
We also did the same at ASM.

[mom of four]

I called Coronado Springs this morning and was told that they have plenty of wheelchairs available for guests to use during their stays. I asked if I should call the day before to reserve one, but she said that wasn't necessary. I'll let you know how it works out after our April trip. :)

[marivigi]

Have you considered renting a wheelchair from home?

We did that 2 years ago because I had a car accidents just 2 days before leaving. It really saved me from having to stand in line and walk forever inside airports. If you let the airline know, they will let you take your wheelchair all the way to the plane, you get to board first, and when you get off, the wheelchair is right there waiting for you!

[mom of four]

I'm really hoping my son, he's fifteen, won't need a wheelchair all the time, although it's hard to tell at this point. His physical therapist is trying to prepare us in case he does need one more than we think he might. The doctors and therapists are encouraging us to go on the trip, though. Anyway, if he's still using one a lot just before the trip, I'll consider bringing one from home on the plane, since you didn't have any trouble with that.

[marivigi]

No trouble at all... in fact it makes things simpler and less stressful since he wont have to worry about walking or standing in line, and also you will have more time to get on the plane and settle before everyone boards...

Another thing you could do is let the airline know you will need a wheelchair (even if you dont bring one) most airlines and airports have "official wheelchair pushers".... so thats another option in case he does feel tired at the airport but you dont feel like renting a wheelchair from home