Advice needed for a day with elderly mother in wheelchair

[SusanDK]

My 83-year old mother is going to visit us for a weekend when we are in Orlando next month. My sister, her husband and daughter (ca. 23) are going to join, and we are trying to decide how to spend an entertaining day out as a family.

My mother can barely walk anymore, just very, very slowly, so it takes her forever to get any distance. Therefore, if we do a day at a Disney park, Universal or Sea World, we will get a wheelchair for her.

She has never been interested in going on rides -- even when she was younger and more mobile, she joined my sister's family for a WDW trip when the grandchildren were younger, and refused to go on rides, so we would not necessarily be queuing for rides, rather more for attractions / shows. Although I would love to get her on Soarin' it's unlikely she would agree.

Which park would be easiest to navigate with a wheelchair and perhaps have the most enjoyable atmosphere under those circumstances?

I was thinking Epcot or Studios. Studios perhaps favored because of Beauty and the Beast, Indiana Jones, Little Mermaid and Fantasmic? Epcot for Off Kilter, British Invasion and other shows around the World Showcase, plus Illuminations?

This is going to be the weekend of 8-9 February.

My husband suggested Universal, but I feel like that will be a bit more difficult to navigate. And my sister has suggested Sea World, but I see that the Shamu show is not on right now, plus it's one of the "bands, brew and BBQ" weekends so might be more crowded than normal, and that's not a special event that would be of interest to either my mother or sister's family.

We've also thought of just going to DTD to the AMC Dine-In if we can find a movie for all of us, or perhaps the Front Porch bar at House of Blues for a meal and live music.

Other ideas? Thanks!

Susan

 

[aubriee]

My mom is 80 y/o and she will tell you her favorite park by far is Epcot. She rents an ECV every trip, "to feel more independent" and has a ball. We frequently have to tell her to slow down, because we are not running to keep up with her. Due to her arthritis and having trouble stepping down into and up out of rides, about all she rides in Epcot is Soarin and Space Ship Earth, but she loves wandering around the World Showcase shops, eating in the different countries, and just people watching.

Her second favorite park would be Magic Kingdom. She loves looking at all the rides and that she can stay in her ECV for Jungle Cruise and Small World. She likes Monster Comedy Club, Tiki Birds, Mickeys Philharmagic, and absolutely loves Buzz Lightyear. She also loves people watching in MK and just looking at all the rides.

She also enjoys Animal Kingdom for their 3-D show, the Safari, and two animal trails. She also loves the bird show, Nemo show, and her favorite show in all of WDW is the Lion King Show.

Actually DS is her least favorite park, though she does like Little Mermaid. For some reason she does not like Beauty & the Beast, Indiana Jones, the Lights Motor Stunt show, or Fantasmic. She says they are too loud and get on her nerves.

We took her to Sea World for the first time in Dec and she fell in love with their shows, asking to go back a second day. We were really surprised.

We've also taken her to Universal a few times. She doesn't ride anything over there, but loves to just look around over there. She absolutely loved eating at Mythos over there and also loves eating at Bubba Gumps and Jimmy Buffets and exploring all the shops in City Walk.

 

[SueM in MN]

My 83-year old mother is going to visit us for a weekend when we are in Orlando next month. My sister, her husband and daughter (ca. 23) are going to join, and we are trying to decide how to spend an entertaining day out as a family.

My mother can barely walk anymore, just very, very slowly, so it takes her forever to get any distance. Therefore, if we do a day at a Disney park, Universal or Sea World, we will get a wheelchair for her.

She has never been interested in going on rides -- even when she was younger and more mobile, she joined my sister's family for a WDW trip when the grandchildren were younger, and refused to go on rides, so we would not necessarily be queuing for rides, rather more for attractions / shows. Although I would love to get her on Soarin' it's unlikely she would agree.

Which park would be easiest to navigate with a wheelchair and perhaps have the most enjoyable atmosphere under those circumstances?

I was thinking Epcot or Studios. Studios perhaps favored because of Beauty and the Beast, Indiana Jones, Little Mermaid and Fantasmic? Epcot for Off Kilter, British Invasion and other shows around the World Showcase, plus Illuminations?

This is going to be the weekend of 8-9 February.

My husband suggested Universal, but I feel like that will be a bit more difficult to navigate. And my sister has suggested Sea World, but I see that the Shamu show is not on right now, plus it's one of the "bands, brew and BBQ" weekends so might be more crowded than normal, and that's not a special event that would be of interest to either my mother or sister's family.

We've also thought of just going to DTD to the AMC Dine-In if we can find a movie for all of us, or perhaps the Front Porch bar at House of Blues for a meal and live music.

Other ideas? Thanks!

Susan

The things I bolded would be my top choices.
If you choose Downtown, be aware there is a lot of construction going on - not in the WestSide area though.

Epcot has less to do, but more things to sightsee. But, without going on rides, you have all of World Showcase. The ride in Mexico, the American Adventure show, and the movies in France, China and Canada may be something she would enjoy.

For the Studios, the 2 stunt shows may be more noisy than she would like.

So, if you plan on going to a park, I would maybe ask her to choose between Epcot and the Studio or SeaWorld (although I would probably avoid SeaWorld during that time).

 

[aubriee]

deleted

 

[SusanDK]

Thank you both! I've made the suggestions so now will see what the rest of the family thinks. Sounds like most of the options are sensible.

 

[Bete]

There are rides that allow wheelchairs to load. I would keep that in mind.

Epcot is a good choice. In addition to all the entertainment in WS you can see movies about France, Canada, and China. Think out of the box and enjoy the Mariachi band in Mexico, Moroccan music and dance, Serveur Amusant in France, Taiko drummers in China, the Voices of Liberty and the Fife and Drum Corp in the American Pavillon, Ziti Sisters in Italy, Sergio juggler in Italy, and the China acrobats. Turtle Talk with Crush in the Living Seas Pavillon is a good one, too. Jamminators can be found in Future Showcase. Also, do some of the character meet and greets. You can board the Universe of Energy and the Living with the Land boat ride with a wheelchair. Both rides are calm rides. There are some shows like Michael Jackson.

Keep in mind you should probably alternate with your sister on some rides you are wanting to do that your mom may not do. Don't leave her alone and feeling out of place. I'm not sure if they will let you do the equivalent of a baby swap, but you can try it. You will have plenty of days to do what you want; so, let this be your mom's special day and concentrate totally on what she would like to do.

If she enjoys shopping take her into some of the WS gift shops. Let her put on a sombrero or whatever. You can try out apparel without buying anything. Try for a pearl in China.

If you choose another park keep in mind there is street entertainment in each park. Enjoy the live entertainment.