best resort for wheelchair?

[uncspin]

My husband and I have designated disney world as our official vacation spot. We have always stayed at the polynesian, but at $4K a pop, it is getting to be a bit much. We need a resort with a good layout for a wheelchair and a really good roll-in shower. Any suggestions, opinions, etc.? Thanks in advance!!

 

[Piper]

My husband and I have designated disney world as our official vacation spot. We have always stayed at the polynesian, but at $4K a pop, it is getting to be a bit much. We need a resort with a good layout for a wheelchair and a really good roll-in shower. Any suggestions, opinions, etc.? Thanks in advance!!

Last year I stayed at POFQ. It is small and easy to get around. My room had a good roll-in shower. Taking the boat to DTD was a great perk!

 

[OneLittleSpark]

It depends on what you're looking for in a hotel really. If you want something nice and compact, to save the arms for the parks, Port Orleans French Quarter is nice and easy to trundle around. The other three moderates (Port Orleans Riverside (which I still insist on calling Dixie Landings ), Caribbean Beach and Coronado Springs), are rather a bit larger, but have multiple bus stops around the resort. I'm not a fan of Coronado, myself, because the restaurant operates under a very weird system, but some people like it. I've not done CS or CB on wheels, but the other two are perfectly easy to get about in a chair.

Another option could be to rent a Disney Vacation Club holiday from an owner. I've only done this once, at Old Key West, but we had a lovely time, found the hotel easy to get around and the kitchenette was extremely useful for quick breakfasts and snacks. The only downside we found to the hotel was that it doesn't have a counter service restaurant, but we soon found a way around that (click here to find out how).

Basically wherever you stay in Disney, you'll find the place easy to get around in a chair. Other than size, there's not much difference in accessibility of the properties I've stayed at (never stayed in the values, or deluxe though). I'm afraid I can't answer on the roll-in shower question, as I can cope without one, so don't want to take the room from someone who can't.

It might help you to look at the different hotel maps, to get a feel for the size and layout of the resorts.

Hope this helps a bit!

 

[Vijoge]

I use an RCV, not a wheelchair, and Cornoado Springs is very easy to navigate on wheels.

 

[uncspin]

It depends on what you're looking for in a hotel really. If you want something nice and compact, to save the arms for the parks, Port Orleans French Quarter is nice and easy to trundle around. The other three moderates (Port Orleans Riverside (which I still insist on calling Dixie Landings ), Caribbean Beach and Coronado Springs), are rather a bit larger, but have multiple bus stops around the resort. I'm not a fan of Coronado, myself, because the restaurant operates under a very weird system, but some people like it. I've not done CS or CB on wheels, but the other two are perfectly easy to get about in a chair.

Another option could be to rent a Disney Vacation Club holiday from an owner. I've only done this once, at Old Key West, but we had a lovely time, found the hotel easy to get around and the kitchenette was extremely useful for quick breakfasts and snacks. The only downside we found to the hotel was that it doesn't have a counter service restaurant, but we soon found a way around that

Basically wherever you stay in Disney, you'll find the place easy to get around in a chair. Other than size, there's not much difference in accessibility of the properties I've stayed at (never stayed in the values, or deluxe though). I'm afraid I can't answer on the roll-in shower question, as I can cope without one, so don't want to take the room from someone who can't.

thanks for the info! our issue now is that we are so very spoiled by being on the monorail that we aren't sure that we want the "inconvenience" of the bus every time we want to go somewhere. we've made our reservations based on deluxe dining while staying at the polynesian, knowing that we can go "rest" every afternoon if we want. i guess now we just have to decide if saving a good hunk of change (think $1K) is worth it. we're so spoiled :-(

 

[OneLittleSpark]

Yes, without the monorail you may have to get used to a different style of holiday, but that doesn't necessarily mean worse. It just means you learn to take things at a slightly slower pace, and plan longer for travelling. The buses are nice and easy to get wheelchairs on and strapped in, so you don't need to worry about that.

If you wanted to be closer to the parks, you could rent a DVC holiday from an owner, at somewhere like Wilderness Lodge Villas or the Boardwalk. That should work out cheaper than a deluxe, and will allow you to hop a boat to MK (from WLV) or EPCOT and MGM (Boardwalk etc). This map of the whole resort will give you an overview of the place, and a feel for distances. Also, you can look on the WDW pages to find out which resorts have what transports available (here is a table of forms of transport)

Hope this helps a bit!

 

[bzzymom]

The monorail is convienant for travel to the parks, but also to other resorts where you may have ADR's, but POFQ is a nice, more economical place to stay with a wheelchair. We went a monthbefore my mom was to have foot surgery. She couldn't stand to put much weight on her foot. So, we chose POFQ since it is small. It was very nice and we requested a ground floor room near the foodcourt. We were close to the bus stop as well. It was very convienant for us. Plus, we used the boat to go over to DTD, and then we would take a bus from there to the resort we had an ADR at.

 

[SueM in MN]

You might also want to look at Swan and the Dolphin. They are located in the Boardwalk area, so you could walk to Epcot and the Studio.
They are not owned or operated by Disney, but are on Disney property, so you still have the advantages like Early Entry, etc.
They also have discounts for different groups, like Nurses, Teachers, etc.
Here's a link to a page about Swan and Dolphin.

 

[*Valdez*]

I would also recommend the Swan/Dolphin. My FIL is in a wheelchair and we found this property to be great. It is owned by Westin/Sheraton so great service. 15 min. walk to EPCOT and quick boat ride to Hollywood studios. The boat goes to both EPCOT and Hollywood Studios. You also have the convenience of having Boardwalk next door, so there is always something to do close by without actually being in the park. As the parks can become overwhelming. Swan/Dolphin do a movie in the swimming pool on selected nights so my FIL watch from a nearby location. The last time we were there, June 1, 08, we did S'Mores on the beach. Swan also does a character meal, so you don't have to go too far.

 

[ireland_nicole]

We've also been happy at CBR and are going to POR this year. Keep in mind, that if you have a vehicle available, and your h/c placard, you can access valet parking at the deluxe resorts for "free" and we find that going by car (i have an ECV) is actualy pretty quick and convenient.

 

[BroganMc]

My husband and I have designated disney world as our official vacation spot. We have always stayed at the polynesian, but at $4K a pop, it is getting to be a bit much. We need a resort with a good layout for a wheelchair and a really good roll-in shower. Any suggestions, opinions, etc.? Thanks in advance!!

If you've decided Disney is your "official vacation spot" and you routinely rent Deluxe level rooms, why don't you look into the DVC? If rumors are proven true you may find a monorail option for your stays soon.

Disney is my frequent destination too. I own at Saratoga Springs and really love that resort. The roll-in showers are so perfect I'm designing one like it in my home. The pool also has the best accessibility currently on site (though the plan is to broaden that to all pools). I use the busses for the parks but it really takes no more time than waiting on the ferry or monorail. EPCOT is superconvenient.

Generally I find the newer the construction the better the accessible design.