Child size wheelchair on rides

[jmartinez1895]

Ok, I have 2 questions that I hope that some of you may be able to help me out with.
We got our sons wheelchair today, a little dipper by colours. The handle bars and wheels will come off , but it will not fold like adult transport chairs. When we fly ( southwest) will this be a problem. Will we have to take the wheels off or do they just stick it under the plane as is.
Second question is regarding the rides a WDW. We have always used his special needs stroller in the past and this will be our first time in the chair. Is there a certain size of chair that the ride cars that are accessible will take? Will a smaller child size chair fit or is it to small for the tie downs? We will more than likely transfer at almost all of the rides, but I just wanted to have an idea in my head on what to expect in worst case ( sometimes his feet and legs go numb for hours so it would be better for him to stay in his chair).
Thanks for any input.

 

[WheeledTraveler]

The answer to question 1 is that they'll take the chair with the wheels on and place it in the hold. Personally, the only things on my chair that get taken off is the cushion (because it can get cold and wet if it goes under) and anything else that is periferal and removable. For example, if you have separate removable footplates, I'd take them off. I've been flying with a wheelchair that had removable wheels for 8 years and I've never taken them off. I know of people who take the wheels off, bag them separately from the chair to go in the hold, and put the axles in their carry-on. For me, that's too many extra steps when I'm probably already tired and in pain. I also can't see how that works smoothly with getting the chair back at your arrival gate (and then I'm usually in even more pain and am exhausted). So I just gate check the frame & wheels in one piece. I have found, though, that using the cushion as a cushion on top of my seat on the plane makes the plane ride more comfortable. It was a flight attendant who first suggested it and for me it was a good tip.

For question 2, I would expect that the majority of attractions with tie-downs to be able to take a kid's wheelchair. I haven't ever traveled with a child-sized wheelchair so I don't know for sure, but I've only heard people talk about wheelchairs being to big to fit, not too small.

 

[KPeveler]

I take things off the chair that come off easily - for example, my push handles and arm rests come off. Also, I take the cushion with me. Some airlines will not allow me to sit on it for take off and landing, but in between I sit on my cushion. I find this more comfortable for my legs on flights.

Also, I cannot see why a child wheelchair cannot fit on the rides. He may not be tall enough for Buzz Lightyear - in terms of seeing over the front of the car and reaching the laser if his seat is low. But I would definitely keep him in the chair when possible - it will be more comfortable for him than transferring. I say leave transferring for the rides where he has to - save his energy.

 

[j-me]

Our son has ridden 90% of the rides without getting out of his chair. He was 10,13 and now 17yr when at disney.
Some rides you will be suprised at how it is "chair" accepting rides.
Jungle cruise is one of those "wow" rides for chair riders.
Don't forget to get your special assistance card from guest services

You won't be asked to remove anything from your chair for airplane transporting. But it does get cold. And be prepared for it to get banged around sometimes..

 

[SueM in MN]

Just agreeing with the other posters.
I looked up your child's chair and it is somewhat similar to my DD's Quickie GP wheelchair. My DD's chair is a rigid frame chair, which does not fold (except that the backrest folds down).
Like some of the other posters, we do remove anything that is not bolted on. For my DD's chair, that includes the Jay backrest, the Jay cushion (it velcros on), the armrests and the anti tippers. The Jay back and cushion have gel in them, so we bring them inside the plane with us to avoid them getting too cold.
Most people do not remove anti tippers, but we had one bent once and at $100 to replace, we decided to remove them.

My DH gets DD into the plane and I deal with the wheelchair. I use a laundry bag to putt the smaller pieces into. I fold down the back canes and then fasten the seat belt and foot straps (this helps avoid them getting caught and pulled or tangled in the wheels).

The only time we took the wheels off was once or twice when the plane had a closet we wanted to use because of a tight connecting flight. It would not fit in the closest without the wheels removed, so I popped them off and put them into the closet. We try to avoid removing wheels in general because the axels are oily and can make a mess on anything they touch.
When getting off the plane, don't be in a hurry or you may get off before the wheelchair has been brought up. We have my husband stay with DD on the plane and wait for me to get it out back together before they get off.

My DD's chair is a 14 inch seat width, which makes it the same width as the larger pediatric chairs. The entire chair is about 24 inches wide from the outside of one tire to the outside of the other. We have no problems with the wheelchair ride cars that have tiedowns - a narrower chair is better than a wide one in those cases.
The pictures I saw on the colours website showed the wheelchair with tiedown loops, but it was not clear if those were an option or standard. If it has them, you can use those for attaching tiedowns in the buses or ride cars with them.

If it did not come with tiedown loops, find sturdy parts of the frame on front and back of the chair to use for tiedown points. We marked those points with neon colored duct tape. Do NOT allow anyone to attach tiedown hooks to the back canes, to the wheels or to any parts that are attached or bolted onto the frame. We have had bus drivers try, so just warning.

Depending on his seat height, sitting in the wheelchair may make him too low in a few wheelchair accessible ride cars. My DD's seat upholstery is seat at 17 inches above the ground in the back, but she sits up fairly high because her Jay seat adds about 3 -4 inches of height. The 2 attractions I can think of that might be an issue are Buzz Lightyear, which was already mentioned, and Imagination, which has a fairly close and high front to the ride car.

 

[SueM in MN]

Almost forgot -
Guests with wheelchairs do not generally need a Guest Assistance Card, unless they have other needs besides having the wheelchair in line. CMs can see the wheelchair and will route you to the correct area for that attraction when they see the wheelchair.

If you want more information about Guest Assistance Cards, follow the link in my signature to the disABILITIES FAQs thread ( you can find it near the top of this board). Post 6 is about Guest Assistance Cards. See post one of that thread for an index that tells you which post has other information that would be helpful.

 

[jmartinez1895]

Thank you all. I never would have thought of taking the pad off, so that will be on my to do list as well. I have been "playing" with the chair so I can figure out how to remove some of the pieces and more importantly, put it back together.
On some of the rides he will want to transfer, but by the end of the day and if he has any issues he will need to stay in when possible so it is good to know about the rides.
Also, thanks sue for the tips of the tie downs.