Confused

[jaw737373]

I am taking my mother July 13th for a week. She will require a wheelchair. My question is: Will she have to wait in the regular line? Will she be seperated from the rest of us? We will have a total of 4. I don't think she can stand the heat if the line is in the sun. What should I expect??

Thank you

 

[Cheshire Figment]

Hi and to disABILITIES!

If you click on where it says "disABILTIES" at the top of this page it will take you to the Index. One of the top items is the "disABILTIES FAQ" which will gives lots of useful information. The first few posts (2, 3, 4 and 6) might be most useful for you.

Almost all of the lines are mainstreamed, so a person in a wheelchair or ECV will be able to remain in it all ghe way into the boafrding area, and for many of the attractions able to stay in the chair on the attraction. Those that are not mainstreamed (at all or in full) have well-marked signs of where to go, and the CMs at line control will also help.

And it is only parties of more than six people who nmay have to be split up.

Or, if you want an easier route, click on the link in my signature.

 

[OneLittleSpark]

As CF said, almost all of the lines are mainstreamed, so you all go through the regular line together, and will be told how and where to board when you get to the front of the line. She will be able to stay in the wheelchair for the shows if she wishes, but this may mean you have to wait for the next show, if the first one has no wheelchair spades left. Shows are the only time when your party might have split up slightly, with some of you sitting in the row in front of, or behind, the wheelchair seating, but Disney do try to let groups stay together as much as possible.

If she has problems with the heat, there are a number of things you can do. Most of the rides and their lines have been planned with the Florida heat in mind, so are kept as cool as possible. For those lines that aren't shaded, the Guest Assistance Card (GAC) may help you to get an alternative shaded waiting area, if one is available, however I wouldn't rely on it too much. For a lot of rides it isn't feasible to have an alternative waiting area, so you'd need to find other ways around it. The Fastpass system is a wonderful help, and if used well can seriously reduce your time in the sun. Other measures, such as pacing yourselves, taking frequent breaks in the air conditioning, drinking plenty of water and possibly fitting a battery powered fan to the wheelchair, will help all of you to stay cool and have a better time!

Hope this helps!

 

[SueM in MN]

Most of the lines are shaded/covered since they have to deal not only with Florida sun, but also with the Florida rain. Even the lines outside have things like fans to help move the air and some are even air conditioned.

There is information about Guest Assistance Cards (GAC) in the disABILITIES FAQs thread near the top of this board. The GAC information is in post #6.

As OneLittleSpark mentioned, the GAC might not be all that helpful since most of the lines are covered. You should know that almost all the lines at Epcot are inside, so that is one park that will be less of a concern.
Different parks are busy on different days and times. For example, even during busy times like Spring break, you can get into most things at MK with a very short (less than 10 minutes) wait if you go at park opening.
If you go to AK in the middle of the day, it is quite busy, but by 3pm most of the rides are walk in.
Another thing that will help you for some attractions is Fastpass. After inserting your park passes into the Fastpass machine, a Fastpass ticket pops out with a return time. When you return, your wait will be less than 10 minutes. To avoid having your whole party moving around so much, you can send one person to the Fastpass machine with all your park passes to get Fastpasses for the whole group.