does this make sense?

[maxiesmom]

For this trip would it make sense to rent a wheelchair for 3 days and a scooter for the rest of the time? My family has a trip booked Sept 30- Oct 7. With the first 2 nights staying at the Contemporary, and the days spent at the Magic Kingdom. For the remainder of the trip we are at the Dolphin.

We know the Magic Kingdom is going to be wall to wall people on the 1st. I'm thinking as I have never used a scooter before it may be wise to have a wheelchair, and let one of the 4 other people on the trip help push me around in that park. Also, it would be easy to take the wheelchair along when we move to the Dolphin , and then pick up a scooter there.

Thoughts????

 

[livbeatles]

If you have a member of your party willing to help with the wheelchair, I would go that route (at least for the beginning of the trip/days you have noted will be particularly busy). I personally find them much easier in crowds (I am not the user, but am the pusher), and faster.

 

[Heather07438]

I have no wheelchair experience in the parks but I think some ECV rentals offer a weekly rate? Check out the price difference between 5 and 7 days, possibly not much.

My MIL needed ecv and she is how shall I say… clumsy? Yet she had no problem at all navigating the scooter thru crowded parks or transportation. I wouldn’t let the thought of not being able to manage MK deter you. Surely you’ll be fine. Pushing a wheelchair in hot WDW doesn’t sound as fun as having the independence to pop off to a store, restroom or wherever by yourself.

 

[Heather07438]

Also, it would be easy to take the wheelchair along when we move to the Dolphin , and then pick up a scooter there.

You could ride ECV from CR over to the nearby buses in front of MK and take the Yachtclub bus. YC is very close to Swolphin.

From Contemporary the MK-resort buses are under 5 minutes away (the map shows 10mins to MK gate, you’ll only be going to that bus parking lot much closer to CR).

 

[Evita_W]

I would recommend Gold Mobility for the rental company and price will be the same for a week as 5 days, so I would say rent the ECV the whole time and save some grief. They will pick up and drop off at different locations.

 

[jo-jo]

I believe a wheelchair rental from disney is about $12 a day. If you find using the ECV to hard to use in the park, maybe just park the EVC someplace and send someone to the front of the park to rent one for the one day.

 

[SueM in MN]

My FIL would use an ECV at the other parks, but not MK.
It is quite busy with a lot of small kids and strollers. Some of the walkways are also narrow, which can make it hard to navigate. We push DD’s wheelchair and find it easier with the wheelchair than when we’ve traveled with people using ECVs at that park.

If you’ve got people willing to push you and think you’d be more comfortable using a wheelchair for MK, I would probably go with that.

 

[cobright]

I'm thinking as I have never used a scooter before it may be wise to have a wheelchair, and let one of the 4 other people on the trip help push me around in that park. Also, it would be easy to take the wheelchair along when we move to the Dolphin , and then pick up a scooter there.
Thoughts????

It surprises a lot of people just how big of an 'ask' it is to be pushed around in a wheelchair. One tends to think that what tires us out is the constant battle with gravity involved in keeping ourselves upright (or at least not sprawled about on the ground). As large of an effort, or larger, is involved in accelerating our bodies mass by increasing and decreasing speed and changing direction in an almost continuous and constant pattern while simply walking through the park.

I have no doubt that your family members are generous and willing to help out, but if you think about how tired a person is after a day in the park, it is from the effort of moving themselves, their mass, and now you are asking them to do this as well as move your own mass and the mass of your wheelchair (usually 40 lbs or so).

Also, if your concern is your lack of familiarity with using a powered ECV, relying on a manual wheelchair will not build it. Instead, you might consider using the three months you have between now and your trip to plan a few shopping excursions wherein you make use of the store's courtesy ECV to build familiarity with the device.

One advantage of this is that the rental rate for an ECV for 5 days is likely lower than for a wheelchair for 2 plus an ECV for 3.

As in all things, don't work too far outside your comfort level, you know your own limitations best.