ECV / easier to push Wheelchair (Rental)

[Mrs. Bob Loblaw]

It's been a long time since I've been to WDW and my last planned trip was during Spring Break when Covid hit and the parks shut down. Now I'm finally going to make it back... I think.

This trip is unlike any other because I've never had a trip where anyone has had special needs. Now my son has really bad ADHD with emotional regulation issues, my daughter has UC with digestive challenges, and my mom has trouble walking, standing, and she can't see well in the dark. Thank you to everyone for the wealth of information I've been going through on this board and for sharing your experiences. It has been super helpful!

One question I have been unable to answer (I probably haven't figured out the correct search terms) is driving an ECV at night. Since my mom's stroke, her vision has suffered and she sees halos in light at night. From what I can remember, the parks can be pretty dim at night, so I was thinking she probably shouldn't drive an ECV at night. Are the parks lit well enough or is there anything we can do to help her visibility? Assuming she can't use her ECV at night, is there an easier-to-push wheelchair we can use at night? My mom is 250ish pounds and I'm overweight and know I will be hurting just by walking my own butt around the parks. Any advice?

 

[gap2368]

there are areas of the park that is deem and some that are not. the parks do have wheelchair you can rent

 

[Bjkandma]

My vision is fine, but I've had both wrists fused (plates and screws) and because of other issues - I cannot "drive" my ECV. What we do, is my adult daughter walks on the side of the scooter and actually controls the handles. I sit back and let her "drive" it. I've asked numerous times and she said it is 100% easier than pushing me in a wheelchair. We have done this the last several times we've gone to the park!! It is just a possible solution for you. (She even drives it up the ramp of the bus, on the skyliner, etc.)

 

[Groot]

The park rental chairs ain’t easy to push. Most of them use what are called “Pneumatic Tires”, which are essentially air tires that tend to run out of air really fast (unless they have what are called “airless inserts”, but I doubt it.) Plus another thing is that the majority of the same park rentals are old and tend to list to one side which makes pushing someone else in a chair really hard. And a potential issue would be making sure that the footplates don’t unexpectedly flip down when your mom is getting in/out of the wheelchair.

 

[mamabunny]

It's been a long time since I've been to WDW and my last planned trip was during Spring Break when Covid hit and the parks shut down. Now I'm finally going to make it back... I think.

This trip is unlike any other because I've never had a trip where anyone has had special needs. Now my son has really bad ADHD with emotional regulation issues, my daughter has UC with digestive challenges, and my mom has trouble walking, standing, and she can't see well in the dark. Thank you to everyone for the wealth of information I've been going through on this board and for sharing your experiences. It has been super helpful!

One question I have been unable to answer (I probably haven't figured out the correct search terms) is driving an ECV at night. Since my mom's stroke, her vision has suffered and she sees halos in light at night. From what I can remember, the parks can be pretty dim at night, so I was thinking she probably shouldn't drive an ECV at night. Are the parks lit well enough or is there anything we can do to help her visibility? Assuming she can't use her ECV at night, is there an easier-to-push wheelchair we can use at night? My mom is 250ish pounds and I'm overweight and know I will be hurting just by walking my own butt around the parks. Any advice?

I would reach out to an Orlando-area vendor (thinking here of Gold's Mobility, only because it has such great reviews here) and talk with them about renting a wheelchair. (Walker has "sizes" of wheelchairs to rent, they may be a good option for your Mom). The outside vendors tend to have better maintained, higher quality equipment.

Also, you didn't really say, but if Mom uses any kind of mobility device at home, you all can bring that easily (if you are flying) as mobility devices will fly for free on all US-based carriers. There is no extra charge at all. Even if you are driving, it might be worth bringing her equipment from home, just because around the Resort hotel and hotel room, she may want to have a device she is comfortable with.

Given that your Mom has night vision issues, I would be hesitant to put her in an ECV for anything past sundown; although there are rental ECVs that have "headlights" I personally have never seen one that I would trust to work like a headlight should - where it throws the light ahead far enough that you can see what's coming (like a car headlight). Personally, I think that is because the rental companies know that other folks (who don't have an ECV user in their group) will complain. The young and nimble tend to forget that one day, they too will be working their way through these same issues... Regardless, we noticed on our July trip last month that many of the lights around the Parks are now being replaced with LED bulbs. Those may cause more issues for your Mom's eyes at night, because they can have very intense light output.

What about a "hybrid" solution - perhaps bring a Rollator that you could use to ease your way around the Parks (not only does it help support walking, but it gives you a place to sit at a moments notice!) and then (here comes the "hybrid" part!) at sundown, y'all switch, and you drive the ECV and Mom uses the Rollator. Now, I know that's not a "perfect" solution, but if Mom is capable of doing that, it might work.

If you do decide to rent a wheelchair for Mom, please do not let anyone talk you into a "transport" chair. While they can be *very* lightweight... they are far more difficult to push because they have 4 smaller wheels. A "standard" (2 small swivel wheels on the front with 2 large wheels on the rear) wheelchair will be *much* easier to push. Plus, transport chairs are not made to sit in all day long, and will most likely prove to be uncomfortable for her.

 

[Her Dotness]

Depending on where you're staying, the resort grounds can be quite dim at night, too.

We stayed a night in a Poly DVC lodge last trip and were unpleasantly surprised by how just plain dark the courtyard was. The tiki torches were appropriately atmospheric but did little to illuminate the area, we thought. DH had difficulty navigating in his powerchair, and his night vision is somewhat better than mine.

WL can be similar around BRV and the CCV cabins, we thought, though not nearly as bad as Poly.

If you can coordinate it, OP, I think Bjkandma's idea could be your solution. It will really take practice in daylight, though, before you try steering at night. I can attest to that by some wall "decorations" I've added to our entryway while trying to walk beside DH's powerchair rather than sensibly sitting in it to steer it into position where we keep it.

 

[jo-jo]

Could you add a light to the Ecv? I’ve seen battery run flat disk type lights that you could attach with command strips???? I’d attach it closer to ground level so you’re not blinding kids in strollers.

 

[ttintagel]

It sounds like it’s not going to be an easy decision, and I honestly don’t know which to recommend, but I just wanted to add one bit of information that might be a factor. I attempted to use a manual wheelchair in the parks once when I broke my foot. It turns out that there were many more hills, ramps, bumpy pavers, and surprisingly steep inclines than I had ever noticed when walking. Even with my poor eyesight, I ended up having to call the rental company and get an ECV for the next day.

I’m assuming your Mom wouldn’t be trying to self-propel, and if she’s a small enough person it may not even be an issue.

If there is one nugget of advice to be gleaned, I guess it is that rental companies can generally get you something else pretty quickly if what you decide on doesn’t work out.

 

[jo-jo]

To the OP, when is your trip? Remember a good part of the year , the sun is up until 7ish, summer months even later. Would you mom even be out at night? I'm just thinking of us. Unless we do a morning out. aallllll afternoon in and go out about 5, we don't have to worry about night vision.

 

[Selket]

Gold Mobility had a light under the ECV which I found useful. My night vision isn't amazing but I can still function fine at night. That light helps. It really depends on how bad her vision is at night. Also if she is with you or off on her own? With you or the family she'd have someone to walk with her which helps.

 

[Bete]

Worse to worse you may have to let your mom retire early to her resort room. She may get tired anyway and need more rest. Yes, you will be taking two trips back and forth from the parks.

I would pick a time of year to go where it stays lighter outside at night. Then, you might be okay with the light issue. But still keep in mind ride queues and shows can be dark no matter what time of day it is.

 

[jo-jo]

Worse to worse you may have to let your mom retire early to her resort room. She may get tired anyway and need more rest. Yes, you will be taking two trips back and forth from the parks.

I would pick a time of year to go where it stays lighter outside at night. Then, you might be okay with the light issue. But still keep in mind ride queues and shows can be dark no matter what time of day it is.

I forgot all about that., you are so right. There are a few rides. (POTC, Little mermaid) I wished for people to be in front of us, so we can see them turn. Better yet, let's rent a kid with the sneaks that light up as they walk. A few times with haunted , when my glasses didn't adjust fast enough, I had to just hug the wall and a wait a few mins.

 

[RoseGold]

I would recommend a visit to your local mobility store. You may be able to rent a wheelchair style power chair, as opposed to a massive rental scooter no one can drive.

The parks are well-lit, but there are dark areas, like ride queues.

 

[GamGam]

I take battery operated string lights to weave around the basket on the ECV; l'm easier to see at night too. You do not want to deal with a wheelchair; get your Mom an ECV, and practice at a big box store before you go if she is unfamiliar with them. You could try walking alongside her there and steer if you want to go that route at night. You didn't say if you were staying on site, but if you are, bus drivers load ECV's first and will help with parking--just keep it on 'turtle' while loading. ECVs unload last, but then there's no crowd around. You do want a DAS pass given the kids' issues. DAS is available at Guest Services; no doctor's note required. We dealt with both these accommodations in January.

 

[Bethctraveler]

Gold Mobility adds a lot of extra bright lights to the bottom, and under sides of their scooters. My husband has very poor night vision, and with the Gold Mobility scooter has no issue traveling a night. It also makes getting on and off the busses easier. He rented one the power chairs one time from them but prefers the scooters better.

 

[AprilsZoo]

Better yet, let's rent a kid with the sneaks that light up as they walk.

I’m very glad I wasn’t drinking anything when I saw this…. my iPad would’ve been soaked


If you get a scooter with a headlight, be very aware of it being turned on only when you need it to be… otherwise the scooter will run out of batteries much faster. Leaving it on all the time might mean you won’t make it thru the whole day on one charge.

I also want to note that if you choose to use a flashlight or anything similar— please, please, *please* take care to keep it pointed only at the ground. For those of us with poor low-light vision, having light shine in our eyes in a dim environment can effectively blind us for up to several minutes. Last time I was at DL, a lady just refused to stop shining her phone’s light all around in the Haunted Mansion. I guess she was taking video or something … She shone her light in my eyes multiple times, and made it so that my dh had to be my “seeing-eye hubby” just to even make it out of the stretching room.
Several people asked her to turn it off… but she flat out said no. She ought to have great shots of peoples heads, etc… but she‘ll have crap for the effects, etc. Her beautiful video of her own light shining back at her in the ball room should be awesome, too. Serves her right in my book.

On a separate note:
Speaking of lighted shoes… I recently saw a woman wearing light-up sneakers (definitely grown up sized… she wasn’t wearing kids shoes on small feet) when I was out shopping a few weeks ago… it was actually kinda cool, because I’d thought before that they ought to have them for us “neverlanders”

I didnt really have an opportunity to ask her where she got them (I wasn’t really trying to get the chance to ask… I’m sure I could’ve done if I’d wanted to.)

Anyway, I guess if there’s an adult in your group willing to wear light-up shoes… you wouldn’t need to rent any kiddos. Gotta get a grown-up who will skip though… skipping in lighted shoes looks so fun, and carefree.

 

[AprilsZoo]

I take battery operated string lights to weave around the basket on the ECV; l'm easier to see at night too.

I bought some LED “micro lights” at Costco around Christmas for exactly that purpose. I’m also bringing extra batteries. Supposedly they’ll run for something like 120 hours, but I plan to turn them on all day and night that I’m in the parks, just for fun and hopefully to have a few less people tripping over me. I *love* meeting new people, but a prefer them not to be sitting in my lap.


So if you’re there in October & you see a pink-haired old lady tooling around in a powerchair strung up with pin-point colored Xmas lights… That’s ME ! Say hi … I’m the weirdo that enjoys talking to strangers, lol!