Has anyone done universal studios in a wheelchair

[terri01p]

My dd can not transfer out of her wheelchair is univeral studios worth doing ?

 

[Cheshire Figment]

As construction was in the late 80s they are ADA compliant. However, I find that they are more interested in meeting the letter of the law and not necessarily the spirit. In other words, generally they will not go out of their way to assist you.

 

[Chrl]

Does that mean you are pretty much on your on if you want to get on the rides there ?

 

[kaytieeldr]

First, I never actually asked about this, but you MAY be able to get a reduced price on her ticket if she won't be able to avail herself of most of the attractions.

That said, let's see... from Universal's website "For your enjoyment and convenience, Universal Orlando's shopping and dining facilities are wheelchair accessible. Also, our outdoor stage shows have areas reserved for guests with disabilities. These areas are clearly marked with the International Symbol of Accessibility.

In addition, all the queues are accessible to guests using wheelchairs (with the exception of Pteranodon Flyers® at Islands of Adventure and Back To The Future The Ride® at Universal Studios). There are specific boarding requirements and accommodations for those using wheelchairs at each attraction. "
I've got the Universal Guide for Guests with Disabilities at work. If somebody will bump this thread next week, I'll bring it home and post which attractions require transfers. You could try http://www.universalorlando.com/riders_guide.pdf but it's 44 pages and it's taking a lonnnnnng time to load.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Does that mean you are pretty much on your on if you want to get on the rides there ?

Well, you are anyway. They can't physically assist Guests.

 

[CJN]

As construction was in the late 80s they are ADA compliant. However, I find that they are more interested in meeting the letter of the law and not necessarily the spirit. In other words, generally they will not go out of their way to assist you.

Since my sister can transfer out of her w/c I can't speak to the OP's original question but we found the folks at Universal to be extraordinarily helpful on our last visit a year ago.

 

[MarieS]

Both of my boys cannot transfer. Due to other factors, they cannot be on rides that are rough, jerky, etc. That being said, we did find some things in both Universal parks that they enjoyed.(Don't know how old your daughter is though) We were doing both parks in one day so we only hit a couple things in each park. At Islands of Adventure we had breakfast with Cat in the Hat and Spiderman( seeing spidey was the whole reason we went to this park! LOL), they also stayed in their chairs to ride the Cat in the Hat ride and the Car-seuss-el. At Universal Studios they loved seeing the Barney show and doing Barney's Backyard. This was the surprise hit of our visit and we spent quite a bit of time with all the interactive stuff. They were able to reach the buttons from their chairs. We also did the Jimmy Neutron ride. I think the ET ride is another one where you don't need to transfer.
You might want to request their disability guides and see which rides she can stay in her chair for. This was helpful in planning our day. HAve a good trip!

 

[eternaldisneyfan]

For those of you who rode rides in wheelchairs, are your chairs manual or electric? Cause last I heard electric wheelchairs are not allowed on any rides...

 

[dclfun]

I use a power wheelchair and was not able to ride ANY rides at the Universal parks. There was alot to do at Universal itself ( shows,etc) but absolutely nothing at Islands of Adventure. You cannot even get through a queue line at the quick service food places in a chair. I spent the time there being quite frustrated although my teens had a good time. ---Kathy

 

[tarkus]

Since my sister can transfer out of her w/c I can't speak to the OP's original question but we found the folks at Universal to be extraordinarily helpful on our last visit a year ago.

I have also found that they have been extraordinary helpful.

I'm not sure about riding power chairs on rides.
The people I went with were all on powered devices and did not have any problems.

We were all able to transfer so that may make a difference.

Without transfer I see a problem, particular with the "Thrill Rides" that tend to be more intense then most at Disney.

Anyhoo, I found them all very helpful.

Be Big,
Alan

 

[MarieS]

For those of you who rode rides in wheelchairs, are your chairs manual or electric? Cause last I heard electric wheelchairs are not allowed on any rides...

My boys have manual chairs. I got out my Universal Orlando's Rider's Guide for Guests with Disabilites and it says "We apologize but due to their dramatic motion, none of the ride vehicles at Universal Orlando will accomodate Electric Convenience Vehicles(ECV's) or electric wheelchairs. At those rides which can accomodate standard wheelchairs, guests may transfer from their ECV or electric wheelchair into a standard whellchair that is provided at each location."

It also gives a list of rides/shows that allow guests to stay in a standard wheelchair. I can post that if you want.

 

[SueM in MN]

My boys have manual chairs. I got out my Universal Orlando's Rider's Guide for Guests with Disabilites and it says "We apologize but due to their dramatic motion, none of the ride vehicles at Universal Orlando will accomodate Electric Convenience Vehicles(ECV's) or electric wheelchairs. At those rides which can accomodate standard wheelchairs, guests may transfer from their ECV or electric wheelchair into a standard whellchair that is provided at each location."

It also gives a list of rides/shows that allow guests to stay in a standard wheelchair. I can post that if you want.

kaytieeldr posted a link to download the Universal Rider's Guide in post number 4 of this thread.

Their rider's guide is excellent.
We have not been there for many years because, even though it is wheelchair accessible, we found they were not particularly 'friendly' to people with wheelchairs who had other needs. In my DD's case, we were asking to be able to wait out of the sun, we made it clear that we were not expecting to be getting on any sooner, just asking to wait in a quieter, cooler place. What we got from the workers at the rides and also from Guest Services when we went there was "our lines are wheelchair accessible and that is all we are required to provide." I mention this because the last time the question was asked about Universal, people who had been there recently had the same experience.

From what I have gathered from what has been posted:
- people with children on the autism spectrum have generally felt well accomidated
- people with mobility needs, but no other needs for accomidation have generally felt well accomidated (as long as they had manual wheelchairs)
- people with wheelchairs and other needs as well have generally reported things pretty similar to what we have found
- people with power wheelchairs have generally found that the attractions listed as wheelchair accessible are not powerr wheelchair accessible

 

[BroganMc]

At least that supports my annual drag-my-feet-about-going-to-Universal. Every trip for the last two years my dad has wanted to go to Universal and see what he's missing. We went about 5 years ago when I used a manual wheelchair. I had to transfer onto all the rides. It was ok, but I did have one frightening experience on Back to the Future (my foot got stuck in the dor and the attendant tried to solve the problem by grabbing and twisting my leg inside while I feared the door would slam down on us both).

I haven't been thrilled with the idea of returning. Islands of Adventure doesn't seem to have more than rollercoasters and things I can't do. Seems a waste of time for me, but I'll probably return in May to please my dad.

I don't believe I was offered a discount, but SeaWorld and Busch Gardens is another story. They offer two half price tickets (for you and your companion) and you get the 2nd day free at SeaWorld. We go there once a year and manage to see and do just about anything.

 

[Purple Princess]

None of the parks, including Disney, will allow their workers to assist in trasferring from WC to ride. It's too much of a liability. We found Universal wonderful with my family. DD is in a WC and cannot transfer so of course she was limited on what she could do but they went out of their way to make us feel very welcomed. It is high on our list. Hubby liked it better than WDW.

 

[SueM in MN]

None of the parks, including Disney, will allow their workers to assist in trasferring from WC to ride. It's too much of a liability.

Besides, each person has their own best way of transferring and that might vary depending on who is assisting them in the transfer and what they are transferring to. It may also depend on the time of day/their energy level.
Even if the park workers wanted to assist, they really don't know what will work best for that person.
My DD can do a standing pivot (with someone holding her up) when she is at her best. At her worst, she can be like moving a Barbie doll (stiff all over) or a rag doll (floppy all over). Even when she's at her best, my DH, older DD and I do transfers differently because of our height compared to her.

 

[loadsapixiedust]

Our experience with DS who is unable to transfer from his manual wheelchair has been varied and there is not the same 'can-do' attitide as at Disney. You do need to arm yourself with the accessibility guide and be persistent with CMs.

Most rides are accessible without transferring, but CMs are not always trained in how to do this or willing to help or call for assistance. If you see an attraction marked as accessible to wheelchair users and you are then asked to transfer, ask for a manager trained in ride access to be called. We had to wait a few times for personnel to come from another area of the park, but it was always worth it so DS could ride. MIB is the worst for this as it is a complicated transfer for a wheelchair and most CMs don't know how to do it. It goes without saying that visiting at a quieter time makes things easier for everyone.

DS loves US and last time he rode Jaws, Earthquake, Jimmy Neutron (in the stationary seating area), MIB and ET all in his wheelchair. In fact the only attractions he hasn't been able to do at US are BTTF which would be too violent for him anyway, and the Nuthouse Coaster.

 

[SueM in MN]

For those of you who rode rides in wheelchairs, are your chairs manual or electric? Cause last I heard electric wheelchairs are not allowed on any rides...

Kathy (dclfun) posted earlier that found there were quite a few shows to see, but she was not able to go on any of the rides with her power wheelchair.
Here's a little more information from the Universal Rider's Guide:
We apologize, but none of the ride vehicles or attraction
queues at Universal Orlando will accommodate Electric
Convenience Vehicles (ECV’s) or electric wheelchairs. At
those rides which can accommodate manual wheelchairs,
guests may transfer from their ECVor electric wheelchair
into a manual wheelchair that is provided at each location.

So, if you are using a power wheelchair and are not able to transfer to a park manual wheelchair, it looks like you are out of luck as far as the rides go.

 

[GroovyWheeler]

My DH and I did Universal Studios the last time we went to Disney World, and we both had a blast. He loved the HULK thrill ride, and even dragged me on it. I prayed the whole time, that my back wouldn't act up on me, and surprisingly it didn't. Even though I am able to transfer from my manual wheelchair to a ride, the ride operators allowed me to roll right on, without asking me if I can transfer.

I did have to transfer out of my wheelchair for Dudley Do-Right's Ripsaw Falls and Bluto's Bilge Rafts. I don't remember if there were any others that I transferred out of my wheelchair for. In our opinion, DH and I liked Universal IOA and the "main park" of Universal, but we like WDW too. Universal is very expensive when it comes to park admission, so I don't know if we'd be able to go again, next time.

We're planning (and saving up) for our trip to Disney World next year, and hopefully, I'll be able to take a rented folding power chair from my DME dealer (with better planning ahead of time). I can't wait to see what the experience will be like.

Samantha