I have some question about ME

[LindsayDunn228]

Just to begin, please keep in mind I am a paraplegic and use a wheelchair. Ok, now on with the post.

I want to know about accessibility on ME. I was under the impression that when there is a wheelchair involved, they send a van with a lift. Is this correct?

I have also heard that THEY pick up your luggage and bring it to the resort. Did I hear right? I am really uncomfortable with that. I would prefer to have my luggage WITH me when I get to the resort, and not at the airport waiting for someone else to pick them up. Any thoughts?

Am I better arranging something with Mears??

Thanks for any and all advice. Please don't refer me to the DISabilities board.

 

[goofy4tink]

I'm sure that Tyler will have a more definitive answer for you. I have heard that there is wheelchair accessability on the buses, but that's not etched in stone. Since Disney has contracted out to Mears to drive the buses, you may find you get the same answers from Mears. So.......I would call DME to see what they have to say, as far as wheelchairs go. Yes, they will take care of luggage delivery for you, if you want. Your specially tagged luggage would be taken from the plane to a special truck that then delivers the luggage to the different resorts. It can take up to three hours to get to the resort though. So, if you are more comfortable having your luggage with you, then by all means, do so. Just do not put the yellow luggage tags on your bags and they will go to the public baggage claim carousel at the airport. Then, you can take the bags to the DME checkin area and they will be put on the same bus you are on.

You could be correct in thinking there is a van that would pick you up if you are wheelchair bound. Let's see what Tyler has to say...he's the resident bus expert!!!

 

[LindsayDunn228]

Thanks so much Goofy!

 

[CleveRocks]

Just to begin, please keep in mind I am a paraplegic and use a wheelchair. Ok, now on with the post.

I want to know about accessibility on ME. I was under the impression that when there is a wheelchair involved, they send a van with a lift. Is this correct?

I have also heard that THEY pick up your luggage and bring it to the resort. Did I hear right? I am really uncomfortable with that. I would prefer to have my luggage WITH me when I get to the resort, and not at the airport waiting for someone else to pick them up. Any thoughts?

Am I better arranging something with Mears??

Thanks for any and all advice. Please don't refer me to the DISabilities board.

I can't help you with the vehicle accessiblility question, sorry.

As to the luggage handling. If you put the special DME tags on your checked luggage, that luggage will never be out in public for anyone else to take. For the best explanation I've read about the luggage process, below is a quote from a current WDW CM who is also a moderator on this transportation board:

Just to give you an idea about how DME luggage transfers work --

1 - Luggage is pulled off plane. As it is pulled off the plane, the ones with the yellow tags are put onto a seperate truck. If a bag makes it to the carousel with a yellow tag, it gets pulled before going out, and placed on a seperate truck. There are also DME cast members at baggage claim to claim untagged bags, and the rare tagged bag that makes it out. The untagged bags get tagged, and put on that truck.

2 - The luggage trucks make continuous runs to the DME sorting facility, where they are scanned in (1).

The conveyer belt works very similar to a UPS sorting facility, and sorts the bags by destination. The bags then get put into a locked cage, and scanned again(2).

3 - The cages get put onto the luggage delivery trucks, and are scanned again(3).

4 - The trucks are tracked by GPS, and make multiple stops at the resort. Once the luggage gets dropped off at the resort, they are scanned again(4).

5 - The bags are then delivered to the room by the next available bellman. They are scanned as they get delivered(5).

So, as you can see, the bags are scanned 5 times between the airport and your room, so Disney always knows where the bags are.

I hope this helps you with your decision.

Personally, I just don't understand why some people trust the airline to transport the bags 1,000 miles or so but then don't trust Disney and its subcontractors to take it the last 20 miles or so, but that's just me.

If you want to have your checked luggage with you rather than having it delivered to your resort room (it will be delivered whether you're in the room or not!), simply DO NOT put the yellow DME tags on your checked luggage. Retrieve the luggage from Baggage Claim as usual, and take it with you to the DME Welcome Center, which is where everyone has to go to check in and get a bus assignment. You will wait in the bus queue with your luggage, and when you go outside to the bus with your luggage (the queues are inside, so no heat and no bus exhaust to deal with), the driver will load your luggage under the bus. When you arrive at your resort, the driver will unload it for you, and from there you can get assistance from the resort's Bell Services if you desire. Please keep in mind that it would be appropriate to tip the DME bus driver if he/she handles your bags (I say this because there's been some confusion about this in the past).

HAVE FUN!

 

[LindsayDunn228]

Personally, I just don't understand why some people trust the airline to transport the bags 1,000 miles or so but then don't trust Disney and its subcontractors to take it the last 20 miles or so, but that's just me.

With all do respect, I don't have a choice as far as the airline transporting my luggage. I really don't want to have to wait up to 3 hours after I get to my resort to have my luggage in hand. There are personal things in there that cannot fit into an overnight bag. I would just rather pick up my bags myself and have them with me.

 

[seashoreCM]

Since you stated you were a paraplegic...

You do need to state that fact when making your ME reservation before you go and also when (everyone must do this) making return-home reservations.

Any massive delay not experienced by other guests at the time would be an irregularity for which a little extra pixie dust such as extra fastpasses would be reasonable accommodation.

ME will not provide assistance in getting baggage from the carousel to the bus platform outside the welcoming area if you choose not to use magical delivery from the airplane hatch to your resort room.

You can expect ME to use heroic means to get you back to the airport when you show up on time but a wheelchair accessible bus does not (rare but happens). As a point of information a resort to park bus does accommodate wheelchairs.

Disney hints:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/magicx.htm

 

[SueM in MN]

What I have seen posted is that:

• about 2/3 of the DME buses do have wheelchair lifts.
• Going FROM the airport it is not a big problem as there are many buses and you just wait a few minutes for an accessible bus to be available.
• Going BACK TO the airport, MAKE SURE they know you need an ACCESSIBLE bus as it will take longer to get an accessible bus to your resort if they don't have the right bus there the first time.
• The buses are luxury tyrp touring buses, with luggage storage underneath, so the seating area is higher than on a regular bus. This means that the lift travels higher up than a lift does on a regular bus.

 

[LindsayDunn228]

Ok we ended up calling and discussing ME with WDW. We made sure they knew all about me and they set it up. They told us we don't need to worry about our luggage, we can bring it with us. We decided to tag my husband's and carry mine. Thanks for all the info.

 

[Chip 'n Dale Express]

I believe it's a little more than half of the current DME fleet is equipped with a wheelchair lift. In addition, many of the Disney Cruise Line or Mears buses are equipped with lifts. They are European touring coaches, so the floor of the bus is about 5 feet in the air.

It is *VERY* important to make sure that your need of a lift-equipped bus is notated on your DME reservation. As long as it is notated, you'll be fine.

 

[LindsayDunn228]

We asked several times and they confirmed. Our trip isn't unti November and we plan on re-confirming everything before we leave.