Just back from WDW with a couple of ride pics and comments.

[BillSears]

I had a great time. Minimal waits. Lots of free DDP food. Plus I found some new ways for getting on rides and rode a new ride.

First of all....Since when did POTC become easy to get on and off of? Why wasn't I told this sometime during the past 30 years? POTC has always been a great ride for me but I've always hated riding it because of how hard it is to get back into my wheelchair, I usually end up dragging myself onto the floor and somehow getting back into the chair since the entrance/exit lane is too narrow for the wheelchair to fit. It seems that almost always I've been down the right hand path and I've always been directed to the first row of the boat. But that is all WRONG!!! This time the CM sent me down the left path and I boarded in the 6th row of the second boat. Here is a shot of that spot:

The lane is easily wide enough to bring my wheelchair right up to the boat. Plus the side of the boat is higher in the back and I can transfer right from the wheelchair to the side of the boat then down into the boat and transfer right back out at the end. IT'S FANTASTIC!!!!! Now why didn't any CM ever mention this in the past 30 years?

I rode POTC twice this week. On the first ride I took my own chair right in and they didn't have a problem with it. However they did something totally new on this ride(besides finally sending me to the right side/boat/row). Instead of folding my chair and having it travel with me they took my chair and had a CM move it to the exit. On the second trip the CM really wanted me to transfer to a WDW wheelchair but I was able to explain the problems I'd have with one and he agreed to let me use my own chair. He did explain to me that POTC was abit short handed that day and that they had already had 2 people show up at the exit before they could get a CM to take the wheelchair from the exit to the entrance. So that explains the mystery of why sometimes they will let you take your own wheelchair up to the POTC boat and why sometimes they want you to use a WDW wheelchair.

Big Thunder Mountain has a new ride car. Or at least new to me. This new ride car has a side door that doesn't swing away instead it folds down to provide a nice transfer seat. This rollercoaster is now the second easiest roller coaster transfer I've found at WDW. Here is a shot of the door folded down:

And now for the easiest roller coaster transfer at WDW... Expedition Everest is the winner!!!! I found EE to be really easy to transfer into. The seat level of the ride is just about the same height as the seat on my wheelchair. The door swings open wide and it's a very easy seat to seat transfer. Here is a picture of the test ride vehicle. It's the same height as the real ride and if you have any doubts try it out.

Some more tidbits.

Soarin was an easy transfer but I think the ride has been hyped so much that I was disapointed with it.

Spaceship Earth now qualifies as the hardest transfer since POTC is easy now that I'm using the right side/boat/row.

8 days in the park and the only spot I didn't push myself at was heading up that darn resort monorail ramp when we left the MK. That and the 2 high up train stations have to be some of the worst ramps in WDW.

I ran into a couple of real downer moments at the parks. I know alot of people have been complaining about the increase in wheelchair/ECV users and I really noticed it this trip. I'm not saying people shouldn't be using them however Disney does need to do something to accomodate the increased use. I noticed a few times where I was having a wonderful day and it turned depressing very quickly because of this problem. For some reason I get very frustrated and depressed when I'm told that I can't do something because I use a wheelchair. Many times on this trip I'd attempt to enter a show or a ride and was told that the wheelchair/ECV limit had been reached and that I'd need to wait for the next show. Then I'd have to sit there while they loaded in everyone else. People walking up 10 minutes after I did got to see the show but I'd have to sit there and watch them walk past. I'd go through the normal line which was a walk on and then sit and wait 10-15 minutes in the "wheelchair" line. I really think Disney needs to do something about this. Maybe I'm just overeating but every time this happens I feel like a second class citizen at WDW. All of the front of the line perks have been corrected but now wheelchair users have 2 lines to wait in on many rides.

 

[Lillypug]

Bill,
Great ride pics. I know they will help others in their planning to go to WDW. Before our trip in May, I was wondering about the accessibility of the ride cars, etc and enjoyed the posts and pics on this board.

We were in WDW in May, and I too noticed there were ALOT of ecv and wc users. There were a few times where the wheelchair spots were full and that can be so disheartening. There was NOWHERE for my son to sit in his chair at the Muppets at MGM and he was stuck on the side which made it difficult for him to enjoy the show fully. We also found the monorail and ramp to the train quite steep. ITA that there is definitely room for improvement in WDW for wc and ecv users.

I think the "secret" is out about how accessible WDW is for wc users hence the increase in wc users. Other than a few snags as I mentioned above, our trip was absolutely a dream trip and Noah was able to do things he would typically not be able to do and we were absolutley treated like royalty by the cast members (99.999% of the time.) I NEVER in my wildest dreams anticipated how much fun our trip would be.

 

[LindsayDunn228]

Bill, thanks so much for the tips!! It makes me even more excited for my upcoming trip! I've got a question for you though, from one para to another. How was EE? Did you feel like you were going to fall out or anything, or did you feel pretty secure?

 

[Cheshire Figment]

We also found the monorail and ramp to the train quite steep. ITA that there is definitely room for improvement in WDW for wc and ecv users.

Don't forget that ADA was not passed until after the monorail was in place and people did not think about access at that time.

The way the TTC is constructed they would have to shut down the entire monorail system for several months to add elevators to the platforms.

Epcot, of course, does have an elevator at the boarding side of the monorail station.

At MK I can visualize putting in an elevator on the boarding side of the Resorts beam. It would involve putting in a paved path that would bypass the ramp to somewhere past the top of the ramp. Then they could install a hydraulic elevator with a connector to the platform.

A few downsides on this idea. One is that during heavy times there would have to be very long waits as people who would normally take the Express to the TTC they would have to take the local, with both people heading for the Resorts as well as the TTC waiting for the same few spaces. The other is to keep people with strollers from using the elevator, especially during crowded times.

 

[SueM in MN]

Thanks for the excellent pictures, Bill.
You are much more prompt than I am. We took a lot of pictures at WDW when we were there in March and I still haven't posted any. I took them hoping to start a thread that would have useful information about boarding the different attractions. Unfortunately, I gave my camera to someone else to take pictures a lot of the time while I loaded/helped load DD onto the ride. Therefore, many of my pictures show things that are not very useful (like my backside).

Your pictures and post would be a very good start for this project (if you don't mind). All I need now is to figure out how to organize it. My thought right now is something similar to the disABILITIES FAQs thread, but I have to figure out some way to keep it from getting to be 20 pages for each park.

 

[SueM in MN]

It seems that almost always I've been down the right hand path and I've always been directed to the first row of the boat. But that is all WRONG!!! This time the CM sent me down the left path and I boarded in the 6th row of the second boat...........
The lane is easily wide enough to bring my wheelchair right up to the boat. Plus the side of the boat is higher in the back and I can transfer right from the wheelchair to the side of the boat then down into the boat and transfer right back out at the end. IT'S FANTASTIC!!!!! Now why didn't any CM ever mention this in the past 30 years?

I think it depends on whether they are loading boats from both sides or not. Strange though that all the times we've ridden it, we have been directed to the 'too small for a wheelchair line' also.
I think one of the 'problems' is that they try to direct as many people as possible to transfer to one of their wheelchairs. When they do that at the entrance, the CM at baording doesn't know if you are using the wheelchair because of mobility and can't walk or are using it because of fatigue and can get out/get on to the ride without problem.

Instead of folding my chair and having it travel with me they took my chair and had a CM move it to the exit. On the second trip the CM really wanted me to transfer to a WDW wheelchair but I was able to explain the problems I'd have with one and he agreed to let me use my own chair. He did explain to me that POTC was abit short handed that day and that they had already had 2 people show up at the exit before they could get a CM to take the wheelchair from the exit to the entrance. So that explains the mystery of why sometimes they will let you take your own wheelchair up to the POTC boat and why sometimes they want you to use a WDW wheelchair.

We were aware of that. We noticed that they seemed to have changed staffing levels at most attractions about 6-7 years ago (may be more, I didn't really make a note of it). But, in the WAY past, if you needed to take your own non-folding wheelchair because you could not ride one of theirs, a CM would take your wheelchair away after you boarded and bring it to the exit (the same way they do at Maestrom at Norway in Epcot). For Maestrom, even though the boarding and exit seem like a long way apart to us, they are actually pretty close together for the CMs (and both boarding and exit are on the same level).
The problem for POTC is that the boarding area and exit are actually in 2 different buildings and the exit is one floor lower than the boarding area. So, a CM at Maestrom can easily (and pretty quickly) zip a wheelchair between the 2, but it will take a CM at POTC a much longer time to transfer the wheelchair.

 

[BillSears]

I think the "secret" is out about how accessible WDW is for wc users hence the increase in wc users. Other than a few snags as I mentioned above, our trip was absolutely a dream trip and Noah was able to do things he would typically not be able to do and we were absolutley treated like royalty by the cast members (99.999% of the time.) I NEVER in my wildest dreams anticipated how much fun our trip would be.

Yep Lily, even with all the little problems that we sometimes run into at WDW it's still the best place I've ever been to for wheelchair access. It's one of the main reasons I keep coming back. I'm glad Noah has found a great spot to vacation.

Bill, thanks so much for the tips!! It makes me even more excited for my upcoming trip! I've got a question for you though, from one para to another. How was EE? Did you feel like you were going to fall out or anything, or did you feel pretty secure?

Lindsay, it was a pretty smooth ride. I usually get an uncomfortable feeling when my butt leaves the seat on rides like TOT and even a little on BTM. But I don't remember that happening on EE. EE is alot smoother then Rock and Roller Coaster and even smoother then BTM. There is a spot where you ride backwark in the dark and it feels like you're looping upside down. But I talked to a CM about it and he said it was all an illusion and there are no loops on the ride. All in all I felt pretty secure on this ride. Alot more secure then I feel on ToT or Rock and Roller Coaster and even abit more secure then BTM. Holding onto the bar abit in the rough spots is all that's needed for me to feel secure. So give it a shot, I think you'll like it.

Your pictures and post would be a very good start for this project (if you don't mind). All I need now is to figure out how to organize it. My thought right now is something similar to the disABILITIES FAQs thread, but I have to figure out some way to keep it from getting to be 20 pages for each park.

Feel free to use them Sue. Hopefully I'll be able to grab some more shots on my december trip. We're always rushing when we're getting on and off of the rides and getting pics can be tough. But it would be great to get shots of all of the rides. You might want to cut the comments bit at the bottom since they don't apply to the pictures but it's up to you.

I did forget one thing. I said Spaceship Earth was the worst transfer for me, but really Space Mountain is the worst. I forgot about SM because I gave up on doing that ride years ago. It's another ride where the car is set into the floor and getting out of the car just leaves me on the floor with nothing nearby to brace myself on to get back into the chair. Now it's been years since I've done SM so if any of you have any suggestions on how to get back into your chair afterward I'd be happy to hear them.

 

[binkyboots]

All I need now is to figure out how to organize it. My thought right now is something similar to the disABILITIES FAQs thread, but I have to figure out some way to keep it from getting to be 20 pages for each park.

This would be brilliant!

could we have a disAbilities sub forum, with one thread for each ride? I know it would be a lot of threads, but it might be easier to control that way, also it would be very easy to find info on the rides you are most interested in

 

[SueM in MN]

This would be brilliant!

could we have a disAbilities sub forum, with one thread for each ride? I know it would be a lot of threads, but it might be easier to control that way, also it would be very easy to find info on the rides you are most interested in

I'm thinking of several things and that way is one way I've thought to do it.
Another way is to have a thread with each park. Then each post in that thread would be about a different attraction. Sort of like the disABILITIES FAQs thread has different subjects in each post (but more organized because I didn't really think about how that thread should be structured too much until after it was up.)

 

[vonpluto]

Big Thunder Mountain has a new ride car. Or at least new to me. This new ride car has a side door that doesn't swing away instead it folds down to provide a nice transfer seat. This rollercoaster is now the second easiest roller coaster transfer I've found at WDW. Here is a shot of the door folded down:

Bill-
Looking at the pic of the BTMRR car, the door is on the right side. Is this train on the right side track? Would the other train have the door on the left side? I'm assuming BTMRR still loads WC's around the back and on to the exit platform.

TIA

 

[Belle1997]

I ran into a couple of real downer moments at the parks. I know alot of people have been complaining about the increase in wheelchair/ECV users and I really noticed it this trip. I'm not saying people shouldn't be using them however Disney does need to do something to accomodate the increased use. I noticed a few times where I was having a wonderful day and it turned depressing very quickly because of this problem. For some reason I get very frustrated and depressed when I'm told that I can't do something because I use a wheelchair. Many times on this trip I'd attempt to enter a show or a ride and was told that the wheelchair/ECV limit had been reached and that I'd need to wait for the next show. Then I'd have to sit there while they loaded in everyone else. People walking up 10 minutes after I did got to see the show but I'd have to sit there and watch them walk past. I'd go through the normal line which was a walk on and then sit and wait 10-15 minutes in the "wheelchair" line. I really think Disney needs to do something about this. Maybe I'm just overeating but every time this happens I feel like a second class citizen at WDW. All of the front of the line perks have been corrected but now wheelchair users have 2 lines to wait in on many rides.

Well I use a scooter because of Mobility problems but can transfer easily to a chair. I can walk short distances with a cane. I am going to WDW next week. I have never used my scooter but if I am allowed I can transfer to a chair and let someone who can't have my spot.

I think that is what Disney needs to do. If you can transfer to a regular seat very easily than you should and leave the handicapped seating to those who would find it difficult. That would solve alot of problems.

Maybe with the GAC cards there should be a spot for amblatory or not so the CM at rides knows you do need a accessible spot to load a ride.

Though I am not in your spot some day I may be so I do feel for your frustration. And would feel just as bad if I was treated like you were at some shows.

 

[Annam26]

I did forget one thing. I said Spaceship Earth was the worst transfer for me, but really Space Mountain is the worst. I forgot about SM because I gave up on doing that ride years ago. It's another ride where the car is set into the floor and getting out of the car just leaves me on the floor with nothing nearby to brace myself on to get back into the chair. Now it's been years since I've done SM so if any of you have any suggestions on how to get back into your chair afterward I'd be happy to hear them.

Bill, I toyed with an idea to get into the car in Space Moutain, but the trip was almost a surprise trip -friend's wedding at WDW- and didn't really find time to see if it was feasible. I now think it is really a stupid idea, but maybe if we all put our heads together something can come out of it.

The difficulty at SM for some of us is that the ride is at floor level, so getting up to the wheelchair again is really hard. So I thought if I could bring something like a foot rest, small ottoman, box, or whatever could be used as a plataform to trasnfer to it and then to the chair. The biggest obstacle I found was portability -how you could carry around something like that in the parks? I tried to find something with foldable legs, that perhaps could be carried in a bag on the back of my wheelchair, but found nothing that could work.

Like I said, it's a stupid idea, but I can't think of anything else that could make the reansfer easier. Now, for Spaceship Earth, only Disney could help make it easier.

 

[BillSears]

Bill, I toyed with an idea to get into the car in Space Moutain, but the trip was almost a surprise trip -friend's wedding at WDW- and didn't really find time to see if it was feasible. I now think it is really a stupid idea, but maybe if we all put our heads together something can come out of it.

The difficulty at SM for some of us is that the ride is at floor level, so getting up to the wheelchair again is really hard. So I thought if I could bring something like a foot rest, small ottoman, box, or whatever could be used as a plataform to trasnfer to it and then to the chair. The biggest obstacle I found was portability -how you could carry around something like that in the parks? I tried to find something with foldable legs, that perhaps could be carried in a bag on the back of my wheelchair, but found nothing that could work.

Like I said, it's a stupid idea, but I can't think of anything else that could make the reansfer easier. Now, for Spaceship Earth, only Disney could help make it easier.

That's not a stupid idea. It actually works for me in some situations. If for some reason I fall out of my chair or decide to get down on the floor I always look for something solid nearby to use as a brace or a stepping stone to make the transfer back into my chair.

I remember probably 10 years ago riding SM then sliding across the exit lobby area over to a bench that was near the wall. I think it was about 40-50 feet away from the ride vehicles. It was a pain to get to it but it did allow me to make the transfer back into my wheelchair. I wonder if that bench is still there?

 

[vonpluto]

The difficulty at SM for some of us is that the ride is at floor level, so getting up to the wheelchair again is really hard. So I thought if I could bring something like a foot rest, small ottoman, box, or whatever could be used as a plataform to trasnfer to it and then to the chair. The biggest obstacle I found was portability -how you could carry around something like that in the parks? I tried to find something with foldable legs, that perhaps could be carried in a bag on the back of my wheelchair, but found nothing that could work.

Like I said, it's a stupid idea, but I can't think of anything else that could make the reansfer easier. Now, for Spaceship Earth, only Disney could help make it easier.

As Bill said, not a stupid idea.

I came across info somewhere on the web a while back (can't remember where, still looking ) that discussed (with pix) a system they were using at SM at DL.

It looked like a backboard of some type that the guest used to transfer from their WC to the SM ride vehichle. Those that used it said it worked quite well.

Still looking

 

[kaytieeldr]

What about something like this http://www.amazon.com/E-Z-Foldz-Ste.../104-1074005-0043945?ie=UTF8&s=sporting-goods
Product Description
Stool gives you additional 9'' reach. Great for on board because it folds and stows away to under 2'' wide. Makes a great temporary cockpit step. Sturdy reinforced plastic stool holds up to 300 lbs. BlackSh. Wt. 3 lbs.
Shipping Weight: 3.00 pounds

 

[MightyMom]

Excellent photos and info.

In June I had a nightmare of a time on Test Track. I was riding alone with my son...... at the end of the ride we got to the dock and my son's chair wasn't there. They asked us to exit the car, so we did, but there was not even a bench for me to put my son on. I stood there carrying him for at least 15 minutes until they brought his chair. Trust me... carrying a 60 pound 7 year old is no easy task! Apparently the lift was stuck and they couldn't get it unstuck.

As far as EE goes.....

Much to my dismay, next to Big Thunder Mountain, EE is his favorite ride. (Yes..he's a dare devil) Going backwards was really hard on me trying to hold my son up.... but overall I thought it was fine.

We've not been on POTC because my son is convinced the canons will scare him. Go figure.....he loves the sight of a giant Yeti scooping down to eat him..... but he's afraid of a canon.

 

[BillSears]

As Bill said, not a stupid idea.

I came across info somewhere on the web a while back (can't remember where, still looking ) that discussed (with pix) a system they were using at SM at DL.

It looked like a backboard of some type that the guest used to transfer from their WC to the SM ride vehichle. Those that used it said it worked quite well.

Still looking

The DL SM ride looked great. I remember seeing those pictures too. They shut down SM in DL for a couple of years and completly redid the insides. While doing this they made a side track that they divert a train to for wheelchair users. This puts the car at a nice easy transfer height and they even had a built in stansfer board system to make it very easy.

I'd love it if the did this with the WDW SM but it would require a major rehab.

What about something like this http://www.amazon.com/E-Z-Foldz-Ste.../104-1074005-0043945?ie=UTF8&s=sporting-goods
Product Description
Stool gives you additional 9'' reach. Great for on board because it folds and stows away to under 2'' wide. Makes a great temporary cockpit step. Sturdy reinforced plastic stool holds up to 300 lbs. BlackSh. Wt. 3 lbs.
Shipping Weight: 3.00 pounds

Good idea. I have carried things with me when I knew I was going to be somewhere out and about and I'd have to make the transfer back into my chair from the floor. But I probably wouldn't want to carry ti around through the parks. It would help out abit if Disney would just put a bench close to the ride exit. Maybe about 10 feet away. It wouldn't be perfect but it would help abit.

 

[Annam26]

That's not a stupid idea. It actually works for me in some situations. If for some reason I fall out of my chair or decide to get down on the floor I always look for something solid nearby to use as a brace or a stepping stone to make the transfer back into my chair.

As Bill said, not a stupid idea.

Thanks Bill and vonpluto. I've never told this idea to anyone, so I thought it could be just a ridiculous thought

I came across info somewhere on the web a while back (can't remember where, still looking ) that discussed (with pix) a system they were using at SM at DL.

It looked like a backboard of some type that the guest used to transfer from their WC to the SM ride vehichle. Those that used it said it worked quite well.

Still looking

I wish they had that at WDW. Guess I'll have to go to DL to test it!

What about something like this http://www.amazon.com/E-Z-Foldz-Ste...=sporting-goods
Product Description
Stool gives you additional 9'' reach. Great for on board because it folds and stows away to under 2'' wide. Makes a great temporary cockpit step. Sturdy reinforced plastic stool holds up to 300 lbs. BlackSh. Wt. 3 lbs.
Shipping Weight: 3.00 pounds

kaytieeldr, that's what I was looking for! And the price is great. I'll have to buy it to see if it works. Too bad I don't have any WDW trip planned...

What a great find. Thank you!