recomendations for a big family with disabilities

[hakunamatata77]

Hi y'all, we are a family of 13. My parents, a nurse, my bro his wife and their 4 children, Myself and my 3 children. Both grandparents are wc bound and need accesible room. I also need an wc accesible room. We don't mind letting the children share a room or two rooms, and money isn't too much a problem. But, we do need to be as close as possible to DW. The adults have been to DW before but that was prior to WC's and now our world view is a lot different. Can anyone give us advice on the best resort to fit our needs and what extra things should we do? (ie: tours etc.) thanks, Haky

 

[Cheshire Figment]

Hi and to both DisBoards and disABILTIES!

A few quick suggestions.

One is to consider renting DVC points and trying to get a couple of two-bedroom apartments. These are designed to sleep eight people in each, and will have full kitchens. If you do I would suggest wanting to stay at one of the locations tied to a hotel rather than freee-standing.

Another is to go to either Amazon or www.passporter.com and buy a copy of the Passporter Guide to WDW for People With Disabilities. Int needs some improvements, but is a very good starting place.

Start reading threads which look as if they may apply to you. If you want to ask specific questions we are more than willing. Some information which may help us is age and gender of the children, and what kind of arrangements need to be made for the nurse.

As far as tours, just about all the WDW tours are designed to be accessible. However, although it is not required to let them know in advance that people in wheelchairs will be attending, it is a good idea because most of the vehicles are only designed for two wheelchairs; since you will have three people they need to be ready.

Also, since there are more than seven people, you would qualify as a Grand Gathering which will allow access to certain meals/entertainment/tours which you could not otherwise go on.

 

[LindaDVC]

I'd suggest renting OKW since large rooms. GO to the rent boards on this site to find a member willing to rent points.

If one of the kids is young you could rent a grand villa that sleeps 12 plus a young child or a two bedroom and studio that would allow 12 plus a young child.

If everyone is older or the makeup of the group requires more beds the 2 bedrooms would each have 3 beds plus the sleep sofa!

Linda

 

[hakunamatata77]

The childrens ages are b10, g6, b4, b4, b3, g2, g2. The nurse would have to be in the same room as my parents. My mom will be using an ECV she has limited movement due to Fibromyalgia and back problems, my dad his own WC he has had a stroke. Which means 1 ECV and 1 WC. Thanks for the heads up on the grand gatherings thing.

 

[SueOKW]

That's a lot of young kids!! You are all very brave to be planning this trip, and I think you will have a fantastic time. WDW is very wheelchair / handicapped friendly. We have a marvelous time when we are there.

OKW is a great suggestion. however, you will have to take a bus everywhere. Will you have 3 pieces of wheeled equipment? That might mean you have to split up on buses... not all hold 3 chairs. If just 2 you have a better shot of staying together. (you mentioned you needed a HC room also.)

I was thinking about a hotel on the monorail for easy access to epcot and MK. Has anyone stayed at any of those with any suggestions?

 

[zumbergc]

You mentioned your dad would be using a wheel chair and not a scooter.
Since he had a stroke, I'm not going to assume, he self propels the wheel chair or someone pushes the wheel chair.

If its the latter he needs someone to push the chair.
Maybe he would want to rent a scooter. The reason being, you
have lots of kids to keep an eye out for at such a busy place, with
lots of attractions. Having an adult pushing him around, kind of makes it more difficult for that person, and when they are watching their kids too at
disney world.

Plus, if someone is pushing him the whole time, thats is a lot of work.


The whole 3 wheel chair / ecv at one time is more difficult for bus transportation.

On the other hand, if your dad uses a wheel chair. Is it a regular wheel chair that can be folded up, or does it have special extra on it, which don't make it easy fold. The reason I ask . If you have 2 ecv's and a wheel chair.
If the wheel chair is foldable and your dad can safely get into a bus seat. Someone in your party could hold the wheel chair off to the side, and possibly allow all 3 to fit on the bus. On some types of busses, there are small cubby hole spaces, where you can slide some of the folded wheel chair in, and hold it upright. An adult would have to hold the wheel chair so it doens't tip.

Its not the easiest solution, but could help when using disney busses.

Good Luck

 

[hakunamatata77]

Uh, my dad will be pushed in a manual wc by his nurse or my brother. His WC is a foldable chair. Dad can't do an ECV because of the stroke affecting his one side he forgets about it, and ends up driving into walls and things thus causing a frantic trip to the first aid station. I won't need a wc during the trip part just a handicap room for bathing needs (LAK amp). So we will just have to worry about 1 WC and 1 ECV. The younger children will be in double strollers as well as a backpack carrier that converts into a stroller. The two older are wonderful amazingly behaved children. They have been to Disneyland and other amusement parks and we have never had a problem with them running off. Plus Tristan (10) is an awesome big brother/cousin. He loves being in charge of so many kids (don't worry there is always an adult around). My dad can also hold one of the children on his lap. I know the trip is possible. We are planning on 18 days that way we can rest and relax during the trip. Go for half a day at MK and then come back and relax, the next day finish off what we didn't see the day before and come back and relax etc. With all these kids and problems we are really really organized. Thankyou everyone for all the help.

 

[LindaBabe]

If you can afford it, my choice would be the Polynesian Resort for several reasons.

1. easy monorail access to the Magic Kingdom for all those little kids.

2. large rooms and large bathrooms - and you'll want CONNECTING rooms with the kids not adjoining.

3. zero entry pool and yet interesting enough to be super fun for the kids and comfortable sitting for the non-swimmers

4. 2 full service restarants, a fast food outlet AND room service for when you're just too pooped to go on.


Good luck!

 

[slkant]

We haven't taken our trip yet, so I can't give you the benefit of experience. But since your family qualifies for a Grand Gathering, I will share one of our strategies.

There are several Grand Gathering experiences, and we are doing two: the Magical Fireworks voyage and the Illuminations Dinner/Dessert Reception. I booked these events because they sounded like fun and will also allow us to enjoy Wishes and Illuminations shows without having to worry about crowds as much. If you make reservations, let them know about wheelchairs/ECVs.

If money isn't an object, you may want to look into presidential or vice presidential suites at one of the WDW resorts. They would give you a good gathering space when you are at the hotel. I also think they have roll-in showers, or at least I know the vice-presidential suite at AKL does.

 

[Kay1]

Could you rent one of the thousands of pool homes around Orlando? They are somewhat inexpensive and many quite large and elegant. You can get a lot of information about these homes on the Orlando Boards on this site.

 

[hakunamatata77]

We would really like to get the whole Disney feel, so that would be a no with the whole renting a home. Thanks for the idea though.

 

[Nanajo1]

We did the Magical Fireworks cruise offered to Grand Gatherings. The boats have spaces for two ECVs/wheelchairs. I can't remember if there was companion seats available. There are steps to get to the seating area. I decided not to stay in my ECV but with family help I was able to get down the couple of steps to sit with my family. This was a great experience.