Renting a wheelchair accessible van

[tinkandpan]

Does anyone have any firsthand experience with renting an accessible van at airport for a WDW trip? I am waiting on a quote from Braunability but was curious if anyone had any firsthand experience. We will be travelling with my Dad come next July. We are most likely staying at the Poly, so access to the MK and Epcot and restaurants should be fairly easy, if we get a room close to the TTA side. However, for the other parks, going for dinner etc- my parents feel more comfortable having their own transportation. My dad hasn't transferred in about two years and has been driving a van instead. Was thinking this might be easier for them- rather than trying to deal with Magical Express and the bus transport throughout the week. Thank you!

 

[mamabunny]

I have not ever rented an accessible vehicle, so I can't speak to that, but your dad won't have to transfer for Magical Express or any of the buses; there are tie downs on both ME and the internal Disney bus transportation.

Additionally, they may want to skip renting, and just use the accessible Minnie Vans that Disney has now. They are basically a Disney-operated version of Lyft or Uber, and they have a couple of accessible vans in the fleet now.

 

[SueM in MN]

We own an accessible van, but have not rented one in years.
Vans are typically much more expensive to rent than a car and an accessible van is much more expensive than renting a regular van.

We go to WDW twice a year for 2+ weeks each time.
We take advantage of all of Disney’s accessible transportation mama bunny mentioned, even on trips when we rent a vehicle. Some things to think about if you do rent a vehicle:

- WDW can be somewhat confusing to drive around. Many of the roads are multilane and you need to really watch the signs to make sure you are where you need to be. It can be more confusing at night.

- if you are coming or going to a park around opening or closing, it will be quite busy and you will probably be sitting in a line of cars for a while.

- if you are going when it’s hot, it’s pretty nice to get into a cool bus (but, you may have to wait for the bus to arrive when you could get right into your vehicle.).

- if you are staying at a WDW resort, you won’t pay to park at the parks, but there is a resort parking fee. I have heard some people have gotten the resort parking fee waived with a handicapped parking permit. But, I can’t verify it - we are Disney Vacation Club members and don’t have to pay resort fee because it’s part of our dues.

 

[gap2368]

You will need to add $25 a night to what every they add to the price of the van to cover your parking at the resort fee. I would do the above and just use Disney free transportation or the Minnie van

 

[Bjkandma]

I also cannot transfer with ease. I would recommend that you use the free Disney transportation. The magical express (when you call with your flight information, inform them you need the chair lift). You will remain in chair and be tied down.

The bus drivers on Disney transport will assist you in getting the vehicle lined up and like previously stated all vehicles from Magical Express to regular buses have tie downs. You can remain seated at all times.

Also, if you need assistance on flight, airlines offer "aisle chair" so you don't have to walk. The airports\airlines offer wheelchair assist and if needed will "push" you through airport.

 

[I Believe in Pixie dust]

We rented from Mobilityworks when we went the first weeks of December 2016. We rented an accessible van for 12 days and the total was $1500 US.

We are from Canada so after the exchange it hurt, but unfortunately that is what it costs. Even though we paid so much, it was so worth it for our family. The convenience of not waiting was worth every penny. We were off site for a few days when we arrived and went to Universal and then we were at the Beach club, we had many ADRs at different resorts, so the flexibility was fantastic. We played our Christmas carols in the van and enjoyed driving around whenever we wanted. And I can't say enough good things for mobilityworks. Great communication and followup, the van was clean and new, (our van at home is rear entry, and this one was side entry which we loved), we waited only 5 minutes when we arrived at the airport for them to bring the van and they were waiting for us at the airport when we left. Seamless and stress free. Aside from the high cost, I would completely recommend renting.

 

[WLodgeLizard]

We've rented quite a few times out of MCO, to visit Cocoa Beach. We usually use Disney transportation when visiting WDW. It's been a few years, but I think we have used FL Van Rentals the most. They are very nice. They will meet you at the airport and drop off and pick up. You don't have to go to their place to do paperwork. The vans are clean and usually in good shape. We usually ask for an in-floor ramp (like VMI Northstar conversion), so we don't have to deal with a rattle, but they are pretty rare. It is pretty pricey (plan on about $1,000 for a week, with taxes and fees), thus the reason we like to use WDW transportation when we can.

 

[JATampa]

I rented one once from Wheelers, and I NEVER will rent from them again. The AC didn’t work the entire time, and their response was “sorry”. They didn’t even offer a discount. They also didn’t abide by the quote they gave me and charged me almost double. I strongly suggest you stay away from Wheelers.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

Does anyone have any firsthand experience with renting an accessible van at airport for a WDW trip? I am waiting on a quote from Braunability but was curious if anyone had any firsthand experience. We will be travelling with my Dad come next July. We are most likely staying at the Poly, so access to the MK and Epcot and restaurants should be fairly easy, if we get a room close to the TTA side. However, for the other parks, going for dinner etc- my parents feel more comfortable having their own transportation. My dad hasn't transferred in about two years and has been driving a van instead. Was thinking this might be easier for them- rather than trying to deal with Magical Express and the bus transport throughout the week. Thank you!

I just traveled in November with a young man who could not transfer and we priced out some accessible van options and, oh boy, they were really expensive. As others have noted, you can use DME for free for airport transfers and WDW also has accessible Minnie Vans ($150 each way to/from airport. Pricing fluctuates to take one throughout the WDW resort). We opted for the Minnie Van airport transfers and also used the Minnie Vans for all transfers other than MK (we stayed at CR). It was still a pretty penny, but not as much as renting our own vehicle. As others have said, the Disney buses can also accommodate for your dad's needs. I, personally, would really recommend looking at the WDW free and Minnie Van options as they were very easy to use and the Minnie Van drivers were very professional and helpful.

 

[ppony]

Not that you asked, but because I just priced this out for our coming trip of 10 days, the cost was over a thousand. I didnt bother to figure out exactly how much more because I was just deciding if it was going to be doable, and that’s a big nope unfortunately.