Renting special needs stroller

[lanejudy]

I haven't looked at the DL website - are these new rules in place there as well?

My thought - if parents are ignorant enough to park the stroller-wagon in the way, they're likely to still park regular double or single strollers in the way as well. And unless it's a stroller-as-wheelchair, I don't think a stroller should be in the restroom. Though I'm sure someone who goes as a single parent with 2-3 young kids feels they need the stroller to corral the kids.

There is no perfect answer, but it does seem Disney is trying to reduce hazards due to crowds. Honestly, I'd prefer they find a way to sell fewer tickets and have less bodies. But then I probably wouldn't be able to afford the tickets.

 

[redberyl]

We had 2 strollers stolen in one trip, but thankfully not our special needs stroller. First time was likely mistaken identity, we were parked right next to an identical stroller so likely they just grabbed the wrong one. Second time we were in cinderellas castle at closing time. Came out and someone had dumped our belongings all over the ground and taken the stroller. So it does happen. I rarely leave the special needs stroller unattended but when i do i lock it.

 

[cmwade77]

Ah, thanks for the link, that is new. I didn't see that yesterday or Tuesday when I looked. Interesting, since before these things became popular the Keenz website indicated they were allowed. At least originally it was marketed as a "special needs" stroller, but possibly WDW didn't realize the popularity of it with "regular" families. I personally do not have one and think it looks uncomfortable for all-day use as a stroller, but several people with special needs children have felt it is a great option for their family's needs. My generation used strollers while the current generation of young parents seem to prefer wagons.

The new width makes it so the double can fit through most doorways, as minimum ADA standard is 32" wide. Possibly larger doubles didn't work with stroller-as-wheelchair tags and caused problems. The 52" length is still longer than the standard wheelchair "box" dimensions per ADA.

Yep, it was announced today along with eliminating smoking areas in the parks (and Downtown Disney in Anaheim) and no loose ice (ice packs are ok).

 

[gap2368]

Totally offtopic and possibly worthy of its own thread (with all the changes) - smoking is now banned throughout all the parks and waterparks and no loose ice in coolers.

I think this is a yes it is ok but you can bring ice in a water bottle in with you just not ice in a cooler in with you

 

[mamabunny]

I think I was most startled by the loose ice ban. (I can kind of understand dry ice; people aren't always responsible and it could cause a problem)

The problem with the ice is that currently (most) of the Resort room fridges can't re-freeze a reusable ice pack; if you have to bring food (or medication) into the Parks during a multi-day stay, I can't imagine how you will deal with re-freezing packs. That's why people have had to use loose ice from the ice machines at the Resorts.

I know that some folks have had good luck with asking Bell Services to hold things in their freezers, but I would presume at some point Bell Services will have to call a halt to that, if there are too many Guests asking for that service.

Maybe take along a zip-lock bag big enough to store all of your reusable ice packs, and mark your family's name on it? Or, plan on dumping ice into your sink every night and hoping that your packs will get/stay cold enough to work through the next day?

 

[cmwade77]

You should be able to out ice from the ice machine into ziplock bags. The problem isn't with the ice, it is searching through the ice for banned items, ziplock bags of ice is easier to search through. And if security won't allow the bags of ice, you can dump them at security, then go into the parks and get ice from the counter service locations. Ziplock bags don't cost that much to toss them each day if needed.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

At DLR, many off site hotels have small refrigerators with little freezers. We've been able to put water bottles in the freezer compartments and in the fridge to use in our cooler. (We load up the freezer and fridge with fresh bottles when we pack the cooler.) And then at the end of the day, we have very cold water to drink. This may not be an option at the on site hotels, but it works well off site.

 

[gap2368]

I think I was most startled by the loose ice ban. (I can kind of understand dry ice; people aren't always responsible and it could cause a problem)

The problem with the ice is that currently (most) of the Resort room fridges can't re-freeze a reusable ice pack; if you have to bring food (or medication) into the Parks during a multi-day stay, I can't imagine how you will deal with re-freezing packs. That's why people have had to use loose ice from the ice machines at the Resorts.

I know that some folks have had good luck with asking Bell Services to hold things in their freezers, but I would presume at some point Bell Services will have to call a halt to that, if there are too many Guests asking for that service.

Maybe take along a zip-lock bag big enough to store all of your reusable ice packs, and mark your family's name on it? Or, plan on dumping ice into your sink every night and hoping that your packs will get/stay cold enough to work through the next day?

Someone posted on another thread that a gallon ziplock bag of ice was fine. Making me think the band of loose ice was secretly related. Since it would be easier to pick up a bag of ice and tell it was just ice then have 5+ inches of ice at the bottom of a cooler