resort pools and wheelchairs

[mousekelicious]

I know there are some pools with zero entry, such as Poly, but I was wondering which pools have the transfer steps for wheelchairs.

thanks in advance!

 

[SueM in MN]

I think most of the resorts have added transfer steps.
I know for sure that the Turtle Pond pool at OKW and the pools at BC have transfer steps because I have seen those.

 

[BillSears]

The quiet pool but not the main pool at Wilderness Lodge has bump steps.

CSR has them at the main pool and the quiet pool at the Casitas. Pop Century has them at the bowling pin pool but I'm not sure of the others. Stormalong Bay has them at the Yacht and Beach Club.

I'm pretty sure the Poly's main pool does not have them. I looked for them but I only saw the zero entry, of course I could be wrong. The quiet pool in the Alligator Bayou section of POR does not have bump steps, not sure about the main pool.

 

[mousekelicious]

Thanks to both of you, that really helps. It's nice to know they have them at a few different resorts, we'll look into those. Also, thank you Bill, for adding the picture, it was nice to see them.

Christine

 

[Grumpy_Disney_Dad]

I dont want this to turn into a discussion on pool hopping, but if the resort you are staying at Does not offer the bump steps or zero entry, will Disney allow you to use a pool that does?

 

[SueM in MN]

I dont want this to turn into a discussion on pool hopping, but if the resort you are staying at Does not offer the bump steps or zero entry, will Disney allow you to use a pool that does?

I am not positive, but I believe all of the resorts have at least one pool with bump steps (which are not accessible for everyone, but at least help some people).
I have heard of people asking to pool hop if the pool at their resort was not accessible. I think approval would be on a one to one basis, depending on how busy it was.

 

[OneLittleSpark]

I'm almost certain that POFQ has bump steps too (there's no quiet pools there, only the main one with jazz playing alligators et al).

 

[DIS-NH]

OKW has them on all of the quiet pools. Not sure about the main pool.

 

[shovan]

The Beach Club has the steps at Stormalong Bay & both of it's quiet pools. I glad to hear that this works for some people. The transfer steps are totally useless for my DH. The steps are the only HA access provided at the Beach Club.

 

[BCV23]

The main pool at te Polynesian does have bump steps. Bill, they are pretty close to the lifeguard chair.

 

[BroganMc]

Can I ask a stupid question? What are these steps for? I have a disability that prevents me from doing any steps. So these seemed sort of anachronistic to me.

Is it used for sliding over from a wc and then down step-by-step? More for someone with good upper body control but no leg use?

 

[SueM in MN]

Can I ask a stupid question? What are these steps for? I have a disability that prevents me from doing any steps. So these seemed sort of anachronistic to me.

Is it used for sliding over from a wc and then down step-by-step? More for someone with good upper body control but no leg use?

Exactly.
For someone with that kind of disability, they work very well.

In order to use them, someone has to be able to transfer to the top step and then use upper body strength to bump their bottom down to the next step. My DD has pretty good upper body strength (she can lift her bottom off of a toilet seat), but she doesn't have good enough balance to use these types of steps, She also has a lot of spasticity in her legs (stiff like Barbie doll legs) and goes into extension patterns where her whole body becomes stiff. So, those steps are not much use for her.

 

[shovan]

Can I ask a stupid question? What are these steps for? I have a disability that prevents me from doing any steps. So these seemed sort of anachronistic to me.

Is it used for sliding over from a wc and then down step-by-step? More for someone with good upper body control but no leg use?

Not a stupid question at all! My DH (50 with MD) & I were shocked to find these steps as the only means of access to all 3 pools at the Beach Club. We had previously inquired if the BC pools were accessible & were told they were. For my DH these steps would not only be dangerous but also demeaning. As it would require the assistance of several people to "bump" him down the steps.

We wrote several letters to BC, DVC & WDW guest services, after our trip in Sept. We had no replies until two days ago (after DH starting emailing again.) The only reply was from a guest services manager at the BC & he informed that a beach wheelchair was now available for use in the zero entry pool. To our understanding the zero entry pool he referred to is a sandy play area that is only several feet deep. We believe it does not connect to the rest of the pool area. While this would be very beneficial to those of younger children with handicaps, it would not be very helpful to my DH. We are awaiting a response from the manager to confirm this.

 

[autumnblue]

We wrote several letters to BC, DVC & WDW guest services, after our trip in Sept. We had no replies until two days ago (after DH starting emailing again.) The only reply was from a guest services manager at the BC & he informed that a beach wheelchair was now available for use in the zero entry pool. To our understanding the zero entry pool he referred to is a sandy play area that is only several feet deep. We believe it does not connect to the rest of the pool area. While this would be very beneficial to those of younger children with handicaps, it would not be very helpful to my DH. We are awaiting a response from the manager to confirm this.

Please keep us updated on this, if there is access to the deeper pools that might be the perfect option for my next trip.

Autumn

 

[SueM in MN]

The only reply was from a guest services manager at the BC & he informed that a beach wheelchair was now available for use in the zero entry pool. To our understanding the zero entry pool he referred to is a sandy play area that is only several feet deep. We believe it does not connect to the rest of the pool area. While this would be very beneficial to those of younger children with handicaps, it would not be very helpful to my DH. We are awaiting a response from the manager to confirm this.

Please keep us updated on this, if there is access to the deeper pools that might be the perfect option for my next trip.

Autumn

We have only stayed at BC once, and did not have our wheelchair user with us.
We did try to figure out the access to the pool at BC while we were there.
What it looked like to us was that the zero entry pool area was the same sandy play area that shovan mentioned above (so, good for small children, but not for adults). These are not my pictures, but I think this picture shows the zero entry area, which I believe is a fairly shallow pool.

We saw someone who was using a wheelchair get out of it and enter the pool by sitting on the steps and bumping down. These are not my pictures, so I may be a little turned around, but I believe these are the steps she used (not wheelchair bump steps).

There is also a set of bump steps. Here's a picture of those.

NOTE: I don't know why the pictures don't show for me, but these are the direct links to them:
SAB shallow pool:
http://www.wdwinfo.com/Photos/Yacht-Club-Resort/pages/yacht-club-resort-DSC00092.htm
SAB regular steps:
http://www.wdwinfo.com/Photos/Yacht-Club-Resort/pages/yacht-club-resort-DSC00085.htm
SAB bump steps:
http://www.wdwinfo.com/Photos/Yacht-Club-Resort/pages/yacht-club-resort-DSC00082.htm

Another thing to ask about is whether they have a pool lift. Some are sort of like Hoyer lifts and are permanent or have a small permanently installed part that the lift fits into. There are also portable lifts. My DH saw a lady lowered into the pool with something at SSR on our trip in October. I wasn't with him at the time, but he showed me later where she had been lifted into the pool. There was nothing permanent there. What he described to me sounded similar to this PAL pool lift.
So, I know they have some portable lifts - I just don't know exactly what type or which resorts have them.

 

[BroganMc]

Not a stupid question at all! My DH (50 with MD) & I were shocked to find these steps as the only means of access to all 3 pools at the Beach Club. We had previously inquired if the BC pools were accessible & were told they were. For my DH these steps would not only be dangerous but also demeaning. As it would require the assistance of several people to "bump" him down the steps.

Thanks.

I have arthritis so my disability includes a lot of joint contractures and fusions. My legs don't bend or straighten at right angles, which makes all steps dangerous.

I've used the "bump" method in a pinch to travel the steps in my house when the stairlift was out, but I call it "climbing and sliding" and it hurts like the dickens.

So many of the folks I see using wheelchairs tend to have similar difficulty with steps. That's why these seemed like an archaic method. I mean, those who can easily bump themelves down steps, can also bump themselves out of their chairs to the ground and vice versa. A platform at chair height didn't seem like much help.

If/when you find out anything on those lifts or the beach area, I'll be looking too. I'm a DVC member so I've heard tons of raves about StormAlong Bay, but I wasn't really impressed with the place in person. Now SSR's zero entry and AKL's zero entry had me sold from the getgo. I keep thinking nature made pools zero entry and rarely does steps (just some steep inclines) so why do we stupid humans always seem to get that wrong?

 

[mousekelicious]

The steps are perfect for me, as I have a strong upper body but legs are damaged. Zero entry would work for me, too, but with the steps I would be able to go in without a wheelchair and I am very excited to do that.

I was hoping POFQ would have the steps, but I may have to just call to find out. If they don't we'll probably look into CSR or WL.

 

[OneLittleSpark]

I'm almost certain FQ does have bump steps, but it would be best to check first, just in case my memory is playing tricks on me.

 

[SueM in MN]

For the right people, the bump steps work very well. Most people who find them useful would not be able to lower themselves right down to floor level (to get to the side of the pool) or pull themselves back up from floor level to wheelchair level. I know people with spinal cord injuries or spina bifida who can scoot down those steps really well, but would not be able to get into the pool at all (or would have great difficulty with getting in without them).
Those same people might not be able to do so much with a zero entry because getting in and out of a wheelchair might be difficult for them.

Just like any other devices/modifications, what works well for one person may be totally inaccessible to someone with a different disability.

 

[BillSears]

For the right people, the bump steps work very well. Most people who find them useful would not be able to lower themselves right down to floor level (to get to the side of the pool) or pull themselves back up from floor level to wheelchair level. I know people with spinal cord injuries or spina bifida who can scoot down those steps really well, but would not be able to get into the pool at all (or would have great difficulty with getting in without them).
Those same people might not be able to do so much with a zero entry because getting in and out of a wheelchair might be difficult for them.

Just like any other devices/modifications, what works well for one person may be totally inaccessible to someone with a different disability.

Yep the bump steps work great for me. Getting back into my wheelchair from the floor is very very hard. Unless I can do some sort of floor to something low to wheelchair type of transfers or have something unmovable nearby at just the right height to put one hand on that and one on the chair I can't get back into my wheelchair. On the other hand lifting my body, using only my arms, 6-10 inches at a time is easy. It's the 21 inches up into my chair with a chair that moves away from you when you grab it that's tough.

The zero entry pools really don't work for me either. There is no way I'm taking my own wheelchair into the pool. The chairs provided can't be pushed by the person sitting in the wheelchair. To me being stranded in a wheelchair I can't move is like being tied up, I get very anxious and hate depending on others to fix the situation. The bump steps allow me to go down to the pool by myself for a swim and make me feel just like everyone else.

Sue is right, each of us has different needs and what works for one may not work for others.