Special Requests question (OKW)

[Jim from Jersey]

My waitlist just came through and we were able to switch from a 2 bedroom at SSR to a 2 BDR at OKW. I have read that a lot of OKW buildings do not have elevators and I will need a ground floor or building with an elevator. My wife is having heel surgery (pain is real bad after walking for about an hour) in January and has a temporary handicap permit and my father-in-law has a rare blood dissorder that causes him to become weak and tired after exertion. He has a permanent handicap permit. They will both be sharing a scooter on this trip. I have not advised DVC Member Services as of yet. Besides letting them know the above information, is there any special building / location request I should ask for that would make our stay a little easier? Our group consists of My wife and I, our 4 yo daughter, and my MIL and FIL. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks! Jim

 

[BillM]

You should request a handicap 2 BR which will be a first floor unit. MS will put you on hold and check to see if such a villa is available. If it is they will book it and it will be guaranteed.
Any other type request will not be guaranteed. I have long experience in booking HC units. The 2 BR will have 2 queen beds in the secong bedroom,
Enjoy OKW.

 

[JimMIA]

I am one who severely limits the requests I make through MS, because I think the more requests you make, the more they tend to get equalized in importance and the less likely are to get the really important ones. I never make more than two, and one of those (non-smoking) is a medical necessity request.

In your case, I would request 1st floor for medical necessity. Be sure you say those words, and I always explain why it's a necessity without MS having to ask. (You could do ground floor OR elevator building, but that really limits your options because there are only a few buildings at OKW with elevators...I think just 62, 63 and 64.)

No matter what you call a request, it is still just a request, not a guarantee. But they do try to honor requests whenever they can, and they make a special effort to honor medical necessity requests.

If you have any other medical necessity requests, those would be the only requests I would make through MS. If you have any other preferences, I'd explain those at checkin and focus on getting as much of the medical stuff as you can through MS.

Don't be bashful about asking for other preferences at checkin, but be nice and be reasonable. They'll do the best they can for you, but they do have to operate in the real world, so if you give them 27 criteria to meet you're likely to be disappointed on most of them.

 

[Chuck S]

As Bill suggests, MS should put you on hold and check with a special needs coordinator who can block a HC unit. If they don't offer to do this, please request that they do so.

 

[JimMIA]

You should request a handicap 2 BR which will be a first floor unit. MS will put you on hold and check to see if such a villa is available. If it is they will book it and it will be guaranteed.
Any other type request will not be guaranteed. I have long experience in booking HC units. The 2 BR will have 2 queen beds in the secong bedroom,
Enjoy OKW.

I don't think I'd do this unless you need the features of a handicap-accessible room. I think that involves mostly differences in the bathrooms (more room, fewer cabinets, wheelchair access for the showers, etc.)

If those are not features you need, I'd just request ground floor. I think you are quite likely to get that if you request it.

If you DO need HA, obviously go for it. But if you take a HA room you don't really need, they are in limited supply and you may be taking one away from someone who really needs it.

 

[dianeschlicht]

I agree with Jim. I would call MS right away and specifically request first floor or elevator building for MEDICAL REASONS! When we have done that at OKW, we have never been disappointed. We were in need of an ECV scooter on 3 trips, and each time, they met our requests for both an easy access room AND non-smoking. If you are renting the scooter through one of the medical site that will be leaving it at the front desk, that will help to underscore your need. The lower counters, roll in shower etc of a handicapped accessible unit might actually be more of a hassle for needs of your group.

 

[Dean]

I don't think I'd do this unless you need the features of a handicap-accessible room. I think that involves mostly differences in the bathrooms (more room, fewer cabinets, wheelchair access for the showers, etc.)

If those are not features you need, I'd just request ground floor. I think you are quite likely to get that if you request it.

If you DO need HA, obviously go for it. But if you take a HA room you don't really need, they are in limited supply and you may be taking one away from someone who really needs it.

The only way to guarantee your request is to get a HC room. While medical requests for a first floor are usually honored, there are no guarantees and you may not want to take the chance, even if you don't truly need a HC unit.

 

[SueM in MN]

I agree with Jim. I would call MS right away and specifically request first floor or elevator building for MEDICAL REASONS! When we have done that at OKW, we have never been disappointed. We were in need of an ECV scooter on 3 trips, and each time, they met our requests for both an easy access room AND non-smoking. If you are renting the scooter through one of the medical site that will be leaving it at the front desk, that will help to underscore your need. The lower counters, roll in shower etc of a handicapped accessible unit might actually be more of a hassle for needs of your group.

I agree with Diane and Jim.
We have been DVC members at OKW since 1993 and most of the time we have requested FIRST FLOOR OR ELEVATOR BUILDING FOR MEDICAL REASONS. Even though it is not guaranteed, if you are talking about a studio, 1 or 2 bedroom, the chances of you not getting it are very small because there are lots of studio, 1 and 2 bedrooms that are on the first floor. They do fill the medical requests before the general requests for the same thing. We have always gotten 1st floor or elevator building when we requested it for medical reasons. If you throw in a lot of other requests (like close to bus stop, or close to HH), you limit your chances of getting what you really need. Unless you need the features of the handicapped unit, I would just request first floor for medical reasons (and make sure it is written that way on your confirmation sheet.

The only time it is EXTREMELY important to reserve a handicapped accessible unit is if you need first floor or elevator for a GRAND VILLA at OKW. There are only a couple of those and if you have requested one and someone else has reserved one, you will not get. For a Grand Villa, I would go through Special Services and make sure that they have one and reserve it for you when you make your reservation.

 

[Jim from Jersey]

Thank you everyone for your assistance. We really do not need the additional handicap accessible features and would feel guilty if we had the room and someone else could have used it. Yes, these are disabilities, however, not to the extent that we would need a HC accessible room. The biggest issue I have is having the scooter and my wife & FIL being able to walk up and down stairs if we were given a 2nd or 3rd floor room without an elevator. I called DVC MS and asked for a 1st floor room or building with an elevator for medical reasons. The MS agent stated she noted my request. Sue....If you read this, how would I know if it is on my confirmation sheet as I already received the 1st one which was SSR and now that I switched to OKW, I made this request after we had already accepted the transfer - the confirmation sheet was probably already completed. Is there a way to ask for a new one with this information on it?
Btw, Sue, you have helped me before on the disabilities board and now over here. Thanks! Jim

Oh, look....300 posts finally. It's only been 6 years! LOL

 

[Dean]

Thank you everyone for your assistance. We really do not need the additional handicap accessible features and would feel guilty if we had the room and someone else could have used it. Yes, these are disabilities, however, not to the extent that we would need a HC accessible room. The biggest issue I have is having the scooter and my wife & FIL being able to walk up and down stairs if we were given a 2nd or 3rd floor room without an elevator. I called DVC MS and asked for a 1st floor room or building with an elevator for medical reasons. The MS agent stated she noted my request. Sue....If you read this, how would I know if it is on my confirmation sheet as I already received the 1st one which was SSR and now that I switched to OKW, I made this request after we had already accepted the transfer - the confirmation sheet was probably already completed. Is there a way to ask for a new one with this information on it?
Btw, Sue, you have helped me before on the disabilities board and now over here. Thanks! Jim

Oh, look....300 posts finally. It's only been 6 years! LOL

Since there are more HC units than needed and as explained above, they are booked and not just a request, it is not the case of taking one from someone else. Hopefully your gamble will pay off, I'd say the odds are about 95% in your favor. The question you should ask yourself is what will happen if they don't.

 

[dianeschlicht]

Thank you everyone for your assistance. We really do not need the additional handicap accessible features and would feel guilty if we had the room and someone else could have used it. Yes, these are disabilities, however, not to the extent that we would need a HC accessible room. The biggest issue I have is having the scooter and my wife & FIL being able to walk up and down stairs if we were given a 2nd or 3rd floor room without an elevator. I called DVC MS and asked for a 1st floor room or building with an elevator for medical reasons. The MS agent stated she noted my request. Sue....If you read this, how would I know if it is on my confirmation sheet as I already received the 1st one which was SSR and now that I switched to OKW, I made this request after we had already accepted the transfer - the confirmation sheet was probably already completed. Is there a way to ask for a new one with this information on it?
Btw, Sue, you have helped me before on the disabilities board and now over here. Thanks! Jim

Oh, look....300 posts finally. It's only been 6 years! LOL

They will send you a new confirmation sheet if you request it. If you don't automatically get one in the next week or so, I would call and request that one be sent.

 

[Sorcerer's Dad]

We have also used the method of requesting first floor/elevator, non-smoking for medical reasons because we didn't require facilities for handicapped, but because of being respiratory problems.

 

[okwmike]

Make sure you call and reconfirm as others have suggested.
The room request for medical reasons is the most important and first on the list We have made a few requests and several times "non smoking" was the first request and a comment of "we managed to get at least one of the two requests". That's not what you want to hear at check in.
Double check after you make your call to Member Services to save any regrets at check-in. (an e-mail might also be a good idea to re-confirm)
Good luck

 

[Disney Doll]

I'd call and tell them that I needed a first fllor room or an elevator because both my wife will have had recent foot surgery and my FIL has a medical problem that doesn't allow him to exert himself too much, and they would both have trouble with having to walk stairs based on their medical issues. I would emphasize that I did not need a handicap villa, but just need one on the first floor or in an elevator building.

 

[dianeschlicht]

Were you able to get "for medical reasons" on your confirmation?

 

[Jim from Jersey]

Ok......here is where I am at:

After receiving the direct # to special needs division, I called them and spoke to a cm there. He advised me that DVC MS must call to advise them about issues regarding medical requests. Thanked him and hung up!

I then called DVC MS again. I spoke with a very nice gentleman there. He was very helpful with this situation and also provided all kinds of other info regarding my points status and things going on at WDW during my trip. As for this situation, he advised me the request was on my confirmation. It stated " a medical request for either bldgs 63, 64,or 65 (elevator buildings - I think those #'s are right) or a 1st floor room due to two guests using wheel chairs. He also added for me non-smoking. In reference to special needs division, he advised that was only for the HC accessible rooms and asked if I would need that type of room. I thanked him for offering but told him that our disabilities did not require that. Although he could not guarantee our request, he told me that it should not be a problem. DIANE - He then told me that he would send me out a new confirmation, with the new information, so I would have it for check-in. He did also mention that the earlier I got there for check in, the more probable I would get my request and possibly even be able to choose which choice I wanted. This is good as I should be arriving at O.I.A. around 9 AM.

Hopefully this all works out. Thanks everyone for your help!

 

[dianeschlicht]

Glad it is going to work out! We have never had an issue when it has said "for medical reasons". Have a GREAT trip!

 

[SueM in MN]

Glad it is going to work out! We have never had an issue when it has said "for medical reasons". Have a GREAT trip!

We have not either.