Teen with limitations

[yippeeDCL]

I posted on the disabilities board but have not had any response. I'm hoping you guys can help?

My 16 yr old has very limited movement of left arm and some limitation to the leg.

This will be our first visit to Universal. Can anyone give me any advice on what difficulties we may encounter? He can walk but, has difficulty with distance and stamina so we will use a manual wheelchair. He can transfer pretty easily (at WDW).

Any advice is greatly appreciated!

 

[Badge]

The best thing to do would be to check Universal's website for information. Here is a link to their ADA page which has a few paragraphs talking about wheelchairs:

http://www.universalorlando.com/Resort-Information/Accessibility-Information.aspx#Guest

Also, something that will really help is the Universal Orlando Riders Guide (which is found near the top of that link). From that list, you can see a LOT of rides/shows will allow him to stay in the wheelchair, as long as it is manual.

Here is a list of rides he can remian in the wheelchair for each park:

At Islands of Adventure:
One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish™,
The Cat in the Hat™, Caro-Seuss-el™, If I Ran the Zoo™, Poseidon’s Fury®
The Eighth Voyage of Sindbad®, Jurassic Park Discovery Center®,
Me Ship, The OliveSM, Camp Jurassic®

At Universal Orlando:
Shrek 4-D™,
TWISTER…Ride It Out®, Beetlejuice’s Graveyard Revue™,
Disaster – A Major Motion Picture...Starring You, MEN IN BLACKTM
Alien AttackTM, Fear Factor Live, Animal Actors on Location!SM, A Day in the
Park with BarneyTM, Fievel’s Playland®, Curious George Goes to TownSM,
E.T. Adventure®, Universal Horror Make-up Show, TERMINATOR 2®:3-D

At some rides, like ET, they will ask if you want to transfer or not. My sister was in a wheelchair last summer for our trip (leg cast) and was able to ride a lot of stuff by just staying in the wheelchair, or transfering.

Depending on what he does at Disney, you would most likely want to avoid the rollercoasters. However, if he has done them at Disney, then he should be fine at Universal.

Also, he should be able to do Spiderman (sit down ride with a big lap bar) and MAYBE the HP main ride. For the HP one, I would suggest riding it first to decide for yourself if you think he could do it.

That riders guide will be your best bet. Really spend some time reading it and print it out. It really goes into detail about what the rider should be able to do. For example, on Spider, it says :

TO RIDE YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO:
Continuously grasp the lap bar with at least one upper extremity; independently maintain yourself in an upright position while seated; and absorb sudden and dramatic movements similar to a roller coaster.

A lot of them say "simliar to a roller coaster" but it really is not that intense. If you did something like Star Tours at Disney, you can handle Spiderman. Have fun on your trip!

 

[yippeeDCL]

Also, something that will really help is the Universal Orlando Riders Guide (which is found near the top of that link). From that list, you can see a LOT of rides/shows will allow him to stay in the wheelchair, as long as it is manual.

Also, he should be able to do Spiderman (sit down ride with a big lap bar) and MAYBE the HP main ride. For the HP one, I would suggest riding it first to decide for yourself if you think he could do it.

That riders guide will be your best bet. Really spend some time reading it and print it out. It really goes into detail about what the rider should be able to do. For example, on Spider, it says :

TO RIDE YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO:
Continuously grasp the lap bar with at least one upper extremity; independently maintain yourself in an upright position while seated; and absorb sudden and dramatic movements similar to a roller coaster.

A lot of them say "simliar to a roller coaster" but it really is not that intense. If you did something like Star Tours at Disney, you can handle Spiderman. Have fun on your trip!

Thank you!! This is VERY helpful! I agree, I think I will have my daughter (or myself) ride certain rides first.

I truly appreciate your help!!