Traveling w/ Wheelchair & Seniors

[janette]

I'm taking my Mom to WDW in May for her 1st time . She'll be 80yo and is asthmatic; can't walk too much without wheezing.

I know that she just doesn't have the stamina to do the parks walking; we'll be spending most of our time at Epcot for the F&G Festival so distances are an issue. She of course thinks she'll be just fine and that she can do it; so I have some convincing to do before she'll allow us to use a wheelchair.

One of my nephews is an amputee and has a wheelchair that he doesn't use much. It is a child's but for older kids and I think Mom would fit fine. It's also lighter and more comfortable than the rentals or hotel issued so I thought it might be best to bring it.

What is the best way to travel with it? My Mom will be traveling back to her home from WDW and the chair would need to travel with me instead of her. It would be easiest to check it but how does that work? Can I just give it too the baggage people or does it need a box or something? I thought about putting it in a big suitcase but I don't think it would fit.

I did have them add a wheelchair request to my reservation but having one available at the hotel isn't guaranteed right? We are staying at AKV so lots of walking just at the hotel.

Would the hassle of getting it there and back be worth it over getting one at WDW?

Any other tips for doing WDW with someone that is more fragile than they admit? There is so much I want to do / see with her but I worry that I'll completely overwhelm and exhaust her.

Thanks so much for your help.

 

[OneLittleSpark]

Firstly, travelling with a wheelchair is fairly easy, so don't panic! I've flown with my own chair a few times now, and haven't had any problems yet (touch wood!). It's easiest if you let the airline know you'll be travelling with a wheelchair, but if you don't, they can sort things (my first flight with the chair, it had somehow 'fallen off' my reservation). If your mother is flying with you, I'd recommend gate-checking it. This means you keep it with you right up until the point you board the plane. The baggage handlers then whisk it away and stow it with the rest of the luggage. If you're not travelling with her, you can always just check it with the rest of your luggage (never done this myself, so not sure how it works). If she's going to be navigating any airports on her own, you might want to suggest she requests assistance, so she will have someone with a wheelchair to take her across the airport.

As for doing Disney, a wheelchair sounds like a must. Try to persuade her gently, as some people have reported negative experiences with trying to coerce friends and family members to use assistance, even when they had their best intentions at heart. Using a chair is a 'big deal' for a lot of people, and some take it as a reminder that they can't do everything they'd like to any more.

Make sure you take it gently, though I'm sure you've figured that by now. It may be that a chair is all that's needed to let her play all day, but you may find she still needs to take it gently. A lot of people find that going back to the hotel late morning to early afternoon is good, as you avoid the worst of the heat and have a bit of time to recharge your batteries. If she needs a short lie down during the visit, you can use the First Aid centres. They all have beds that Guests can use, if they need. Also, making sure that you all have plenty of air-con and water is a must, though I don't think May is as bad temperature-wise as later in the year. There may be a few days that you need to stop earlier than you'd hoped, or rearrange your schedule to have a quieter day, so try to keep your plans flexible.

Most of the stuff above is just common-sense stuff, but then that can be the easiest things to forget. Obviously your number one priority is making sure everyone has a good time, and it doesn't really matter if you don't see everything in one trip. I get the feeling from your post, though, that you're not exactly planning to holiday 'commando style'!

Don't worry about having the wheelchair in Disney, it's the most wheelchair friendly place I've yet been to. you will still discover a few of the.... ehem... challenges that those of us on wheels come up against sometimes, but I'm sure it's nothing you can't handle. This thread may help you with a few hints and tips for wheeling Disney:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1543998
Also, the FAQ section, in a sticky thread at the top of the disABILITIES board, has loads of information on taking the chair on Disney transport, how to deal with rides etc.

Good luck and have a great trip!

 

[SueM in MN]

One of my nephews is an amputee and has a wheelchair that he doesn't use much. It is a child's but for older kids and I think Mom would fit fine. It's also lighter and more comfortable than the rentals or hotel issued so I thought it might be best to bring it.

You want to at least have it measured before taking it and finding it doesn't fit her. The things to look at would be the seat width and depth and also the height of the footrests. The height of the footrests may be adjustable, but the seat would not be. Also, sometimes the wheelchairs or amputees are balanced in a little different way to adjust for the missing weight of the amputated limb.

What is the best way to travel with it? My Mom will be traveling back to her home from WDW and the chair would need to travel with me instead of her. It would be easiest to check it but how does that work? Can I just give it too the baggage people or does it need a box or something? I thought about putting it in a big suitcase but I don't think it would fit.

If she was traveling with you, it is not counted toward your baggage allowance because it is her mobility equipment. Since she is not traveling with you, it would probably count as part of your baggage allowance.
If you check it as baggage, you would just give it to the check in clerk the same as your luggage. It would go on the belt (or where ever your other luggage goes) and it would be sent to the baggage are where you claim your bags. The main 'danger' with checking it as luggage is that it would be sent on the conveyor belt with the luggage; that could have more chance of damage.
If you gate check it, you would take it all the way to the gate with you; tell the gate agent before boarding that you have a wheelchair to gate check. They will give you a special baggage tag that says it will be returned to the gate.
Whether you gate check or baggage check the wheelchair, you want to make sure that anything that can be easily removed is taken off and carried onto the plane with you or secured onto the wheelchair so it can't fall off. That will help to avoid any damage.
You can put it into a box if you want. I would probably do that if I was having it treated as luggage.

I did have them add a wheelchair request to my reservation but having one available at the hotel isn't guaranteed right? We are staying at AKV so lots of walking just at the hotel.

You are correct. There is no guarantee of getting one at the resort. Some people have had good luck and others have not been able to get a wheelchair at the resort or the one they got did not meet their needs. Getting one that did could take anywhere from hours to days.

Would the hassle of getting it there and back be worth it over getting one at WDW?

I'd probably check with the airline.
Since she isn't traveling with you, if they would charge you or count it toward your baggage allowance, you have to weight that against having it with you.
All in all, you may find it makes more sense to rent from one of the off-site places (see list in the disABILITIES FAQs thread).

Any other tips for doing WDW with someone that is more fragile than they admit? There is so much I want to do / see with her but I worry that I'll completely overwhelm and exhaust her.

Thanks so much for your help.

One thing we have found is that MK is a tiring park because it is noisy and congested. Many of the attractions require a transfer from the wheelchair into a ride car. Since some of the rides are very short, it can mean a lot of transfers back and forth in a short period of time. We try to alternate the ones that require a transfer with those that don't.
If she wants to rest for a while, she might enjoy just parking and people watching in a cool, shaded spot while your family are riding. That was one thing my FIL really enjoyed. She could also lie down in First Aid for a rest. A cell phone is nice because she can call and let you know when she is feeling like touring again.
AK feels hot - probably because most of the attractions are outside and the multitude of trees and other vegetation make it seems more humid.
The Studio and Epcot are kind of in the middle.

 

[janette]

Thanks this is great information.

She'll be visiting here before the trip and traveling to WDW with my sister. I do request assistance for her when she travels and she accepts it pretty well; usually uses the disability cart over a wheelchair.

I will be sizing the wheelchair to make sure it will be okay for her; it is pretty plain so no special enhancements to worry about.

Thanks for the links; that might be an option if we decide not to mess with the travel part. It gets a chair for the trip and it looks cheaper to rent offsite than at the parks; since some of the longest walks are into the park it will also help with that.

We may use it sometimes more like a stroller; like if we are in Fantasyland where it would be off / on too much. I do like that she'd have it for a seat, I can't imagine her sitting on a curb for a parade or standing for a long time to see a show.

 

[WheeledTraveler]

I agree with what's been said so far. The other thing to check is whether there are push handles on the wheelchair. It may be a kid's chair, but I know some kids who use wheelchairs, but don't have push handles because they're so used to self-propelling (this is especially true if they're really active which it sounds like your nephew is). If your mother isn't used to having to push a wheelchair, push handles are going to be a must. I had trouble self-propelling around WDW when I was pretty much in my best shape as a wheelchair user so someone not used to it will have much more problems than I did.

 

[SueM in MN]

The other thing to check is whether there are push handles on the wheelchair. It may be a kid's chair, but I know some kids who use wheelchairs, but don't have push handles because they're so used to self-propelling (this is especially true if they're really active which it sounds like your nephew is).

Good point.
I'm used to DD's wheelchair; since she needs the back support, her wheelchairs all have high backs and because she doesn't have stamina to push her onw wheelchair long distances, she has push handles as well.

Often people who don't need the back support (like people with paraplegia or amputations) have backs on their wheelchairs that only come up to about mid-chest height or even lower. That gives them more flexibility to move their trunk around, reach for things to the side, etc.

 

[janette]

The wheelchair does have handles; it is actually in my garage right now because I borrowed it for my DD when she broke her ankle last year.

I'll have to check on the back support though; it is lower and while that is fine for my nephew it might not be for my Mom on a long day. She has osteoporosis with back curvage so that could be important. I'm also trying to avoid any rides that are jerky for that reason. Are there any that I might not think of as bad that would be for someone fragile?

Soaring is the only bigger ride I had on my list to do. I've debated the Mission Space green; I tried it and it doesn't seem too bad but moves around some. The majority of the rides we'll do are those without any warnings or restrictions.

As onelittlespark said it won't be a commando trip but we only have 4 full days so I'd like to get as much as possible out of it. Our primary focus will be EPCOT and all the shows there. I know treks across the World Showcase are the worst for wearing you down.

We are DVC members and go often; have a 2wk trip planned in Aug with the family but this trip is just for my Mom so we'll be going at her pace.