Unable to stand in long lines

[CanadaJulie]

Hello,

I wonder if there is something that can be done for my mother. She is 70 and has a condition where if she stands too long in one place, she gets dizzy spells and has even fainted on occasion, it's called orthostatic hypotension. She's OK if she walks or moves, but when she stands still (such as in long lines at the grocery store) her blood pressure drops which causes dizzy/fainting spells.

She is coming with us to the parks next week. She'll be fine if the line is moving but if we are at a standstill for a while, is there anything we can do to have the rest of us wait in line and her join us at the end ?

Thanks
Julie

 

[macraven]

there will be times in the parks that once inside the building of a ride, there can be a wait before you get on the ride.

sounds like your mom is fine as long as she is in motion.

maybe stop at guest services and see if they have a solution for this issue.
they may suggest you rent a wc and have her use it to avoid the outside the line waits.

i read a trip report sometime back that a person with a motorized wc was transferred to a push wc by the TM's so they could use that inside the building waiting in the ride line.
made it sound like the TM's would be able to assist most guests inside the ride building with their mobility issues.

 

[ShirikiUtundu]

If parking in the garage, you will have issues just at the security line, before you ever make it to a park. It will be long (we waited nearly an hour just over a week ago) and extremely crowded with little movement. I would bring a wheelchair for this purpose.

 

[macraven]

at one time there were some wc in the parking garage.
have they been eliminated?

 

[CanadaJulie]

Appreciate everyone's suggestions ! I don't think a wheelchair or rolling walker is an option. She is physically fit, walks many miles a week, swims laps for hours a week so pushing her around in a wheelchair all day for 11 hours just for the 3 rides that may have a little longer wait than she can handle seems a little bit of an overkill . Worst case, she can sit/lean on the railing or the ground if need be. I was just hoping there was a way for her to rejoin the group later (ie: go for a walk while we wait and save her spot) but it does not seem there is. Again - thanks for the comments

 

[bchbetha]

I think it's absolutely worth contacting Universal customer service directly. I bet they have a solution.

 

[CanadaJulie]

I sent them an email yesterday. I'll see what they say. Thanks !

 

[damo]

What about taking a folding camp stool or something like that that you can just carry over your shoulder?

 

[macraven]

I wondered about that then thought where would you leave it when you got on the ride

 

[damo]

I wondered about that then thought where would you leave it when you got on the ride

Maybe use rider swap? We used rider swap with my mother in a wheelchair. It worked quite well. That way, someone can stay in the swaproom with whatever can't be taken on the ride.

 

[CanadaJulie]

I thought about that too - but it's maybe 3-5 rides a day (we are going in low season) that would have long lines that might be an issue. We are planning to travel light to the parks to avoid the lockers so this is something to lug around the entire day just for a few rides with longer wait times.

When I went to Disney many years ago, I remember people were able to obtain a permission card that would allow the rider to return at a particular time instead of waiting in line. Could be for children with autism who could not be expected to stay calm for 75 mins wait, or similar issues. I'm guessing by the answers here that this thing was either not something available at Universal or no longer is given out. The rest of us had planned to wait in line while my Mom could take a leisurely walk or sit on a nearby bench and rejoin us at the end.

Buying the express pass seems like overkill - we have 4 days in the parks and are 4 people - so spending 1200$ on Express passes is way too much. I am Canadian so that's over 1700$CDN !! We are staying at the Cabana Bay and to upgrade to the Deluxe hotels would cost over 2400$ more than what we are currently paying (we have 2 rooms, 6 nights).

We'll have to time the busier rides at the beginning or end of the day, or she may simply skip them if she feels unable to stand still, which is unfortunate.

 

[macraven]

UO has the pass like wdw has

You are given a return time and allowed to use the express line them

Doesn't mean it allows immediate seating on the ride as ep lines can have up to a 20 max wait

In regular park days, waiting time could be no line wait to ten minute wait

 

[aaarcher86]

I thought about that too - but it's maybe 3-5 rides a day (we are going in low season) that would have long lines that might be an issue. We are planning to travel light to the parks to avoid the lockers so this is something to lug around the entire day just for a few rides with longer wait times.

When I went to Disney many years ago, I remember people were able to obtain a permission card that would allow the rider to return at a particular time instead of waiting in line. Could be for children with autism who could not be expected to stay calm for 75 mins wait, or similar issues. I'm guessing by the answers here that this thing was either not something available at Universal or no longer is given out. The rest of us had planned to wait in line while my Mom could take a leisurely walk or sit on a nearby bench and rejoin us at the end.

Buying the express pass seems like overkill - we have 4 days in the parks and are 4 people - so spending 1200$ on Express passes is way too much. I am Canadian so that's over 1700$CDN !! We are staying at the Cabana Bay and to upgrade to the Deluxe hotels would cost over 2400$ more than what we are currently paying (we have 2 rooms, 6 nights).

We'll have to time the busier rides at the beginning or end of the day, or she may simply skip them if she feels unable to stand still, which is unfortunate.

The pass at WDW is not given for mobility issues (which this would be considered). I don't know if Universal's has the same restrictions or not.

 

[macraven]

UO guest service TMs makes decisions based on the situation they are presented

 

[CanadaJulie]

The pass at WDW is not given for mobility issues (which this would be considered). I don't know if Universal's has the same restrictions or not.

Why would blood pressure issues be considered a mobility issue ?

 

[macraven]

We Never said it did
Just stated all requested for the pass are determined by the TM

It's not like they have a book that gives out written statements for one size fits all

 

[aaarcher86]

Why would blood pressure issues be considered a mobility issue ?

Because the problem that needs to be solved is that she can't stand for long periods of time.

It doesn't sound like there's the same guidelines at Universal, but I mentioned it because you brought up the WDW pass. I believe you got the same answers in your thread on the WDW disabilities board.

 

[kamik86]

I thought about that too - but it's maybe 3-5 rides a day (we are going in low season) that would have long lines that might be an issue. We are planning to travel light to the parks to avoid the lockers so this is something to lug around the entire day just for a few rides with longer wait times.

When I went to Disney many years ago, I remember people were able to obtain a permission card that would allow the rider to return at a particular time instead of waiting in line. Could be for children with autism who could not be expected to stay calm for 75 mins wait, or similar issues. I'm guessing by the answers here that this thing was either not something available at Universal or no longer is given out. The rest of us had planned to wait in line while my Mom could take a leisurely walk or sit on a nearby bench and rejoin us at the end.

Buying the express pass seems like overkill - we have 4 days in the parks and are 4 people - so spending 1200$ on Express passes is way too much. I am Canadian so that's over 1700$CDN !! We are staying at the Cabana Bay and to upgrade to the Deluxe hotels would cost over 2400$ more than what we are currently paying (we have 2 rooms, 6 nights).

We'll have to time the busier rides at the beginning or end of the day, or she may simply skip them if she feels unable to stand still, which is unfortunate.

I think the issue that makes this less doable is that it would be almost impossible for them to give you a wait time that always worked out to her meeting you at the end. Heck if universal is like WDW it would be possible for you to end up in separate load areas if your not careful.

 

[1tripandIfell]

When in Disney at the beginning of the month we had one member in our party of 9 that had issues with her knee. She also had a handicap DL and tag, she was able to register herself and the rest of the party for the service of giving a return time and using the FP line. Of course she didn't do the big coasters so we couldn't use it on this but it was still nice to use for the shows and such. Not sure if US does this also. but dealing with the line for 20 mins instead of 60+ is a lot more manageable.

 

[chmurf]

Not being able to stand for long would be considered as a stamina issue, and TMs (CMs too) will advise using a wheelchair or scooter

And the WC is the way to go in this case.
Even using the EP line with the assistance pass could result in lines that may be longer than what the OP's mom could stand. A WC is the only way to guarantee that she will not get into a situation she's not comfortable with

Explain the situation at guest services, but be advised that the TM might deny the pass on the grounds that a WC is better suited to her needs