wheelchair and waiting in line?

[Shorty82]

This is interesting!

We were in Disneyland in Dec and we went in the back way to almost every ride with the wheelchair. I just figured WDW would be the same. I'm glad I found this forum.

Hubby and I are going to WDW Dec 6-11, for the first time. Hubby is in the wheelchair. I've read that AK is a little rough to manouver. Is this true?

AFL

Disneyland is like that because it was built in 1955, WAY before handicapped accessability was even a thought. There are a few rides in the Magic Kingdom and Epcot that aren't mainstreamed due to those parks being built before the ADA. Everything in Disney Studios and Animal Kingdom are mainstreamed as they were built after the ADA was passed.

The disABILITIES FAQ at the top of the forum has a lot of information on going to WDW disabled.

 

[Haley Whippet]

This is interesting!

We were in Disneyland in Dec and we went in the back way to almost every ride with the wheelchair. I just figured WDW would be the same. I'm glad I found this forum.

Hubby and I are going to WDW Dec 6-11, for the first time. Hubby is in the wheelchair. I've read that AK is a little rough to manouver. Is this true?

AFL

Hi! Are you going to MouseFest? We will be there too!
Welcome to the boards!
P.S. My DH found it hard pushing me all day at AK Because of the rough terrain, and hills. I now have a ECV..
Deb

 

[mechurchlady]

Because of the theming at AK, many of the roads are "distressed" and can be very bumpy. Also, there are a lot of hills there that are not noticible to most people but if you are in a chair or ECV they are definitely noticed.

Long ago I read about how drivers on steep hills would turn their cars sideways and wait for the car to settle down then continue up the hill. This was probably the 1920's. At Animal Kingdom that paid off as there were times when the hills were rather steep. The ECV would be slowing down on a hill so I would turn it parallel and then start up again. Yep AK does have bumpy areas and hills but they are not as bad as the Quail Garden in the San Diego area or the Wild Animal Park where I took my sandals off and slowly got Mom down a hill backwards. I also do not like cobblestone paving.

 

[AFL]

I read the FAQ section. It was very useful. THANK YOU very much.

Thanks everyone for the info, too.

We are not going to MouseFest (I'm still trying to find out what it is about). But it looks like our itinary has us in the same parks on the same days as MouseFest.

AFL

 

[pdweaver]

Wheelchair users do not get to go to the front of lines.

Here's what it says in the official WDW Guidebook for Guests with Disabilities about Mainstream Lines and the list of attractions with Mainstream Queues:
As you can see, most of the lines are Mainstream Queues:

Magic Kingdom® Park
Ariel's Grotto
Astro Orbiter
Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin
Donald's Boat
Judge's Tent
Mickey's Country House
Mickey's PhilharMagic
Mike Fink Keelboats (seasonal)
Minnie's Country House
Pirates of the Caribbean
Space Mountain®
Splash Mountain®
Stitch's Great Escape!™
The Barnstormer at Goofy's Wiseacres Farm
"The Enchanted Tiki Room Under New Management"
The Hall of Presidents
The Magic Carpets of Aladdin
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
The Laugh Floor
Tomorrowland® Indy Speedway
Toontown Hall of Fame
Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress (seasonal)

And, some attractions have limited number of spots for wheelchairs. We have already shown up for shows where there was still room for ambulatory people, but the wheelchair spots were already filled for that show and we had to wait for the next one (Voyage of the Little Mermaid, where we had Fastpasses; and ITTBAB, where the CMs were practically begging people to come into the queue because there was no wait in the standby line.
There may be an additional wait for someone who needs a wheelchair accessible ride vehicle or if there are already people with disabilities waiting.

I have a question about some of the rides that are said to have mainstream lines at MK. If I remember correctly, the Pirates of the Carribean has a lot of stairs to walk up and down in the mainstream line? How are these accessible then? I may be wrong and I never really thought about it before, but now that I require the use of a wheelchair, I have had to think about it.

The same goes for Splash Mountain. How can it be mainstreamed with the stairs? Is there something special to look for to let you know exactly where to go or what to do in this situation? The INDY speedway is the same thing - more stairs?

I am all for waiting in lines and I am not looking for anything special, it's just that I can't put any weight on my left leg for another 3 weeks and to walk on crutches all day would ruin the Disney experience not only for me, but also for my family.

Is there someone who can clarify these rides with the stairs that are supposed to be "mainstreamed?" Thanks

ONLY 5 DAYS UNTIL WE GO!!!

 

[Cheshire Figment]

Pirates does not have stairs; however it has some fairly steep internal ramps.

Spalsh has stairs very close to the boarding area itself. If you are in a wheelchair or ECV you will go most of the way through the queue until a section with a wheelchair arrow. This will allow you to bypass the stairs.

 

[SueM in MN]

Pirates does not have stairs; however it has some fairly steep internal ramps.

Spalsh has stairs very close to the boarding area itself. If you are in a wheelchair or ECV you will go most of the way through the queue until a section with a wheelchair arrow. This will allow you to bypass the stairs.

agreeing with Cheshire Figment.

Pirates had quite a maze of queue (which may be different each time you go in depending on how they have the chains set up), but there are no stairs.

Some of the attractions that they list as Mainstream do have a 'pull off' area for wheelchairs fairly close to the regular boarding area. They seem to count them as Mainstream if the majority of the wait is in the same line for everyone.

And, there are times when a CM will take a wheelchair party out of the Mainstream line. From what CMs have told me, it is usually for a reason that the guest is not aware of - it could be that the attraction has a mainstream line, but a separate boarding area for guests with wheelchairs and that area is empty right then. It could be that the CM got an assignment to spread some magic. Whatever the reason, the guest may not know.

 

[pdweaver]

Thank you for all of the input. I appreciate all the help with the questions and all. It helps to have these boards to clarify a lot of questions!!

 

[kimsuenew]

Pirates also has a (junky) elevator that I took up. I could not ride very many rides, in fact I only rode rides at MK, with the exception Finding Nemo and Kali River Rapids. My mobility is not good enough to be able to sit in low rides that are hard to get out of or rides where my knees must be bent a lot. I could not do Splash Mountain or Space Mountain. I was able to do Big Thunder Mountain. Also, any rides that have a floor that moves (where you board from) they will stop it or at least slow it way down for you... most of the time without asking! I think Disney really tries to accomodate. Make sure you get a GAC, get it for your entire length of stay! I was a dummy, thought I had to get a new one everyday! Midway through our vacation, at MGM, I mentioned it and they ask me through when we were staying, and gave me one for the remainder of our trip! I hope that you all have a wonderful & magical trip! Enjoy!

 

[SueM in MN]

Pirates also has a (junky) elevator that I took up. I could not ride very many rides, in fact I only rode rides at MK, with the exception Finding Nemo and Kali River Rapids. My mobility is not good enough to be able to sit in low rides that are hard to get out of or rides where my knees must be bent a lot. I could not do Splash Mountain or Space Mountain. I was able to do Big Thunder Mountain. Also, any rides that have a floor that moves (where you board from) they will stop it or at least slow it way down for you... most of the time without asking! I think Disney really tries to accomodate. Make sure you get a GAC, get it for your entire length of stay! I was a dummy, thought I had to get a new one everyday! Midway through our vacation, at MGM, I mentioned it and they ask me through when we were staying, and gave me one for the remainder of our trip! I hope that you all have a wonderful & magical trip! Enjoy!

Yes, if you ride Pirates, make sure to look for the elevator at the exit. It is small and old (it's been there since 1971 when the park opened). If you have a wheelchair or mobility problems, it is better to ride the elevator than go up the steep moving ramp.

The CMs will slow most of the rides with moving walkways for people with wheelchairs, ECVs or obvious disabilities when you board at the exit. They usually won't bring it to a complete stop unless you tell the CM that you need it stopped.

For the GAC, they do usually ask what the length of your stay is and make out the GAC for that amount of time. Sounds like they missed that step with you.

 

[madenon]

And then you think you know what the ride and queue is like and than a CM might just go ahead and surprise you. Silly me was so enthousiastic about POTC, I never noticed it being a "transfer into" ride. There I came, driving upto the queue with my powerchair. The CM asked me if I could transfer to a manual chair of WDW, to which I told him I could but can't move the chair. He asked me if there wasn't anybody to push me, so I told him I was travelling with me, myself and I, and I and myself were to selfish to push me. By that point I already accepted that POTC wasn't going to happen, tough luck.

POTC did happen and how! That CM radio'd for another CM to come take his place and he took me 'round the back and went on the ride with me as soon as he noticed I'm having some problems standing and the transfer is a bit of a challenge. We ended up riding POTC twice in a row in a boat for just the two of us, accompanied by a lot of stories about how the ride was build, pointers on where to look for those small special things and a lot of extra amusement in the form of his best pirate behaviour. Getting of the ride, he gave me a push back to my own chair -ran into Cpt. Hook and Smee backstage, again; great bonus- and gave me some great tips about some shows, when to get the best chance to see which caractre with the least waiting etc.

 

[kimsuenew]

Oh wow, that is to cool! I am sure that CM enjoyed themselves as much as you did. POTC is really a pretty neat ride, isn't it?