Wheelchair Assistance - Parking like a stroller ?

[kylieh]

DD will be 9, will probably need a wheelchair at times to help her get around when we visit DW in September. We did this for trip to DL a year ago (too tall then for a stroller.)

We used the wheelchair as you would a stroller. Parked it and did normal lines. Last year in DL if we let her she would of tried to use the wheelchair all the way to the attraction to skip lines completely. We want to avoid that behaviour - she can do some lines.

Will we be able to park her rented wheelchair as you would a stroller? We'll be using FastPass, going in end of September when looking at TouringPlans it's v quiet for most attractions.

In DL because we were so close I could go back to the hotel to rub out her legs, stretches, etc. Are there places in DW parks I could do this? I had a quick look through the threads, couldn't see anything about it. Because we'll have the chair I don't think we'll need to do it a lot, but just in case.

Can I rent a wheelchair at the International Gateway in Epcot or do I need to go to the main entrance.

 

[disney david]

yes you can rent a wheel chair at the world traveler it the store right by that entrance their plenty of cms their can help you rent one.

 

[KPeveler]

Keep the chair with you in lines - Almost all lines in WDW are mainstreamed, which means you wait in the regular lines even with a wheelchair.

You can always use the First Aid center to relax and stretch if need be, but the only non-mainstreamed line I can think of in Epcot is Spaceship Earth, and you still end up waiting for that ride, you just wait in a separate spot. I pretty much always wait the regular amount of time when I am in WDW. If you check out the FAQs at the top of the forum there is more information about what lines have mainstreamed queues.

 

[clanmcculloch]

Yes you can rent a wheelchair at the parks just like you can rent a stroller. Keep in mind though that it's sized for an adult, not a 9 year old. That could get pretty uncomfortable for her. The standard chairs are 18". When we rented a chair for DD10 (around 80lb and 4'9"), a 16" chair was a much better size for her. No way could she have sat in an 18" chair all day. In addition, I don't believe the park chairs have leg supports. A rental from offsite will give you these. This will also allow you to have the chair for that walk to the International Gateway or to DHS or to and from the bus stop when going to MK and AK (the walk from the bus stop to the entrance isn't exactly short).

Yes you can park the chair as you would a stroller. Just keep in mind how long some of the ride queues can be as well as how long some of the waits for shows can be.

 

[kylieh]

Thanks everyone for your help. I'll hire DD a 16" offsite and have it avail. DD is progressing well with physio, and we start our extended walking program next week - coincidently, timing is great as we get her puppy this weekend! Her physio thinks even with extending her program she's not going to be ready for the full week (inc daytime breaks) in September.