Hello all. We will be travelling in Jan with my mom who has MS and my 94 year old Grandmother. I know my mom wants the
ECV, but would 1 of each be easier to deal with?
Probably.
To safely drive an ECV, you need to be able to be aware of and react to all sorts of things in the environment. People do frequently step out in front of you and you need to be able to stay attentive, anticipate things that might happen and be ready to stop quickly. The constant need for staying attentive can be mentally tiring.
If your mom feels she would be comfortable driving one, I would say go for it for her. If she has any visual issues associated with her MS, she may find it challenging to drive one, especially in MK where it can get quite tight.
I don't know that my grandma could even control one, and pushing her along might be easier.
I would suggest a wheelchair for her. She will be able to look at the park and what's going on rather than having to spend all of her energy just driving the ECV.
Now, we are staying at BLT, so are these allowed on the Monorail?
the monorails are wheelchair and ECV accessible. As you drive up to the station with a mobility device, you will be directed to a specific section of the monorail. The CM will put a ramp up to the door for the driver of the wheelchair or ECV to drive up to get into and out of the monorail.
There are some very small boats that go between the MK resorts and the MK. Those boats require a step down and are not accessible for
ECVs. Guests with wheelchairs can use them IF they can get out, Step down into the boat and fold and carry the wheelchair onto the boat, it is possible to use the smaller boats.
The large boats, like the ferries and friendship boats are accessible.
busses are all accessible and have spaces for between 2 and 5 mobility devices.
You may find there is not enough space because of other guests already using the spaces and you need to wait for another bus. That does happen occasionally, but not that often.
With a wheelchair, you do have the option to fold it and transfer to a bus seat.
Would it just be easier to rent one daily for them at the parks we visit? Like if we get there 45 mins early how are our chances of getting them? Thank you for all the help!!!
I would rent from off site given your situation. The walk from your room to the bus or monorail stop can be long - especially when coming back when to the resort at the end of the day. Plus, it would give somewhere to sit while waiting .
Having one would also give you a place to sit while waiting and on the ride. The resorts are large and with off site rental ones, they would be able you have a mobility device for getting around the resort.
You can find more information about renting wheelchairs and ECVs in the disABILITIES FAQs thread. It is near the top of this board or follow the link in my signature. There is also a post about transportation with a mobility device and other posts that would probably be helpful. You can find out what is in each post by looking in post one of that thread.
