Wheelchair travel

[Paticake]

Due to a recent knee injury it looks like I may have to use a wheelchair (at least some of the time) on my vacation in 2 weeks. Is there a rental that would cover the whole week or is it just daily? We are DVC members and travel frequently (2 or 3x/year) to WDW. My husband and son say they will have no problem pushing me if need be. Also can you get a chair at your resort or only in the parks. No one wants to cancel but I am getting a bit nervous. TIA

 

[Cheshire Figment]

There are basically three options regarding long-term wheelchair rentals for WDW.

First (and least recommended) is the advance payment option. The current daily rate is $10. You buy a strip of tickets for $8 per ticket, and each day you go to the stroller/wheelchair rental and get a chair. They will date stamp one of the tickets. You can leave the wc at the gate on your way out. If you do any park hopping, when you get to your next park all you have to do is show the ticket with that day's stamp on it to borrow one.

Next (of sometimes questionable use) is borrowing a wc from your resort. This is a loan at no charge. However, (a) they don't take reserbations, (b) what they have may be the wrong size, and (c) they may not have one available for loan when you arrive. They will normally take a credit card imprint and if you do not return the chair the charge will be on the order of $250.

Best is probably contacting one of the companies listed in the "disABILTIES! FAQ" under ECV and wc rental. They will deliver a chair to your hotel for you, and pick it up on your departure. They will ask size and weight and have a proper sized chair available. Also, they are the only ones who will have wc's with adjustable foot rests, crutch holders, or other necessary accessories available.

Also, you might want to look into renting an ECV, which is a bit more expensive than a wc, but it does not have to be pushed and it gives the user more of a sense of independence. BTW, note that there are hills in the parks. Most people don't notice them unless they are pushing a wheelchair, which can in itself be very diffifcult unless they really are used to it.

 

[OKWMom]

Best is probably contacting one of the companies listed in the "disABILTIES! FAQ" under ECV and wc rental. They will deliver a chair to your hotel for you, and pick it up on your departure. They will ask size and weight and have a proper sized chair available. Also, they are the only ones who will have wc's with adjustable foot rests, crutch holders, or other necessary accessories available.

Also, you might want to look into renting an ECV, which is a bit more expensive than a wc, but it does not have to be pushed and it gives the user more of a sense of independence. BTW, note that there are hills in the parks. Most people don't notice them unless they are pushing a wheelchair, which can in itself be very diffifcult unless they really are used to it.

We used Care Medical (one of the companies mentioned in the sticky) for our trip earlier this month and the service was wonderful. The chair was waiting for us at arrival and we dropped it off with bell services at our departure.

I will also agree that if you are not accustomed to pushing someone in a chair, it can be quite a surprising workout. I did most of the pushing and by day three, I was very sore and thankful for the hot tub in our villa.

 

[Paticake]

Thanks for the info. My mom is in a wheelchair due to a stroke and we have taken her to WDW 3x so we know about the hills etc. I am really hoping to manage without a chair but as the vacation gets closer I'm not so sure. Maybe the scooter would be an option.