Why is a Handicapped room such a bad thing?

[Deemarch]

I've seen many people say that they absolutely do not want one...WHY?

 

[floridafam]

A lot of them have the roll in shower which just doesn't work for a family with small children, like ours.

At VB, we shower at least twice a day and the mess we would make in a roll in shower would be huge.

We did get a HA room at a chain hotel last year and it also had a jacuuzzi tub. We used the tub.

I don't think there is anything bad about HA rooms. I think the only time it wouldn't work for us would be the situation mentioned above.

 

[littlestar]

There are no drawers underneath the sinks usually. For our family with daughters this means toiletries scattered all over the floor underneath the sink. A constant messy look and constant bending and stooping over to pick up your make-up, etc. yuck
Also, the kitchenette is pretty much the same way. You have to have it empty underneath for a wheelchair to be able to roll underneath. So not much storage areas. I don't think it would be as bad in a one or two bedroom. Also, if you have small children and no bath tub and they are afraid of showers, it could make for an interesting vacation!

Also, the floor can get messy with water. You usually have to worry about water flooding the bathroom (roll-in showers with no water stops).

 

[nezy]

I was wondering that same thing until I got a HA room at Vero.
We checked in Vero onNew Year's EVE(on 1/31). I was offered a HA room and asked what would be the difference. It was explained to me about the shower and bathroom situation. I thought no problem. My children are btn 5 and 9, so bath tub was not an issue. My only concern was if someone who needed an HA room checked in and I had it. CM assured that was not a problem.

I AM SO GLAD I GOT THIS HA ROOM! It had so much extra space for an Inn room. It was an L shape. a bedroom w/ an alcove, with an extra couch. You could sleep 6 comfortably in this room if neccessary. The toiletries I could seeas being a problem. Perhaps a shoe bag to hang over a door would be good to put them, excpt the bathroom door was a pocket door. I would hang a shoe bag on the closet w/ all of the bathroom items in it. I did this last fall when I went to Puerto Rico and shared a room w/ 2 other girls.(Okay-so we are not quite girls anymore), but it saves alot of space.

 

[LisaR]

Does anyone know what a HA room like in a 2 bedroom? Do you still have the Jacuzzi tub? Thanks.

Lisa

 

[jghra]

We had a HA room at OKW (1 bedroom) last Fall and it still had the jacuzzi tub.

 

[Chuck S]

All 1 bdrm and larger HA units still have the jacuzzi tubs. The separate shower stall is replaced by a roll in shower.

 

[jennypenny]

Another problem with the HA room is that everything is lower. This might actually be welcome for some people, but I'm almost six feet, and my DH is 6' 5", and so having everything lower gets annoying if we're staying longer than a weekend.

 

[Simba's Mom]

The HA room we had also had no ledge around the sink, no counter space at all, so even tootbrushes had no place to sit. Also, the microwave was down on the counter (of course, it would be too high to reach if it was on the shelf as it is in a non-HA unit), leaving very little counter space there also (this was a studio-kitchenette). And there was no closet-the "closet" consisted of the 2 sides of the armoire that the TV was in, each side being about 6" wide.

 

[LisaR]

So, in a 2 bedroom is the master bathroom the one with the roll in shower, little counter space, etc? Does the 2nd bathroom remain unchanged? We will be in the lodge at HH this May because my mom can't do stairs. Since the lodge is the only place with HA rooms, I am 99% sure we will get stuck with one.

Lisa

 

[gopherit]

When we made ressies for a 2br at VWL, I was very concerned about the chance of getting a"HA" room. We would have 2 two-yr olds with us, and accessibility at low levels (to the stove, the door -- you name it!) could be VERY unwise with THAT age group!

I called MS and was informed I need not fear -- there are no dedicated HA 2BR rooms at VWL. Only lock-out. I have no idea if other resorts are like this (BWV has only lock-outs anyway, but BCV, OKW, and SSR all have dedicated 2 brs -- not sure if same applies to those resorts). Also, perhaps the MS person was mistaken -- although a desk clerk at VWL said the same thing.

 

[July]

My hubby & I just had a short stay last weekend at VWL in a Handicap 1bdr unit. I actually thought it was nice. Didn't mind it at all.

July

 

[Deemarch]

So VWL is the only place with the handicapped rooms? Are there going to be any in SSR?

 

[Chuck S]

All resorts are required by the ADA to have a certain percentage of HA rooms.

 

[CarolA]

ALL DVC resorts have these rooms. It is the law.

If this is the worst thing that ever happens to you, you are leading a charmed life. If it ruins your trip, my belief is that you need to think long and hard about what it would be like to need these facilities and not have them.

As we age with our memberships, odds are that more of us will need these rooms.

It would be interesting to come back to the same group of posters in 10 or 15 years and ask how many need these facilities.

 

[Chuck S]

Originally posted by CarolA
It would be interesting to come back to the same group of posters in 10 or 15 years and ask how many need these facilities.

Or how many complaints there are because they CAN'T get one and had to "make do" in a regular room. @#! Stairs at OKW

 

[CaliforniaDreaming]

Originally posted by gopherit
When we made ressies for a 2br at VWL, I was very concerned about the chance of getting a"HA" room. We would have 2 two-yr olds with us, and accessibility at low levels (to the stove, the door -- you name it!) could be VERY unwise with THAT age group!

I called MS and was informed I need not fear -- there are no dedicated HA 2BR rooms at VWL. Only lock-out. I have no idea if other resorts are like this (BWV has only lock-outs anyway, but BCV, OKW, and SSR all have dedicated 2 brs -- not sure if same applies to those resorts). Also, perhaps the MS person was mistaken -- although a desk clerk at VWL said the same thing.

Actually, while walking down the VWL hall last week while we were there, I noticed 2BR Dedicated villa #5544 had the two peep-holes, so I'm 99.9% sure it's handicap accessible. That was the only dedicated one I saw with the two peep-holes.

 

[crisi]

We had one at the BWV. Both the 1 bedroom and attached studio (we booked as a 2 bedroom) were HA with the roll in shower.

Our room had plenty of counter space. I don't recall if there were drawers in the bathroom or not, but there was certainly enough counter space for us (so rooms vary, but I've noticed from pictures that rooms vary anyway). There was no cabinet under the sink in the kitchen, so the trash was exposed. No kitchen "bar." I didn't notice the stove or counters or bed being lower (remove the knobs and/or burners with little hands anyway - its amazing how fast my kids learned to move a chair to get themselves into trouble), and I've heard the lightswitches are lower, but didn't notice.

It did take a shower or two to figure out the "trick" to not getting the floor wet (making sure the showerhead isn't pointed at the curtain, and a couple of spare towels on the floor). Being a one bedroom, it had the jacuzzi, so a tub for the kids wasn't an issue. (Though at four and five, both will shower if necessary, we don't bathe them more than twice a week unless they get into something (my son has ecxema), and the pool actually keeps them pretty clean)

Having the choice, I would choose a non-HA room over a HA one, but I wouldn't turn down a HA room. Reserving these rooms for only the mobility impared would be a poor use of resources - rooms going unused cost us all money - and, in order to have enough for a rush of the wheelchair bound, they need to have more than enough for normal traffic - so someone needs to stay in them. We don't spend oodles of time in our room anyway. There are requests I would recommend for the BWVs (like non-smoking, close to the elevators) before I'd worry about HA rooms. I'd prefer a HA room over a view of the dumpster, or a smoking room. If I list requests in order of preference, and stick to two requests, Non-HA wouldn't make my list.

We didn't spend a lot of time in the studio portion (my mother in law was in that room), so I can't speak to the counter space or kitchenette in the studio.

 

[LisaR]

Originally posted by CarolA
ALL DVC resorts have these rooms. It is the law.

If this is the worst thing that ever happens to you, you are leading a charmed life. If it ruins your trip, my belief is that you need to think long and hard about what it would be like to need these facilities and not have them.

As we age with our memberships, odds are that more of us will need these rooms.

It would be interesting to come back to the same group of posters in 10 or 15 years and ask how many need these facilities.

Carol,
Not sure if you were directing this at any one person or not. Just in case you thought I was making some reference to it being the "worst thing that ever happens" to us or that it will "ruin our trip," I can assure you, it won't do either. Maybe I missed that in another post (I tend to skim) but I didn't think anyone suggested it would ruin their trip. On the other hand, I know we will end up with a HA room in HH. We will have a 2 bedroom lockoff in the lodge so it is almost certain. That said, I want to plan ahead. If the second bathroom is unchanged, then that will be where the kids shower. If they shower in a roll in shower, I am certain all of HH will be flooded! Plus, my mom uses this bench type thing when she showers. It works great in a regular bathtub. I am not sure how well it would work in a roll in shower. So, in my case, I am simply trying to plan ahead so we can be prepared with both my mom and our kids.

Lisa

 

[Chuck S]

LisaR,
If I read your post correctly, you'll be in HH with your Mom in HA 2 bedrom, and your Mom has a shower seat?

It has been quite some time since I stayed in a HA room at OKW (and HH may be different of course), but I seem to remember the roll in shower having a a fold down seat that could be used. You may want to check with the resort before you haul something with you.