mobile challenged husband

[DWorldObsessed]

Going to Disney World in May. My husband has some bad days when walking too much is too much. He is concerned about this. He is young and it upsets him about his health. Any suggestions of how we make this a good trip? If we use a wheelchair, is there a place to leave it when going on rides or in shops?

 

[Selket]

I don't have the answers but until someone else does you could check out the info in the DisAbilities FAQ here: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=595713

If you scroll down in the FAQ there is info on using a wheelchair or ECV at WDW (where to get them, whether to rent and so forth).

Perhaps that will get you started - have a great trip!

 

[kidangel]

We're in the same situation. We've found that it's easiest just to start the trip in the wheelchair and use it the whole time. Just walking from the room to the food court a few times would probably be too much walking for DH, and it would take him the next three days to recover from it. In other words, he gets into the wheelchair before he has to, because by the time he needed it, it would be too late for him to have any enjoyment of the rest of the trip.
The Disney resorts have wheelchairs that you can borrow, with a deposit, for your entire stay, but they can't guarantee one will be available on arrival. We've started taking one from home (we got it because it's useful for anything that requires a lot of walking, like trips to the mall, etc.) It's beyond convenient to not have to worry about renting one at the parks, and the Disney transportation system makes it very easy to get around with the wheelchair as well.
On my first trip to WDW in 1980, when I was 8, my grandmother broke her leg three weeks before our trip, so she needed a wheelchair. I am constantly amazed at how far WDW has come in improving accessibility in the last 25 years. Our experiences with the wheelchair now are completely different.

 

[SueOKW]

I think that using the chairs may have downsides - people staring etc... (see the post about spending a day in a wheelchair)... HOWEVER they are critical to ensuring a good time at WDW.

He will become too tired to enjoy anything if he insists on walking. That will stress you both out. You need to take it slowly and enjoy every moment.

I agree that Disney has come such a long way in helping people with disabilities. We bought into DVC because we realized it was the best place in the entire country for our family to have a comfortable, happy and easy vacation. They have never let me down.

have fun!!!

 

[SueM in MN]

Agreeing with the others

One thing people don't realize is the incredible distances involved in a trip to WDW. Its' about 1.3 miles just to go around WS in Epcot. I've heard estimates that the average WDW visitor walks between 3 and 6 miles per day. That's a lot more walking than most of us do during the day.

Anyway, to answer your question about places to park the wheelchair. If he chooses to walk in lines, he would be able to leave the wheelchair outside the ride with the strollers. You can ask the CM before getting into line how long of a walk/wait is involved and use the wheelchair in line if too long. Some rides I can think of that have long walks (even if the wait is not long) are Pirates, Kilamonjaro Safari, Bug's Life.

For shops, it's often easier to park outside than to bring the wheelchair in. You can usually find an out of the way place where you can park.

He might also want to look into renting an ecv (electric scooter). That way, he would have more independence and no one would have to push him.