Elderly parent - 1st time whellchair?

[sam08223]

Planning a trip to WDW Jan "05 w/ DW. Mother-in Law and my Parents. MiL is beginning to have some trouble getting around -- her walks are getting shorter and she tires fairly quickly. We're considering a wheelchair for parts of our WDW visit(AK & Epcot are Big!). I'm a total novice when it comes to this -- Where are wheelchairs available? At the Resorts? or at the Parks? Do you need to reserve in advance? I think she'll be ok board the Disney buses but we would want to have a wheelchair available when she needs it. Thanks

 

[Sue & Co.]

I'm sure Sue M or someone else will post links but generally if you are going to need a wheelchair most of the time it is best to hire offsite. Also if you are not used to pushing a wheelchair it can be tiring as the parks are not level and even a slight incline seems horrendous by the end of the day. This is ok if there are a lot of pushers amongst your party so that you can take turns but otherwise you may want to consider an ECV. These can also be hired offsite and are usually easier to manage than the Disney ones, they allow the person using it to remain independent and you can also use it to put all the bags etc on.. the disney transportation can accomodate wheelchairs and I think usually ECV's so that would not be a problem. Wherever you decide to get it from I would strongly recommend either a wheelchair or ECV, Disney is exhausting for the fit and capable your MIL will have a much more enjoyable time with one.

Sue

 

[snubie]

I second the idea of an ECV. WDW is BIG. You will get very tired just pushing the chair from the room to the bus.

Stacey

 

[Cheshire Figment]

You may be better off renting an ECV, as pushing a wheelchair can get very tiresome, especially if you are not used to it. Also it depends on the weight of the passenger and the condition of the pusher(s). Some information for off-site rentals are:

Here are the urls and phone numbers:

Walker Mobility:
888-726-6837
www.walkermobility.com

Care Medical:
http://www.caremedicalequipment.com/
407-856-2273, Toll Free U.S and Canada (800) 741-2282

Randy'S Mobility is in Kissimmee
http://randysmobility.com
407-892-4777

Colonial Medical
http://www.colonialmed.com/about_cms.html
800-747-0246

ScootAround
http://www.scootaround.com
Toll-free, US and Canada 888-441-7575

I have used Walker a few times. They will ask for a credit card and charge it the day before arrival. They will deliver the ECV to your hotel bell services before your arrival and pick it up there after your departure. Their rates, especially for longer than a week, are much better than Disney's. Also, their scooters are much better.

In addition, your MIL will not feel that she is being a burdon to others, as it will give her independent mobility. There is quite a different mental state about being pushed in a wc and driving an ECV.

Note that most large grocery stores (and all Walmarts) have ECVs available for customer use. She might practice on one of these. Be sure to make her aware that the rentals are (1) not as large as the store ones, (2) much more maneuverable as they have only three wheels and not the giant basket, and (3) can go much faster than the ones in the store.

 

[SueM in MN]

Welcome to disABILITIES.
You've already gotten some good info, so I'll just add a bit.
As the others said, there are a lot of advantages to having an ecv and renting from one of the off-site locations allows you to have one for places like DD and your resort too.
If you want to rent from the parks, they are first-come, first served, no reservations. Wheelchairs are usually not a problem to get, but ECVs are in limited supply and there is no guarantee that they will have one when you get there or if you park hop. The WDW resorts may have wheelchairs available to lend for your length of stay. Some people have reported good luck, other have had some problems because what was available did not meet their needs (like extra wide when they needed narrow, or vice versa).
Here's a link to the official Disney website with information about renting wheelchairs and ecvs at the parks.
Almost 100% of the buses are wheelchair/ecv accessible and can carry up to 2 ecvs or wheelchairs. The boats at the Epcot resorts and the monorails are wheelchair/ecv accessible.

 

[pampam]

Has she driven an ECV before? I took my mother but she couldn't handle the evc in the crowds. The wheelchair worked out much beter for her. Also, I know she would never be able to handle an evc on the buses. The wheelchair rentals are quite a hike from the monorail or buses, and the walk can be exhausting with the people exiting the monorail at the same time etc. The wheelchairs from the resorts are convenient if you are not planning on leaving Disney, and I found them very accomodating about getting a pediatric wheelchair from someplace when there were none available. We only waited about 5 minutes.