Anyone experience WDW with blind relative?

[Gypsysmak]

My grandmother is nearly blind (macular degeneration). We're going in January. It will be me (25), my grandmother (84) and my daughter (3). Does anyone have any experience in the parks with a family member/guest that is blind? Do you have any helpful tips? We're staying at the Poly for ease of the monorail (can't wait!!!) :minnie:

Right now she is adamant about not using a wheelchair, but I'm hoping (well, more than hoping) that she'll relent and let us get a push wheelchair for the parks. Are the wheelchairs wide enough for her and my daughter to sit in together? (G'ma is small, about 120 lbs.) I figured I'd leave the stroller at home and rent a wheelchair everyday for both g'ma and dd.

I'd love to hear any experiences or tips from others who have been in similar situations. Thanks in advance.

[MMouse6937]

I do know that WDW is very accomodating with any guest with special needs.

I would say her and DD could probably fit in the wheelchair, but she might have to sit on grandma's lap

My cousin was blind after leukemia and her favorite ride was Small World because it was the most exciting for her to hear. She made my poor Grandpa go on that ride on loop. He said it drove him crazy, but I know he loved it! She died shortly after their trip to WDW. :)

Have fun on your trip! :)

[Scar]

Right now she is adamant about not using a wheelchair, but I'm hoping (well, more than hoping) that she'll relent and let us get a push wheelchair for the parks.My only advice is please don't "make" her use a wheelchair if she doesn't want to. That would not be right.

[Gypsysmak]

My only advice is please don't "make" her use a wheelchair if she doesn't want to. That would not be right.

ROFL!!! I don't think I could "make" my grandmother do anything she doesn't want to, and I am anything but a forceful person. I'd carry her on my back before getting her a wheelchair if that's what she wanted.

[Gypsysmak]

I do know that WDW is very accomodating with any guest with special needs.

I would say her and DD could probably fit in the wheelchair, but she might have to sit on grandma's lap

My cousin was blind after leukemia and her favorite ride was Small World because it was the most exciting for her to hear. She made my poor Grandpa go on that ride on loop. He said it drove him crazy, but I know he loved it! She died shortly after their trip to WDW. :)

Have fun on your trip! :)


I'm so sorry to hear about your cousin. That is so sad. I think my grandmother is insisting on going to Disney World (which is funny because you don't have to twist my arm too hard) because she wants to spend that special time with my daughter before she gets too old to go. She keeps regaling us with stories from when she and my grandfather went to Disney World right after it opened. I can hardly wait to take her there with my dd...they really adore each other.

[Tez]

I did encounter a blind lady just outside of the restrooms at the Festival of the Lion king pavilion. She was standing there with her husband and they asked me if I would take her to the restroom. I of course said yes. I took her hand and lead her into the restrooms and into the stall explaining to her where everything was in the stall and then I held the stall door shut for her. She let me know when she was finished and I helped her to the sink and then out to her husband. I could not help but wonder how many people turned them down before I took her into the restroom. i would hope they would not have stood there ver long.

Just a suggestion:
I were you and since you will be traveling with a little one that the best thing to do is use the family restrooms if everyone is ok using them together but I would ask your grandmother before she has to use them if that is ok.

[drhama]

I went to WDW last fall with my mother who is almost totally blind. Just the two of us. We had a great time but many issues came up that I had not considered and I certainly did my homework. There is no consistency with the buses, rides and such as far as how they load, how many steps, which side is the railing on, up or down.....lots of challenges. A wheel chair makes many of those easier. One big issue is that people do not take notice or care about people using a cane. Children and adults would run over my mom or knock her cane away. On the up side, there are lots of sounds, smells, and things to touch. AK is great. So many things are carved. Mom loved that. Something that was fascinating to me was, how much the visual cues make a ride. Star tours is absolutly nothing if you can't see the screen. We compared our ride experiences on everything. Really fun. Mom also really like just listening to the people around her. I would park her on a bench and go do Aerosmith alone. Not her cup of tea. I felt kind of bad about it the first time we did not do a ride together but, she really enjoyed that alone time to just listen. We did go through many of the pre show areas together and then a cast member would escort mom to a waiting area if the ride was more than she wanted to do. Mom's disability gave me a whole different outlook of WDW. I noticed things that I have never taken the time to appreciate in the many trips I have taken. I am sure that you too will come away with priceless memories that most people would never even think about. FYI - the bug movie at AK is a riot with your eyes closed.

[laprana]

I beleive that PassPorter has a guide book for people with special needs like different health issues or physical challenges. You might consider checking that out, as it might have some good tips for you and your grandmother during your WDW visit. Have a great trip! :mickey:

[tink'72]

My husband is almost totally blind. No vision at all in the right eye and minimal vision in his left. We go to WDW every year. It is difficult and I have found Disney is not helpful at all. Since you can't see my husbands disability I always got the feeling that the cast members thought we were trying to pull one over on them. Even with a disability pass and his commission of the blind id. The one thing I would say is don't make your gradma use a wheelchair if she doesn't want to .

Our first trip to WDW after he lost his eye sight my son was 2. Instead of using a cane my husband pushed the carriage at his own pace and let that guide his way. The one thing I will say is you have to go slow. You can't rush from one thing to another. I was worried what his experience would be since he could no longer see and Disney is such a visual place. He had a good time. We took a little longer on the rides and longer in stores looking at things so he could fully enjoy his time as well. The twisty turny turnstiles were hard to maneuver but you just have to take your time.

We took our own car so we didn't have to use the buses which would have been hard for him.

My advice take it easy go slow and have a great trip!

[drhama]

I did very carefully read the Passports Disability book. People with vision disabilities have very different needs from the "standard" disabilities and were not really addressed in the book in a way that was helpfull. Most places tand people think that they are compliant because they have wheel chair ramps. Unless you regularly deal with vision problems, you just don't recognized what these people need.
I too got the disability badge from Disney. I found the cast members very considerate. Mom did always have her white cane with her so it was easier to see what her issue was. She got confused on a ride and sat on her cane and broke it. She was devistated. The cast member that helped her into the ride said "not to worry". When the ride was over, he had gotten us a wheel chair. It worked out great. Mom did not like the idea that I would have to work so hard to push her for the remainder of the day but, it was acctually easier. People did not knock her around as she was in the chair. Mostly, I found the cast members very accomodating but Disney could certainly make vision disabilities a larger consideration when plan new rides or exhibits.

[TheRustyScupper]

1) We took a relative who is blind.
2) Wow, it is a totally different way to tour the parks.

3) Some touring observations
. . . as mentioned above, walk at THEIR pace
. . . using a cane can help with rude crowds, but not always
. . . be on the lookout and warn about steps and payment breaks

4) Some ride observations
. . . most MK-Epcot-AK-MGM rides work really well
. . . Pirates and Splash are good if you warn of drops
. . . coasters provide too much disorientation for many folks
. . . ToT can be a great experience
. . . avoid violent simulators (eg. Dinosaur, Star Tours)
. . . use Chicken Room for Star Tours - no motions
. . . boats and launches make good experiences

[MMouse6937]

1) . . . be on the lookout and warn about steps and payment breaks



I hate payment breaks, they seem to happen to me a lot :D JK

Wow, really great advice, I never thought of experiecing WDW this way. Good luck to you, have fun and cherish every moment!

[Gypsysmak]

I hate payment breaks, they seem to happen to me a lot :D JK

Wow, really great advice, I never thought of experiecing WDW this way. Good luck to you, have fun and cherish every moment!

:funny: ROFL!

Thanks y'all. You're very helpful. Wendy @ MJ told me about the Passporter's book for the disabled. I want to go pick that up this weekend. So I can pick up a guest assistance card @ guest services? This is going to be the coolest, most laid back trip ever. I can hardly wait to take her..doubt she'll be wanting to ride ToT or Rockin' Roller Coaster though. I don't think Disney would let her even if she wanted to...lol. I wasn't planning on going to AK at all since it closes early and we don't have park hopper tickets, but there is a chance we can get upgraded to park hoppers and my sister (who is down there right now) said that the Nemo show is super cool. We're staying at the Poly for ease of the monorail and to avoid as much bus use as possible. She loves to shop though, so I'd love to take her down to DTD...I'd like to grab another "all you can fit" box of Mr. Potato Head pieces too. Thanks again y'all! This helps a lot!