Another wheelchair ?

[andreallybadeggs]

Been several times but never rented a wc. Taking my brother/sil/ and their grandsons to WDW in a couple of weeks for a short visit; probably just in the parks 2 days. My SIL has finally admitted that she is likely to be in too much pain (arthritis + neck and back surgeries) to make it through a couple of days in the parks w/out help. We're staying off property and likely will do MK one day and park hop from DHS in a.m. (mostly for TSMania) to AK on the second day. If time allows, may even go back to DHS for Fantasmic since this will be the boys only Disney trip for many years. We'll get to MK at opening time on a non EMH day so should be OK there but I'm concerned that on the park hop day there will not be wc's available later in the day. Would you recommend we bring our own?

[ElenitaB]

Wheelchairs are available in larger quantities than ECVs. I didn't notice when exactly your group is travelling, but even during President's Week in February (a rather busy time), there always seemed to be wheelchairs available.

That said, if you do have a wheelchair available, by all means bring it because the walks between transportation and the park entrance can be long. Should you decide to rent one, there are several providers in Orlando. From personal experience renting ECVs, I can recommend CARE and Buena Vista Scooter Rentals (however, I'm not sure if BVSR rents wheelchairs).

Also, don't forget to ask for passenger assistance at the airport. You do that through the airlines.

[thejens]

Will your sister be wheeling her own wc or will someone be pushing her? Regular (self propel) wheelchairs can be heavy to get in and out of a car trunk. If you are pushing her there are lighter wheel chairs available for purchase at your local drug store, but they must be pushed not self propelled. These are also less expensive than the heavy duty wheelchairs, possibly equivalent to rental costs. You might check to see if her insurance will cover the cost of a wc also. Be sure to get foot rests if she is unable to hold her legs up for a long time. You may find it worthwhile to rent the electric vehicle though, my Mom used one and LOVED it.

[andreallybadeggs]

Thanks for the responses. SiL has a friend who has offered to let her borrow a manual one. Since we are driving down and will have several people who can take turns pushing we'll try that first and then graduate to an electric if needed.

[ransam]

i p ushed my mom for years at disney. it's not hard to push....now i need one...but i use an EVC...i fell guilty having others push me around....