Strollers, Wheelchairs and Scooters

I got'cha sister.
(and that was the highly edited version)

I know that a lot of people do need them; I suffer from chronic pain myself, and have days where I can barely walk 100 feet. My mother would definitely need a scooter to make it thru the parks, even though she does not use one normally. And I occasionally need to use a cane, I am in my mid 30s and look to be in good health, but I too suffer invisibly.

I will likely need to use a wheelchair in the future, and when visiting the park I would prefer to wait in the regular lines, and if the chair/scooter won't go thru the line (for buses), then I will send DH thru the line, and meet him at the front.

My thought was that there is likely quite a few using them to cut lines, which makes it more difficult for those who legitimately need them. And that many of us that would need the assistance do not like being singled out, and would prefer to go with the crowd.

Kristen, I am sorry if I came across poorly, I would never judge another's pain,

It's okay Courtney, it's something that you will have to deal with in your own family and when the decision is finally made it won't be an easy one. My support goes out to everyone who struggles to just try and have a normal vacation.

Cheaters do make it very difficult for those with legitimate need. I feel like many Disney message boards add fuel to the fire though by creating an atmosphere on intolerance, I don't want our board to become one of them.

I think it also needs to be made clear that chairs do not always get priority. It really depends on where you are. For many of the resorts that pick up from several stops (All Star Sports, Music, Movies, Caribbean Beach, Saratoga Springs, internal Fort Wilderness to name a few) being in an ECV sometimes means that you have to wait past several buses to get on if there are already chairs that were loaded at stops ahead of yours. At Deluxe Resorts, boats and monorails are also limited in the number of chairs that they can hold. Guests who need mobility assistance frequently have to wait in these locations for the next vehicle while all of the able bodied passengers go ahead. At attractions in the Parks being in an ECV also frequently means that you need to wait longer, or differently than other guests. For instance, until about 2 years ago, wheelchair guests didn't get to see the stretching room at the Haunted Mansion.

There's a give and take here that many able bodied people don't even realize is going on, because they don't pay attention unless they feel wronged. Then (not accusing you of this, just that it seems to be the general perception) suddenly everyone in an ECV is a cheater and the system is broken.

I have an idea! Maybe we need to start threads all over the internet about how being in a scooter doesn't give you a front of the line pass everywhere and how people are rude to you, then it won't be as attractive to cheaters.

I'm just glad I don't need one (yet!), and can go to a place where everyone who does need one is accommodated.

I have to say that it is in fact very frustrating, especially the wait, but we have always reminded ourselves that we don't know what disability someone has so it's not our place to pass judgment. What I do think is that there definitely needs to be another way to accommodate all needs of guests using Disney transportation. Maybe at each resort's bus stops there could be another adjacent spot which would be for guests using ECV's and their family members, and extra buses could be added on to take on the additional stops? (Wishful thinking probably, but we're all about magic on here, right?)

As a mom of a toddler, we had the stroller on our last trip. I can't speak for other parents, but we were mindful to avoid bumping into other guests or stopping in the middle of the way with the stroller. I knew that this had been something that bothered me greatly on our previous kid-free trips, so we didn't want to be bothersome to other guests now that we had our son. My husband always tried his best to keep the stroller out of the way on the buses.

This speaks volumes for you. You were mindful, the majority of people are not. If more people would simply take a few extra moments (because being polite really doesn't take that much time) to make sure that they are part of the solution instead of the problem, it would be easier on everyone.

I don't know how to do that though, how to get people to slow down and be mindful of others. I think all that we can really do is be mindful for ourselves and hope to set a good example. There will always be cheaters and rude people, we just can't let them ruin our vacations.

I was just at DTD last week with coworkers during a break in our conference and they were all complaining about the scooters everywhere. I had to get all managerial on them and lecture them about equal opportunities! But I admit it, I used to get irritated by the scooters who held up the line, or cut in front of you, or just darn near ran you down and nipped at your heels, until it happened to me....

I was in a scooter for our last trip in May and I will tell you, it's no fun from that perspective either. I tore my ACL and fractured my tibia while training for Tough Mudder 2 weeks before we were supposed to head down to WDW (an ACL tear is NOT a life ending injury by any stretch of the imagination, but the fracture had to heal before he could do the surgery, so I was sort of double whammied in this case). The Dr told me in no uncertain terms that he was sending me for surgery and I was to use crutches until that point and cancel my trip so that the fracture could heal. I informed him in no uncertain terms that I was going to Disney, crutches or not. We finally negotiated down to the scooter for the trip, followed by surgery at his first available appointment when I got back.

I will say, overall, Disney is great with people with any sort of physical disability. The cast members are very helpful and understanding, completely non-judgmental. I would echo the above complaints that they should reconfigure the bus queues. Just because I'm not walking doesn't mean should zip past 50 people who are just as anxious to get to the park or get back to their hotel and get loaded first on the bus. I know I held up a number of bus lines trying to park my scooter in that little area on the bus. It was REALLY embarrassing for me, and wasn't helped by all the rude tourists who were clearly judging me (I can't tell you the number of comments and questions I received about what was "wrong" with me. Perhaps the brace on my right leg gives you a clue? Oh no? Well then, please let your child continue to stare and ask insensitive questions, like "is she in the scooter because she's fat?" - so maybe I had one too many Mickey waffles at o'Hana this morning, could you teach your child some manners, please - or at the very least to whisper??). I'm sure a number of people thought I was a "cheater" because I'd park my scooter and get up to walk into the line - often times a cast member would see me and would direct me and my traveling buddies through the fast pass line - even AFTER I reassured them that I could wait in the regular line (I will admit this wasn't a BAD thing for us, although I did feel a bit guilty). Although Disney does make a lot of accommodations for those with disabilities (and again, I am NOT trying to make it sound as if I was disabled, I just had some bad luck, but it gave me a definite appreciation for what others may go through), it's no picnic. Animal Kingdom is a nightmare for ECVs. Too small, too crowded, too many strollers and other ECVs - and those things do NOT stop on a dime - good Lord, the number of people I had to shout at frantically to GET OUT OF THE WAY because they'd suddenly stop in front of me and I was afraid I was going to hit them. I ended up frustrated and in tears because it was hard to keep up with everyone. By the final day, I finally gave up on the scooter and just sucked down a few extra vicadin and figured my doc was good enough, he could fix me up later if I did more damage, and walked around with everyone else.

So, I know this thread wasn't started to "ding" anyone and everyone is absolutely entitled to their opinion, but having seen both sides of things, I have to say, I think everyone should have to experience Disney (or heck, even Costco or Walmart) in a scooter. it's a game changer. I'm MUCH more tolerant now than I was a year ago!

Thanks so much for sharing!

I usually park my ECV outside and walk through the shops, because Disney Gift Shops are just not made for scooters. It's a little terrifying to me being lower than everyone else, people look right over the top of you like you don't even exist, add a crowd of people meandering through the small space and trying steer around the displays without knocking things over. OMG, anxiety attack!

Oh, hon, you don't have to be in an ECV to have people look right over you as if you aren't even there. You just have to be short. I once had some jerk behind me at a ballpark concession stand place his order right over my head. Another time, a cast member at Pirates of the Carribean asked the guy behind me how many people were in his party (I was alone).

A little scooter story. My husband and I were sat on the outside tables at the Italian pavilion, world showcase enjoying a glass of red wine, we were the only people at these tables, when a couple arrived on their scooters to watch the entertainment (the something (?) sisters) anyway the woman lost control of her scooter, reversed into the tables and chairs - we had a lucky escape due to quick reactions! The near disaster caused us to get talking to this couple who were from New York. We ended up spending about an hour chatting to them and having another glass of wine! They loved to be able to come to Disney on vacation and hire scooters as they both had some mobility issues. If they hadn't nearly killed/maimed us - accidently of course, we never would have met them and had such a lovely afternoon. However, I am very cautious now as some people are very bad (scooter) drivers!

Those things are DANGEROUS!! We were in line for the Harumbe tour, where they don't let you park until you get up to the front, so you stay on your scooter the entire way. My 3 year old "nephew" wanted to sit in my lap while we were in line. I was busy talking to people, noticed the line moved, went to drive my scooter forward a bit, and WHAM! Backed right into the person behind me (who was with our group THANKFULLY) and ran over her foot. I totally thought the scooter malfunctioned. Anyway, got it back into forward, moved up, apologizing profusely to my friend with the now squashed food, when I saw the line moved up, I went to move up, and went backwards again!! It was at this point that we all simultaneously realized that my little nephew had found the forward/reverse switch and was flipping it back and forth while we weren't watching!! He was quickly relocated to his stroller and we proceeded without incident for the rest of the line!