An accessible vacation

What can you ride?

Say what you use and what you can do at a ride, and every park answers: what is yours, how you board it, and what each of the others asks for. The small words are the parks’ own, as they are posted at the ride.

At the ride

• Wheelchair Access Vehicle the ride carries a guest who stays in a wheelchairMagic Kingdom Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin, "it's a small world", Jungle Cruise, Prince Charming Regal Carrousel, The Magic Carpets of Aladdin, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Under the Sea - Journey of The Little Mermaid, Walt Disney World Railroad - Fantasyland, Walt Disney World Railroad - Frontierland, Walt Disney World Railroad - Main Street, U.S.A.; EPCOT Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three Caballeros, Journey Into Imagination With Figment, Living with the Land, Remy's Ratatouille Adventure, The Seas with Nemo & Friends; Hollywood Studios Toy Story Mania!; Animal Kingdom Kilimanjaro Safaris, Wildlife Express Train
• Transfer Access Vehicle a ride seat made easier to get into and out of, such as a folding bolster or a door with a swinging thresholdMagic Kingdom Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Dumbo the Flying Elephant, Haunted Mansion, Mad Tea Party, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Tomorrowland Speedway, TRON Lightcycle / Run; EPCOT Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, Mission: SPACE, Remy's Ratatouille Adventure, Spaceship Earth, Test Track; Hollywood Studios Alien Swirling Saucers, Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster Starring The Muppets — New!, Slinky Dog Dash, Star Tours – The Adventures Continue, Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance; Animal Kingdom Avatar Flight of Passage, Expedition Everest - Legend of the Forbidden Mountain, Kali River Rapids
• Transfer Device helps a guest move between a wheelchair and the ride seatMagic Kingdom Mad Tea Party, Tiana's Bayou Adventure, Tomorrowland Speedway; EPCOT Frozen Ever After, Mission: SPACE, Test Track; Hollywood Studios Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway, Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run; Animal Kingdom Avatar Flight of Passage, Kali River Rapids, Na'vi River Journey
• Designated Transfer and Load Areas a separate place to board and leave the rideEPCOT Remy's Ratatouille Adventure, Test Track; Hollywood Studios Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway, Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run; Animal Kingdom Kali River Rapids, Kilimanjaro Safaris

At a ride marked Must Be Ambulatory, a guest walks by themselves or with help from their own party. A guest who uses a seat cushion every day may bring it onto the rides the parks list, if it fits without getting in the way of the ride’s safety features.

A day on wheels

Each park’s map, in Scooter mode, marks every ride by what you do there and puts the rides you can stay on your scooter for in the order that costs the least: the minutes between them and the climb, counted at what it costs a battery.

Magic Kingdom33 stay in your chair or on your scooter23 need a change to a wheelchair or onto the ridePlan the day on wheels →EPCOT58 stay in your chair or on your scooter12 need a change to a wheelchair or onto the ridePlan the day on wheels →Hollywood Studios23 stay in your chair or on your scooter10 need a change to a wheelchair or onto the ridePlan the day on wheels →Animal Kingdom36 stay in your chair or on your scooter9 need a change to a wheelchair or onto the ridePlan the day on wheels →Disney Springs11 stay in your chair or on your scooter4 need a change to a wheelchair or onto the ridePlan the day on wheels →

On the Time Machine, On Wheels sorts every place in each park by what it asks of you, and adds the ones you pick to your list.

See it before you go

Stand in a ride’s line from your chair or your scooter before the trip: the crowd at your own eye height, the steps and rough ground ahead, Disney’s own words on transferring, and the nearest restroom and drink. Then ride it.

Batteries and hills

Every foot a scooter climbs costs its battery about what 50 to 100 feet on the flat does.

It is plain physics, and it does not depend on who is riding: lifting the rider and the scooter a foot takes the energy that rolling them 50 to 100 feet takes, depending on the tyres. Going downhill gives little of it back. The parks are flat by most measures, but not everywhere, and the climbs add up over a day: on each park’s map, every walk says how much it climbs, and in Scooter mode what that climb costs, and the day’s total sits beside the miles.

How far one charge goes depends on the scooter, the battery’s age, the heat and the rider, so no range is given here. Hold the day’s miles, and its climb counted as extra miles, against what your own scooter is rated for.

Your own, rented, or delivered

Where the parks rent them

• Magic Kingdom at the park
• EPCOT Main Entrance and International Gateway
• Hollywood Studios Oscar's Super Service
• Animal Kingdom Garden Gate Gifts
• Disney Springs Singapore Sal's, Sundries, the Welcome Center and Marketplace Shipping

Getting around

• Buses Every bus route runs buses that take wheelchairs and ECVs: the device must fit the lift without being forced and be fastened in the restraints; most buses hold two; ECV riders are asked to move to a bus seat on board; guests with canes, walkers or crutches can board by the rear door, if they tell the driver first.
• Monorail Elevators or ramps at the Transportation and Ticket Center, Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, and the Grand Floridian, Polynesian and Contemporary.
• Skyliner The Skyliner takes guests with mobility devices; it links Hollywood Studios and EPCOT’s International Gateway with Art of Animation, Caribbean Beach, Pop Century and the Riviera.
• Boats Boats vary with the craft and the water; ask the Cast Member at the dock.
• Minnie Vans Accessible Minnie Vans, booked and paid through the Lyft app: five seats and two spaces where a rider stays in a wheelchair or scooter.
• Parking Disability parking lots sit a short walk from each of the four parks’ main entrances; a valid disability parking permit is needed and standard parking rates apply; courtesy trams run to the entrances and the Transportation and Ticket Center.

In the queue

For a day with more walking or standing than you can do, a mobility device: a wheelchair, an ECV, a walker with a seat or a cane chair.

• Attraction Queue Re-Entry or Meet-Up Leave the queue while your party waits and come back to the front to rejoin them, or wait outside and meet them before boarding; you do not have to say why
• Rider Switch Your party takes turns: one group rides while up to two wait outside the queue, then board without queueing again; available at most attractions
• Single Rider A shorter queue at some rides for anyone willing to ride apart from their party
• Disability Access Service (DAS) For the guests described above; everything about it below
• “Stroller as a Wheelchair” tag For a guest with a disability who uses a stroller as a mobility device (a child who uses it in place of a wheelchair, a child whose medical equipment rides in it, or an adult who uses one to help with walking): the stroller stays with them in the queue; Guest Relations says whether one is issued
• Service animals Welcome in every attraction queue; some rides cannot take them aboard, and the Cast Member there has the options

Disability Access Service

DAS is for guests who, due to a developmental disability like autism or similar, are unable to wait in a conventional queue for an extended period of time.

• A return time comparable to the current standby wait, not immediate access
• Registration is a live video chat with a Cast Member, as early as 60 days before the visit or on the day; there is no in-person registration
• Video chat runs 7:00 AM to 8:00 PM Eastern; the guest it is for must be on the call, and whoever registers must be 18 or older
• A photo of the registered guest is taken; the party is the guest and up to 3 more
• Valid for the length of the ticket or up to a year, whichever is shorter
• Return times are booked in the My Disney Experience app (or at Guest Relations), one at a time; the next can be booked 10 minutes after one is used, and each is good until the park or ride closes
• One DAS return time and one virtual-queue boarding group can be held together
• A false statement to obtain it bars the guest from Walt Disney World and Disneyland for good, and forfeits passes and tickets unrefunded

Misusing any accommodation bars the guest from Walt Disney World and Disneyland for good, and forfeits passes and tickets unrefunded.

Seeing and hearing

How many rides and shows in each park offer each service. Point at a number for the names.

Where to sleep

The hotels a park is reached from by monorail, Skyliner or boat as well as by bus, each way with its own rule.

By monorail

Elevators or ramps at the Transportation and Ticket Center, Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, and the Grand Floridian, Polynesian and Contemporary.

• Bay Lake Tower at Disney's Contemporary Resort
• Disney's Contemporary Resort
• Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
• Disney's Polynesian Village Resort
• Disney's Polynesian Villas & Bungalows
• The Villas at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa

By Skyliner

The Skyliner takes guests with mobility devices; it links Hollywood Studios and EPCOT’s International Gateway with Art of Animation, Caribbean Beach, Pop Century and the Riviera.

• Disney's Art of Animation Resort
• Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort
• Disney's Pop Century Resort
• Disney's Riviera Resort

By boat

Boats vary with the craft and the water; ask the Cast Member at the dock.

• Disney's Beach Club Resort
• Disney's Beach Club Villas
• Disney's BoardWalk Inn
• Disney's BoardWalk Villas
• Boulder Ridge Villas at Disney's Wilderness Lodge
• The Campsites at Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort
• Copper Creek Villas & Cabins at Disney's Wilderness Lodge
• Walt Disney World Dolphin Hotel
• The Cabins at Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort - A Disney Vacation Club Resort
• Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
• Disney's Lakeshore Lodge
• Disney's Old Key West Resort
• Disney's Polynesian Village Resort
• Disney's Polynesian Villas & Bungalows
• Disney's Port Orleans Resort - French Quarter
• Disney's Port Orleans Resort - Riverside
• Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa
• Walt Disney World Swan Hotel
• The Villas at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
• Disney's Wilderness Lodge
• Disney's Yacht Club Resort

By bus alone: Disney's All-Star Movies Resort, Disney's All-Star Music Resort, Disney's All-Star Sports Resort, Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge, Disney's Animal Kingdom Villas - Jambo House, Disney's Animal Kingdom Villas - Kidani Village, Disney's Coronado Springs Resort, Walt Disney World Swan Reserve. Every bus route runs buses that take wheelchairs and ECVs: the device must fit the lift without being forced and be fastened in the restraints; most buses hold two; ECV riders are asked to move to a bus seat on board; guests with canes, walkers or crutches can board by the rear door, if they tell the driver first.

In the hotel

• Wheelchair-accessible rooms and hearing-accessible rooms; TTY equipment on request at check-in
• An accessible path from arrival to the lobby, the accessible rooms, restaurants, shops, pools, fitness rooms and laundry at every Disney Resort hotel
• Designated parking at every Disney Resort hotel, with a valid disability parking permit; overnight self-parking is free for hotel guests
• Service animals are welcome, with relief in any open outdoor area if the owner cleans up
• Book by ticking “Accessible Rooms” when booking online, or by calling (407) 939-5277