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She’ll either stay in it in the ride or she’ll transfer right at the ride vehicle and Disney will park it nearby.
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IIRC, the WDW railway is only accessible from Main Street if you’re in and ECV. Sorry.
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Most bus loops will have a separate “handicapped” line for you and your mom to wait in. It’s partly to tell the driver that thy need to do the back door ramp thing.
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Thanks!
So she goes down the queues like normal?
I’m so sorry to hear about your mum. Yes for most rides she’ll just use the ECV all the way to boarding and it will be waiting for her when she gets off. For some she’ll need to transfer to a wheelchair.
Buses have a separate line for wheelchairs/ECVs noted with a big yellow sign, and they board first with family members. Buses mainly hold 2 ECVs.
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Mostly, yes. Ask the greeter at any attraction where you’re unsure.
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A couple more depressing questions, hopefully this will be it.
Currently, I have until May 5th (or the 9th, can’t remember) to pay off the deposit for the room, so if I wait until then (or a few days before), will that interfere with the shipment of the magic bands?
While the trip is still going ahead, my mom’s breathing (or rather the effort of it all) is starting to really worry me and depending on how she reacts to these first two cycles of chemo is going to ultimately decide whether or not she can go. I was thinking I should push off paying the balance until we’re absolutely sure she can go, but I don’t know if the magic bands will ship if the balance isn’t paid.
My hope (which continually has been getting dashed here of late) is the chemo takes, the masses shrink, and she’s able to get a better lung full of air so she’s not struggling to breath after moving 10-15 feet of walking. At this point I’m concerned she’ll not be able to walk from the airport shuttle to the check-in desk where she’d get a wheel chair. And then from the gate to the airplane seat (and then in reverse when we land).
With that, do you think it’d be wise to purchase and take a wheelchair or transport chair with us? Or just rely on the airlines’ assistance once we’re in the airports. It seems kinda dumb to take a wheelchair for what will amount to only about a few hundred feet (if that) of travel outside the airports, but then as I write this I also think I should just do it as it will clear up a lot variables and reliability concerns.
Maybe call a CM and explain the situation and ask if they can help.
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hehe is it weird that I’ve come to trust the knowledge here more than the average phone CM?
But you’re right and good call. I’ll ask them.
Not weird at all. This is a very supportive group that happens to love all things DIsney. Although combined, we have an amazing amount of information, we unfortunately don’t have any power to change/make things happen. A CM in some cases might.
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Well some good news (so nice to have some). Talked to Disney and they said the MBs get shipped at the 30-day mark regardless if you paid down the deposit or not. Should I be forced to cancel, the MBs just become deactivated and that’s that.
I know the price increases bother people… but when little things like this “work out”… it certainly helps me continue to justify forking over the cash. 
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I am so glad. You and your mom deserve some good news for a change. I am rooting for you guys!
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It looks like you can get a travel transport chair pretty cheap.
I assume you could gate check it with the airline like is done with strollers at the end of the jetway.
It might be worth having for the trip and then you can always donate it when you’re done.
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how old is your mom. Found out it fir my Dad it is the prostate cancer metastasized and he will undergo 18 month chemo or radiation.
Yeah, I ended up getting one the other day, if for no other use than around here. I still need to contact Southwest to figure out how to handle it, but I am with you and figure it’ll be treated much like a stroller.
She’s just 65 and she’ll be on chemo the rest of her life per the Doctor.
Regarding your dad, ugh, that sucks and I’m so sorry. It sounds like he has a good chance overcoming it though? So that’s good news. 
Well he’s 86. The prostate cancer first hit him about 22 years ago. Your mom is so young, I’m so sorry.
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In case you aren’t aware, if your mom needs to use oxygen in flight you need to notify Southwest prior to the trip, they need to document her reservation so that the fact there is an oxygen concentrator onboard is known to the flight crew. Call SWA reservations, have them pull up your reservation, and advise them your mother will be traveling with an oxygen concentrator. They will probably want to know the make and model of the concentrator and her flow rate, they may also require that you provide a doctor’s note either in advance or at check-in (they’ll advise you of any requirements when you call).
Since you are calling anyway, you can also ask about requesting wheelchair assistance for the airport, including an on board wheelchair that will take her all the way to her seat, if you think she won’t be able to manage the walk from the aircraft door to her seat (and remember you’ll can request pre-boarding due to medical so can probably get the first one or two rows). If they can arrange an on board wheel chair you won’t need to buy one. Wheelchair assistance is free but tips to the attendants are greatly appreciated.
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Yup, soon as we have the POC in our possession or I get that info, I’ll be able to call SW and give them the full run down. The POC should arrive at least 2 weeks before the trip, so I’m sure there will be enough time to sort out remaining loose ends.
I figure we’ll bring the chair with us because if I screw up either the ME time or the scooter return time, we’ll have it with us so we can go back into MK or where ever.
Bringing your own wheelchair will be easy. When you get to the gate ask the gate agent for a tag, you’ll need to fill out some info and attach it to the chair. When you are done using the chair you can leave it on the jetway just outside the aircraft door and a ramp worker will take it down to be loaded with the checked bags. Upon arrival they ramp workers will bring it back up to the aircraft door for you to use. There is no charge to gate check a wheelchair (not that SWA charges bag fees but no airline charges for gate checked wheelchairs or strollers).
Just a tip, if at all possible limit your carry on to a single backpack that you can wear while pushing your mom, you won’t be able to push her and deal with multiple bags, even if they are Pullmans. Just check everything else since SWA doesn’t charge bag fees. A few years ago when traveling with our toddler it was me, husband, said toddler in an umbrella stroller, a car seat (to use on the airplane), two huge suitcases, and two back packs. We checked the big bags at the ticket counter, leaving us with just the back packs and the car seat, which we had strapped to one of those old fashioned collapsible luggage carts that people used before Pullman bags were invented. Husband and I each had a backpack, I pushed the kidlet in the stroller and husband pulled the car seat. It was a beautiful thing, I’m telling you.
THAT said, don’t check anything critical (especially medications) that would be a disaster if the bag gets lost or even just delayed a few hours (and if you are using DME remember you won’t see checked bags until you get to your room and they could be delivered late).
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Holy cow thank you!!! One of the biggest questions developing in my head is “what the heck am I going to do with this thing during the actual flight?” And you answered perfectly!
And the single carry on plan is solid and in line with what I as already planning. As our flight is a non-stop and we’ll be utilizing ME’s baggage delivery (which is all sorts of fantastic), I was planning only carrying a small backpack with her meds and some “day of” needs.
Thanks!!
You’re very welcome! Since you’ll be calling about the oxygen anyway you might want to verify with SWA that this is how they handle wheelchairs but what I outlined is a pretty standard procedure. Also, another tip - check out tsa.gov for info on how to navigate security with a wheelchair and special medical needs.
Good luck, I hope this trip goes well for you both. I’m no stranger to a sudden and devastating cancer diagnosis of a parent. It sucks, plain and simple.
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So a couple of updates and a question.
Let’s start with the question: I have several BOG PPO breakfasts as my mom is loving the idea of enjoying a near-empty park immediately after breakfast. However, one of my reservations is at 8:50AM. On a standard opening at 9AM day, we're still "let in" at 7:45/8AM, right? I should know this by now, but I can't remember and just need a confirmation.
And now for the updates (all positive, so I wanted to share)
- We got her chemo schedule and it lines up PERFECTLY with when we go. In fact, she’ll have her 3rd treatment a full 5 days before we’re off to the airport. In fact, it fits perfectly for this trip and the original on in September too.
- After her first treatment (whiich was Wednesday) she said she woke up the next morning feeling a bit better and actually had a positive outlook on it all (this is huge if you knew my mom.)
- So far, she seems to not to be having any side effects like nausea or turning food foul-tasting. (still expecting the loss of hair, but I have a hat ready to go for her).
- Before all this started, she was in danger of getitng glaucoma and had undergone a laser surgey to take care of it. After a follow up yesterday, the doctor said her vision is looking real good now and said “we took care of a big problem.”
Still waiting on the portable oxygen for the flight to get sorted out, I keep playing phone tag with the company and then gotta call Southwest, but I’m hoping next week I’ll be able to get it done. It was originally supposed to happen mid-april, so I’m still 2 weeks ahead, so I’m good with that.
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