Its easy to stress about the unknown. I was too before my first trip with the scooter. Just like you I found everyone was very helpful
1 Like
Iâm glad your trip was fun! Looking forward to the trip report
A long summary of my trip. I used a knee scooter for the entire trip. I am still non weight bearing so if I didnât have the scooter in hand I had to hop.
The flights down and back were easy. I curb checked my satchel and carried on a back pack that I had put my scooter basket in along with a change of clothes and other things I would need for the park day. I was given early boarding and gate check for my scooter. After collapsing my scooter and bungee cording it at the end of the gang way I hopped to my seat in front. Upon landing I asked the stewardess to watch for my scooter and when it came up she let me know. (Same thing on the way home.) I hopped out of the plane set the handlebars on the scooter and away I went to Magical Express.
At magical Express I didnât need to fold the scooter, but hopping up the steps was a challenge. They made sure I was first out of the bus and unloaded my scooter first.
It was an early flight and my room wasnât ready at Pop so I went to the counter to make a request even though I had done a request with Touring Plans. I wanted 4th floor so I wouldnât hear people above me and a room in building 1, 3, 4, 5, 6 or 10 so I wouldnât have to maneuver around the resort. They said they would notify me when it was ready. I went to MK and received my room number about 5 in the evening. Room 7358âgreatânot only the farthest room from the food court but the farthest room in that building. I just dealt with it as I wasnât going to try to move my room after park closing.
My first day was May 13 and when I entered MK the skies opened up. I mean torrential down pour. I put a cover on my scooter seat, my boot and ponchoed up and kept going. I headed to Columbia Harbor House since I was starving. Ordering was no problem just had to make a tight turn at the counter. I always ordered a bottle drink at QS so I could put it in my basket, and I got really good at carrying a tray with one hand and steering with the other. With the rain it was crowded but finally found a table and had my lunch.
After lunch I had 3 FPP and was able to get many more that day. Ride observations:
Haunted Mansion they take you thru the stretching room but keep you to the back so they can peel you off and load you at the exit. They will slow the ride making it easy to get on. Then brought my scooter to me at the end.
Pirates easy on and off then you take an elevator back to the 1st floor.
Splash went thru standby line then they peeled me off before going in the building and loaded me from the exit side. Brought my scooter to me as I got off.
Big Thunder had a FPP and went in a handicap entrance to the right of the regular entrance. Loaded onto the back of the train and my scooter was waiting for me on the other side at the end. I had to ask a cast member to roll my scooter closer to me as it wasnât within hopping distance.
Country Bears they seat you in the front.
Hall of Presidents they seat you in the back.
Tales with Belle just roll in and out.
Jungle Cruise 1st hurdle. Not much problem loading they load you to the side before everyone else loads. But getting off was almost impossible. The step is huge! The cast member was standing at the exit holding the boat close, but also blocking the rail I needed to hold onto. I thought I was going to put on a show and just crawl off the boat or fall trying to jump up. The CMâs did not even offer to help. I managed to jump out of the boat and actually land on the dock. Embarrassment avoided.
I wasnât able to ride People Mover or Peter Pan because I needed to be able to walk unaided. I had a FPP for PP so the CM gave me an any ride FPP for a party of 5 good until the end of the month.
C of P they seat you in the front. I ate at Cosmic Rays and had no problems maneuvering around the counter. I stayed for Happily Ever After and arrived in the hub about a half hour before the show and sat on my scooter. I had a great view. I planned on a second day at MK so I went back to Pop for a good night sleep.
On all the buses I stood in the regular line and just heaved my scooter up the step. Many times someone would offer to help and the bus driver always asked if I wanted the ramp and when I said no they would always kneel the bus down. I did use the ramp one night as I didnât have any energy to lift the scooter.
Iâll continue my other days soon.
Post script. I almost forgot one of the worst things on the trip. I was going down Main Street in the rain, staying nice and dry in my plastic wardrobe and out of the blue some guy comes running out of a store with his head down not looking and smashes right into me. He knocked me right over! He helped me up and I could tell he felt really bad, he kept asking if I was ok. I said yes but when I fell I hit my knee that balances on the scooter. It was sore the rest of the trip even with icing it down at night. Thatâs mostly why I said 96% of people were great. I was thankful it wasnât my ankle I landed on.
7 Likes
Wow close call with the fall. You always need to watch out for people looking down at their phones. Sounds awesome so far otherwise
Great report so far!! Iâm so glad to hear that (almost) everyone was helpful and friendly.
Day 2 Tuesday May 14 EPCOT
EPCOT had extra hours in the evening so I thought I would do a rope drop to close day. I only planned the trip about 2 weeks before going so I wasnât able to get many prime FPP. I had Frozen for late in the day and Living With The Land and Spaceship Earth early. After a quick breakfast in the room I set off for the bus. I never did figure out how to check when a bus was arriving at the resort on the Disney app. Even so I donât think I ever waited more than 10 minutes at the absolute most. Why though does it seem like Pop bus stop is always the farthest away from every park? One of my main goals at EPCOT was to enjoy all the flowers and topiaries. I took a lot of pictures and a lot of time just admiring all the arrangements.
I arrived at EPCOT about 20 minutes before rope drop and by the time I went thru security they were letting us in. Oh and when you are on a scooter they check your bags then send you around the metal detectors, you never have to worry about emptying your pockets. I headed to Soaring first and it was posted 10 minutes and it probably was just that. I asked for B! and they obliged. I took the scooter right to my seat and afterwards it was in the isle a few steps away. Then onto Living with the Land with my fast pass that I did not need. I knew this thanks to liners, but I needed a throwaway to try to get another Soaring later on. Then onto Spaceship Earth where you enter to the left of the sphere at the handicap entrance. When I went in they asked if I had a FPP and I said yes and a CM scanned my band and had me wait on a bench. After a few others came in some with FPP some without they took the whole group in a back entrance and loaded us all at one time. Our chariots were stored and brought right to the ride vehicle afterwards. It was probably one of the most organized loading on the trip beside KS at Animal Kingdom. Onto TT single rider line. At the beginning of the line a little girl in the FPP line asked me why I was on a bike and I talked to her for a couple minutes. Our lines went different ways and then when I was assigned a car I ended up sitting right next to that same little girl. So single rider does save you a lot of time. And they had my scooter a couple feet away from the car at the end.
Now it was time for some food and some shows. I thought I would go to Club Cool and then thought better of it. Have you ever noticed how sticky the floor is there. I didnât want to deal with that on my tires and shoe so I opted to hit a few kiosks. Thru out the day I had Lobster Tail, pineapple soft serve, a beef poutine, sugar cane shrimp skewer, pulled pig slider, a frozen Grey Goose Vodka Lâorange, and a Margaretta. Iâm not a very adventurous eater so I stayed with what I knew and loved it all. I also had caramel pop corn and I looked at the violet blueberry vanilla croissant but decided it wasnât worth the money. I may have also had a frozen ice in Japan but that is always available so I didnât count that on my list.
I went counter clockwise around world show case since my Frozen was later on and I wasnât able to modify it to earlier. I saw OâCanada which I like but it needs to be updated. Relaxed behind England then watched Alice interact with both kids and grownups. She was very amusing. Onto France where I noticed the gondolas but I didnât think they were too obtrusive. I watched the movie there which is one of my favorites and had a pastry which I forgot to mention. I had to rush a bit because I wanted to hear Voices of Liberty. We usually go to WDW at Christmas so this was the first time I heard them do patriotic songs and it was moving. Onto the American Adventure where they take you upstairs on a very little elevator and sit you in the back row. It isnât the best seat as there is a railing in front of you that you have to look over. I still enjoyed the show, I think I dozed off for a minute because I donât remember seeing the bayou scene, unless they removed it, which I doubt. Then it was time for Frozen. I like this ride. Iâve never seen the movie (I know unbelievable) although I donât think you need to in order to enjoy the ride. I never liked the ride in Mexico so I skipped that and went back to Future world for a while. I had my picture done with Mickey and Goofy at the Disney Chase Credit Card Spot. They turned out nice. I felt rushed though like they donât know what to do with a single adult. Right next to it is the Pixar shorts showâjust in time as I needed to take a rest. They are cute, but I wouldnât go out of my way for them. Handicap seating is in the back and has good views, I decided to jump on Nemo since I missed it in the morning and was going to do Turtle Talk next. There was only one family waiting and the show was about to start. They would get a lot of personal attention, I thought it would be awkward so I looked at the manatees and fish for a few minutes instead. I was in the area so I checked Soaring FPP on the app and was able to get one for 10 minutes from that time. Score one for me. When I got to the entrance the standby was 40 minutes. Again I was able to have B1, this time without asking. When I came out of Soaring it was 20 minutes until Illuminations and I didnât want to miss it. I wonât be back before it is gone. I found a good spot between the stores at the end of the walkway. Sat on my scooter had some popcorn and watched the show. I do love illuminations. I also think it is time for something new. I am looking forward to seeing what they come up with. After the show there was time for a couple more rides, but my body said it was time to go. I went out to the buses with the masses. We waited about 10 minutes for a bus. This was the one time I waited for the ramp on the bus. I was just too exhausted to pick up the scooter. Back at Pop it felt like a long distance to the room. It didnât take long going to sleep after putting ice on my knee. Sorry Iâm so long winded. I did warn you. Tomorrow a big change in my plans.
3 Likes
It doesnât just pop up when on property? I need to learn this.
Yes if we could have a lesson on how to access the bus times, Iâm sure some of us would be happy.
To access the bus times you just click on your reservation in the app. it will come up on the next screen. It is only there while you are checked in.
1 Like
This sounds like a really fun day!
Day 3
I had been trying to get a reservation for the Keys to the Kingdom tour. It was booked, and I was calling every day to see if there was a cancelation. I thought on my second MK day maybe I would have some luck. I had called on Tuesday and still no openings. Since I was so tired after EPCOT and I had done one day at MK I decided to change my plans and go to HS for the day. I didnât have any fast passes planned and wasnât sure I would be able to pick any up at the drops. I thought with all the shows there that it would be a somewhat restful day. What I did still have was the anytime, any ride FPP that the CM had given me at Peter Pan. So on my way to the HS bus I picked a family in line at the MK bus and tapped the mom on the shoulder. I told her I would like to give the pass to her, and handed it to her. She was reading it as I scootered away. I hope she believed it was real and used it.
On to HS. I ended up arriving before rope drop, which surprised myself and I headed to T of T. I wanted to do it early and try to do it again later. After waiting until about 5 minutes after opening a CM came out and said there would be a delayed opening for T of T. A lot of people got out of line right away which moved me up pretty far. I figured I would wait a little while since the closest ride to switch to was RR and I wasnât going to ride that this trip. It was probably only 10 minutes later they open the ride and on I went. They put me in the first row and my scooter was right there when I got off. Of all the times I have been on this ride this was my least favorite. I know there are different scenarios, but this time there was never a âbigâ drop. Later in the day I over heard someone say they didnât like T of T because it didnât have one big drop. I donât know if it was running that scenario a lot or if it was just coincidence.
Next was the movie at Star Wars (sat in back), the March of the First Order, FPP for TSMM (they take you to the end of the ride and load you then unload you at the same spot, Raiders Show (sat in back), Little Mermaid Show (sat in back)which I had never seen and it was cute, Muppets (sat in back), Frozen Sing a Long (sat in back) again Iâve never seen the movie, but still enjoyed the show. Somewhere in there I got a FPP for ASS (you are loaded first and I took my scooter right to the ride vehicle and they brought it to me at the end. I ate at the Back Lot Express. The food was typical fast food, but the set up of tables was horrendous. There was no way I could get around them. I ended up going outside in the shade and finding a bench to sit on and eat. I had thought about going to the lounge part of Prime Time and probably should have done that. It was about 4 oâclock by now and I didnât have a whole lot more I wanted to do. I checked T of T and FPP was done and the wait was over 2 hours. SDD was done FPP and the wait was 50 minutes. Since it was still a little early I braved the sun and did SDD in stand-by. It was just about 50 minutes. (Easy on and off loading same place as everyone else.) I have never been fond of any of HS night time shows so I called it a day. I was the only person waiting for a bus to POP and I waited awhile. A bus to Art of Animation pulled up and I zipped over to that one and got on. I watched as we left and never did see a bus for POP so I think I made the right choice. When I got to Art I went in to their store and I felt they had a better selection of items then POP. I ended up buying a couple items then went over to the food court at POP. Bought a sandwich, salad and mini bottle of wine. Interesting trip back to the room with my basket full, back pack on my back, bag hanging on my handle bars and one hand holding a tray of food. Iâm sure I made conversation for some guests. I had my meal, wine, made some phone calls, iced my knee and ankle and went to sleep. All in all for not planning going to HS I had a pretty good day.
2 Likes
I didnât know that for the bus times. Iâll make a note for my next trip.
I am so impressed reading about your solo trip. I went to WDW with family 3 months after a spiral fracture of my left humerus. I was not adventurous at all compared to you! (Still very afraid of falling again!) Youâre a hero!
I was worried to say the least, but I couldnât stay home any longer. I was going stare crazy. It turned out a lot easier then I expected. Your fracture was a lot worse then what I went thru, I would have been careful too. The unbelievable thing was --when I went back to my surgeon when I got back from WDW, he said the x-rays taken after surgery also showed a fracture to my fibula. He said the cast I was in took care of that also, which was good. If I had known about the second fracture I may had reconsidered the trip.
3 Likes
Iâm so glad your trip went well, and that you didnât stay home. I am sorry about you getting knocked over- stuff like that could happen anywhere though and at least it didnât ruin your trip.
I decided to not rent an ECV this time and it went well except for one long day at AK. So it seems we both gambled and won!
One helpful tip I learned was that if one is using a Disney ECV (which I had to for one day only) FLIP THE SEAT DOWN if itâs in the sun. Oh, was my behind quite toasty for a few minutes after FotLK!!
After that, I went around spreading pixie dust by flipping seats down whenever I saw ECVs sitting in the sun, like some obsessed fairy godmother. Saint Pod of the Sunny Seat, saving people from a fiery fate.
5 Likes
Day 4 May 16
This day I was up extra early because I needed to rope drop Animal Kingdom to do FOP. I wasnât chancing the same day FPP drop. I didnât even grab anything to munch on because I wanted to catch the first bus. I was close to the front of the line after bag check and before tapping in. By the time we were let in then let in again at the bridge and then squished down to a single line at the ride entrance I was a little ways back. We went thru the standby que , but we bypassed the room that has the floating avatar. At the area where they send you down different isles they sent me down the very first isle. I was the only one in it and they sent me to the first room on the right. After the ride when exiting there werenât any steps to deal with. I stopped for a Pongu Lumpia which was very tasty but messy to eat on the go and headed for Navi River. Got on that with a 10 minute wait. I donât like that they squish 3 people to a seat. I guess that is how they keep the line moving . Then the safari with a FPP. Loading there was at the end of the long âhallwayâ before you make the turn down to the regular loading. They wait until a handicap accessible truck comes then load a whole group. This can be a little bit of a wait. I was able to take the scooter right to the truck and hop in easily. At the end they had moved my scooter pretty far away and there wasnât a CM to ask for help. I asked another guest if they would mind getting my scooter and they were very nice and did that for me.
I should look up what the crowd level was that day because it felt very crowded. I went next to the Lion King and was told they may not have any standby handicap seats after FPP people went in. I was told to wait and see. It ended up there was room for me and several other families. When I went past the theatre later on the CMâs were telling people the next show was full and to come back later and they hadnât even started letting people in yet. I went from there to the bird show and arrived just before it started. Again I was able to get a seat on a side row. I really donât like the new show, I think having the characters takes away from the show. I saw the new show last year and only went back this time hoping it was betterâŚit wasnât. I went to Itâs Tough to Be a Bug next and sat in the back which really are good seats. I love being in there and watching people who havenât done it before reactions. Since I was so close I decided to go to Flame Tree for lunch. It was right at noon and the line was crazy. I tried mobile order and it wasnât accepting any more orders. So I did some shopping instead. I went on Dinosaur where they have you go down an elevator and get on the side of the ride other people would exit. Then you come back to the same spot and take the elevator back up. Went back to Flame Tree and there was no line at all. This is one of my favorite QS and I enjoyed the meal and sitting by the river relaxing. I missed the finding Nemo shows somehow, the times never worked out. I did both animal trails and saw the baby gorilla. It gets me how people will do these trails then just rush thru. They donât realize how much they are missing especially in the bird areas.
I was able to get a FOP at the 3:01 drop for later in the day. So in the mean time I had an ice cream and went on the safari again. This time we had a giraffic jam. I think every truck was backed up. When we finally started moving again it was the fastest safari I had ever been on. It was like look left there is this animal, look right there is that animal. I donât think the driver used the brakes until she came to the unloading area. We did see a lot of animals, but every one of my pictures is a blur. From there I went to FOP and then I watched the Tree of Life for a while and headed out. I think I missed a few things that I did. Iâm trying to remember where I ate dinner nothing is coming to me. Oh well. When I got back to my room I expected to have the Magical Express info on my door. It wasnât there so I just figured they would put it there overnight. I knew better than that after all my trips; I guess I was just tired and not thinking right. The next morning I was up bright and early, I wanted to sit by the pool a while before it got to hot. My flight wasnât until 4. I looked on the door first thing and still no Magical Express. Then a bright ideaâcheck my e-mail. Oh No my flight was cancelled. I got on the phone with SW right away. They could get me on a 9 at night flight or a 1 oâclock flight. I took the 1 something flight then went into panic mode to get my bags packed and to luggage check in, get new papers from the front desk for ME, grab a bite to eat and get to the pickup area. Which I did successfully. I was at the airport, thru pre check and set up for pre boarding with time to sit and read a book that I was going to read by the pool. I had called my husband earlier to tell him of the change and he said at least we would have time now to eat at a nice restaurant before our 2 hour drive home. So that was what we did and that is the end of my trip report. I had a great time and really really liked being able to get out of the house and having transportation available whenever I wanted, and being at Disney.
5 Likes
I know what you mean by the hot seat. That has happened to me on the lawn mower. There were probably plenty of people wondering how their seat got flipped, and then were grateful you did if they didnât flip it the next time.
I found AK to be the hardest park for me also. Although all the parks have uneven pavement here and there AK has it all over. That makes it hard on the joints and hard to maneuver. Glad your trip went well. And I bet the guy that knocked me over was very careful the rest of his trip.
Great trip report! Iâm so glad you went and had fun. Definitely beats sitting around at home, binge watching Netflix.