Accessible BLT studios... please help

[razster]

Following head and neck cancer and subsequent semi paralysis. We hope (and pray) I will be able to get back to Disney world this coming year with my wife and young kids. But I have no clue as to the accessible room descriptions. I am looking at the site for BLT dvc but just don’t know what to choose. I would like to have a room ideally with roll in shower but they are not available on the dates we have planned. So I then have a Florida special studio and also an accessible tub studio option? Which should someone in a wheelchair choose, I also hope to be able to ride ecv into room if possible to save my poor wife having to help me with transfers etc. Any advice would be appreciated. I have never done this trip being physically incapacitated and truthfully I’m a bit scared I will ruin our happy place for my kids and us. We went every year for 14 years then I got ill last year. We hoped to make it last year but there was just no way. This year I’m determined. It’s pretty overwhelming but i want us to get back and enjoy again even if i’m not so able now, I want my wife and kids to have some fun again. I‘m sure that if there’s anywhere in the world that will try to accommodate me it’s WDW? Thank you all very much, I really would appreciate any help i’m so out of my depth.

 

[lanejudy]

So I then have a Florida special studio and also an accessible tub studio option? Which should someone in a wheelchair choose,

“Accessible with tub” will have space for a wheelchair user to move around the room and into the bathroom; it just has a tub instead of a roll-in shower.

“Florida Special” has some handrails but may not suit a person who uses a wheelchair. I actually thought WDW was in the process of changing these rooms to fully accessible, but maybe only as they renovate at each resort.

Enjoy your vacation!

 

[razster]

Thanks very much for your reply @lanejudy can I just confirm if the tubs have detachable hand held shower heads in those rooms?

 

[Sandisw]

BLT DVC studios are a bit on the small side. However, you would probsbly be able to squeeze the ECV into the room and leave it right inside the door,

I will say it will be pretty tight and you won’t be able to maneuver it around e room though. The space between the queen bed and the TV cabinet Is pretty tight. Once the sleeper sofa is open, it gets real cozy!

I have Only stayed in ones with a regular tub/shower so I am not sure if they have handheld in other ones,

 

[lanejudy]

if the tubs have detachable hand held shower heads in those rooms?

I believe the “wheelchair accessible with tub” rooms do have a handheld shower wand - but I have not stayed at BLT so hopefully someone else can confirm definitively.

Enjoy your vacation!

 

[GranJan1]

Following head and neck cancer and subsequent semi paralysis. We hope (and pray) I will be able to get back to Disney world this coming year with my wife and young kids. But I have no clue as to the accessible room descriptions. I am looking at the site for BLT dvc but just don’t know what to choose. I would like to have a room ideally with roll in shower but they are not available on the dates we have planned. So I then have a Florida special studio and also an accessible tub studio option? Which should someone in a wheelchair choose, I also hope to be able to ride ecv into room if possible to save my poor wife having to help me with transfers etc. Any advice would be appreciated. I have never done this trip being physically incapacitated and truthfully I’m a bit scared I will ruin our happy place for my kids and us. We went every year for 14 years then I got ill last year. We hoped to make it last year but there was just no way. This year I’m determined. It’s pretty overwhelming but i want us to get back and enjoy again even if i’m not so able now, I want my wife and kids to have some fun again. I‘m sure that if there’s anywhere in the world that will try to accommodate me it’s WDW? Thank you all very much, I really would appreciate any help i’m so out of my depth.

I’ve never booked a Florida special room because I wasn’t sure if it would meet my needs, I don’t really understand what they are. The HA rooms with tubs should have hand held shower sprayers. They should also have a shower bench but it may not be the type you need or there’s been times it’s been missing. For several trips I brought my own which meant more luggage when flying. If driving it’s not so bad. On recent trips we’ve booked roll in shower rooms but once at Boardwalk the built in bench was missing but they provided a shower chair that worked. I actually prefer the tub rooms if you’re able to transfer from your wheelchair to the shower chair. The floor stays dry so it’s much safer to get back to your wheelchair without slipping. As far as being able to drive the ECV in the room, will you be just parking it or using it to get around in the room? HA rooms have more space for wheelchairs but I find it difficult using an ECV in the room even if it’s an accessible room. When I had an ECV, I just parked it & used a walker in the room. Is that something you’d be able to do? When I couldn’t manage with a walker anymore, I switched to a power chair. They are much easier in small spaces & don’t have the steering column in front. Without knowing more about your needs, it’s hard to give advice. I really think you’ll be Ok as long as you book a HA room. Tub or shower will depend on what works best for you. I hope you are able to work everything out. Lots of trips, as my condition gradually worsened, I thought Disney trips were getting too hard but my husband encouraged me by telling me we just had to learn what was needed to make things work for me. When we got that figured out, Disney trips were the easiest & most enjoyable vacations. Every time my condition worsened, we’d figure it out again. Sounds like you’re having to adapt to sudden changes rather than my gradual changes. You will find that Disney is still something that you can enjoy with your family & this is a good place to learn everything you need to know to make it easier.

 

[razster]

Thanks so very much for your kind replies @GranJan1 and @lanejudy. I would attempt the tub room and re the ECV just have to traverse to chair to get back and leave it outside. Really appreciate the advice.

My other issue now is deciding whether maybe BLT whilst practical for not needing so much troublesome driving due to proximity to main attractions/monorail etc may be too small for us. Following @Sandisw mentioning size I looked them up some more. We have never stayed at BLT and we may stay for three weeks, if we can manage it as coming from UK, so if the room is very small and there are four of us it could get difficult? I have the option of kidani AKV and SSR as well... BLT was my first choice for location and novelty as we hadn’t stayed there and still is but the space issue is concerning me, on the other hand I really like idea of fact BLT will mean my wife gets more vacation as she won’t have to lug my stuff to the car as often and I can ECV from BLT to lots of places? All these things I’ve never really had to consider before... Any thoughts guys?

 

[KPeterso]

We stayed at BLT with an ECV a couple years ago. We were a party of 2 and we found the room ridiculously tiny for 2 people. We had an ECV and I can't remember exactly where we parked it in the room, but I know it was in the room.

My Mom was able to ride her ECV directly to MK and then we would monorail to the TTC and then onto Epcot. Everywhere else, we used the buses. And the bus service there also left a lot to be desired.

Most people love BLT (we are definitely in the minority), but we just were not impressed and have no plans to stay there again.

 

[MulanMom]

Our family of 4 stayed in a BLT studio for 10 days! Looking back, we can't believe we did that because the room is small, but it has loads of storage space. My husband's ECV was in the room. It's doable. We had a choice between a 1BDR for 5 nights or a studio for 10...we opted for the longer stay.

The advantages you pointed out for navigating with an ECV is why we like the BLT location. The bus service sometimes isn't as efficient as at other resort locations, but with Epcot accessible via monorail, we find it workable.

Have you considered the studios at the Poly? I believe they are a bit roomier and while you don't have a walkway to MK (for now), we always liked the convenience of being able to walk over to the TTC to take the monorail to Epcot.

Good luck with whatever you decide and have a wonderful trip!