Brown and Pink Polka Dots : Disney World with a 6 year old in a wheelchair

There is tons of information out there about adults using scooters and wheelchairs in the parks. Many of that information is directed at people who do not use a mobility device in their day to day life, however there are people who travel with kids that are wheelchair users and sometimes the information is a little bit different.

Flying:

This was our first time flying with the wheelchair. We flew Southwest. First we had to stop at check in and have the wheelchair tagged with a tag that listed the description of the wheelchair and our contact information. The airline also kept a copy of this tag in case there were any issues. Once we got to the gait we needed to get a separate tag to gate check the wheelchair. We qualify for preboarding and on both flights we were the first people on the plane. We rolled the wheelchair right up to the plane with Jillian in it and then transferred her out. They loaded the wheelchair on the plane (underneath).

Magical Express:

When we checked in at the Magical Express they asked us if Jilli would be transferring out of her wheelchair. We said she would like to say in her chair. They moved us into a wheelchair line and they called a bus with a wheelchair lift. They loaded Jilli up first. The bus driver was amazing with her! There are tie downs on the bus the kept her in securely. On the return trip the bus driver did not know that he was picking up a wheelchair however the bus had a lift and everything worked out.

Disney Transportation:

All of the buses are wheelchair accessible. There are two tie downs per bus. Sometimes it is a bit of a wait for a bus if there are multiple people in line with scooters and wheelchairs. We stayed at the Beach Club and there was a time when there were 6 scooters in front of us so we took the bus to Boardwalk and walked to the Beach Club. Since we were at the Beach Club we took the boat to Hollywood Studios which is wheelchair accessible. There are not wheelchair tie downs but there is a wheelchair area at the back of the boat.

Rides:

The Disney rides fall into two categories, stay in wheelchair during ride (wheelchair accessible vehicle), and rides you need to transfer for.

Magic Kingdom:
Swiss Family Tree House: not accessible at all
Aladin's Flying Carpets: wheelchair car available, go through regular cue
Jungle Cruise: wheelchair boat available, different cue, must get return time
Tiki room: wheelchair accessible show (seating in front), enter in the same location, they will direct you
Pirates of the Caribbean: must transfer into a boat , accessible cue
Splash Mt: must transfer into boat, enter cue normally however wheelchair line splits off before stairs
Big Thunder Mt: must transfer into train, separate cue
Liberty Bell: accessible
Country Bear Jamboree: accessible, enter in main cue and they will direct you where to go, seating is in front of show
Hall of Presidents: accessible
Haunted Mansion: must transfer into moving car, enter cue normally they will guide you on where to go once inside
Its a Small World: accessible boat available, entrance near the exit
Peter Pan's Flight: must transfer into flying boat on moving walkway, cue is accessible
Enchanted Tales with Bell: completely accessible
Seven Dwarfs Mine Train: must transfer into roller coaster car, cue is accessible
Little Mermaid: wheelchair car available, cue is accessible
Dumbo: must transfer into elephant, there is a car that makes transferring easier, cue is accessible
Goofy's Barnstormer
Tea Cups: must transfer, cue is accessible
Winnie the Pooh: wheelchair car available, cue is accessible
Speedway: must transfer into car
Space Mountain: must transfer
Carousel of Progress: accessible show
People Mover: must transfer, cue NOT accessible
Buzz Space Ranger Spin: accessible car available, cue is accessible
Astro Orbiter: must transfer

Epcot:
Spaceship Earth: Must transfer, enter at the exit of the ride
Seas with Nemo: accessible car available, cue is accessible
Living with the Land: accessible boat available, cue is accessible
Soarin: must transfer, cue is accessible
Journey into Imagination: accessible car available, cue is accessible
Mission Space: must transfer into small space, cue is accessible
Test track: must transfer
Gran Fiesta: accessible boat available
Frozen: must transfer, cue is accessible
All shows in World Showcase are wheelchair accessible, for the American Adventure you use an elevator instead of escalator

Hollywood Studios
Tower of Terror: must transfer, cue is accessible
Rockin Roller Coaster: must transfer, cue is accessible
Disney Jr.: accessible show
Little Mermaid: accessible show
Beauty and the Beast: accessible show
Slinky Dog Dash: must transfer into roller coaster, cue is accessible
Alien Swirling Saucers: must transfer, cue is accessible
Toy Story Mania: accessible car available, cue is accessible and wheelchair loading breaks off before stairs
Muppets 3D: accessible show
Star Tours: must transfter
Frozen Sing Along: accessible show
Indiana Jones: accessible show

Animal Kingdom:
Navi River Journey: must transfer into boat, cue is accessible
Flights of Passage: must transfer, cue is accessible, wheelchair line breaks off before stairs
Festival of the Lion King: accessible show
Kilomonjaro Safari: accessible truck available, enter cue normally, wheelchair line breaks off closer to ride entrance
Its Tough to be a bug: accessible show
Everest: must transfer, accessible line
Finding Nemo: accessible show
Dinosaur: must transfer
Primeval Whirl: must transfer
Triceratops Spin: accessible car available
Kali River Rapids: must transfer

Food allergies:
While my kiddo who uses a wheelchair is tube fed and does not eat orally, I have many food allergies. A big change is recently Disney switched away from using latex gloves in their kitchens. This saves so much time and energy. There were a couple of restaurants that chose to still wash my plates by hand to be safe, however at the majority of restaurants I was able to eat off the normal plates. It was so nice to be able to share food with my family and takes bites of what they ordered. I also have other food allergies (apples, coconut, fruit, and watch my egg and dairy) and Disney is one of the places I feel safest to eat at.

Room:
We stayed at Beach Club in a DVC room. We did not request and accessible room because our 6yr old did not need it. We did find that we had plenty of space in our room.