Mobility Disabilities and Disneyland

I admit there was a time in my life when I just didn’t get Disneyland.  Crowds, long walks and long lines drowned out the fun.  The “magic” returned, however, when we took our oldest daughter for her first visit a number of years ago.  Seeing all of it through her eyes brought back memories of my visits as a child.  Since then we have returned several times with our four daughters.

We recently returned again and I learned an even greater lesson.  Disneyland is truly for everyone!  We spent the first couple of days as a family experiencing both Disneyland and California Adventure.  Later in the week we were joined by a delightful friend of the family.  Stacey has some physical disabilities that require her to enjoy the park in a scooter.  Disneyland is one of her favorite places and she visits as often as she can.

As it turned out, our day with Stacey was our favorite day of the week.  We all love Stacey and our kids love being with her so this was not a surprise.  What was a surprise to me was that my faith in people and a big business (The Disney Corporation) took a positive step forward.  I spent the day marveling at the compassion, professionalism and kindness of the Disneyland employees as they helped us on and off the rides.  I had, as anyone who has visited the park, passed by those in wheelchairs as I exited rides.  But I had really never noticed the staff helping those with mobility disabilities on or off the rides.  The employees help in a way that keeps the line moving and in a way that does not draw attention to those with special needs. 

We never waited in line at an attraction for more than 10 minutes.  We received a smile from nearly every Disneyland employee that assisted us.  While there were a few attractions where we waited in line with everyone else, most attractions allowed for those in wheelchairs and scooters to come through the exit or another special entrance.  You can find more information on guests with mobility disabilities on the Disneyland website.

So today I give a big shout out to Disney.  Kudos!  You earned it.  Thanks for allowing everyone to visit in a way that does not compromise dignity.  Yes, it is a magical place!