When you think of Disney, what comes to mind? Disneyland, Mickey Mouse, maybe even the Disney Land.
More importantly, Disney Cruise Line cater for guests with disabilities and provide access to comfy staterooms and suites, along with a full range of services, facilities, and amenities, including support aids, on every Disney Cruise Line ship and Disney’s private island paradise, Castaway Cay.
Physical Impairments
Guests requiring the use of a wheelchair or other mobility aid during the cruise are responsible for providing their own device prior to boarding. Disney Cruise Line have a limited supply of wheelchairs onboard that are used for embarkation and disembarkation assistance, emergencies, and time-to-time usage; Disney Cruise Line are unable to guarantee the availability a wheelchair. Moreover, shipboard wheelchairs may not be brought ashore.
Disney Cruise Line strongly recommends Guests requiring the use of a wheelchair onboard the ship to travel with someone who is able to personally assist them both aboard ship and on shore. Guests may need to transfer from their wheelchairs to utilise certain facilities (such as Guest pools and tenders), and this transfer may require the assistance of a member of their party.
Safety regulations require all Guest equipment — including wheelchairs, electric mobility scooters and strollers — be stored inside Guest staterooms or designated public area when not in use. Parking electric mobility scooters, wheelchairs, strollers or other devices in Guest corridors or stairwell landings is strictly prohibited. Please contact Guest Services on board for designated public areas.
For activities around Goofy’s Pool, a designated viewing area for Guests using wheelchairs is available on Deck 10 overseeing the pool area. An activity participation area for Guests using wheelchairs is located on Deck 9 Midship, Port side, near the gazebo. Crew Members will be at these locations to assist Guests in wheelchairs 30 minutes prior to the commencement of ondeck activities. Guests requesting Crew Member assistance should arrive no later than 10 minutes prior to the commencement of the on-deck activity.
For pre-arranged pool lift bookings through the Disney Cruise Line Special Services, Guest Services will contact you upon boarding the ship to arrange a time and location for your pool lift needs. Additionally, a pool lift may be available upon request by contacting Guest Services in advance. The pool lift will be available only for requested periods and cannot remain in place for the duration of the sailing. Please be advised of all pool operating hours as well as adverse weather or sea conditions that may restrict pool lift use. Pool lift maximum weight limit is 300 pounds.
At the Walt Disney Theatre, Crew Members will be available at the Deck 4 Forward entrance beginning 30 minutes prior to show times to assist Guests with seating. Wheelchair seating is available in the rear of the theatre, as well as in the front row. For access to seating in the center or front sections, please contact a Crew Member outside the entrance for assistance at least 10 minutes prior to show time. At the Buena Vista Theatre, wheelchair seating is available in the rear of the theater located on Deck 5 Aft.
The Midship elevators are smaller than the Forward and Aft elevators. Therefore, Guests using wheelchairs should use the Forward or Aft elevators whenever possible for easier access.
Accessible Staterooms
The entire Disney Cruise Line fleet offer accessible staterooms and suites. These staterooms are well-appointed with the subsequent features for Guests with disabilities:
Stateroom Features
- Minimum 32” doorways
- Open bed frames
- Refrigerators
- Captioned television
- Emergency call buttons
- Ramped bathroom thresholds
- Bathroom and shower grab bars
- Roll-in showers
- Fold-down shower seats
- Hand-held shower heads
- Portable hearing communication kits
- Portable TTY phone device
Equipment Available
Disney Cruise Line offers special equipment for Guests with disabilities.
The following items are available upon request for use in any stateroom:
- Bed board
- Bedrail
- Portable toilet
- Raised toilet seat
- Shower stool
- Transfer bench
- Stateroom Communication Kits containing door knock and phone alerts, bed shaker notification, and a strobe light smoke detector. A stateroom Text Typewriter (TTY) is available upon request.
For those Guests requiring electrical power for medical equipment, there is an average of two 110-volt electrical outlets per stateroom with a total power capacity of 12 amps. All equipment should have a significant back-up power supply in the event of an emergency or power outage. Durations of power outages cannot be guaranteed.
A small sharps container for the disposal of needles, syringes and lancets is located in each stateroom bathroom. If you require a sharps container in your stateroom and do not see one, please tell your steward and a container will be delivered. Sharps containers are also located in public restrooms.
Personal Mobility Equipment
Most Guest areas on our ships, together with the theatres, restaurants and shops are wheelchair accessible. There are also accessible public restrooms. You may perhaps wish to ponder booking a wheelchair accessible stateroom, which has a 32-inch entrance door and features a wider path of travel inside the stateroom. Classic staterooms have a tighter entrance door (23 inches) and may not have the ample turning circle to accommodate mobility aids like wheelchairs and scooters.
Please note the following as regards the usage of wheelchairs and mobility aids on Disney Cruise Line:
- You must provide your own wheelchair or other mobility aid or arrange for the rental, delivery and pickup of that device to and from the ship by yourself.
- Disney Cruise Line strongly recommend that Guests plan to sail with carer who can physically support them when needed.
- Due to safety guidelines, wheelchairs, scooters, strollers and other personal possessions may not be kept in public hallways and must be stored inside staterooms or a nominated public storage area.
If you, or a loved one has disabilities, Disney Cruise Like ask that you complete and submit the Special Services Information Form no later than 60 days prior to the start of your cruise.
This voluntary form permits you to:
- Arrange for wheelchair access and/or ground transportation lift
- Specify if a wheelchair-accessible stateroom is required
- Reserve a communication kit for Guests with hearing disabilities
- Request a sharps box for the disposal of needles, syringes and lancets
- Indicate if you will be traveling with a service animal
- Provide notification of medical equipment arrangements
- Indicate if you will be traveling with oxygen
While Disney Cruise Line can’t guarantee all requirements will be honoured, they will do their very best to accommodate you.
Hearing Impairments
Disney Cruise Line offers several services for Guests with hearing impairments, including arranged American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters for a variety of onboard shows and entertainment.
Mutual ASL interpreters must be confirmed by the Disney Cruise Line Special Services Department by the stated submission deadlines or interpreters cannot be provided.
A pad of paper and pens/pencils are readily accessible for Crew Members to utilize, if necessary, to communicate with Guests.
Assistive Listening Receivers
Assistive listening receivers are recommended for Guests with mild to moderate hearing loss and are available at Guest Services. Although there is no charge for the use of the receivers, a refundable security deposit will be charged to the Guest’s onboard account. This deposit will be removed from the Guest’s onboard account upon return of the receiver.
Stateroom Communication Kits
Stateroom Communication Kits are available for Guests with hearing disabilities and contain a base unit with alarm clock, bed shaker notification, doorbell and phone alerts, phone amplifier, smoke detector with a strobe light, and a TTY. Guests may make arrangements to receive Stateroom Communication Kits through a reservations agent at the time of booking or by contacting Guest Services while onboard ship.
Captioning
Captioning on a Guest’s stateroom TV may be activated using the CC button or TV menu options. Guests should be aware that due to satellite limitations and other factors, not all video sources or television signals are available with a caption playback option. Certain movies in the Buena Vista Theatre are available with open captions. Please consult your Personal Navigator or Guest Services for additional information.
*Services for Auslan may not be provided
Service Dogs
Disney Cruise Line welcomes trained service animals onboard all their ships, and Disney Cruise Line recognise service animals as those that are individually trained to perform tasks for people with disabilities, such as guiding people who are blind, alerting people who are deaf, pulling wheelchairs, alerting and protecting a person who is having a seizure or performing other special tasks.
While onboard Disney Cruise Line ships, all service animals shall remain on a leash or in a harness and be under the control of their person or a member of the Guest’s party at all times. The owner is responsible for the feeding, care and maintenance of the animal. Be advised that Disney Cruise Line Crew Members are not permitted to take control of service animals.
Due to the nature of some Port Adventures, service animals may not be permitted. In addition, service animals are not permitted in the pools or wet play areas. In those instances, a member of the Guest’s party must remain with the animal.
Also, service animals are not permitted to be left unattended inside the staterooms. Guests, who are traveling with a service animal, must obtain the import permits from all countries which require special documents as per the country regulations.
More information can be found here.
Copies of completed permits must be sent to Disney Cruise Line Special Services prior to sailing and the originals are to be available from the Guest at all times during travel. Some countries may not allow animals to enter.
Entry requirements may include some or all of the following documents:
- Entry requirements may include some or all of the following documents:
- Completed up to date vaccination records issued by a licensed veterinarian
- Proper blood titer testing results
- Completed Governmental International Health Certificate (APHIS form 7001) with USDA endorsement
- International Standards Organization (ISO) microchip information
- Proof of treatment and freedom from internal & external parasites
- Completed specific country health certificate
- Any specific country permits and forms as required by that country
Please be aware that some of the requirements may take weeks or months to complete. Guests traveling with a service animal should contact Special Services as soon as possible for information regarding the availability of Port Adventures with service animals, arranging the relief area and to discuss required documentation.
Children with Disabilities
The safe Disney’s Oceaneer Lab and Disney’s Oceaneer Club are open only to children ages 3-12. Activities are held in separate areas for tweens (ages 11 – 14) and for teens (ages 14 – 17).
Disney Cruise Line programs are available to children who are fully potty-trained, able to share separately surrounded by our counsellor-to-child ratio groups, and can interact on a social basis and at ease with children of their own age and physical size.
Open House hours are also available so the entire family can join the fun and participate together. Families are encouraged to speak with our Special Services team before your cruise to discuss any questions or clarify these guidelines.
Added participation procedures and constraints may apply and are proven to provide a safe and secure youth entertainment environment.
A child, who has a contagious sickness, or who displays symptoms of illness, such as fever, vomiting, diarrhea, unexplained skin rash, discharge from the nose or eyes or has any other contagious disease or illness, will not be allowed to participate. A child, who becomes disruptive within the group, may not be allowed to participate.
Disney Cruise Line are unable to accommodate children who require one-on-one care, children who need the attention of a counsellor with special training, or children who need counsellor-assisted medical attention. Additional participation guidelines and restrictions may apply and are established to provide a safe and secure entertainment environment.
Open House hours are available, so the entire family can join the fun and participate together.
Families are encouraged to speak with our Special Services team before arrival to chat about any enquiries or make clear these guidelines.
Group childminding is available for children ages 3 and under (for an additional fee); we do not provide childminding in Guest staterooms.
