Dollywood does offer wheelchair rental, as well as disability scooter rentals. Read more to get all the information you need before your Dollywood visit.
Visiting Dollywood is fun for people of all ages, but if you or a family member have accessibility needs, you may be a bit apprehensive about your visit to the park. Thankfully, Dollywood has you covered with amazingly helpful hosts (what Dollywood calls employees) and hospitality services, including wheelchair rentals, Electronic Convenience Vehicle rentals, and Disability Passes.
I recently visited the park with my mother who decided to rent an Electronic Convenience Vehicle (ECV) for the first time to help her navigate the park easier. Today, I’m sharing how our experience went and tips to help you with your ECV or wheelchair rental experience, too!
Before our visit, I made sure to do some research beforehand. I bet that’s what you are doing now and how you landed on this blog post. I’m here to share everything I learned both before our visit when we rented a disability scooter and during our visit.
Rent an Electronic Convenience Vehicle (ECV) Online as Early as Possible, this includes wheelchairs also.
My #1 tip for renting an ECV is to book your rental early! Dollywood reserves 20% of their ECV fleet for online bookings in advance, and if you do reserve ahead of your visit, you have to do so at least 48 hours before your trip.
If you haven’t bought your Dollywood tickets yet, be sure to visit this post about how to find discount Dollywood tickets!
Insider Tip – Booking ahead only applies to scooter rentals. Wheelchairs at Dollywood cannot be booked in advance and are rented out on a first come, first serve basis at the park.
I booked about a week before and had no issues, but during busier seasons like Dollywood’s Harvest Festival and Dollywood’s Smoky Mountain Christmas, you may want to book as soon as you know your trip is planned.
If you choose not to book online, I highly recommend arriving at the park at least 30 minutes before it opens. The rest of the ECV fleet is sold on a first-come, first-served basis, and the line starts forming as soon as guests arrive.
Whether you book online or plan to rent an ECV at the park the day of your visit, the first place to stop is the newly-built permanent structure in the parking lot to the right, before you get to Dollywood’s entry screening. This is where my mom picked up her ECV. It’s just past Parking Lot A.
The hosts were extremely helpful and eased my mom’s nerves about driving an ECV in the park for the first time. Our host showed her how to operate the vehicle and gave her instructions on how to return the vehicle at the end of the day.
Returns are made to the Rental Services building located across from the Ride Accessibility Center. You can pick one up, here, too. I recommend picking one up from this spot if you enter through the Preferred Entrance turnstiles.
Insider Tip: Don’t forget to present your Gold or Diamond Season Pass for extra savings on an Electronic Convenience Vehicle rental!
Ride Accessibility Center
Even if you pick up your ECV in the annex location, be sure to visit the Ride Accessibility Center. This has been moved for 2023 – it is directly across from the old location, now in the front of the Showstreet Palace Theater, directly to your left of the main gates.
This is where you will find hosts who are knowledgeable and trained about what rides and attractions will be best suited for you, based on any limitations or concerns you may have.
My mom has trouble walking long distances or standing for long periods of time, so the host took that information and made suggestions to make my mom’s experience at Dollywood more accommodating. This process wasn’t about what my mom couldn’t do on her visit, but what she could do to make it even better. We both really appreciated this!
The Ride Accessibility Center building is also where you will get a Boarding Pass. This is similar to Disney’s Disability Pass. Since my mom would have trouble standing in lines, she was given this pass. It doesn’t help you “skip” lines, but instead, it essentially stands in line for you.
For example, when my mom went to ride FireChaser Express, she went into the Accessibility Entrance line. The wait for the family roller coaster was 30 minutes at 10 a.m., so the ride attendant wrote 10:30 a.m. on her pass. This meant that she could get in line and ride another ride starting at 10:30 a.m.
This means she didn’t have to stand and wait 30 minutes, but also she didn’t get to abuse the system.This post about Getting Around Dollywood with Moderate Mobility Issues by a fellow Dollywood Insider has more great information about this pass, as well.
Take Advantage of Guest Drop Off and Pick Up Locations
One of my last tips to anyone who has any type of mobility or accessibility concerns for their visit to Dollywood is to take advantage of Guest Drop Off and Pick Up locations. Instead of parking in a lot as you enter Dollywood, keep driving up to the front until you see these signs near the front of the park (to your right).
There are a few clearly labeled parking spaces so that guests can be dropped off right outside the front gate. The driver will then circle back around to park in a lot. You can do this for both Guest Drop Off and Pick Up at the end of the day.
Also, there is a Guest Drop Off location in the Preferred Parking lot, which I HIGHLY recommend using as that hill at Preferred Parking is a doozy.
Dollywood is committed to making sure every visitor has a wonderful and safe visit to the theme park. Before our visit, my mom was very nervous about driving an ECV around the park for the first time, but her nerves were put to ease with the process of booking online and the helpfulness of Dollywood’s hosts.
She was able to explore the park more than she has in years, and we all left with lots of wonderful family memories.
Now that I’ve shared our experience, let’s look at some of the Frequently Asked Questions I get, as a Dollywood Insider, about renting a wheelchair at Dollywood.
Is Dollywood wheelchair accessible?
YES! The park has made incredible accessibility changes in the past 10 years and is definitely accessible to everyone. Please take note of the Accessibility portion of the Dollywood website for specific questions on what rides, restaurants, and bathrooms are compliant.
Please note that Dollywood does follow the natural landscape of the Smoky Mountains so there are specific inclines and declines that could be hard to navigate with a wheelchair. The Accessibility center will instruct you on how to handle these areas and other ways around.
The park offers six disability accessible restrooms throughout. If someone in your group has oxygen equipment or medications requiring refrigeration, take them to one of 3 separate first-aid areas at Jukebox Junction, The Village, and Timber Canyon.
You also don’t have to worry about missing a show at Dollywood. The park offers early admission to show venues if requested. Listening devices and show scripts are also available, and service animals are allowed into the shows.
Worried about Dollywood rides? Don’t be! Many of the rides at Dollywood are accessible for wheelchairs via flat-ramp access or elevators—even the rollercoasters!
Each attraction has a symbol that indicates what rides are safe for wheelchairs. This ratings system also ranks the rides based on intensity and movement, and advises who should avoid them for safety reasons. You can also find this information in the Rider Accessibility Guide found in this post on Dollywood.com.
- How much does it cost to rent a wheelchair in Dollywood?
You can not reserve a wheelchair online before your visit. These are available on a first come, first serve basis once you are at the park. The current cost to rent a wheelchair at Dollywood is $15 and with a Gold Pass expect to pay $13. - How much does it cost to rent a mobility scooter in Dollywood?
The 2023 pricing of ECV rental is currently $50.10 for the ECV without a canopy and $63.80 with a canopy. You will save about $4-5 if you have a Gold Dollywood Season Pass. - Can I bring my own wheelchair or scooter to Dollywood?
You can definitely bring in your own wheelchair or mobility scooter to Dollywood. Be sure to visit the Accessibility Center to get all the details on the accessibility options the park offers guests. You do not have to rent a wheelchair through Dollywood to access this information or the disability passes.
Does Dollywood have a disability pass like Disney?
Yes, Dollywood does have a disability pass, which they call a “Boarding Pass”. I went through how it works in a section above. It essentially holds your spot in line by using your wait time as a ride time for the next ride you choose.
When we went to Dollywood with my Mom, she did not have to show any disability information or ADA card, etc to get the disability pass. They simply asked a few questions about her ability to sit or stand for long periods of time.
Does Dollywood have handicap parking?
Yes, Dollywood has ADA Accessible parking in Parking Lot A. This parking lot is used on a first come, first serve basis and cannot be reserved. Dollywood also uses Parking Lot B as overflow handicap parking until usually about 2:00 pm and then it’s opened to anyone looking to park.
How to get a wheelchair at Dollywood?
You can rent a wheelchair right in the parking lot at Dollywood, outside the entrance. You do not have to provide any type of ADA forms or information to rent a wheelchair at Dollywood.
Does Dollywood allow service animals?
Dollywood does allow service animals inside the park. Please visit the Accessibility Center for more information, including special relief area locations in the park for your service animal.
In addition to the tips that I’ve shared in this post, I suggest reading this helpful article about Visiting Dollywood in a Wheelchair and you’ll find even more great information in the Guest Accessibility Services section of Dollywood.com.