Walt Disney World is known as the most magical place on Earth. Unfortunately, sometimes real life problems get into the Disney bubble. We learned the hard way what happens when you have a medical issue at the Magic Kingdom, and what happens when you need a trip to the emergency room.
We didn’t know what to do or what to expect when we had a medical incident at Walt Disney World. We hope our story helps you, and gives you an idea of what might happen if you need assistance. This article is going to be a bit light on pictures. This didn’t feel like an appropriate time to have my blogging hat on, but we hope there’s still some good takeaways.
Skip ahead:
- Not feeling well in Magic Kingdom
- Visiting First Aid at the Magic Kingdom
- How Disney’s Yacht Club helped
- Free medical shuttle for Disney resort guests
- Visiting the ER during our Disney vacation
- Overall thoughts on medical issues at Disney World
Medical Incident at the Magic Kingdom
Our day started normal enough. We had a fun day planned at the Magic Kingdom. The weather was warm, a bit humid, and sunny when we arrived just after park opening. It was a typical early summer day in Florida, but thankfully it wasn’t one of those days where it feels like an oven outside. After taking a quick photo in front of Cinderella Castle, we headed to our first ride of the day – the Jungle Cruise.
While we were on the Jungle Cruise, I noticed my wife wasn’t feeling well. She looked greener than the mighty rivers of the Jungle Cruise. She said she was extremely nauseous, and needed to get off the ride. Unfortunately, that’s tough to do on a ride like the Jungle Cruise, and our boat got stuck behind several others unloading at the dock.
She kept her composure as best she could (and kept her breakfast down), and we found a bench for her to sit on just outside of the ride’s entrance after unloading. She was close to fainting, her hands were tightening, and she was extremely nauseous. I flagged down a cast member for assistance.
Have you ever heard that Disney cast members can appear out of thin air if something goes wrong? That’s exactly what happened. After asking a nearby cast member for help, multiple cast members and a couple managers rushed over to us. I have no clue where they came from. They surrounded us and checked on my wife. They offered us a couple options on how they could assist. Everyone was extremely nice and helpful during a very scary situation.
We learned they could either call paramedics (they said they were located backstage nearby) or we could head to First Aid. We collectively agreed this was likely a case of dehydration or heat exhaustion, so we elected to go to First Aid. My wife was still very lightheaded, so the cast members got us a wheelchair. It also appeared out of thin air. I thanked everyone for their help (they were all awesome) and we headed to First Aid.
Visiting First Aid in the Magic Kingdom
I started pushing my wife in a wheelchair from the Jungle Cruise to First Aid. For reference, The First Aid location in the Magic Kingdom is a bit tucked away. If you’re looking directly at the Crystal Palace, First Aid is on the left down a small pathway that also has restrooms. The entrance can be easy to miss.
First Aid is at the star mark on the map below.
Let me tell you, you have no idea how tough some of the Magic Kingdom’s walkways are until you’re pushing a wheelchair. That seemingly small hill near the Jungle Cruise is a lot steeper than it looks. Our relatively short journey from the Jungle Cruise to First Aid was a tough one.
We walked into the small First Aid lobby and checked in with the cast member working at the registration desk. She asked some very basic information (name, phone number), and immediately brought us back to a curtained-off area in the back.
This wasn’t a time to take pictures and document everything like we would during a dining or hotel review. So, you’ll have to make due with some basic descriptions and a lack of pictures. Glancing around, First Aid has several bays that are divided by walls and curtains. Each bay has an adjustable table to lay down, a chair, and that’s honestly about it. There isn’t any major medical equipment.
A very kind nurse came over and checked my wife’s basic vitals. She agreed it was probably a case of dehydration and heat exhaustion. She gave my wife a Powerade, a cool towel for her forehead, and said we could stay in the AC as long as we wanted.
Leaving First Aid and Back to Disney’s Yacht Club
After about an hour of resting in First Aid, my wife decided she wanted to head back to our hotel. She was ready to get some rest. I asked a cast member how payment worked, and she said there was no charge! We’re so used to even basic vitals costing an arm and a leg, so that was shocking. Especially at Disney.
The idea of waiting and taking a bus back to our resort (Disney’s Yacht Club) sounded terrible to both of us, so I booked a Minnie Van ride. They arrived quickly and it didn’t take long to get back to our room. Our hope was that some rest and additional fluids would sort things out.
Medical Help at Disney’s Yacht Club
Unfortunately, things didn’t improve after more fluids and lots of rest. The symptoms also changed to take on what resembled more of a nasty stomach bug. Those new symptoms combined with all of the other symptoms made us panic some. It felt like a weird situation. I generally feel it’s better to be safe than sorry, and with her condition worsening we figured it’d be smart to get her checked out.
As a Disney blogger, I knew Disney partnered with AdventHealth for guest health services. That said, I wasn’t exactly sure how it worked or what that even meant. Is there really a free shuttle for Disney resort guests for medical care? Where should you try to find help? There’s lots of info online, but we found quite a few articles that were dated or contradicted one another.
I decided to try the old fashioned way by asking the front desk. The cast members working the front desk at the Yacht Club that day were incredible. They quickly gave me a full brochure that covered all of my questions. Yes, there is a free shuttle and you just need to call it. The shuttle can take you to either urgent care of the ER. It’s that easy.
We also discussed the possibility we’d need to add a night on to our trip if my wife wasn’t feeling better in time for our flight. The cast members were also extremely helpful here, and we found out there was room for us if we had to tack on a night or two at the last second.
AdventHealth Shuttle and Urgent Care
I called the number for the shuttle shortly after leaving the front desk. After providing basic information (patient info, symptoms, where we are, where we want to go), they told us the shuttle would be there in 30 minutes to take us to urgent care. They’d meet us just outside the lobby.
Quick sidebar: Where we live, urgent care centers can do a lot for patients. Along with vitals, x-rays, and some of the more basic treatments, the urgent cares by us can also do CT scans, EKGs, and lab testing. It’s usually the first place to start unless you’re having a very serious emergency. We later learned this isn’t exactly the case in Orlando.
The shuttle was a sprinter van that admittedly wasn’t in the best shape. It was a very bumpy ride. It wasn’t super ideal for a patient who isn’t feeling well, but we weren’t going to complain since it was free and took some of the guesswork out of the situation. After a 15-to-20 minute ride, we arrived at urgent care.
Our stay at urgent care lasted about two minutes. They knew we were coming, so checking in was easy. But, when the ladies at the front desk asked how we hoped they could help us, they informed they could only do testing for COVID and couldn’t do any blood testing. They said they were more a resource for basic illnesses or an injury, and couldn’t really help us.
This was beyond frustrating.
Next Stop – The ER
When the folks at urgent care recommended going to the emergency room at the hospital, we weighed our options. The ERs where we live are really for major emergencies, and going to one usually means waiting several hours. It wasn’t the most attractive idea. But, we didn’t have many options and we wanted to rule out anything serious.
The urgent care front desk called for a new shuttle and we were picked up in about five minutes. This was a different car and driver, which means there must be quite a few drivers ready to shuttle patients around. It was nice not having to wait since we felt like we were getting a bit of a run around about where we needed to go.
Arriving at the ER was shocking. It was completely empty. There was one gentleman at the front desk, but that was it. We were the only ones in the waiting room. That was a huge contrast to what we’re used to with ER waiting rooms usually bursting at the seams with people waiting.
Our Surprisingly Great ER Visit
We waited less than two minutes to be taken back to a treatment room at the ER. Insane. I really can’t stress how abnormal that is compared to what we’re used to back home.
One of the nurses took us back to a room and we noticed just how quiet the ER was. We saw a couple other patients, but for the most part the place was empty except for nurses and doctors. We were immediately seen by a different nurse who took vitals and some medical history, and then immediately by a doctor.
They diagnosed that my wife had a couple of things going on. She had a bad case of norovirus that she likely picked up during our trip. The medical team also believed she had a panic attack when she felt ill on the Jungle Cruise, and that’s what caused the hand tightening and faintness. Her panic on the ride created the more worrisome symptoms.
They prescribed a couple medications that could ease my wife’s symptoms. One they had at the ER, but the other had to be ordered. They made this super easy by having it set up to deliver to the Yacht Club the following day. That’d make sure my wife had both prescriptions well before we had to head back home. The medical team was awesome. They were helpful, personable, and funny. They joked that my wife got sick on the most intense ride in Disney. Gotta watch out for the backside of water!
Another shuttle ride and we were back at the Yacht Club. My wife rested in the room the last couple days of our trip and was a trooper making it back home. It definitely wasn’t how we saw the trip going, but we were thankful her condition wasn’t worse.
Overall Thoughts On Our ER Visit in Disney World
Unfortunately, sometimes real life intrudes into the Disney bubble. That includes illnesses and injuries. We were fortunate that our situation ended up not being very serious. But, how Disney handled it and our experience visiting the ER is a testament to why we enjoy vacationing in Walt Disney World.
We love Walt Disney World for many reasons. One of those reasons is that Disney will try and make things right if something goes wrong. Having a medical incident certainly isn’t fun, but the way we were treated in First Aid and the help we received from cast members made a huge difference. The cast members are truly the Disney difference.
Disney’s partnership with AdventHealth is obviously motivated by business. That said, it’s very convenient and feels like an extension of the Disney bubble in some ways. Not having to worry about transportation was extremely nice. Best of all was the experience in the ER, which is a sentence we never thought we’d write. Everyone there was friendly, helpful, and compassionate.
While we never want to hear of anyone needing medical help while in Walt Disney World, we hope you’ll look at our experience should you ever run into a similar situation. The whole process was easier than we expected – even with the detour to urgent care.
