What resort would you recommend renting watercraft from?

[bweagle]

Is there a difference? DH and I are thinking about renting one on our next trip. I imagine it will be from GF or Cont....but just thought I'd ask to see what other's opinions are.

Also we're debating what type of watercraft to rent. DH wants to do watermice....I'm not so sure. I'm leaning towards pontoon, canopy or sail boat. Which do you prefer?

Also....I see that watermice are two seaters....is that comfortable for two adults?

Thanks for any input (sorry if this is posted on the wrong board, but I didn't know where else to put it:D )

[Cinderella]

Hi, This will depend in what you are wanting to use the watercraft for. If it is to watch the fireworks, or have a picnic, maybe u will want to consider the pontoon boats.

For just flying around the lake, watermice are brilliant and will easily accomodate 2 adults. We rented ours from Wilderness Lodge and the area zipping past the Poly was the fastest bit of water, so i don't suppose it will matter whether you get them from the Cont or the Grand Floridian. Have fun.

[CM Tinkerbell]

Just note that the watermice will not go very fast with two adults in them. Unless you are both very tiny. My husband and I tried this once and decided to go back and rent two seperate ones. It was much more fun.

Definitely rent them from either the GF, the Poly, Contemporary or Wilderness Lodge. You have a nice large area that you are allowed to move about in when renting from any of these. There's nothing like zipping past the Magic Kingdom in a watermouse!

Have fun!

[peedeejones]

We have rented at the Contemporary and the Poly and both were great fun. We usually rent a canopy boat because the three of us fit nicely and we are protected from the sun. I am a little afraid of the watermice when the bigger boats are out there. Either way, have a great time!!!!

Jennifer

[Sorcerer_Matt]

I agree,

I have rented them from the Contemporary and the Wilderness Lodge. Bay Lake and Seven Seas lagoon give you a very large amount of space to explore and go fast. Also, you get some great views of the Magic Kingdom and the local wilderness.
-Matt

[chris1gill]

I just wanted to mention, that if you rent from the WL, they have a 4 hour plan that allows you to use the watermice, pontoons & bikes for 120.00, which is about half price.... You could each get a watermouse & then rent a pontoon on another day for a couple of hours.... You can use the 4 hours anytime during the length of your stay....

[Letsbgoofy]

They have a boat called a water jet (I think) at the CR; they will fit 2 adults and still be fast.

[gailg]

Is there an age limit on the water mice? If you want to take a child to ride with an adult is there a minimum age ?

[gailg]

Is there a minimum age requirement to take children on the water mice?

[DawnCt]

Originally posted by gailg
Is there a minimum age requirement to take children on the water mice?

12 years old is the minimum age.

[DawnCt]

Originally posted by chris1gill
I just wanted to mention, that if you rent from the WL, they have a 4 hour plan that allows you to use the watermice, pontoons & bikes for 120.00, which is about half price.... You could each get a watermouse & then rent a pontoon on another day for a couple of hours.... You can use the 4 hours anytime during the length of your stay....

This is like the Captain's plan offered at the GF. It is more like an hour free but it is still a good deal. To answer the other question, the minimum age for the watermice is 12.

[Liz]

Is there a webpage with all the particulars on renting watercraft from the resorts? I'd like to know the times, etc. Does the Contemporary have one of these plans where you rent 3 hrs. and get 4?

What are the canopy boats like? Are they slow moving?

Would you feel comfortable letting a young 13 yr. old drive one of the watermice? She's never driven a boat before and has only been on a boat a couple of times in her life.

Would you recommend renting the boats first thing in the morning before it gets too hot? We thought about doing it when we take an afternoon break from the MK, but I started wondering if the heat would just be too much that time of day.

Thanks!

[ktleyed]

DH and 7 yr. old DS went on a watermouse together at the Poly in Feb. no problem, and I saw an even younger child going on with their father. Maybe age 12 is the requirement if they are going in their own watermouse, alone.

[DisneyKidds]

Minimum age to DRIVE a water mouse is 12. You can bring younger children on. I took my 3 yo DD. She liked it - until she fell asleep! It was around nap time and the constant motion of zipping around the water..... Next time I'll avoid nap time :).

[Piglet203]

I would recommend renting a boat from either the GF, Contemporary, WL, or Poly. The Seven Seas Lagoon has the biggest area to explore, so why not take advantage of it? I have rented from the Contemporary (a pontoon) and was very satisfied. It's nice to go around and see all of the deluxes, MK :D , and the Wedding Pavillion.....I'm hoping that after Mickey76 sees that upclose.....He'll definitley say yes to a Disney World wedding :D But anyways, any of those resorts would be a good place to rent a boat......Have a great time!

74 days and counting.....

[DawnCt]

Originally posted by Cinderella
Hi, This will depend in what you are wanting to use the watercraft for. If it is to watch the fireworks, or have a picnic, maybe u will want to consider the pontoon boats.

.

The marinas close well before dark. There are no personal watercraft allowed on the waterways of WDW after dusk.

[DancingBear]

If you want to watch the fireworks at MK or Illuminations at Epcot you can try to book a pontoon boat cruise--comes with a driver and costs around $120.

[bweagle]

How early in the day do they start renting watercraft?

[ktleyed]

The Polynesian's marina begins renting at 10am.

[jmminarik]

Originally posted by Cinderella
For just flying around the lake, watermice are brilliant and will easily accomodate 2 adults.

2 small to medium size adults. I'm six foot and barely had enough leg room sitting all by myself in the WL meeces and wound up with a few minor bruises in the knee cap area....didn't slow me down though!

If you're extra long or extra wide, they might not be as accomodating. :)

Hope this helps,
Joe

[bweagle]

Originally posted by chris1gill
I just wanted to mention, that if you rent from the WL, they have a 4 hour plan that allows you to use the watermice, pontoons & bikes for 120.00, which is about half price.... You could each get a watermouse & then rent a pontoon on another day for a couple of hours.... You can use the 4 hours anytime during the length of your stay....

Does anyone know if these 4 hours can be used at other marinas. For example....if I bought the 4 hour plan at WL, would I have to use all 4 hours there or could I use some time at a different marina like at the GF or Poly? Just curious...thanks for any info

[chris1gill]

Bweagle, if you do the 4 hour or unlimited plan, it would be at the particular marina you rented from... it's not interchangeable with the other marina's....

[Tina26]

How many watermice and bikes does the 120.00 package include at WL? Could my husband and I both get watermice? Also about the bikes, could my husband, myself, and two sons get bikes or does the package only include a certain amount? Thanks!!!:)

[chris1gill]

Tina, it includes however many people you want to include in the rental contract, but it for a total of 4 hours per contract, so if you have 8 people in watermice for 1/2 an hour, that's your 4 hours worth... in that case, if there are that many people for instance, a length of stay plan for 200.00 would be worthwhile...

[Tina26]

Ok, thanks Chris! We will definitely be doing this length of stay plan this year so thanks for all the info!:)

[chris1gill]

Oh, I almost forgot to mention... when we did the four hour plan at WL, we weren't registered guests there, we were actually staying at OKW, so you don't need to pick the marina at your resort... Likewise, I don't know if all resorts have the length of stay or 4 hour plan... I know they are offered at WL though....

Have fun!

[Liz]

So do I understand this, a length of stay plan is different from the plan where you pay for 3 hrs. and get a 4th hr. free?

Is a length of stay plan unlimited use of watercraft for the length of your stay? And is it $200 for your total group or $200 per person?

Appreciate any more info on this. Thanks!

[chris1gill]

Hi Liz,

I think each resort may have different pricing, but at WL you pay 120.00 for four hours of boating & biking (not including surreys), this is like 1/2 price cause usually it's 60.00 per hour....

The length of stay plan is 200.00 and includes an unlimited amount of time biking & boating during your WDW stay... now if you switch resorts in the middle of your stay, that's a problem, because officially, your length of stay would be over at the first resort... so this length of stay plan would work for people that want to spend more than 4 hours total on the water and are staying in 1 resort during their vacation... The 200.00 is per party, so if you have 4 adults in your party, sign them all up... Children can't drive a boat, so you don't need to sign them up...

As I said, this is all the information for WL, someone else said that at GF the 4 hour plan is like getting the 4th hour free, that's because GF must be more expensive per hour than WL... I do know that the cheapest place I've seen to rent a pontoon boat is at OKW which is 44.00 per hour for non-DVC'ers...

[Liz]

Thanks Chris, I think I understand now.

Looks like the length of stay plan wouldn't work for us because we're staying at the Dolphin the whole time. It seems like (unlike the other plan) you need to be staying at the hotel with the marina to sign up for this plan.

Thanks for the info!

[renessa]

Chris- Which boating options were included. Was it the mice and pontoons, or did it include anything additional. Thanks, Ren:bounce:

[chris1gill]

Hi Liz,

I think you misunderstood what I said... For the Length of Stay plan you do not need to be staying at the hotel with the marina you choose. You should however be staying in one hotel for your trip. Some people like to spend a couple of days at the dolphin, then a couple of days at the beach club. If you were to move hotels mid-week, then officially your stay would be over, the same thing is true for the 4 hour plan. So, in your case, since your are staying in just one resort, this should okay for you! Sorry to mislead you!

The boating options included all the mice, the sprites, the pontoons.... so take your pick, mix & match how you like!

[Liz]

Okay Chris, sorry to be so DENSE!!!!! LOL!!!!! Its not your explanations its just ME!!!!

So let me see if I've got this now. There will be me, my DH, DS age 14 and DD age 12. We are staying at the Dolphin for 7 nights. For $200 we could get unlimited use of watercraft for all four of us for our complete stay, right? Please feel free to conk me on the head if I still misunderstand!

This $200 price is for WL, right? Do you know if the Contemporary has this same plan for the same price? We're thinking of renting there because it would seem easiest to get to by taking a bus to MK and walking over.

So if we go with length of stay it would be about $80 more than doing the captains plan or whatever its called.

How do you prove the length of your stay or do you just tell them? Any problem since the Dolphin isn't an official Disney hotel?

Thanks so much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

:) :) :) :)

[chris1gill]

Hi Liz,

You know, you raise a very good question about the Dolphin not being an official Disney hotel... I don't know if that makes a difference... .my suggestion would be to call the Wilderness Lodge directly & asking for Hanks Marina... they'll be able to give you the correct answer on that...

And you're right, the length of stay is only 80.00 more than the Captains plan... 200.00 total for your party of 4. In order to rent the boats, you need your room key, which has your dates on it, that's how they know your check-out day...

[bweagle]

The LoS use of watercraft sounds like a great idea when wanting to take an afternoon break from the parks!

[Liz]

I was thinking an afternoon break from the parks to do the watercraft thing would be good too, but then I was wondering if it would be too hot out in the blazing sun with no cover. Any thoughts?

Also when you are out on the boats does an hour seem like plenty of time or does it seem to fly by?

Thanks for all your help Chris!

[chris1gill]

Hi Liz,

You're more than welcome! Anyways, if you're zipping around the lake mid-afternoon in the blazing sun in the water mice, it shouldn't be too bad on you... The pontoon boats do provide limited cover from the sun, so that does help, but you since you go slower, you will notice the sun more... just be sure to use sun block, one year we burned pretty bad on the water, also bring a hat if you'd like....

one hour goes by quickly, two hours goes by quite a bit slower!! I'd say 60-75 minutes on a Pontoon is a nice leisurely trip... be sure to bring drinks or a picnic lunch with you too... My DH had a blast in one of the water mice on Bay Lake, so definitely allow for a lot of time with that, I believe he was out for an hour... This is the first year we'd done the mice (well I didn't actually do the water mouse LOL), as we had always done just the pontoons...

[disney4us2002]

bumping....

Someone else is looking for length of stay for boat rentals. This may what they're looking for, good info in this post!