First Time Renting an ECV for Dad and Need Help!

[Carrie Gruber]

Hello! I'm going to WDW in October and my dad (65) has mentioned that he might (reluctantly) need to rent a scooter for our stay. He's finally come to terms with the fact that his body isn't as spry as it used to be. He was involved in a MVA about 15 years ago which resulted in a fractured hip/pelvis that didn't heal real well, and he also has arthritis in his knees and issues with his feet, so walking for an extended period of time is becoming more and more difficult for him (Our trip in June 2013 really did a number on him but he didn't want to pay to rent a scooter). I've been searching the boards for tips on ECVs and I have decided to rent from an outside vendor on Disney's approved list so we won't need to worry about availability at the parks. I do have a few questions for my fellow DISers who are more experienced with this subject:

1. Have you ever had a problem with delivery/pick up of a rented scooter?
2. I'm planning to rent a collapsible scooter to put in the trunk of cabs when we go to early ADRs. Has anyone had an issue with cabs? Are people still grumpy when someone boards the bus ahead of them due to their scooter/wheelchair? (We're NOT those kind of people, we have respect for those who have mental/physical challenges so I want to prepare myself for any potential "nasties")
3. We're staying at AoA (Cars Suite), do you think we'll need to request an accessible room? I don't want to do this unless absolutely necessary to get the scooter through the door - I figure we'll get the folding one and he can get off and we can fold it to get in the room. I don't want to take an accessible room away from someone who needs it more than us.
4. Have you used them at the water parks? If so, where did you park/store the scooter when you went on the attractions? I doubt he'll need it for our one day we plan to do Blizzard Beach, but want to be prepared just in case.

Thank you in advance for any information you can provide!

 

[tobikaye]

When you say "collapsible" do you mean it literately folds up or comes apart. I have seen a few of the ones that can fold online before, but never for rent at the locations near WDW. The ones I have seen available are the once that come about in 3-6 pieces.

I cannot answer many of your questions, but in the case of a taxi, if you take the scooter apart, it should fit in the trunk of the taxi. You could also see about scheduling a taxi van to pick up. Mears is the taxi company used at WDW.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Ignore any nasty attitudes. Part of avoiding them would be to not rush up to the bus at the last minute and have your whole party board ahead of a long line of waiting guests - so being considerate.

All resort room doors are the same width, you won't need an accessible room.

 

[shrinkydinky]

We have rented from Buena Vista, and never had a problem with them dropping off or picking up. We had an issue with one scooter that didn't stop as quickly as we would have liked. They quickly replaced it. i don't know of any scooter rentals that have ECVs that fold up. You can rent a portable one that comes apart into about 5 pieces. It does take a while to dismantle it and reassemble it. We never had an issue with anyone getting cranky when we boarded the bus ahead of them. Handicapped folks get on the bus first and off the bus last. You may want to tell your hotel that your father will have a scooter and ask for either a ground floor room or one close to the elevators.

 

[Bete]

Rented many times and we never had a problem with delivery or pick up even at off site hotels for scooters.
Most of the scooters you rent are not really fold up scooters. They can be taken apart usually into 5 pieces to fit in a car. There are a few scooters out there that can actually fold up, but I have not seen them for rent.
We have never had a bad reaction from anyone on the buses for using a scooter.
To get the scooter in and out of the room we usually have someone holding the door while someone drives it in and out of the room.
Please be aware that you need an appropriate size scooter based on the weight of the person and also how long you will be in the parks. There are scooters with two batteries which last a longer day at the parks, for example.
You need to recharge the battery every night to be on the safe side.

 

[mamabunny]

Was just at the parks in February; there are so many folks now who need/use ECV's that for the most part everyone accepts them. And anyone who doesn't needs to remember that Karma has a long memory, all I'm sayin'...

In all seriousness, I have never seen a local (Orlando/WDW area) rental company rent a scooter that "folds". I personally own my own ECV - and it does fold - but I never bother at WDW. I just ride it on to the bus. It takes longer to fold, AND it still takes up space and has to be tied down, so why bother? (My ECV is a TravelScoot brand)

My advice (and yes, I have some experience with this LOL) is to rent a scooter that your dad will be the most comfortable with. Take into account his weight, height, and medical issue - for example, some people need more padding in the seat, while others find it more important to have a higher seat back. Don't worry about if it can be used with a cab - the bus system at WDW works splendidly (as does the majority of the transportation there) for folks with ECVs.

Remind your dad that using an ECV is no different than using the proper tool to get the job done. No one thinks twice if you use a calculator to do math, glasses to see better, a hearing aid to hear. An ECV is simply a tool for humans who need assistance with moving about. Nothing more.

I hope you all have lovely trip!

 

[niftywench]

I had to use one this past trip and we stayed at AOA - since we had a rental car i left the scooter in the trunk and just brought the battery in to recharge most nights, but the nights i was so tired and sore i would ride it into the suite no problem. We rented from an outside company and it was very easy to take apart and put together. and good luck! I hope you all have a magical journey!

 

[Carrie Gruber]

Was just at the parks in February; there are so many folks now who need/use ECV's that for the most part everyone accepts them. And anyone who doesn't needs to remember that Karma has a long memory, all I'm sayin'...

In all seriousness, I have never seen a local (Orlando/WDW area) rental company rent a scooter that "folds". I personally own my own ECV - and it does fold - but I never bother at WDW. I just ride it on to the bus. It takes longer to fold, AND it still takes up space and has to be tied down, so why bother? (My ECV is a TravelScoot brand)

My advice (and yes, I have some experience with this LOL) is to rent a scooter that your dad will be the most comfortable with. Take into account his weight, height, and medical issue - for example, some people need more padding in the seat, while others find it more important to have a higher seat back. Don't worry about if it can be used with a cab - the bus system at WDW works splendidly (as does the majority of the transportation there) for folks with ECVs.

Remind your dad that using an ECV is no different than using the proper tool to get the job done. No one thinks twice if you use a calculator to do math, glasses to see better, a hearing aid to hear. An ECV is simply a tool for humans who need assistance with moving about. Nothing more.

I hope you all have lovely trip!

Thank you for mentioning TravelScoot, this is the type of ECV I had in mind. Do you own the deluxe or standard model? I don't know what the difference is, I only see one photo on their website. I'm going to try to convince my dad to just purchase one of those as he will most likely need to use it for future trips as well.

 

[mamabunny]

Thank you for mentioning TravelScoot, this is the type of ECV I had in mind. Do you own the deluxe or standard model? I don't know what the difference is, I only see one photo on their website. I'm going to try to convince my dad to just purchase one of those as he will most likely need to use it for future trips as well.

Hi @Carrie Gruber!

My TravelScoot is the "Deluxe" model, and it weighs about 35 pounds completely assembled (without me on board! LOL). There are two differences between the "Deluxe" and "Standard" models, for one reason.

The Standard model has an SLA battery. (Sealed Lead Acid). It's a safe, proven technology, however it is heavier than Lithium-ion. Also, SLA batteries used with the TravelScoot don't last as long, even though they are the same capacity. Weighs 47 pounds.

The Deluxe model uses Lithium-ion battery technology. Also a safe, proven technology, and lighter than the same comparable capacity SLA battery. Weighs 35 pounds.

Otherwise, they are literally identical.

TravelScoot has a page here that talks about the batteries as well.

That's it. That's the big difference! The Deluxe is lighter because of the Lithium-ion battery.

BTW, I'm a self-described 3L: a Lovely Large Lady. The battery lasted all day for me at WDW, even going up and down ramps and hills. I would charge it overnight, and go again the next day! I just made sure to turn it off when I wasn't moving, to help conserve battery life. It does take about 8 hours to charge a fully depleted battery. In the interest of full disclosure, there was 1 day on our last trip when I did swap batteries, and use my backup - that was our daughter's 21st birthday! We were going non-stop ALL day - from breakfast at Crystal Palace at 8am until we got back to the resort late late late at 1:00 am. BTW - buses run for early ADR's; just ask at your resort desk for that info.

In either case, when flying on a commercial flight, you can leave the TravelScoot assembled, and you are required to take the battery on board. TravelScoot sells a special battery travel bag for this, but you can use a standard tote bag if needed. I keep my battery charger and a small toolkit in the bag. (I'm also weirdly over-prepared, so I also have a spare battery and a spare charger in there too! LOL). After we would clear the bag check at the gates at WDW, I would pop the seat off (one lever, very easy) and slip the handles of the battery bag over the seat post, and then put the seat back in place. That left the little red "parcel" area free to hold ALL the shopping... (so much shopping, Carrie.... so much shopping! LOL)

When I am at home, I drop the handlebars down (again, one lever, very easy) and we just lift my TravelScoot right in to the back of my Kia Soul. I never "fold" it - there's no reason to!

As I said before, we never had to fold my TravelScoot once on the trip we took in February. The only reason we *might* have folded it was if we had to take a taxi, but I didn't even bring the big carry/storage bag to put the pieces in. It's about the size of a standard golf bag, and it can be a bit unwieldy if you aren't used to carrying something like that. Plus, if you decided to fold it, and use the storage bag, the bus drivers will still have to strap it down. It's just way quicker and easier to drive it right on the bus! (and the WDW bus drivers all adore the TravelScoot, as do airline flight crews, because it is so light and easy to work with!)

One last thing - tell your dad this for me: My husband was super worried about me using the TravelScoot, until he saw it in person, and saw how well-made it is. The design is extremely well thought-out, and the craftsmanship is quite obvious, as the entire frame is exposed. My hubby is an FAA-certified A&P mechanic for a major airline, and he was (and still is) quite impressed with the TravelScoot. It has changed my life dramatically; I no longer hesitate to go anywhere, and I am happy again because I feel like I have my freedom back!

LMK if you have any more questions (I also posted about our trip here, if you want to read about the overall trip and how it went with a TravelScoot.)

 

[Carrie Gruber]

Hi @Carrie Gruber!

My TravelScoot is the "Deluxe" model, and it weighs about 35 pounds completely assembled (without me on board! LOL). There are two differences between the "Deluxe" and "Standard" models, for one reason.

The Standard model has an SLA battery. (Sealed Lead Acid). It's a safe, proven technology, however it is heavier than Lithium-ion. Also, SLA batteries used with the TravelScoot don't last as long, even though they are the same capacity. Weighs 47 pounds.

The Deluxe model uses Lithium-ion battery technology. Also a safe, proven technology, and lighter than the same comparable capacity SLA battery. Weighs 35 pounds.

Otherwise, they are literally identical.

TravelScoot has a page here that talks about the batteries as well.

That's it. That's the big difference! The Deluxe is lighter because of the Lithium-ion battery.

BTW, I'm a self-described 3L: a Lovely Large Lady. The battery lasted all day for me at WDW, even going up and down ramps and hills. I would charge it overnight, and go again the next day! I just made sure to turn it off when I wasn't moving, to help conserve battery life. It does take about 8 hours to charge a fully depleted battery. In the interest of full disclosure, there was 1 day on our last trip when I did swap batteries, and use my backup - that was our daughter's 21st birthday! We were going non-stop ALL day - from breakfast at Crystal Palace at 8am until we got back to the resort late late late at 1:00 am. BTW - buses run for early ADR's; just ask at your resort desk for that info.

In either case, when flying on a commercial flight, you can leave the TravelScoot assembled, and you are required to take the battery on board. TravelScoot sells a special battery travel bag for this, but you can use a standard tote bag if needed. I keep my battery charger and a small toolkit in the bag. (I'm also weirdly over-prepared, so I also have a spare battery and a spare charger in there too! LOL). After we would clear the bag check at the gates at WDW, I would pop the seat off (one lever, very easy) and slip the handles of the battery bag over the seat post, and then put the seat back in place. That left the little red "parcel" area free to hold ALL the shopping... (so much shopping, Carrie.... so much shopping! LOL)

When I am at home, I drop the handlebars down (again, one lever, very easy) and we just lift my TravelScoot right in to the back of my Kia Soul. I never "fold" it - there's no reason to!

As I said before, we never had to fold my TravelScoot once on the trip we took in February. The only reason we *might* have folded it was if we had to take a taxi, but I didn't even bring the big carry/storage bag to put the pieces in. It's about the size of a standard golf bag, and it can be a bit unwieldy if you aren't used to carrying something like that. Plus, if you decided to fold it, and use the storage bag, the bus drivers will still have to strap it down. It's just way quicker and easier to drive it right on the bus! (and the WDW bus drivers all adore the TravelScoot, as do airline flight crews, because it is so light and easy to work with!)

One last thing - tell your dad this for me: My husband was super worried about me using the TravelScoot, until he saw it in person, and saw how well-made it is. The design is extremely well thought-out, and the craftsmanship is quite obvious, as the entire frame is exposed. My hubby is an FAA-certified A&P mechanic for a major airline, and he was (and still is) quite impressed with the TravelScoot. It has changed my life dramatically; I no longer hesitate to go anywhere, and I am happy again because I feel like I have my freedom back!

LMK if you have any more questions (I also posted about our trip here, if you want to read about the overall trip and how it went with a TravelScoot.)

Thank you so much mamabunny! I will share this info with my dad, I think this is going to work very well for him. He may need some convincing but I think he'll have a much more enjoyable trip if he uses this. Now I'm off to read your trip report!

 

[mamabunny]

@Carrie Gruber - I forgot to mention 2 things! First, I use a "CrampBuster" on the throttle - it's available at most motorcycle accessory shops and online at places like Amazon.com. It makes keeping the throttle twisted *so* much easier!

And, second, I forgot to mention that if your Dad wants to "try before you buy", there is a place online that rents TravelScoots - they ship directly to your door - and he could see if he really likes it before he purchases! Check this website if he is interested in the rental!

 

[sweetiee]

I'm Glad to see this thread. We are taking my dad next week. He is 81 yo. We just confirmed a rental that takes apart since we don't have a way to transport a full one. We are staying in a house off property. I'm
Hoping all goes well.