2 Non-Swimmers! Advice please.

[tipperarymary]

Myself (23) and my mom are planing a trip to WDW in early October. We want to do the parks but also fit in a day , maybe a day and a half, to explore our resort and do some non-theme park activities.

As a title suggests neither of us can swim and we are wondering if there are any resorts (value or mod) that have several hot-tubs or shallow pools that we can get in o cool off without requiring COR

Also wondering if any of the boat rentals I see offered in the resorts would be safe enough for us.

Any finally what about the water parks. Are the water landings on the rides shallow enough for us to just stand up or should be skip them and just go shopping?

Thanks so much in advance

 

[annmorr]

Myself (23) and my mom are planing a trip to WDW in early October. We want to do the parks but also fit in a day , maybe a day and a half, to explore our resort and do some non-theme park activities.

As a title suggests neither of us can swim and we are wondering if there are any resorts (value or mod) that have several hot-tubs or shallow pools that we can get in o cool off without requiring COR

Also wondering if any of the boat rentals I see offered in the resorts would be safe enough for us.

Any finally what about the water parks. Are the water landings on the rides shallow enough for us to just stand up or should be skip them and just go shopping?

Thanks so much in advance

I am also not a swimmer, but one of my favorite things to do at the resort is to buy a pool noodle at the resort gift store, and float around the shallow end of the pool - if I happen to venture into deeper water I feel safe with the noodle until i'm able to get back into my more comfortable swim area. (When vacation is over, I always find a child or family to give the noodle to so I feel like I'm spreading some fun too! And I also love the lazy rivers at the water parks, but don't know much about the other rides there.

 

[MinnieSummer]

The moderates have hot tubs -- CSR has the largest on property. I'm not sure if the values do as we only stay there for over night trips or weekends when we really don't use the pools. Remember you can't pool hop. The only pool you can use is the one at the resort where you are staying. The water parks are iffy. Some of the slides land in very shallow water and some land in more that can result in you going under when the wave at the end hits. There are areas where you can wade in the wave pools without swimming and you can lay anywhere around the parks. It is a very relaxing way to spend the day. The boat rentals all provide life vests and you do not need to get in the water. They are a lot of fun, especially the ones at the MK resorts, where you can go all the way over to Fort Wilderness or Grand Floridan and back to your rental location. A great way to see the resorts from a different angle. Even the parasailing is fun and doesn't require you to be able to swim as you take off and land from the boat. You are given a life vest just in case. Taking a day to just explore the resorts is also fun. You can visit any of them -- I recommend AKL as it has many different areas to explore and seeing the animals can be exciting. Thats just MHO

 

[tsme]

Most of the pools are zero entry, I believe, & the average height adult can stand in it without their head going under, except for portions of SAB (for me anyway, I'm 5'). I'm not sure what you meant by COR, but you can only go in the pools at the resort you are staying at, with the except of some DVCs. For the water parks, I've only gone to TL. And I never had any problems standing up after a slide & like I mentioned I'm 5'. I'm not sure about the hot tubs, it depends on which resort you are staying at, some have them, some don't & again only for hotel guests. If you're afraid of the water, I would totally just skip it & go shopping.

 

[disney is my life]

We've stayed at both POP and all star movies. At pop we swam at the main pool (flower shaped) and at all star movies we swam at the one in the mighty duck section. At both pools my dd15 was able to stand up even in the deepest part of the pool with her feet flat on the bottom and her whole head above the water.

 

[tipperarymary]

We are not afraid of water just never had the chance to learn to swim but definately love to lounge in it to cool off etc..

tsme- Glad to hear a fellow shortie had no issues with the waterpark. I think we'll pencil it in for sure. Seems like fun and as long as we can stand up in the water we don't mind going under for a few seconds.
Just have to figure wheter we'll do Typhoon or Blizzard. Any suggestions?

Mini- Summer - Which resort do you suggest for boat rental - I know all the names but can't visualise which park they're closest to - yet anyway! Thanks.

Haven't picked our resort for sure but am between Port Orleans and Caribbean Beach.

 

[akl-fan]

Not all pools are zero entry so check if that is imprtant before you book a hotel. Most are fairly shallow, I agree with a previous poster that a pool noodle is a great idea.
You should be fine to rent boats as long as you keep your life jacket on. They are not compulsory for adults but clearly if you can't swim you should keep it on.
They are lots of flumes at the water parks that would be fine - Teamboat springs for example. Check out the exits before you slide.

 

[stargazertechie]

We are not afraid of water just never had the chance to learn to swim but definately love to lounge in it to cool off etc..

tsme- Glad to hear a fellow shortie had no issues with the waterpark. I think we'll pencil it in for sure. Seems like fun and as long as we can stand up in the water we don't mind going under for a few seconds.
Just have to figure wheter we'll do Typhoon or Blizzard. Any suggestions?

Mini- Summer - Which resort do you suggest for boat rental - I know all the names but can't visualise which park they're closest to - yet anyway! Thanks.

Haven't picked our resort for sure but am between Port Orleans and Caribbean Beach.

I've stayed at both, and I've enjoyed both. I like the close-knit feeling of POFQ over CBR.


As for using a pool noodle- if you cannot swim, noodles, inner tubes, and rafts should NEVER be used in place of a personal flotation device, preferably a US coast guard certified life jacket.

 

[Sue M]

No a noodle doesn't take the place of a life vest, but in shallow pools, its sure fun to float with, as ling as you stay in the sections that you can stand in.

My fav moderate is POR, followed by POFQ. But neither have zero entry. the pools have many shallow areas. I like the landscaping of POR more, with the pretty grounds and lush landscaping. POFQ is smaller, and quaint, and more city-ish.

Both water parks are fun. Esp the lazy rivers where you float along in tubes.

TL has a Wave pool, so at this park I suggest only hanging out in the shallow area, it's a zero entry.

At BB the main pool is a bobbing pool, but again I would only recommend the shallow area. You can sit in the shallows and stay cool. Or just skip the big WP pools, go on the slides, and when the lines get long for them, hit the lazy river.

 

[Kimberle]

If you're not swimmers, I'd skip the water parks. There is so much to do at WDW, you won't even miss them.

AKL has a beautiful pool with zero entry. I find it very relaxing to hang out with a good book. The zero entry part is nice to go in and cool off.

Lots of the "regular" pools have shallow ends that are around 3 feet. Unless you are super short, you can just go in and walk around to cool off.

 

[goofy4tink]

I haven't been in a pool at WDW that I wasn't able to stand up in and not be above water. The vast majority of pools have you take steps into the pool. There are some zero entry pools but not a lot.
You should be fine at the pools. I go in, bob around for a bit to cool off and get out and relax. Repeat that as often as I want.
Skip the water parks...there is plenty to do without worrying about them too.

 

[nkereina]

I can't speak to all resorts but I think the max deep end at the quiet pools at POR were like 5'? I'm not a strong swimmer myself but I recall that I didn't have to avoid a deep end, and we only use quiet pools.