ECV Rentals

[springtime]

We are considering an ECV rental for my dad. We are mostly worried about endurance in the heat of June. What is your experience with rentals at the park? Do they frequently run out of rentals at the park? My parents are not early risers, and I don’t love the idea of missing out on a bunch of prime park time waiting in a rental line first thing in the morning. Do they typically still have rentals available mid-morning?

Are we better off renting from an outside company? Are we going to be waiting a really long time to get on buses? We are staying at CBR.

How challenging are they to maneuver? My dad also has dementia and gets confused with complicated instructions.

 

[scrappinginontario]

I would 100% recommend renting offsite as there is a lot of walking at Disney both at your resort as well as just getting to the park entrance. We rent them for both of my parents even though they do not usually use them in day to day life.

If it’s a challenge for your dad, you could be the one to load and unload it from the bus but other than that hopefully he’ll be just fine. There is a control on it to help with speed also keeping it on/towards ‘turtle’ might help him.

 

[LoveToDisney]

I took care of my parent when they had dementia and I would NOT have trusted them on an ECV. A wheelchair is a safer option. It will keep your dad from becoming anxious and thus have a better trip overall.
People/children step out in front of ECVs even when going slow and you have to be able to react to it and not hit them. Getting an ECV onto a bus is only a tiny portion of the driving. You also have to be concerned with all the park driving in a crowd. That’s why I would rent a wheelchair for him instead.

 

[lanejudy]

In-park ECVs often run out by mid-morning -- or did pre-COVID, I haven't heard much since the re-opening. Wheelchairs are usually available. Does your dad still drive? He may be better off with a wheelchair, allowing someone else to push (and steer and watch out for others). He can also walk when he'd like instead of riding. I recommend an off-site rental; it will be less expensive and he will have it for return to his resort room after a long day.

 

[WEDWDW]

Just a note-if renting an ECV at Epcot and they are out at the "front" of Epcot-check the International Gateway location-sometimes they will have some when they are out at the main location.

And the ECVs at Epcot can be turned in at either location regardless of which location they were initially rented from.

 

[disneyseniors]

We have only rented from the parks, all before covid. We had no problem renting one. They were pretty quick to get us going We also went to another park after a mid day rest and would rent another one. We could always rent one mid day. BUT we always travel on "off" times, if they have those now? It's a gamble. We only used them certain days at certain parks so it worked for us.

 

[jscottnc]

+1 on renting from offsite vendor. This is true if getting ECV or wheelchair. A wheelchair can be WAY easier to manage on Disney transportation especially if your parents can enter/exit the bus on their own power (just fold the chair up like a stroller) and you have a pusher (or two or three) for each wheelchair (there are some "gentle" hills at WDW).

ECVs in the parks are generally not hard to maneuver EXCEPT during typical rush periods (park opening, closing, and after shows).

One important thing to note. People in ECVs and wheelchairs are invisible. When moving, assume other guests cannot see you; they will certainly act as though they cannot. Even within your own group you may find that you unconsciously exclude members who are not in your sight line when making plans in the park.

 

[gatorlisa]

We did a family trip in 2019 that included the grandparents and my parents opted to get an ECV for my dad. He has stamina issues and vertigo issues when standing still, so ECV was the way to go. It was super helpful for around the resort and to and from the buses. Most offsite ECVs are also more compact and maneuverable than the ones in the park.

My dad did comment on how much mental energy it took to drive it around the park. He was so careful of people around him and making sure to watch his speed and not run into people or get hit by people, and it took a lot of focus to be successful with that.

 

[Betty Rohrer]

We are considering an ECV rental for my dad. We are mostly worried about endurance in the heat of June. What is your experience with rentals at the park? Do they frequently run out of rentals at the park? My parents are not early risers, and I don’t love the idea of missing out on a bunch of prime park time waiting in a rental line first thing in the morning. Do they typically still have rentals available mid-morning?

Are we better off renting from an outside company? Are we going to be waiting a really long time to get on buses? We are staying at CBR.

How challenging are they to maneuver? My dad also has dementia and gets confused with complicated instructions.

they do run out and no way to know if one will be there when you need plus at end of day it has to be left and you walk out gate and the long walk to your bus line. park ones are slower and larger which are harder to maneuver. offsite are smaller you control speed and you can do that for dad even if he is driving. they also maneuver easier. also gives a space to sit and wait for bus at end of day and there very few benches and none in the lines for buses. you did not mention but as of now there are no trams in the parking lots and that can be a long walk also if thinking about doing that

 

[bwang123]

We rented them at the parks on our trip. At Magic Kingdom, they did run out by around 10AM. The one problem was the long walks from the busses to and from the parks or once you get dropped off at the resort if you take Disney transportation. You would still need to walk or grab a wheelchair somewhere.

 

[marthachick]

We rented from Gold Mobility and it was an easy transaction. It is good to have it at your resort if you're staying at one. Some of the walks to a bus are very long or from bus to park entrance. As a previous poster said, have someone in the party load it onto the bus if he may have trouble.

If you're worried about him driving one, maybe go to a large store sometime when it's not busy and let him try it out there.

 

[Grumpy92]

We have done both for my 87 year old father. By far the off site vender was better. It was cheaper, the charge lasted longer and the speed was better. We had issues with the park scooter and swore we would never waste our money again. We used K&M, they delivered it to the hotel and picked it up at the hotel on our departure date. He could use it from the hotel all the way to the park and back on the Disney transportation. It really made everything so much easier.

 

[PaladinButters]

I took care of my parent when they had dementia and I would NOT have trusted them on an ECV. A wheelchair is a safer option. It will keep your dad from becoming anxious and thus have a better trip overall.
People/children step out in front of ECVs even when going slow and you have to be able to react to it and not hit them. Getting an ECV onto a bus is only a tiny portion of the driving. You also have to be concerned with all the park driving in a crowd. That’s why I would rent a wheelchair for him instead.

I feel like I'm taking crazy pills that everyone else in the thread seems to have read past that part with little or no concern.

 

[scrappinginontario]

I feel like I'm taking crazy pills that everyone else in the thread seems to have read past that part with little or no concern.

Sorry, not really understanding what you think the rest of us are missing? I understand what that poster said and it makes sense to me.

 

[Simba's Mom]

When I rented from the park, they never ran out. However, when I discovered that my rental of in-park scooters for 3 days was only slightly less than renting for the full week from an off-site company, where I could get to/from the bus stop on my scooter, and use it around the resort, my decision was made. Definitely off-site!