EVC advice needed

[RebelHawk]

My wife and I are heading down to WDW for the Flower and Garden festival and as I just had foot and ankle surgery I am non weight bearing. I have never used an ECV in the past but will need one for this trip. We are most likely going to use Apple Scooters for this trip but I have a few questions that I hope I can get some guidance on.

I am 6' 2" and weigh 245 pounds, I understand this has a baring on the type of ECV I will need.

Do I need a 3 wheel or 4 wheel ECV?

Is there a place where I can rest my cast on if I do go with the 3 wheel or is that mainly on the 4 wheel ECVs?

Are the smaller ECVs comfortable or is it worth it to go with a "captain's chair" model?

Can I strap my crutches to them easily for when I need to transfer to a ride?

Will the batteries really make it all day if we start when the parks open and go all day?

Typically my wife and I don't use Disney Transporation to get to the parks but use taxi's instead. Are the taxi's at WDW that will allow me to board with an ECV or will be have to use Disney Transportation?

Thanks for any advice,

Tom in SC

 

[KPeveler]

I have never used an ECV in the parks, but I am sure someone here will be along shortly to give you advice.

My advice - make sure you have your crutches with you. There will be times you have to go a short distance out of your ECV (usually a few feet), and you will likely need them to transfer into things like Pirates where you have to step down.

There are some smaller ECVs that break down that could fit into taxis, and there are wheelchair accessible taxis. My understanding of the wheelchair accessible ones is that you have to make appointments for those. I know there are people here who have used them before...

 

[scooby9932]

My wife and I are heading down to WDW for the Flower and Garden festival and as I just had foot and ankle surgery I am non weight bearing. I have never used an ECV in the past but will need one for this trip. We are most likely going to use Apple Scooters for this trip but I have a few questions that I hope I can get some guidance on.

I am 6' 2" and weigh 245 pounds, I understand this has a baring on the type of ECV I will need.

Do I need a 3 wheel or 4 wheel ECV? A 3 wheel scooter will work just fine. They have a better turning radius and this makes managing mainline queues easier. Make sure the model you pick has the weight rating you need.

Is there a place where I can rest my cast on if I do go with the 3 wheel or is that mainly on the 4 wheel ECVs? The Apple scooter website shows pictures of the models they use. I've not rented from them before (will be for the 1st time this May), but I would suggest finding the model of the scooter they rent & looking up some more info on the web to verify whether there is room for your cast. In the 3 wheel models I have rented, there was room on some of the models for a cast, but not all. You can call Alex at Apple to check on this also. He is very friendly & easy to work with.

Are the smaller ECVs comfortable or is it worth it to go with a "captain's chair" model? I would say this depends on the amount of support you think you'll need for your upper trunk & neck. The smaller ECV's are comfortable for me, but my husband needs the captain's chair to help with supporting his neck & upper back.

Can I strap my crutches to them easily for when I need to transfer to a ride?
Most scooter companies also provide a crutch/cane holder at an additional cost. Just ask them if they do. You can also use a bungee cord to strap your crutches on the scooter if they don't have them. As PP said, you'll probably want to take your crutches with you for transferring if you'll be limited in bending and/or stepping into ride vehicles.

Will the batteries really make it all day if we start when the parks open and go all day? If the battery is fully charged when you leave in the morning, you should be okay well into the evening. I've only had one battery go bad on me in the past, and that was a bad connection to the charger so it wasn't receiving a full charge. I called the rental company & they came to replace my scooter first thing the next morning.

Typically my wife and I don't use Disney Transporation to get to the parks but use taxi's instead. Are the taxi's at WDW that will allow me to board with an ECV or will be have to use Disney Transportation? If you need a taxi that can load your scooter, you can ask at the front desk of your resort for them to call one for you. You should expect to wait approximately 10-20 minutes for it to get to you, though. Although loading on busses can be a bit tricky, it's not horrible. You might have a longer wait depending on crowd level & how many other ECVs/WCs there are in line for (or already on) your chosen bus. If you stay in a monorail resort, they are pretty easy to board onto as well - you just have to let the attendant know you are boarding & where you will be unloading so they can have the ramps in place for you. The Ferry to the MK is an easy ride on/off, as are the Friendship boats in Epcot that travel to DHS.

Thanks for any advice,

Tom in SC

The scooter takes some getting used to if you've never driven one, so I would suggest practicing a bit ahead of time using the ones at the grocery store, Wal Mart, etc. If you become proficient wheeling on those cumbersome things, you will have a breeze working with the rental scooter!

I wish you a very magical Disney trip!