golf cart newbie questions

[Sandi]

I'm so glad I found this link. We are planning a WDW trip and are thinking of staying at the cabins at Ft. Wilderness. This thread has cleared up some confusions I had about using the golf carts.
We are planning a November trip. I read somewhere that you can make reservations for them up to a year in advance. With our trip being in mid-November, how early should we make a reservation for a golf cart?

It doesn't cost anything to reserve a cart, so an early reservation wouldn't be a bad thing and for planner type people it does give you some satisfaction that you've checked it off the list. That being said, we were there during Spring Break -- a peak time at WDW -- and there were plenty of carts available to rent even if you didn't have a reservation. For our trip, I reserved a cart a little more than a week in advance of our arrival date.

 

[letthewookiewin]

Thanks Sandi. I do tend to be "an obsessed crazy needs to be put in a mental hospital crazy planner" according to my DH. I didn't know how many they had available and if it was a common thing for them to run out. I will probably go ahead and reserve one after January 1, 2012. For some reason it makes me feel less crazy to make a reservation for a golf cart, if we will use it in the same year that I make the reservation.

 

[Disneylitch]

I have over 2 years 'til our trip and DD wants to "camp" so we are compromising with a Ft. Wilderness cabin. We will be driving, so we'll have our car and bring our bikes. Is a golf cart absolutely necessary? Do you drive it to the bus depot and leave it all day while you're at the parks? Do you "tag" it somehow so you know it's yours?

You don't need a golf cart. We always bring our bikes and use them or the Disney transportation system. You can ride your bike to the marina to pick up the boat to MK or you can ride to the outpost and pick up the bus for Epcot, AK, Hollywood Studios, Downtown Disney, Typhoon Lagoon, Blizzard Beach. I think I have everything covered. You can also use the internal bus to get you to the marina or outpost as well. You can also bike or use the internal bus for the pool and the 2 trading posts. Unless the weather is bad, we always ride our bikes. It is also fun to ride bikes around The Fort and look at the different campers/MH/tents and talk to everyone.

The cabins are great.

 

[NaLisa]

You don't need a golf cart. We always bring our bikes and use them or the Disney transportation system. You can ride your bike to the marina to pick up the boat to MK or you can ride to the outpost and pick up the bus for Epcot, AK, Hollywood Studios, Downtown Disney, Typhoon Lagoon, Blizzard Beach. I think I have everything covered. You can also use the internal bus to get you to the marina or outpost as well. You can also bike or use the internal bus for the pool and the 2 trading posts. Unless the weather is bad, we always ride our bikes. It is also fun to ride bikes around The Fort and look at the different campers/MH/tents and talk to everyone.

The cabins are great.

Thanks for posting. We're considering a stay at FW next summer, probably in a pop-up, and I thought we could bring along our bikes for getting around. I'm afraid though that DDs (and DH & I) would be envious seeing everyone else ride around on golf carts. I thought we might try the bikes for the first 3-4 days then rent a cart for the remaining 3-4 days, cutting down a bit on the overall expense.

 

[Sandi]

Thanks for posting. We're considering a stay at FW next summer, probably in a pop-up, and I thought we could bring along our bikes for getting around. I'm afraid though that DDs (and DH & I) would be envious seeing everyone else ride around on golf carts. I thought we might try the bikes for the first 3-4 days then rent a cart for the remaining 3-4 days, cutting down a bit on the overall expense.

Actually, I was envious of those with bikes. We flew and rented a golf cart -- our bikes were not an option. They do rent bikes at FW, but we would have preferred our own. As long as you have the proper lights and reflectors on your bikes (it does get very dark at night), I'd say you're good with bikes.

 

[NaLisa]

Actually, I was envious of those with bikes. We flew and rented a golf cart -- our bikes were not an option. They do rent bikes at FW, but we would have preferred our own. As long as you have the proper lights and reflectors on your bikes (it does get very dark at night), I'd say you're good with bikes.

Thanks for the reply! We'd drive down so would bring our own bikes. Good tip about reflectors; we normally don't let our kids ride bikes after dark when camping, but they'll be older and riding at night could be necessary sometimes.

I imagine we should bring locks, too. Any other advice on riding bikes around FW?

 

[Sandi]

Thanks for the reply! We'd drive down so would bring our own bikes. Good tip about reflectors; we normally don't let our kids ride bikes after dark when camping, but they'll be older and riding at night could be necessary sometimes.

I imagine we should bring locks, too. Any other advice on riding bikes around FW?

Definitely bring locks. There were several bikes left unlocked, but that doesn't seem prudent to me. I noticed some people with headband lights and those looked smart. My DD16 is a big bicyclist (500 mile trip last summer) and she has one of those for when they set up camp. Not a whole lot of people were wearing helmets, but we always wear helmets -- not a negotiable point in my house. Tying some ribbons or a bright bandanna on one of the bikes might be helpful, too. It really gets dark at night (I know I've said that before, and if you've been camping, you know how dark campgrounds get).