WDW Resorts With an ECV

[Porsche4]

Hi everyone. On my trip to Disneyland last year I had to use an ECV for the first time and despite my initial concern was amazed at how much fun I had, as my day was relatively pain free and I was able to stay longer, enjoy things a lot more and really make the most of my day. We are considering a trip to WDW and I want to hire an ECV for the entirety of our stay which will be about 20 days. We will resort hop a couple of times and I have a couple of questions that I was hoping people could help me with:

1. Is travelling on the buses a lot harder with an ECV, do you have to wait longer to get on, would love to hear of peoples experiences so I could just get some idea of what to expect
2. Which resorts have easier access and are better for ECV's. I am considering Port Orleans either French Quarter or Riverside, Caribbean Beach, Art of Animation and Wilderness Lodge.
3. Where do you park your ECV at night as from what I am seeing on room walk throughs there isn't really anywhere within the room itself where you could put your ECV and charge it overnight as the rooms are pretty small. We would need two beds in a room as I would be travelling with my adult daughter so are there disabled rooms that have that set up or are they all just one king bed.

Would love to hear peoples feedback or if anyone knows of a great guide book or place I can go to get all my information that would also be a great help. Thanks a lot.

 

[midwestdee]

If you go with Port Orleans you definitely want French Quarter, especially Building 4. All buildings have elevators. At Riverside only 1 building has an elevator. FQ has 1 bus stop, R has 5 maybe. Even if you’re sharing a bus mid day - FQ is 1st pickup and 1st drop off. Lots of people say “oh, FQ is so small you can walk to anywhere in 5 -7 minutes “, this is said by people that DON’T have mobility issues - so push hard to get Building 4.

 

[lanejudy]

At Riverside only 1 building has an elevator.

To my knowledge, approximately half of the Riverside rooms are served by an elevator — each of the 4 mansion buildings have elevators. The smaller Alligator Bayou buildings do not have elevators.

 

[midwestdee]

To my knowledge, approximately half of the Riverside rooms are served by an elevator — each of the 4 mansion buildings have elevators. The smaller Alligator Bayou buildings do not have elevators.

That’s great they must have made improvements the last few years. It sure makes life easier.

 

[SueM in MN]

That’s great they must have made improvements the last few years. It sure makes life easier.

The mansions (Magnolia Bend) buildings all had elevators when they were built.
We stayed there multiple times from when it opened.
Each of the ’mansion’ buildings only had one set of elevators (as far as I remember) and the location may not have been obvious when coming up to the building, but they existed.

 

[disney-inspired]

1. Is travelling on the buses a lot harder with an ECV, do you have to wait longer to get on, would love to hear of peoples experiences so I could just get some idea of what to expect
2. Which resorts have easier access and are better for ECV's. I am considering Port Orleans either French Quarter or Riverside, Caribbean Beach, Art of Animation and Wilderness Lodge.
3. Where do you park your ECV at night as from what I am seeing on room walk throughs there isn't really anywhere within the room itself where you could put your ECV and charge it overnight as the rooms are pretty small. We would need two beds in a room as I would be travelling with my adult daughter so are there disabled rooms that have that set up or are they all just one king bed.

Would love to hear peoples feedback or if anyone knows of a great guide book or place I can go to get all my information that would also be a great help. Thanks a lot.

I have traveled several times with an ECV so have a lot of experience.

1. If you are not a good 'driver', it can be more difficult to get on the bus BUT the Disney bus drivers are very helpful and usually will assist you if you're having trouble. ECVs and their party get priority when loading on a bus - that being said, if there is already a huge line of people waiting and I'm traveling with a large group of people, I try to be courteous and wait for the next one. If I'm traveling alone or with 1-2 others, I will let them load me first. I elect to stay on my ECV in the bus so I don't take up an additional seat when it's not necessary.
Also, busses can only hold two ECVs at a time so if there are already two on there, you will have to wait for the next bus.
I *highly* recommend staying at a resort that has multiple forms of transportation (if possible). That being said, I will rave about Beach Club because they have bus to MK, boat to Epcot & HS (it's even walkable/rollable if you don't want to wait) and you are a very short stroll to the Skyliner. I love options!

2. I have stayed at both moderate and deluxe resorts and the only resort I had issues with is the Polynesian (old building & elevators). I haven't stayed value with an ECV but depending on how full your room is, it could be an issue.

3. ECVs should be parked in your room overnight for safety and to charge the battery. I stayed at Coronado with two ECVs in my room and we were able to park them close to the door and still had plenty of space in our room for us and our luggage (3 adults). I don't think you would *need* a handicap accessible room unless you need the accessible features of the bathroom. You should be fine with 1 ECV if it's just you and your daughter.

Gold Mobility is my preferred vendor as they have great customer service. You will need to meet them in person for delivery & pick up of the ECV. I found their ECVs to be well maintained and loaded with extra perks - phone holder, water bottle holder. They often offer discounts if you sign up for their newsletter.

 

[Porsche4]

I have traveled several times with an ECV so have a lot of experience.

1. If you are not a good 'driver', it can be more difficult to get on the bus BUT the Disney bus drivers are very helpful and usually will assist you if you're having trouble. ECVs and their party get priority when loading on a bus - that being said, if there is already a huge line of people waiting and I'm traveling with a large group of people, I try to be courteous and wait for the next one. If I'm traveling alone or with 1-2 others, I will let them load me first. I elect to stay on my ECV in the bus so I don't take up an additional seat when it's not necessary.
Also, busses can only hold two ECVs at a time so if there are already two on there, you will have to wait for the next bus.
I *highly* recommend staying at a resort that has multiple forms of transportation (if possible). That being said, I will rave about Beach Club because they have bus to MK, boat to Epcot & HS (it's even walkable/rollable if you don't want to wait) and you are a very short stroll to the Skyliner. I love options!

2. I have stayed at both moderate and deluxe resorts and the only resort I had issues with is the Polynesian (old building & elevators). I haven't stayed value with an ECV but depending on how full your room is, it could be an issue.

3. ECVs should be parked in your room overnight for safety and to charge the battery. I stayed at Coronado with two ECVs in my room and we were able to park them close to the door and still had plenty of space in our room for us and our luggage (3 adults). I don't think you would *need* a handicap accessible room unless you need the accessible features of the bathroom. You should be fine with 1 ECV if it's just you and your daughter.

Gold Mobility is my preferred vendor as they have great customer service. You will need to meet them in person for delivery & pick up of the ECV. I found their ECVs to be well maintained and loaded with extra perks - phone holder, water bottle holder. They often offer discounts if you sign up for their newsletter.

Thanks so much for all your advice. All this makes me much more confident now and I shall definitely give Gold Mobility a look. Thanks again.

 

[Betty Rohrer]

Hi everyone. On my trip to Disneyland last year I had to use an ECV for the first time and despite my initial concern was amazed at how much fun I had, as my day was relatively pain free and I was able to stay longer, enjoy things a lot more and really make the most of my day. We are considering a trip to WDW and I want to hire an ECV for the entirety of our stay which will be about 20 days. We will resort hop a couple of times and I have a couple of questions that I was hoping people could help me with:

1. Is travelling on the buses a lot harder with an ECV, do you have to wait longer to get on, would love to hear of peoples experiences so I could just get some idea of what to expect
2. Which resorts have easier access and are better for ECV's. I am considering Port Orleans either French Quarter or Riverside, Caribbean Beach, Art of Animation and Wilderness Lodge.
3. Where do you park your ECV at night as from what I am seeing on room walk throughs there isn't really anywhere within the room itself where you could put your ECV and charge it overnight as the rooms are pretty small. We would need two beds in a room as I would be travelling with my adult daughter so are there disabled rooms that have that set up or are they all just one king bed.

Would love to hear peoples feedback or if anyone knows of a great guide book or place I can go to get all my information that would also be a great help. Thanks a lot.

even if you take the key with you anyone can unplug and push a lever on ECV and move it anywhere. any damage while left in hallway you will be charged for. I would never leave in hallway charging unless you are there with it. I have never had a problem with 2 beds in a room and charging in the room. we had enough room to move around with it the room overnight.

 

[SteveMouse]

You need to bring your ECV into your toom and not leave it in the hallway where it can block others trying to pass by. If you need to reposition any furniture, the hotel staff will be happy to help.

 

[Simba's Mom]

I have traveled several times with an ECV so have a lot of experience.

1. If you are not a good 'driver', it can be more difficult to get on the bus BUT the Disney bus drivers are very helpful and usually will assist you if you're having trouble. ECVs and their party get priority when loading on a bus - that being said, if there is already a huge line of people waiting and I'm traveling with a large group of people, I try to be courteous and wait for the next one. If I'm traveling alone or with 1-2 others, I will let them load me first. I elect to stay on my ECV in the bus so I don't take up an additional seat when it's not necessary.
Also, busses can only hold two ECVs at a time so if there are already two on there, you will have to wait for the next bus.
I *highly* recommend staying at a resort that has multiple forms of transportation (if possible). That being said, I will rave about Beach Club because they have bus to MK, boat to Epcot & HS (it's even walkable/rollable if you don't want to wait) and you are a very short stroll to the Skyliner. I love options!

2. I have stayed at both moderate and deluxe resorts and the only resort I had issues with is the Polynesian (old building & elevators). I haven't stayed value with an ECV but depending on how full your room is, it could be an issue.

3. ECVs should be parked in your room overnight for safety and to charge the battery. I stayed at Coronado with two ECVs in my room and we were able to park them close to the door and still had plenty of space in our room for us and our luggage (3 adults). I don't think you would *need* a handicap accessible room unless you need the accessible features of the bathroom. You should be fine with 1 ECV if it's just you and your daughter.

Gold Mobility is my preferred vendor as they have great customer service. You will need to meet them in person for delivery & pick up of the ECV. I found their ECVs to be well maintained and loaded with extra perks - phone holder, water bottle holder. They often offer discounts if you sign up for their newsletter.

I agree with all of this, down to highly recommending Beach Club and that Polynesian being my least desirable, but I felt the elevators were very small.
And I agree that your ECV really should be kept in your room for recharging at night, and although I haven't stayed in any of the resorts you mentioned, I've yet to hear from anyone whose ECV didn't fit.
And just one tip, if you stay in a resort with multiple bus stops, try to be near enough to the first or second stop to get on there. Since, as said, there are only 2 ECV spots per bus, you risk not being able to get on a bus if you're on one of the later stops.

 

[ttintagel]

We've fit two ECVs inside a standard room at a Value resort. I think you'll be fine.

 

[maxiesmom]

You didn't mention the Swan or Dolphin. They are both great for people with ECVs. If you don't gave to be at the resort to get your scooter, both the Swan and Dolphin will hold them for you. You can scooter/boat/ walk to both Epcot and the Disney Studios.

 

[maryblanchard49]

I rented from Walker Mobility Scooter Rentals and brought my scooter into my room to charge overnight near the outlet. The scooter was able to go on the bus, monorail, ferry and skyliner. I highly recommend Walker Mobility Scooter rentals as they have the biggest battery life I've seen and are also the only water resistant scooters from a 3rd party vendor. I was able to ride in the rain without having to worry about covering the tiller. The rate was great, customer service exceptional, scooter was amazing and on time delivery made my trip possible.

 

[RoseGold]

Of those choices, I'd go AoA. The Skyliner is a dream. And don't count out Swolphin. All of these hotels wiil be able to fit ECVs.

It is against several Disney rules to charge in the hall. But you'll see scooters all over the halls, and employees even tell people to charge in the halls. I would never do this because this is an expensive device to leave unattended.

You can get unlucky with buses. Most of them only fit two ECVs at a time. Maybe you have to wait. This is where a huge resort like AoA can be an advantage, because the next bus won't be long. Disney is running some non-accessible buses in the mix. Obviously, you can't go on those. Assuming you can get on the bus, loading and all that is no big deal.

There are only a handful of king beds in all of Disney. Even the Grand Floridian has queen sized beds. You can find the layout of all the rooms easily. All of them will have 2+ beds, except maybe the Poly honeymoon suite or something.