Tell me about hiring an ECV

[Gill H]

I posted in Special Needs but thought it might get more traction here!

I have recently been diagnosed with osteo-arthritis. I manage walking normally, but have just come back from Disneyland Paris and found it a challenge to walk as much as we normally do there.

We are booked for WDW in January and considering hiring an ECV. Tell me all I need to know!

[wdw-wanderer]

Are you staying onsite?
If so, although there are several companies who will supply and collect an ECV there’s currently only one company who will do so if you’re not in the lobby to collect it and be there when they come to collect it. Scooterbug are the authorised Disney providers (it used to be Buena Vista Scooters) and if you book online they will deliver a scooter to your resort so it’s there when you arrive and will collect it after your visit. Their website has about 3 models to choose from. The smaller ones are easier to manoeuvre onto buses but they’re easy to drive - adjust the speed dial, pull the right lever towards you with the right hand to go forward, or pull the left hand lever forward with the left hand to reverse. They come with a charger to plug in overnight or you can top them up during the day if you’re out and about in the parks or dining somewhere.
Hope that helps!

[amf]

And if you are offsite I recommend K and M rentals. We currently have an ECV on hire from them, for the third time. They will deliver or if you prefer you can pick it up from their store on 192E, next to the big Nike shop.

[loldis]

An alternative to the above if you can still manage some walking is to do the park hire ECVs. So you pickup and dropoff from the park entrances, and walk to/from the bus or car. Saves having to load the ECV in and out of everything, but is more expensive than a length of stay hire.

disneyworld/guest-...s/ecv-rentals/

[Gill H]

We are onsite. I did wonder about hiring in the park. How does park hopping work then?

[loldis]

Originally Posted by Gill H

We are onsite. I did wonder about hiring in the park. How does park hopping work then?

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Like how parking works when you hop. Show your receipt, pick up another one free of charge.

[Gill H]

Sounds good.

I am wondering about the logistics of things like Uber too. For example, we might sometimes go from a park to dinner at a resort, and then decide we can’t be bothered changing buses and want to get an uber back to our resort. Presumably ECVs don’t fit into the boot of an Uber so we wouldn’t have that option if I had an ECV with me?

In which case, hiring at the park could be better.

[wdw-wanderer]

Tough decision. Rental firms do hire out scooters which you can dismantle into about 4 parts to fit in the boot of a car. It can be a long walk from park entrances to the bus stops if you rent a scooter in the park as you can’t take it past the gates. The park ones have a speed governor on them and look heavy and awkward to manoeuvre from what I’ve seen. They also work out more expensive if you hire one each day rather than getting one from an off-site company.

[Gill H]

So it looks like $50 a day - potentially $700 if needed every day.

Scooterbug is about $300 for the same period.

[Gill H]

Are there places in the parks to leave them, like strollers? So could I go to Fantasyland, park the ECV, go and do three or four rides and then come back for it?