Visiting the magical realms of Disney World or the thrilling attractions of Universal Florida promises an unforgettable experience for guests of all ages. However, the vastness of these parks can sometimes be a challenge to navigate, especially for individuals with mobility issues. That’s where Electric Convenience Vehicles (ECVs), commonly known as scooters, come into play. Renting an ECV can significantly enhance your park experience, providing comfort and accessibility. But before you zoom off into the adventures that await, there are several key considerations to keep in mind to ensure a seamless and enjoyable experience.

  1. Battery life is Key: ECV batteries have a limited lifespan and if you do not rent a model that can provide a full theme park day ride time you will have to plan to recharge throughout the day, especially if you’re exploring the parks from morning until night. Nothing can ruin your theme park day more than running out of battery power.
  2. Reserve in Advance: Both Disney World and Universal Florida offer ECV rentals on-site, but availability is limited, and is first come first served. You cannot pre-reserve a scooter. If you must have a scooter you should reserve one in advance by local rental company.
  3. Make sure you know your Vendor: There are a lot of reservation companies that take reservations and pass them on to vendors. This is not a good idea when renting something that you will rely on and cannot do without. Contact and rent from the vendor directly. Get to know them. These are mechanical devices and things can break. Ensure you know who your vendor is and have confidence in their support.
  4. Portable or On-Property: If you are staying on-property at one of the Disney World or Universal Florida Resorts then you can rent scooter and just ride them onto the bus, boat or monorail to get to a park. Some hotels you can even ride directly to the park If you are staying elsewhere in the area you will need to select a portable scooter model that comes apart to fit in a car trunk. Make sure you understand what is required to assemble and disassemble the scooter and that you, or someone in your party are physically able to do so.
  5. Understand Rental Policies and Costs: Familiarize yourself with the rental policies and costs associated with ECVs at the parks. Rental fees typically range from $50 to $100 per day inside the theme parks. If you rent a scooter from an outside vendor rates are much less.
  6. Add-ons: ECVs come in various models with different size and weight capacities. Things such as back baskets, phone holders, canopies etc. are secondary to everything else, particularly battery life. The heavier the weight on the scooter the more battery power is used. Many people think they would like a back basket. However, back baskets put much more weight on the rear of a scooter than it was engineered for and can be a big safety issue. Also, when adding a back basket the scooter no longer will fit on bus transportation and will have to be removed.

Conclusion – Since the number one issue is ensuring you have enough battery-life for a full day, you want to begin with that for choosing your rental before considering anything else. A scooter with fancy seats and attachments mean nothing if you can’t get around the theme park to get the value out of the price of your daily ticket.