For those of you that have used GMS to rent a scooter before I chose my Free accessory as the sun shade canopy attachment. Does that canopy need to come off to transport on the Disney Busses or could we just leave them on? If it has to come off is it easy to do? Also will the bus driver help park the scooter on the bus?
Most likely it can stay on - I do not have any direct experience with Gold - but I hope you will take a teeny bit of advice regarding sunshades on
ECVs (in general).
The first ECV I ever had to rent, I naturally got the sunshade. Because I suffer from a particularly painful and inconvenient form of sun allergy, I am always looking for ways to protect myself from the Florida sun. (At home, I'm basically a vampire/Queen of the Mole People, especially in the summer months LOL)
What I rapidly learned was this: The sunshade really doesn't do diddly squat to protect you from the sun, except under two very narrow conditions: First, when the sun is DIRECTLY overhead, it will offer some protection - for about an hour a day.
Second, any time that you are driving AWAY from the primary direction that the sun is shining, it will offer *some* protection, but the closer the sun is to the horizon (morning or evening) the less effect the sunshade has, because it just shines *through* the sunshade, onto the occupant, rather than being blocked.
In the meantime, others Guests will *not* like you. The sunshades are big, and cumbersome - and they block the ability of other pedestrians behind you to be able to see ahead of you when you are moving - thereby leaving them to guess if/when you will need to stop suddenly, since you will have no brake lights like a car.
When it comes to the bus, it makes it exponentially more difficult to drive the ECV on and off of the bus. And yes, the Bus Drivers will *help* you (they are allowed to give verbal commands, for example) but they are not supposed to actually load the ECV on the bus - they can get in trouble for that. You, or someone in your travel party, or some other Guest you "deputize" is supposed to drive the ECV on and off the bus. It's not hard to do, especially once you have practiced a few times, but the sunshade will make it more difficult to see where you are going, which can lead to problems with loading/unloading.
Finally, other Guests will have to step around you, and in front of you to be able to see parades, shows, etc, - thereby blocking your view, because your giant honking sunshade blocked *their* view when they were standing behind you.
It's tough enough to drive an ECV at WDW. The sunshade makes it tougher. It will impede your ability to back up (this is more important than you think) and for some reason, it really annoys bipedal (non ECV using) Guests.
What most folks in this forum recommend is a big old sun hat. If you are determined to create a larger shade pattern, then a parasol (but be very mindful of the others around you - you don't want to poke out someone's eye!) I personally have a clamp on trapezoid shaped umbrella, but I never use it at WDW (and I use it only sparingly at other outdoor events) because it's a pain in neck to keep it swiveled so that it shades me enough. I either make do with a hat or a parasol. And this, BTW, is from someone who has gone through the skin biopsies and tests and subsequently was diagnosed with PMLE.
Oh - and my first
ECV rental? The one with the sunshade? I called the company on the second day, and asked them to come out and take the damn thing off. It nearly drove me crazy, along with everyone else around me. I went to the China pavilion at World Showcase, and bought myself the prettiest parasol I could find. I bring it with me every trip to WDW.
I'm *not* trying to scare you off of renting an ECV - but just want you to be aware of why you may want to consider a basket instead
)
