Boats at OKW

[pditullio]

Okay, who can give me some info in a nutshell about options at OKW for boats?

How long does it take for a pontoon to go to downtown Disney and back? Can we pack a cooler of snacks and drinks to bring on the boat?

What is pricing like?

 

[Deb & Bill]

Okay, who can give me some info in a nutshell about options at OKW for boats?

How long does it take for a pontoon to go to downtown Disney and back? Can we pack a cooler of snacks and drinks to bring on the boat?

What is pricing like?

They are not pontoon boats if you are talking about the ones that leave every so often from the Hospitality House to DTD. And it's not your personal cruise. It's like taking a bus. They don't allow eating and drinking on the bus.

But if you are talking about renting a boat, I suppose you could bring food and drink as long as you don't leave a mess. But ask the CMs who make the reservation first. And I don't think you can take the rental boats all the way to DTD. You can't dock them at DTD. Only at OKW.

 

[Mazz519]

Years ago when we first bought DVC (97) our first stay was at OKW, Me and my two sons at the time rented a boat and cruised all the way to DTD, at that time we were able to dock at the piers, there we walked around DTD for a while then headed back. The only thing with doing that is that you are paying for the boat rental by the hr, so actually ur paying for a rental while its docked at the marina... Not even sure if they allow that anymore but we had fun doing it

 

[chitwnnole]

We rented a pontoon at OKW last year and brought a sack lunch to eat on the boat. We were able to go over to the SSr area and then head over to DTD but did not stop either time. We got back just under an hour. It was a lot of fun

 

[ddhoeg]

We rented a boat at OKW last year and took it to SSR, treehouses, and POR. We were able to get there and back in 45 minutes to an hour. We enjoyed the ride a lot! However the waterways are fairly tight and you spend a lot of time slowing down to avoid other pontoons and water mice as well as WDW boat transportation. There wasn't a huge feeling of freedom motoring around.

This summer we rented a pontoon at the CR/BLT marina. We really preferred the experience there. You can cover the entire Bay Lake area as well as 7 Seas Lagoon. We were able to drive by the beach and resort areas for FW and WL and then move over (by taking the boat on the waterway that goes over the road below which was fun!) and hit all the monorail resort areas. We experienced a lot of freedom with large open water areas and cruising at full throttle (which still isn't very fast) without a lot of traffic, which everyone enjoyed. We were gone right at an hour to do this.

Enjoy!

 

[Simba's Mom]

For those of you who've rented a boat, how easy is it to drive? I've often thought it would be fun to rent one, but DH has no experience with boats (lots of experience driving his car, though), so I wonder. Also, do you get a DVC discount on boats at OKW?

 

[bobbiwoz]

Does the "public" boat stop at SSR and OKW...or are there two different routes.

 

[MDFam]

They are not pontoon boats if you are talking about the ones that leave every so often from the Hospitality House to DTD. And it's not your personal cruise. It's like taking a bus. They don't allow eating and drinking on the bus.

We stayed at OKW a year ago, and I asked a CM whether we could bring a drink on the boat that goes to DTD. He said, "absolutely!" So a quick stop at the Gurgling Suitcase and then a very pleasant ride to DTD

For the OP, we also rented a pontoon boat at OKW and took it to DTD and back in just under an hour. It was really enjoyable, and I would recommend it. I can't remember exactly how much the hourly rental rate was, but it certainly wasn't unreasonable. (Don't forget your DVC discount on the rental price!) I'm pretty sure we grabbed something to drink before that as well, although not positive. But I suspect you could bring food/drink on those.

 

[DenLo]

Does the "public" boat stop at SSR and OKW...or are there two different routes.

Different routes, Bobbi. It does shorten the times, but short of wish they would do stops at each resort. I think the THV boat does stop at the SSR dock and the THV dock. But that is a different boat too.

 

[bobbiwoz]

Different routes, Bobbi. It does shorten the times, but short of wish they would do stops at each resort. I think the THV boat does stop at the SSR dock and the THV dock. But that is a different boat too.

Thanks! We have friends staying at OkW, while we are at SSR. It would have been convenient for meetings.

 

[ddhoeg]

Okay, who can give me some info in a nutshell about options at OKW for boats?

How long does it take for a pontoon to go to downtown Disney and back? Can we pack a cooler of snacks and drinks to bring on the boat?

What is pricing like?

When we rented a pontoon they told us food and drinks were fine but no alcohol. They also mentioned the boat driver was not allowed to take pictures or text while driving.

The price was around $35-40 per half hour but don't remember exactly.

 

[chitwnnole]

We rented a pontoon last thanksgiving and were able to go to the SSR area and then to DTD and back within an hour. Cost was $45 a half hour - DVC discount. We brought a pack lunch and had a great time