We all know that there is no shortage of things to do at the Walt Disney World Resort. With four theme parks, two water parks, the Downtown Disney area (soon to be Disney Springs), and the resorts, it is hard to choose what to do. But if you’re looking for some water sports fun, head on over to Sammy Duvall’s Watersports Centre at Disney’s Contemporary Resort. They offer parasailing, water skiing, wakeboarding, tubing, and personal watercraft rentals.
Photo by Lisa Sealey
For our most recent trip, we decided to rent jet skis. To drive a jet ski, one must be at least 16 years old and have a valid photo ID (and yes, they check!). A driver’s license is not required.
DIStracted tip: Sammy Duvall’s also has a different type of personal watercraft for rent which only requires the driver to be 12 years old.
The jet skis can be rented by the half-hour or hour and there are four jet skis available for rent each hour. There are two options with the rental. The first is a guided tour around Bay Lake and the Seven Seas Lagoon, which also has a limit of 4 jet skis for the tour. The second option is the “free ride” in the private watercraft area. We chose the free ride and rented two; one for me and one for my husband and son. We chose to ride for an hour.
The current cost for the 1-hour jet ski free ride is $135.00, and the 1/2 hour free ride is $80.00. Check the website for current prices before you book.
DIStracted tip: Disney Vacation Club members get 10% off the listed price – don’t forget to bring your DVC identification card.
We arrived a few minutes before our scheduled time of 11:00 to sign in, show our driver’s licenses, sign the waiver forms, and pay. Since we were staying on Disney property, I was able to add the charge to my magic band, which was super convenient.
A few minutes later our guide Jeff came out. He gave us life jackets and basic instructions for the jet skis. After we were aboard, he hopped on one of his own and led us out onto Bay Lake and over to the jet ski area. He showed us the parameters of the area where we could ride and then went to watch us from a dock nearby. We were off!
Photo by Lisa Sealey
The private watercraft area is huge, and we were the only two jet skis out there. We had a blast. The time flew by, and too soon Jeff came to get us and lead us back to the marina. We docked our jet skis and returned our life jackets. We thanked Jeff and saying goodbye, and spent the rest of the day talking about what a fantastic experience it was.
I highly recommend the jet skis if you’re looking for something different to do. I’m trying to get up the courage to try parasailing next time!
DIStracted tip: I’ve been told that some days book up quickly, depending upon the time of year and activity, so make your reservations as soon as possible. I booked our jet skis in January for our June trip. You can book online at SammyDuvall.com, by calling 407-939-0754, or by emailing them at reservations@sammyduvall.com.
Have you experienced any water fun at Sammy Duvall’s? Let me know in the comments.
Leave a Reply