Floating rings allowed at resort pools?

[shatzjsl]

DD and I were doing some WDW shopping last night and were looking at pool rings. The kind you blow up and can float in. I didn't buy any because I wasn't sure if they were allowed in the WDW pools. Are they? Thanks!

 

[LongIslandMouse]

Hi there, may I also ask if they allow the small rings that infants sit in? I had a situation last April on vacation at Hilton Hawaiian Village where the lifeguard informed me they weren't allowed in the pool. I told him my 13 month old was too young for arm floaties (which he suggested) and is afraid to go into the water without his ring. He told me "any type of swim rings were off limits". So I went to the hotels front desk to talk to a manager and explained that I've been to many hotels and I've never heard of such a rule. Long story short, we ended up leaving (and it killed me because it was a beautiful place) to stay at the Hyatt where they had no such rule. Apparantly it had to do with some insurance issue; the manager said that some parents don't supervise their kids with the swim rings and the child can slip through and drown. They weren't about to budge on bending the rule and we informed the mgr. that we were there 7 nights and would leave if he couldn't use the ring and they didn't blink an eye at loosing our 7 nights worth of business. It was ridiculous and maddening!!

I'm hoping Disney doesn't have such a rule

 

[Joann]

When we were just at pop I brought the blow up ones for my kids and there was no problem they used them in the pool

 

[Scoootch]

It seems to depend on the resort. Most of the Disney resorts on sight seem to allow them. We actually bought ours at OKW. I know that some of the resorts have rules such as SAB at Y&B club that the tubes have to be clear/see through so that the lifeguards can see to the bottom for saftey reasons. We just returned from Disney's Vero beach resort a couple weeks ago and the swim ring we bought at OKW was not allowed, they did however allow baby float boats....they said that as long as the tubes had a bottom And another stay at the GF last year they said "no go" on the the tube? So I guess it all depends on the lifeguard and the resort at any given time. If nothing else, I don't think you'll have a problem with a baby float boat and if it's for an older child but toddler type age (2-4 or so) they usually have the life jackets at the pools free of charge.

HTH's

 

[Zandy595]

I saw a lot of inflatable pool toys at POP last month. I think all the rings I saw were clear. I even saw this

 

[mommykds]

When we were at CBR we bought the clear rings at the resort shop for my guys in the pool.

 

[shatzjsl]

These wouldn't be for small kids. They would just be used for floating and relaxing at CBR pools.

 

[*Fantasia*]

These wouldn't be for small kids. They would just be used for floating and relaxing at CBR pools.

Adult tubes (rings)? The one you use on a lazy river, right? I have never seen any adults size used in any Disney pools. Maybe it's not allowed, at least not the adult size.

 

[shatzjsl]

Adult tubes (rings)? The one you use on a lazy river, right? I have never seen any adults size used in any Disney pools. Maybe it's not allowed, at least not the adult size.

That's what I thought but wanted to ask. Thanks!

 

[*Fantasia*]

That's what I thought but wanted to ask. Thanks!

Can you call the resort just to make sure. I mean as far as I know, I don't think they allow it and the reason I can think of is that it will take up some space considering there are others who will be using them. Not in your case, but I have never seen the lounge floaties (the long chair) either in any resorts we have stayed at.

 

[skiwee1]

As many times as I've stayed at the Poly I've never seen an adult use anything at all. I've seen small baby rings and that is it. I'd have to say no as there is no room for adults floating around in large rings. The pools are crowded enough. We have stayed at the CBR 3 times and their pool, as least the themed one, is packed like sardines! The quite pools at CBR might be a little more lenient. Especially since there are no lifeguards at those.

 

[*Fantasia*]

That's a good idea! The quiet pool is usually not busy and there is no lifeguards there to patrol. I have been to CBR twice and it always seems like it's crowded. The pool is not very big (considering how big the resort is). I would try the quiet pool.

 

[mlwear]

The problem I have with rings in any public pool is that if a child goes under and one is over him/her then the lifeguard or parent can't see the child. Children have drown this way. More likey when there a few bunched up, I guess. I know that in pools I have had to move them so my kid when swimming underwater could come up for air. They worry me. Our community pool doesn't allow rings or floats of any type for that reason. They are great fun in a Lazy River, but have you noticed that most require that you stay in the ring. Same reason.
As far as the arm rings...I wouldn't imagine those being off limits. But, I suggest a swimming vest. A life jacket works, but there are better alternatives. We used one for my oldest that allowed you to take out the floaty wafers one at time so they eventually started to swim on their own. My younger son used a Speedo vest. It seemed quite comfortable much more than a life jacket. He loved it and I know of a lot of kids who use them. I know our Target sells them for around $20. Still, even with a vest keep an eye on those kids.

 

[LongIslandMouse]

The problem I have with rings in any public pool is that if a child goes under and one is over him/her then the lifeguard or parent can't see the child

The ring that my 13 month old was using was the kind you sit in, you know it's got the opening for the legs, so the baby can't really slip through. That was why I couldn't understand why they couldn't bend the rules. As a matter of fact, I went to the gift shop at the Hilton Hawaiian Village to see what they had that he COULD use and they were selling the SAME EXACT THING AS WHAT I BROUGHT FROM HOME in the shop! I asked the salesclerk if people were returning them after finding out they wouldn't allow them in the pool and he said he didn't know of a problem. I was fuming!

Now I also wanted to add that we had one of those spandex suits with the floaties in them but they are only good as a safety, you cannot float in a 4ft pool with them if the baby is say 2 or under. My experience was that the floats didn't allow him to stay upright in the water, he would have had to tread water. We spend $50 on one of those at Toys-R-Us and it was no use except if say the child were to fall in.

Thanks for all your input

 

[mlwear]

I have heard a lot of parents complain about the spandex suits. Never tried them on my kids. As far as the vests go, it does take a bit for some kids to learn to stay upright. Mine didn't have that problem. If they can't swim, they really shouldn't be more than an arms length from you anyway. I just saw it as a way that I didn't have to hold the baby in the water mostly.

I know what you mean about the baby floats with the bottom so the child sits. A parent would likely be right next to those, too. Not as if the baby is just sailing off into the deep end of the pool. The parent would notice if something was wrong, but maybe the thinking is if they give an inch...
I would be very mad that they were selling something that couldn't be used.