A few Toddler related questions - leave Saturday!

[bryannem]

hello! We are heading to WDW on Saturday, for 2 nights at WL before a cruise Monday. We are then coming back the following weekend for a few days at AoA.

My questions:
1. We have a small umbrella stroller with a small canopy. We also have our Britax B Agile, which has a canopy that folds down to cover almost all of our sun. We are not doing any parks, but will be doing 2 days in Disney Springs and a day in Nassau.
Which stroller would you recommend? Is it easy to store one under the bed?

2. Our son is 2. Would you recommend putting him to bed on the couch area or in our bed and then just sitting in the couch area until we go to bed?

3. any last minute tips for our first trip with a 2 year old?

Thank you!
Bryanne

 

[Napoleon Dynamite]

I would put your son on the couch bed if that is where he will be sleeping for the night (they make up the bed for you in the early evening). There is no sense in moving him and possibly waking him up.

As for stroller, I would bring the one with the bigger shade and the Britax is probably more comfortable to push. You may be able to fit it in the closet, or under the bed (no idea how small that folds down to).

 

[Sccrmnky2005]

We usually store the stroller outside during the day if we are in the room we only bring it in at night. But I would bring the bigger stroller to have in case your toddler is napping and wants to recline back to be comfortable, etc.

We put our daughter on the couch bed they make it up for her and add the bed rail. Works wonderful!

Have fun we leave on Sunday on the Magic!!

 

[bryannem]

Do you have to request a bedrail or will they do it automatically?

 

[wl1117]

Bring the umbrella stroller. The Britax will take up a lot of room in hallways and on elevators. I'd also put him down in the sofa bed so that you don't have to transfer him. You can ask the room steward for the rail, but it wouldn't hurt to add it to your reservation either.

 

[Imedley200]

I'd take the Britax stroller. We have a City Mini (similar in size) and umbrella stroller & I hate the little umbrella stroller. The Britax would be more comfy for your kiddo (reclines and bigger shade) and for you pushing it. And helpful at embark/debark with a basket underneath. It'll fit just fine under the bed in your stateroom but you'll find it's easier to collapse outside than try to fit it through the doorway (it's tight).
Can't help with the bed as our 16 month old still used the pack n play. I would take advantage of the Nursery Open Houses (our cruise was 8-9am every morning) and Toddler Time. We didn't find out about toddler time till late in the cruise because it wasn't in the paper navigator. I saw it on the Nursery schedule screen and finally looked at the Navigator App.

 

[hanscarlet]

I would do the umbrella stroller, easier to manage on the ship... but if you don't expect to use it on the ship and are looking for off ship travel mostly then bring the Britax... we had our 2.5 year old sleep in the pack n play because she wouldn't stay put on the bed on the couch, if your little one is still in diapers, you can request a diaper genie in the room by calling DCL

ETA: We never used the stroller on the ship but we found it very useful at the port and airports, we brought a small umbrella stroller

 

[Jess_S]

My vote would be for the umbrella stroller as well. It's nice to be able to maneuver in crowded areas.

My experience is that you need to request the bed rails for the pull out couch.

 

[mylittlebuttercup]

1) Umbrella stroller definitely!
2) Have the couch bed made up and ask for a bed rail. (We actually just asked them to leave our couch bed made up permanently and never actually used it as a couch.)
3) Bring something to occupy him during dinner; DCL dinners are longer than the average restaurant at home. Plan time for Nemo's Reef and bring swim diapers for that. Our son LOVED that! Take advantage of the kids' clubs open houses. Our son loved those too. (He was also two when we went, so if you have any other age-specific questions, just let me know!)

 

[mylittlebuttercup]

Do you have to request a bedrail or will they do it automatically?

We requested it ahead of time, but I think you can just ask your room steward. Also, if he is still in diapers or pull ups, request a diaper genie like someone else suggested. That's an absolute must!!!

 

[bryannem]

Thanks for the suggestions! I am looking into the rails and diaper genie. I am still undecided about the stroller. We aren't planning to use it on the boat, just on land and the airport. Thank you again!

 

[schmass]

If you plan to have him nap in the stroller at all, I'd definitely bring the Britax. It will fit under the bed, so since you don't plan on using it on the ship, the bigger size shouldn't be an issue!

 

[ebradley23]

Bring the Britax stroller. We have taken our City Mini (same stroller with a different name) on every vacation including 2 cruises. First, folding and unfolding umbrella strollers is usually a pain. Umbrella strollers also don't maneuver well on uneven ground which is what you will encounter at most ports. The Britax is much easier to manage. It isn't too big to maneuver through the halls on the ship either. It's still light enough to carry up/down stairs if you don't want to wait for an elevator. There's no reason not to take it.