Anybody use a Sit and Stand-type stroller in the parks?

[tiggeroo42]

I'm thinking about buying one of these for our trip. We use a side-by-side double stroller at home, but I'm thinking it will be way too bulky for narrow crowded walkways and the shops. I just need stroller advice altogether as we've never taken all three kids before! My son will be almost 5, and my twins girls will be almost 3. What are your suggestions? We also have available a sturdy Britax umbrella stroller that has made 2 Disney trips in the past. Two single strollers? Just the double side-by-side? Sit and Stand? My son is 4 1/2 now and never rides in a stroller, but I feel like he may need it at Disneyland.

 

[crystal1313]

Hi!

I bought a sit and stand just for DL off of craigslist. It was wonderful! Like you, I didn't want to fuss with trying to push a double wide stroller around. If you have 3 little ones, I would consider bringing the sit and stand and the single so they all have a seat. The only downfall of a sit and stand is if the one on the jumpseat gets tired, they cannot really rest and fall asleep. Plus, with two strollers you would have lots of storage!

DL is a lot of walking. I would bet your 4.5 year old will want to ride in the stroller at some point. When my boys got bigger, we sold the sit and stand (for $5 less than what we paid for it!) and just went with two full size chicco strollers. Which worked great because sometimes DH and I would separate and the boys on different attractions, so it was nice to each have a stroller. At night the youngest would always fall asleep and one of us would go back to the hotel with him and one of us would stay out with our older son.

We were just there last week and my DS6 walked the entire time. We were a bit nervous, but he did well. DS4 (almost 5) still used a stroller when we went far distances, and he fell asleep at night like he usually does.

Hope that helps!

 

[BayGirl22]

I'm not a fan of Sit N' Stands. I don't think they push or maneuver well at all. We've always used a side by side double and its fine in the crowds and even in most stores. I also think there are better tandem strollers out there if you don't want a SBS. Personally I'd rather have a good push since I'm pushing it all day. I couldn't deal with an umbrella for the same reason, they are uncomfortable for me so 5 long days would be less than fun.

In terms of age, my DS was 4.5 for our last trip and he still rode a good portion of the time, but he's always been a stroller kid. Our next trip will be just me and him and I'm attempting it without a stroller. But it will be a more laid back weekend trip so we may need to take more breaks, and my plans are looser. I'd bring a double for sure and let the kids take turns. We do Child Swap a lot so its much easier to have 1 double than 2 singles.

Just saw you have twins. Could you put a riding board on any of your strollers? That would give the older kid a chance to rest at times like when going to/from the park.

 

[rms123]

We use a sit and stand and really like it. Cons are that it is really hard to push compared to my bob. But, I think it's easier to get around in general.

 

[I❤MICKEY]

We have a baby trend sit/sit - sit/stand that we bought for our first DL trip when boys were 6mo and 3. Since then it has been to DL about 8 times and WDW 1 time. Plus we use it at local events like art shows and amusement parks.

I was going to buy used but found with 20% off coupon at babies r us it was I could buy new for a pinch more than used. Think I paid $95 after coupons. Best in investment ever.

I think it is pretty light. I can maneuver one handed even with both boys in it. I do wish that it folded smaller.

My boys are 6 and 3. We still haven't converted to a sit/stand. We still use it as sit/sit. Both boys fit comfortably and are able to recline/sleep. I guess we'll probably have to convert soon but as long as they are content I will keep using it that way.

 

[DisneyJamieCA]

We have one and took it our trip this past June. I have to agree that it's not the easiest to push, but my alternatives are the tandem double (which DS is too tall to sit in) or my jogging, which only leaves a seat for the 3 yr old. Most of the time we just park it and the kids walk in whatever land we're in but at the end of the night, when the youngest two are really tired - or in the mornings when we're more in a rush, it's nice to have a place for both of them.

 

[tiggeroo42]

Thanks for your help! I probably need to "test drive" a sit and stand first because I agree that our stroller will have to be comfortable to push! I also didn't think about only having one spot for a sleeping child. We will probably have 3 sleeping children by the time we head back to the hotel!

 

[Cinderellly]

I bought a Joovy Sit N Stand for our trip last year and regretted every single minute of it! It's so hard to push--especially in the cobblestone areas by POTC. Also, when the front seat reclined, it cut into my standing child's space and he hated it. Not to mention, absolutely no storage space because the basket is where the child on the back puts their feet if they want to sit. I sold it as soon as we got back home!

For our next trip I took our Britax tandem double and didn't have one complaint! Two reclining seats, fits through standard doorways, huge basket space, so easy to push......I can go on and on!

 

[lisachrystine]

I used a Baby Trend Sit and Stand a few years ago and loved it. My kids were 2, 4 and 6 at the time. I figured the 6 year old wouldn't need it at all, the 2 year old would want to sit most of the time and the 4 year old would jump on and off. What really happened is that the 4 and 6 year old ended up taking turns riding and at the end of the day, I did actually have all three of them riding out of the park (the 6 year old hadn't used a stroller since he was 3).

However, as others have mentioned, there is only room for one to sleep. This wasn't an issue for us as the 2 year old was the only one still napping and she was fine. I had no trouble maneuvering it, but it was my regular stroller at the time, so I was well used to it.

If this were my choice to make, I'd do a sit and stand and the Britax you already have. Two sleeping spaces for the little ones and a jump on/jump off place for your oldest. I also liked that it helped us to get from point a to point b a lot faster when I could tell the 4 year old to jump on when we were moving through crowds.