Double stroller or 2 singles?

[Picabo]

Our girls will be 2 1/2 and almost 4 when we go on our first family trip to Disney in December. Normally, my older one doesn't like to be in the stroller but I've been trying to engrave in her mind lately that she WILL need to sit in a stroller at Disney b/c "I want her to save her energy for all the fun rides". Also, I imagine there will be VERY few times we'd have to split up. DH generally is not too keen on having the kids on his own so I doubt we'd split up except for such things as me taking the older one to the bathroom. But in terms of me going off with one child to go shopping and him taking the other on rides or back to the hotel - not going to happen.

So in our situation - I'm thinking a double would be better/easier? Or am I wrong about that? I just keep thinking two strollers is one more thing to keep track of, etc. And I envision that at least 1/2 the time the older one will refuse to sit in the stroller so we'd be pushing around one empty stroller - if we had 2 singles.

Any advice or suggestions on this to help me decide what to do??

Thank you!!

 

[brobrosmom]

We've been twice with our two boys: in 2007 they were 2 yrs and 7 weeks and in 2009 they were 3 1/2 and almost 2. Each time we had a double stroller, the front to back kind and not the side by side. It worked out really well for us. The main reason we chose to take the double over two singles was because we don't have two nice, comfy singles. The older one would have to ride around in the cheap umbrella kind and I just didn't think that would be comfy enough. Especially if he was tired and wanted to sleep. Also, it was easier to keep track of just one stroller vs two.

Renting a double at the park was just not an option for me. Way to expensive and looks so hard.

We are planning another trip in January 2010 and will probably take the double again. DS will be 4 1/2 and should still be able to ride in the stoller still.

Also, I am not sure what hotel you are staying at but I did read on some posts about a double being a hassle to get on and off the buses. We did not find that to be the case. We had no problems.

 

[tinkermom23]

We considered using 2 single unbrella strollers but decided to use our double stroller. We are glad we did. It was easy to push if the kids wanted to walk and we didn't have 2 stroller to look after. Another thing that may not be an issue for you if your husband doesn't want to ever split up, but we had times where DH would take our older son on a ride and I could take the twins by myself to the playground for a bit. I could not have done it pushing 2 strollers. Another thing is when they fell asleep, I was able to push them into the shade and sit while DH & DS9 went for a treat. We really thought that we would not split up during our trip, but we did for a little bit here and there and having 2 strollers would have made it harder.

 

[Ariel on Land]

I really stressed about this situation before we left, and ended up deciding to take a double SBS. (we went w/ the Joovy Groove 2) I was pleased with our set up. The stroller was light/easy enough to get on the trams and such without much fuss, and we never ended up needing to split up w/ the kids like I thought we might. Also it worked well for when we ate at CS places, It was easy for one of us to take the boys to a table and get them started eating (we always brought some food for them knowing they'd be too picky to eat restaurant food) while the other parent went and got our lunch.

 

[tanyaandallie]

I vote for a double. If you don't plan on splitting up a double is the perfect option. We have a Maclaren Ralley Twin and have just loved it for Disney.

Also, I wouldn't even worry about your 4 year old and the stroller. Really no need to prepare. You can let her walk when she wants but my guess is she will get tired quickly and vote for the stroller. Plus, it's very crowded. My kids get overwhelmed by the crowd and want a safe place to sit.

 

[mcqueen n' sally]

we've done it each way once... this time we are going back to a double... we found it easier to deal with just one, especially if one/both are going to want to walk a fair amount of the time...

have a great trip!

 

[karen624]

We are doing 2 singles for my girls (2 1/2 and just over 5.) Our reasons- they are at the age where they fight and I don't want to add the element of "she's touching me" while being pushed around disney; we will also have plenty of pushers since my in laws are going with us, so no problems with pushing an empty stroller, and then we have the option of having my oldest stay in the park a little longer and still have a stroller while the little one goes home. My oldest dd is tall with long legs that would have been all over her sister's space in a side by side. They are pretty psyched about the pink maclarens they will be riding in!

 

[riley2008]

We did two singles last year when the boys were 4. It's easier for us to "divide and concur". Once DH did Everest and the boys and I walked around a bit without the strollers and them they sat it them and ate an icecream. It was nice for them to both have a place ot sit. I was also able to push them both short distances at the same time without any problem (like in the ariport and such).

Our thought was is if one DS didn't want the stroller or need it, we could leave it in the room. After the first morning, we didn't leave the room without them. I don't feel that we had any problems keeping up with them.

We also had the adapters that could link the strollers too, but didn't use them.

Our boys had been out of strollers for over a year, but LOVED them at WDW. They are already asking if we get to take them again.

(We have McCalren Volo strollers, so they don't recline, but are super easy to push and fold up.)

 

[abouley]

We have this debate everytime we do a disney trip! Our DS just turned 5 and our DD is 2.5. We decided to take 2 Maclarens this past Dec for our WDW trip. Most of the time we liked having the 2 strollers...shopping is easier, taking the buses was easier, we could leave one behind if we were just going to walk around DT disney or just go around the hotel, etc. At times, I found myself trying to manuever 2 strollers over to a bench for a break or something and that was a bit tough but normally if my DH went off with DS, they'd park the stroller near the ride and I'd just take the other stroller to do what I needed (which is actually handy if you want to shop or use the bathroom).

When we go to DL where we aren't doing transportation we usually take our jogging stroller but not sure what we'll do on our next trip...we always are debating which is better! In some ways I think having the 2 maclarens has more advantages!

Alison

 

[juliebride]

I'm so glad somebody asked this question. We are having the same debate about strollers and we leave in 5 days!! Kids are 5 and 3 and I know they'll both be in the stroller. My biggest concern is that I won't be pushing the stroller when they're both in there b/c I'm 6 months pregnant. It'll kill my back! I keep trying to stress this to DH. He's all for the double side/side umbrella we have. I think mainly because the handles are adjustable (he's 6'6" tall). It does have baskets but no canopy.

I can see the reasoning behind not wanting to have 2 separate strollers. We'd be pushing empty ones a lot.

 

[aidtrismommy]

A double worked great for us. We had 4 other adults with us, but one stroller made it easier if one kid wanted to walk, one person could go grab the stroller after a ride, we put the diaper bag in the vacant side if there was a kid walking (backpack kind), etc. I have a Mac twin techno that reclines fully, so when the kids took their nap, I would just push them around soaking up the magic, or I would find a nice spot and just relax myself while everyone else did other rides. It was great. It was fine on the bus too, one adult would be in charge of the stroller while the others could each take a kid. If you had 2 strollers, it may be hard to carry kids on the bus or whatever.

 

[lori123]

When our kids were little we took two singles (then eventually one and they took turns resting). I think the little umbrella strollers are much easier to push through the crowds and stores - and while you may not plan to separate you have that option. They were also easier for us to fold and carry onto the busses.

Oooh - wanted to add - if you bring umbrella strollers don't they have a "connector" that makes them into a double? Best of both worlds.

 

[aestapa]

Our ooys are 5 and 3. They've been to WDW 5 times so far and we have always used the double stroller. Its just less to keep up with. If we ever split up, one may walk to an attraction with DH, while the other is in the stroller. We have a Maclaren side-by-side and we bought the Skip Hop duo bag. It fits perfectly on the stroller and holds a ton! Hope that helps you as you decide.