Four year old

[momtoamulan]

We are heading to WWW in Sept...our 4 year old dd is pretty good about walking...should we maybe rent a stroller there? if so, would they hold a 40 pound child?

What should we expect..she can be pretty shy at times..and a little scared of things (won't be doing haunted house...lol).

She is excited to dress up as Cinderella though.

 

[Mouse House Mama]

Bring your own stroller. It is much cheaper and you will love the concenience of it.

 

[Whosemom]

The last trip we rented one the kids were 8, 5 and 3 and they all three fit in it. Every family is different and we found it more convienient to rent and not mess with it on the bus. Our very last trip they were 10, 7 and 5 and it was our first trip without - we missed it for our junk But, the 4 yr old will definitely fit.

 

[Sunshein]

We are going in September too with our 4 year old and our three year old as well. We found a double umbrella stroller on sale and it has done well on trial runs. It will fold up easily for the buses.

We are a little nervous about what our DD4 will think of Disney World. She is uneasy in crowds although moreso if something is expected of her (ie a permformance) She does not like anything to be too loud or dark and fireworks so far have not gone well. I am just crossing my fingers that once we are there it will all go well.

 

[Perditamarie]

Definately bring your own umbrella stroller -- it is very hot and humid and I bet she will appreciate a lift. You can park in each land and walk around at MK, but AK and Epcot are huge and there is a lot of walking. Consider a little light up toy/flashlight/glow stick if being in the dark makes her nervous. Also, many shows are very loud, so earplugs or preparing her to block her ears could work. She also may need a bit of time to warm up to the characters...they are huge. Face characters like princesses are a great way to transition to the big characters, as well as character meals. If you are collecting autographs, go with her to greet the characters. Have a great trip.

 

[gris gris]

We rented a stroller for our DD4 and the only time she really got into it was when we wanted to get somewhere fast. Or if we knew we'd be heading across the park.

She was really scared of the characters, at Chef Mickey's she hid under the table. I figured she'd do this because she's scared of characters we meet at home (Clifford, Chuck E Cheese). But she was not afraid of the princesses at all. Meeting them was the highlight of her trip. That and riding Dinosaur!

 

[suffolkprincess]

My DD is 4.5 now but had just turned three for our first Disney trip and was newly 4 at our second trip. DD is a bit shy, and I noticed that she enjoyed things where she could take it in rather than things where she was put on the spot. Quieter, less crowded character meals worked better for her-- first thing in the AM at Breakfastasaurus, CRT, both breakfast and dinner at Park Fair were great. She wasn't all into the excitement at Ohana, Chef Mickey, or Crystal Palace.

She found Philharmagic terrifying, but loved Snow White's Scary Adventure.

The stroller was a must-do and we preferred renting because she was old enough to handle the walk to the transportation and to the gate very well, but it was good for her to get a break during park days and good for keeping tabs on her in the crowded park. When she was 3 and we stayed at POR, then it might have been better to have our own stroller with the long walks at the resort.

 

[bibbity bobbity boo]

We just got back with our 4 year old. She never uses a stroller here but we went for 2 weeks and bought a Maclaren Triumph just for this trip. BEST.INVESTMENT.EVER.

Trust me...she WILL use it!

 

[blessedby3]

We have a tiny 8 year old that has used our Maclaren Volo on our last two trips (just turning 7 and just turning 8). She of course never uses a stroller at home, but we enjoyed having it at Disney. She didnt ride in it all the time by any means, but when it was 9, 10 or 11pm and she was sleeping it was a Godsend to be able to still ride things while she slept in the stroller (someone would wait with her). We do the parks commando from open to close and DD just cant hang in the whole time. We pushed her to the busses many a night sound asleep in the stroller. No one wanted to carry her!!! The Maclarens hold up to 55 pounds and push like a dream. Check into a Volo, Quest, or Triumph. It is a great investment. We loved the Volo for DD so much that we have ordered a Quest for our new addition due soon!

 

[2Pirates_1Princess]

I wanted to rent a stroller and my husband was adamant that DD4 was to big and she could walk. The first day at Mk shut him up fast. She wanted carried and got a blister on her foot. Needless to say we ended up renting a stroller for the remainder of are trip. It was wonderful. I rented a double so she would have plenty of room and my boys 7 and 9 took turns riding with her. My 4 year old is pretty outgoing and the only thing that scared her was the Dinosaur ride at Animal Kingdom. She rode everything else and even did Big Thunder Mountain Railroad twice. The only time she didn't want to see the Characters was when she was tired and grouchy. My best advice is get the stroller and nap if possible. Have a great trip !!!!!!!!!!

 

[momtoamulan]

WE no longer have a stroller...and I can't see buying one to use only once at WWW.

We will probably rent one...to help her walking.

 

[bookworm2]

We just got back with our three year old, and she was a little uncertain about the characters at first. Just by accident, I had scheduled our two character meals at the end of our trip. This really worked out well because by that time she was used to them and LOVED the meals.

The biggest thing for our DD was that many of the rides are in the dark. She was slightly afraid on even things like Winnie the Pooh. I think the idea about bringing a light-up toy is a great one, but I would add that it might even help on the rides.

Have a great time!

 

[all4fun]

WE no longer have a stroller...and I can't see buying one to use only once at WWW.

We will probably rent one...to help her walking.

Just keep in mind at $10 a day to rent ($8/day for Length of Stay) the cost can add up if you'll be there for several days. Sometimes buying one is cheaper so if cost is a factor you might want to consider that. We'll be taking a stroller for our 4-1/2yr old when we go in October and I anticipate we'll get plenty of use out of it.

This site has more info about stroller use at the parks including pics of the strollers http://www.allearsnet.com/pl/strol_faq.htm

hth