Going strollerless...feels so liberating!

[PixieMama]

Our first family trip was when my DDs were 4 and 6. My DH was adamant that we wait to go until the girls didn't need a stroller (or diapers, LOL). This trip was in October... Still hot and humid, maybe not as bad as August. We made rope drop every morning and stayed as late as we could in the parks each night. I do recall my youngest falling asleep just about every night on the bus ride back to the resort.

 

[wannabemini]

My littlest guy is a small just turned 6, but I am totally taking the stroller for him. The rest of us move pretty fast, and he's just not able to keep up walking. Not to mention that he's too heavy to carry if he gets tired.

We did 6 Flags here in San Antonio last summer & he was fine walking til the end of the day when a wicked storm blew in & then we had to fly to the car & hubs had to carry him (55 mph winds--he would have blown away otherwise) and it was a struggle to get to the car (not to mention scary--my 12 & 10 year olds were crying it was so scary, bike racks blowing across the parking lot, huge trash bins airborne & flying around--SCARY.)

All that said, he's totally going in the stroller. We have a citimini, one handed folding, fabulous stroller. If I could ride in the thing, I totally would. Lol!! Absolutely taking advantage of him still fitting in it!!

 

[Mickey'sApprentice]

My Dad has told this story on more than one occasion.

It was 1973 and I was 4 years old. It was August and very hot and very humid. Our family had spent the entire day at the Magic Kingdom and everybody was tired. We were in the very back of the park in Fantasyland, when my Dad heard from me, his very chunky 4 year old..."Daddy tote me." I'm pretty sure he carried me all the way out of the park if not all the way to the car.

I returned to WDW on my honeymoon 19 years later.

 

[indimom]

We went stroller-less for our first trip. Our son was a new five, and our daughter was 7. They did great, no whining, no complaining.
We took a swim break at midday and had a sit-down meal each evening, both of which probably helped a lot.

The only time I remember holding/'carrying them:
We put them on our shoulders in an outdoor line because they were sweating something awful down there in the crush between people. We were cool enough, but they definitely were feeling the heat. It helped them catch a little breeze, and took their mind off how hot they were. (Might have been the Indy cars??, I know we were in that part of MK.)

We also put them on our shoulders in the very back row (standing) for Fantasmic. They were too short to see otherwise.

DS did poop out one night at MK while waiting for the fireworks. DH held him through the show, out to the buses, standing for the bus ride home, and back to our room. Really, we could have woken him and I'm sure he'd have walked, DH just didn't see the need to.

My sister took my advice and left the stroller at home, and just rent as needed when her sons were 4 and 5. She did end up renting during their Epcot day. But, they never took breaks and only did counter service meals, so they were on their feet all day in that huge park. She enjoyed the freedom of not dealing with the stroller during the rest of their week.

I think you should go for it, but be open to changing your plan if it doesn't work out! Good Luck!

ETA: Be sure to watch for blisters forming on your kids feet. They aren't as bad as us old folks, but it can still happen, and I can guarantee they'll be whining about that. Mole Skin is a great product if you feel a hot spot forming. It sticks well and keeps the area safe from rubbing, much better than a band aid. Mine is safely tucked away in my bag, just in case.

 

[LauraLap]

When my DD was 4 (DS was 5), we rented a stroller but only really needed it about 50% of the time. The next year we went (ages 5 & 6) we were definitely done with the strollers!

 

[MindyLuvsMickey]

Thanks everyone for your thoughts. I totally realize that 4 1/2 is iffy, especially in the heat of August. We have mostly half days planned and she does have great stamina so I am thinking we may be okay. If not, we will rent one. I am prepared for that. We were originally going to bring our Maclaren quest but she is super tall and sitting in it her head was pushing against the sun shade. That got us talking and we were also concerned about the fact that if we do have it she will expect to ride all the time and my son will probably complain that he doesn't get to ride. This will eliminate the option and the fight. We will see how it goes!

My oldest son had his first stroller-free trip to Disney at 4 1/2. He did fine. Like your daughter, he had great stamina. We did 4 or 5 days and never had to rent one.

I'm looking forward to our next trip (jan 2015-unless I can convince my husband to go sooner) when our youngest will without his stroller. He will be just 5.

 

[puddinpie]

So we just made the decision not to bring or rent (unless we end up really regretting it) a stroller when we go in August. We have a 4 1/2 year old DD and a 6 year old DS. DD is the one I am slightly concerned about but we are hopeful that with going out their pace and taking breaks as needed, we should be okay. I can't wait to experience disney without a stroller to worry about! Just wanted to share!

Congratulations on no stroller! We just made the same decision. Leaving for Disney this morning (just having my coffee at the moment). My youngest son is 5 and oldest is 7. I am concerned that 5 yr old will poop out/ melt down, but we are bringing our stroller just in case (driving in from South Georgia). My sons have great stamina (they can run 2 or 3 miles with their Daddy around the track and do one mile fun runs) but Disney seems to be a whole different animal. It just wears them slap out! And the youngest one is my squeaky wheel, he will let you know about it I guess if it gets too bad we will just rent one. It will be nice not to get the judgmental looks...they drive me crazy!
The only problem I am having is where to put all the stuff I bring in for us. Even if I put it in a backpack and carry it, where do I put the backpack when I get on a ride such as space mountain?
Happy to be without stroller but feeling naked at the same time

 

[Kingdome8]

i would love to go no stroller but it would be tuff. well we do have a one year old now so we brought one for her obviously but we still rented a double for my 5 year old. we move thru there pretty quick and dont want to carry her all day. i also had a 9 year old who walked most of the the time but i let her sit in the double stroller here and there. shes not that big so she fit.
i just dont want to hear "cant walk" and i def dont want to carry them.
plus it is nice to have a place to hold things when go on a ride.

one day i will go stroller free.

 

[Patience]

My daughter is 6 but pretty small (she weighs 40 pounds). We are considering taking an umbrella stroller because my husband had knee surgery last fall and at the end of a long day, it might be difficult for him to carry her back to the hotel room if she poops out on the bus. We plan to take a mid day break so if we bring a stroller, we will only take it to the parks for the evenings. I feel a little self conscious taking a stroller for a 6 year old but it might be nice to have one just in case. We haven't decided yet.

 

[momof2n2]

I keep having babies so I never have to be without a stroller! (Not really... But I dread the stroller less future.)

 

[IslandAdventure4]

Ha.. We are dealing with the same thing. Our DS is 7, and DD is 5. This will be our first trip without stroller, I have to say even though it will be nice to shed the monster. I'm kinda on the fence. I loved having a place to put everything in the parks. (drinks, backpacks, camera bag, souvenirs, etc.) It was kinda our home base in the parks. I know we are going to miss it in Epcot. We always like to stroll World Showcase at night with an adult beverage, kids always fell asleep in the stroller, it was very peaceful having some "alone time" . But if push comes to shove we can always rent a double stroller in Epcot... Good luck to all who are shedding their strollers, I look forward to seeing how you all make out.

 

[DJBass]

My daughter is 6 but pretty small (she weighs 40 pounds). We are considering taking an umbrella stroller because my husband had knee surgery last fall and at the end of a long day, it might be difficult for him to carry her back to the hotel room if she poops out on the bus. We plan to take a mid day break so if we bring a stroller, we will only take it to the parks for the evenings. I feel a little self conscious taking a stroller for a 6 year old but it might be nice to have one just in case. We haven't decided yet.

I think people should just stop caring about what others think and do what's best for your family stroller or no stroller it's your business not anyone else's.

We don't own a single stroller anymore but I will consider renting if it's super hot even though my kids are 8 and 5- youngest will be a brand new 6 yr old for our upcoming trip. I run marathons and my kids walk about 3-5K a day all year long but the heat can zap energy like that for them. DH has hypothyroid and I have a head injury. So despite a high level of fitness you just have to be realistic and flexible. My son is only JUST 40 lbs and DD8 is only 50lbs but those are heavy loads if we end up having to carry. WDW isn't a competition or a place to be judged for presumed laziness if an older child is in a stroller.

Not that anyone said this at all but sometimes I think as parents we overanalyze and worry about what people might think instead of just going 100% with what is the best for you. I personally am not going to judge if I see a 10 year old in a stroller. I'm there for my family.

 

[brymolmom]

I, too, LOVE being stroller-less. And for all the posters worried about where to carry 'stuff' - I was the QUEEN of bringing 'stuff' to the parks when we had strollers. It is STILL awesome even though you have to bring a lot less stuff. You will find out and love it too I'm sure!

First trip I scaled down my stuff...and have continued to bring less and less stuff each trip. That too is freeing and honestly now that the kids are 9 and 11 (rule was no stroller after 5 so youngest has been without stroller for 4 years and likely 5 or 6 trips), we don't need much stuff. That is also very freeing!

For those who want to be stroller-less but are worried and have older kids - my opinion is that if kids think having a stroller (or being carried for that matter - our kids were too big we never carried them at all after very young) is an option, that of course they will take the option. Who wouldn't - we all get very tired legs/feet by the afternoon at the parks. But if they know that the only option to stay in the parks having fun is to keep on truckin' along on their own legs...Well then the outcome is very different. My kids both knew that as soon as they turned 6 - no more stroller at WDW. When they were 6 and 5...the 6 year old knew he wouldn't get one. Worked out great - they knew exactly what was expected of them. And I'm pretty sure in all our visits only once did we head out of a park 'early' due to being too tired to continue - and that was at EPCOT after about 9 or 10 hours there. Anyway - having a rule like this might work for others if you want or need it!

Is it easier with a stroller? YES! My kids never begged to walk - LOL. But obviously the easiest thing is not always the best for kids ultimately. Learning to walk on their own...That mom and dad don't have to do ALL the work on a vacation...and that sitting on your butt is not the best thing for your health, that whining because you are tired is not acceptable, are great things for kids to learn, IMO.

Best of luck OP!

 

[jrw118]

I agree with the pp. we will be in Disney 8/21-8/27. I have rented the city elite from kingdom strollers. It is very hot and to be honest much easier if they are in the stroller. My kids are 5 & 8. If they decide they want to walk so be it I will take the $75 hit. Last year I brought only my Mclaren assuming my then 7 year old would walk. Boy was I wrong. If I heard " why does maks get a stroller" one more time ... I called kingdom strollers and they came right away. Worth the $$$ hands down. My boys are not lazy by any means but we are from NY and the heat in FL is oppressive. When you see my 60+ lb 8 year old in the stroller don't judge lol.

 

[disnut8]

Thanks everyone for your thoughts. I totally realize that 4 1/2 is iffy, especially in the heat of August. We have mostly half days planned and she does have great stamina so I am thinking we may be okay. If not, we will rent one. I am prepared for that. We were originally going to bring our Maclaren quest but she is super tall and sitting in it her head was pushing against the sun shade. That got us talking and we were also concerned about the fact that if we do have it she will expect to ride all the time and my son will probably complain that he doesn't get to ride. This will eliminate the option and the fight. We will see how it goes!

I like your thoughts. This is only my opinion but if you continually put your child in a stroller, the child will depend on the stroller. If the stroller is gone, the child will walk.

Here's why I feel that way. When our son was 18 months old, we went to a local mall and he refused to ride in his stroller. My husband was kind of upset that we had to push an empty stroller for the entire day. So, the next time we went to that same mall, the stroller stayed home. My son has never ridden in a stroller since then. He even did Disney World strollerless twice at the age of three.

Now my son has a son of his own. Never even thought to bring a stroller to Disney World with my grandson at the age of five. Did bring one with our granddaughter when she first visited at five but her stuffed Stitch sat in it more than she did.

We are just a walk happy family. OP - go for it!

 

[J3nn78]

I'm the opposite. I was sad when we stopped using a stroller(last year for our 5.5yr old) I like having it to bring in snacks, water, etc... Carrying all that is a pain and I can't stomach paying outrageous prices for water.
Luckily, we had a surprise baby #3 and am glad to have some more stroller years.

 

[HubbDave]

I'm the opposite. I was sad when we stopped using a stroller(last year for our 5.5yr old) I like having it to bring in snacks, water, etc... Carrying all that is a pain and I can't stomach paying outrageous prices for water.
Luckily, we had a surprise baby #3 and am glad to have some more stroller years.

If it helps you can get free cups of ice water at many locations. Ask for large cups
In some cases it is filtered so you lose some of that FL goodness

 

[ToyStory3]

I just realized the other day that our next trip will be our first without strollers too. Last trip they were 3 and 7. Next September they will be 6 and 10. I can't even imagine walking through the parks without a stroller. Maybe I'll have my kids push me in an oversized stroller this time. I think I've earned that!

 

[worm761]

I love being strollerless! My first trip was with DS at 5. It never occurred to me to get a stroller for him. I never had one for him period. Once he could walk, he walked holding a hand. Zoos, Disney, whatever. Then 13 years later I had DD. Her first trip was at 22 months and we took a stroller for her. She spent most of her time walking. So, when we went back at 2 and a half, we once again owned no stroller so she walked it. We did end up getting her a stroller on the last day as she started to come down with something. She was sick for two weeks after we got home.

Now, I am trying to get rid of the bag! I tried it once before but I need my hoodie not matter what time of year. The AC at Disney (and most places!) kills me. I freeze constantly so I bring a hoodie with me everywhere.

 

[Planogirl]

I'm with those who said that they taught the kids that there would be no stroller past a certain age. DS wasn't given an option - he learned that he was expected to walk. However if I sensed that he was struggling then we would have rented one. Luckily that wasn't ever needed.