Help Please! To Bring Or Not To Bring a Stroller

[krismcco]

Hello everyone,

We are about to leave on our first Disney Cruise, aboard the Disney Magic from Dec. 21st-28th, on the Western Caribbean itinerary. We have 3 children. Our girls are 6 and 5, and our little guy is 3, almost 4. What are your thoughts on weather or not we should bring an umbrella stroller of sorts? I'm in two minds about weather or not we should. Our middle can grow tired easily, but I'd rather not have to lug one around everywhere. I am going to bring my Beco Carrier for sure, so I will have the option to throw a kid on my back, and my husband's shoulders always work too. We have one planned excursion for the dolphin encounter in Grand Cayman, but other than that we don't have any big plans. Thoughts?

Strollers I have:
-Britax B-Nimble Stroller
-Phil and Teds e-3 Stroller
-Collapsible wagon

Thanks so much for your help!

 

[MunFam]

This will be our first DCL cruise, but not our first cruise. We travel a lot and always take our umbrella stroller with us. Its small and super handy. We do not use it as much on the ships...but when it comes to waiting in long lines, its great to have a "seat" for our 4 year old to sit in instead of a) whining to be held b) running around like a lunatic. If its just walking from a to b, then we leave it back and will piggy back or shoulder carry her, but if we will be queuing up a lot, we take the stroller to save our backs.

EDIT: We take a super cheap one we got at BRU because we usually end up having to park it in stroller parking outside and sometimes strollers leave with the wrong family...so at least we are only out $25 if it does leave in the wrong hands.

 

[xlxo]

I brought wheelchair on my trip on standby. Great for long waits (security checks), especially when seating is not available. Otherwise, it was neatly tucked in the room. Your stroller will be smaller. It may even fit under the bed when not used.

When not being used... the wheelchair/stroller is a great luggage cart!

 

[tinkmom2]

We used an umbrella stroller too. On Castaway they do have jogging strollers free to use. You can take them on the beach.

[/URL][/IMG]

 

[AMB1]

If you bring one it should be the Britax. Anything bigger will be more trouble than it is worth. The stateroom corridors on the ships are very narrow and you may need to collapse the stroller at times to get past the cleaning carts.

The Britax should store easily underneath the bed on the Magic.

 

[joy327]

You know your children better than anyone else. If I were you, I will just think what's best to bring or not then go with it. My young one was just 3 when we took our cruise this October. I know he follow us well so we didn't bring stroller with us. My husband will carry him on his shoulder if we need to walk fast, otherwise, we just took our time to hold his hand and walk with us. Save a lot of time this way, cause we didn't have to wait for elevators which sometimes hard to get on when its pack jams with people.
However, I did bring stroller with us before when he's just 2 and 1 year old. I only have a regular one and it worked fine for us. It can fit right next to bed when we folded it and my young one took a nap in it while we cruise around the ship.
So I personally think that just choose whatever work better for you and then go with it. Have fun and enjoy your vacation with family!
By the way, I think you can rent one right there, but first come first serve.

 

[TheRichFam]

I absolutely recommend you take an umbrella stroller. If your kiddos are like mine, their sleep schedule will get all out of whack on your cruise, and you'll probably find one of them looking for a place to nap while you and the hubs shop in ports, etc. Plus I usually feel it's better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it. And if there's no kid in the stroller, you can use it to carry your stuff.

 

[Weedy]

FYI: There are a limited number of strollers available for rent (or maybe just a deposit??) to use while on the ship of excursions. I haven't heard of someone not able to get one. Anyone have experience with this?

On Castaway Cay they have wagons in addition to the jogging strollers available.

 

[jdb in AZ]

Will you be flying to/from Florida? Having a stroller for the airports would definitely help your kids getting through those long concourses.

 

[Skrabadoo]

We just came back from a cruise on the Dream. We have a 2 year old and a 5 year old. We brought an umbrella stroller that reclines and a Tula. The stroller was great for embarking/disembarking and the airport. The Tula was great for Pirate's night.

My 5 year old jumped in the stroller now and then too.

 

[kmedina]

The doors are small as are the hallways (thus most strollers worth their use cannot fit through the doors). Umbrella strollers may fit through the door if they're really small, but the pain they cause in your lower back (unless you're very short) may be greater than carrying your LO. If you can load and unload your LO quickly in the hallway, you should be fine using a normal sized stroller. Getting stuck behind people blocking the hallway can irritate some people.

Our little guy was just shy of 3 and a half on our recent cruise. We brought a stroller (which came in handy for the airports and WDW), but we never used it once on the ship (once we checked into our room). The space under the main bed is huge, so most strollers will fit under it. We had a huge double Bob that did not on a past trip and that was a hassle. Our Citi Mini on the other hand fit nicely under the bed and was not a hassle at all. It was happily stored under the bed the whole time. The Citi Mini will not fit through a normal stateroom door and the one we borrowed from the ship three cruises ago did not either.

The ship does loan strollers free of charge at guest services, so you can always borrow one if you decide to leave yours at home. Personally, I would bring your own just in case and store it under your bed when you're not using it. I would never use an umbrella stroller for extended periods of time, but if they do not bother your back, that could be a nice solution for you.

 

[kmedina]

FYI: There are a limited number of strollers available for rent (or maybe just a deposit??) to use while on the ship of excursions. I haven't heard of someone not able to get one. Anyone have experience with this?

On Castaway Cay they have wagons in addition to the jogging strollers available.

When did they start charging for strollers? They were free to use when we borrowed one in December 2011.

 

[anricat]

We brought a stroller with us for airport and travel reasons. We took a small umbrella type stroller (though it was a kind with a basket under and nicer handles). Once we were onboard, we stowed it under the bed. We didn't really need it on board. We wish we'd taken it to Nassau as the walk back from the pirate museum nearly did DD in (she was 5 at the time).

It was handy on disembarkation day to put a bunch of our carry ons in while we ate breakfast. I would recommend it, if just a small one.

At CC, we used the wagons available. Didn't take the stroller.

 

[lbgraves]

We used our Jeep Cherokee stroller on several cruises. The kids were 3 & 5 on our first & both of them of them fell asleep right before dinner at least once for 4 cruises over 4 years. We just changed them and put them in the stroller, having them next to the table until they woke up and then DH took it back upstairs.

As far as using the elevators, there is a really simple trick we still use. If you are on a low deck and want to go up, take the elevator down. It will be going up in a floor or two, and you will be in it without a crowd trying to get into it. This works going the other way as well. Also, the forward and aft elevators aren't as busy. We always stay forward and use that elevator the most.

 

[BerardFam]

We were on the Panama cruise in May with our 5, 4 and 2 year old. We rented the stroller on the ship. They take a deposit, which is refunded as long as you return the stroller. It was fantastic!

 

[xlxo]

If you rent a stroller... are you allowed to take it off the ship?

If you rent wheelchairs... often they don't allow it to be taken off the ship. For that flexibility, I brought my own wheelchair.

 

[lbgraves]

Yes, you can take the DCL strollers off the ship.

 

[Happy100]

Don't bring your own and only use one when you need to. They are not only cumbersome for the parent but also your cruise mates.

Back packs are what I found to work the best when trying to make my way through large crowds.

 

[lbgraves]

Don't bring your own and only use one when you need to. They are not only cumbersome for the parent but also your cruise mates.

Back packs are what I found to work the best when trying to make my way through large crowds.

Backpacks for 3-5 yos? That wouldn't work with DS at 1 since he weighed 26 pounds. If the OP brings their own umbrella stroller it will be much smaller than the one available on the ship. We never find strollers "cumbersome", even now that we don't use one.

 

[FindMeAFishingSpot]

It's all a matter of preference. I have a 6 year old with slight physical disabilities and the umbrella stroller has been a lifesaver through the airports and waiting in long lines (his legs get very tired). Generally, when we're on the ship, it sits in the closet or under the bed and then we take it out again when going off the ship at ports. As another poster mentioned, also wonderful when he's ready for a nap and there's not a bed available. Not sure I would feel the same if I had a completely able bodied little one, but for us, it's a must. The inconvenience of maneuvering and storing is the lesser evil.