Onsite with personal strollers

[teachingmykids]

I just returned from POP and thought I'd share an observation. There were quite a few families with personal strollers. The RULE for travelling on WDW busses is that the strollers must be folded to get on board. I didn't see any signs, but the drivers will tell you. I felt sorry for several whose strollers were loaded with park purchases, Mom holding the sleeping child and Dad trying to do something with the stuff and still fold the stroller. Unfortunately, this was usually done WHILE boarding, not before. I got a little frustrated, (but I remember when my kids were that age.) Not everyone was nice.
So this is just a heads up, while waiting in line for the bus, go ahead and fold your stroller.

 

[Melrosgirl]

Do they really think they can just hop on the bus with the stroller UNFOLDED? I never understand people who think this way...wait until the bus is there and then they try to fold it up, move the bags around, take forever. :Sigh:

 

[jwfla422]

With the newer wider format buses I think some guests with strollers now think they were made so you don't have to fold up strollers

 

[TJA]

That is why we now stay at monorail resorts or in the Epcot area!! When our twins were 6 mos. old, we stayed at AKL and it was a royal pain getting on the buses. We brought our mega double stroller from home and had it filled with double supplies (diapers, bottles, etc.), plus our 2 tiny babies that were ALWAYS sleeping when we had to dig them out of the stroller to load up. While AKL is a beautiful resort, we will NEVER stay in a bus-only resort again until our kids are old enough to be without a stroller!

 

[DebIreland]

I can understand parents waiting until the last minute to take a sleeping (and possibly very heavy) baby out of his/her stroller. Now if you mean they were literally walking onto the bus with the stroller still open, that's a bit much, but if they just waited until the bus pulled up and then started folding, I think that's understandable.

 

[Stitch Inside]

I can understand parents waiting until the last minute to take a sleeping (and possibly very heavy) baby out of his/her stroller. Now if you mean they were literally walking onto the bus with the stroller still open, that's a bit much, but if they just waited until the bus pulled up and then started folding, I think that's understandable.

I concur with the lady from Ireland.
We now drive ourselves. The couple of times we did take the buses, it was a pain unloading and folding up the stroller. And the boats weren't much easier. One time when we were all together, we boarded the boat from WL to CR with the stroller full and a passenger on board, rolled it right on. When DW tried to return to the WL with our sleeping baby by herself, the boat person insisted that she fold up the stroller. The only thing constant about Disney rules is inconsistency.

 

[Selket]

Not sure if our son was sleeping when the busses pulled up but when we were there last time he couldn't yet walk or stand due to some physical problems and was a very heavy 20 month old. I would pack up everything out of the basket and have it ready to go. I also found the stroller fit very well folded up under some seats near the back across from the rear door (perhaps those are wheelchair seats? maybe not but there were no wheelchairs on the bus so I don't remember!). It worked to put the stroller there as long as you are willing to be last off the bus We were never in that much hurry.

We're hoping to stay at the CR this time - looking forward to being able to walk to the MK.

 

[KilleriMac17]

Do they really think :Sigh:

Thats the true question, isn't it.

 

[BettyCv]

We will be taking a double and a single stroller on the busses in May. Wish us luck! I plan to put all our necessities in a backpack - not to wear, but to keep in the basket under the stroller. Then, when the time comes to fold them, we can just "wear" the backpack while we carry the strollers onto the bus. Luckily our kids are a little older (5) and we won't have all the diaper stuff to carry around.

I'd have really liked to stay at a monorail resort, but just couldn't justify over $100 more per night. (We could take taxis to the parks for that kind of money!) Instead, for that $100/day, we are getting the dining plan, which will reduce the need to bring all kinds of snacks into the parks. Dh swears he will not mind folding up the strollers, but if it gets to be a hassle, I suppose we can always rent them at the parks instead...

Betty

 

[Aristomommy]

Do you have to fold the strollers in the monorail also? I am not sure what kind of stroller to bring, but we will stay at CR most of our trip. I have a larger stroller that reclines for naps in the parks, but does not fold up very small for busses. I could bring an umbrella stroller, but it does not recline.


Jen

 

[TJA]

Do you have to fold the strollers in the monorail also? I am not sure what kind of stroller to bring, but we will stay at CR most of our trip. I have a larger stroller that reclines for naps in the parks, but does not fold up very small for busses. I could bring an umbrella stroller, but it does not recline.


Jen

NO, you do NOT have to fold strollers on the monorail. That is what makes a monorail resort so handy. Definitely take your large stroller from home that reclines. We stayed at CR and used our big double stroller -- it was the absolute best trip of our lives. No hassles, no stress. In fact, we could stay out later at the parks because our babies would fall asleep in their comfy stroller and we could just roll the stroller right on and off the monorail. Also, by staying at CR, you have the option to walk back and forth to MK. It's only about a 10 minute walk. Very handy with strollers and sleeping children! Some nights we decided at the last minute to walk over to MK and watch Wishes. How handy it was to watch the show and then just stroll back to CR afterward. No crowds or noise, just a quiet peaceful walk.

 

[YCFAN]

Just imagine what WDW would be without all the wonderful faces of children. Now....is waiting a few extra minutes for strollers to be folded to get on the bus really that awful?

 

[Melrosgirl]

Just imagine what WDW would be without all the wonderful faces of children. Now....is waiting a few extra minutes for strollers to be folded to get on the bus really that awful?

I don't mind the kids. It's their slow, wait until the last second parents that bug me.

 

[Stitch Inside]

I don't mind the kids. It's their slow, wait until the last second parents that bug me.

That's just great. Added pressure for someone like me who's not that familiar with folding the dang thing in the first place. Rush me, and it will take longer.

 

[skiwee1]

That's just great. Added pressure for someone like me who's not that familiar with folding the dang thing in the first place. Rush me, and it will take longer.

Well now you know so you won't be surprised when you load the bus. LOL! Seriously I can't imagine anyone thinking a stroller can board opened anyway. I have taken a stroller the last 5 years and always folded it when seeing the bus come around the corner. Never made anyone wait. I have held bags and even babies to help others get on the bus.

 

[Stitch Inside]

Well now you know so you won't be surprised when you load the bus. LOL! Seriously I can't imagine anyone thinking a stroller can board opened anyway. I have taken a stroller the last 5 years and always folded it when seeing the bus come around the corner. Never made anyone wait. I have held bags and even babies to help others get on the bus.

My last post was a joke. I think you got it.
Just in case, we know we can't board without folding the stroller. In fact, last year we had a problem with premature stroller foldation. We were the family standing there with our arms straining under the weight of our DS (8 mo.s) and accessories, trying to keep DS (5) from running out into traffic. And since we seem to be entering and leaving the parks with more and more stuff (lesson learned from last year) we have decided to avoid the hassle and just drive ourselves back and forth. At least this year we will be able to walk over to the Monorail at the Poly.

 

[foxtrotter]

We went twice last year, both times staying at Pop and using the bus system. We brought our own stroller because we wanted one that reclines.

We would leave the stroller unfolded until just before we got to the front of the line. In about 10 seconds flat, I had the baby and the bag, and my husband had folded the stroller and started up the steps of the bus. Getting on and off the buses with the stroller so many times we had it down to an art by the end of the first day of the first trip. I can't imagine that we held anybody up at all, we probably could have passed military muster with our system.

I can honestly say that 95% of the fellow parents with strollers that I saw using the buses had a similar stroller system. But, yeah, there were a few who seemed to have no idea what they were doing and did hold up the line for maybe 30 to 60 seconds while they figured out how to juggle everything around, but it really didn't bother me. That's part of being at a place like Disney and using a transportation system with thousands of people from all over the world.

Now the people who are first to hop on the bus and take the first available seat then get nice and comfy with their legs stretched out so that every single person trips over them as they try to get on the bus and head to the back, well, I don't want to talk about them except to say that if I step on their toes, I'm not really sorry, though I might politely say that I am... Yes, there are exceptions, like the elderly and infirm, but everyone else needs to move on back.

 

[sharonk]

This is one of the reasons I try to avoid the Disney buses! Even if your stroller is folded in advance, it's quite a challenge to board the bus quickly while holding an infant AND a folded stroller, all while trying to keep track of your other children!

I must say, though, for every person who gave me a dirty look as I struggled to board the bus, there were many many others who offered to hold my child or carry my stroller onto or off of the bus.

My best advice to parents with strollers is to do as much as you can before the bus arrives, and then be grateful for all of the nice people and do your best to ignore the dirty looks.

Sharon

 

[Caitlin'sMommy]

We just got back less than a month ago and the 1st two nites we were at the ASMo Resort. Buses to EVERYTHING! We really didn't find it much of a problem. DH would grab the little one and I would simply fold the stroller with everything in the basket beneath. It would hold the camcorder, dig. camera, bags, diapers, everything all while being folded. It was also easy to do while walking on to the bus. I don't think we lost a step. Of course it was also a one handed foldup. Even though it was a bigger stroller than some I wouldn't have wanted any other kind at Disney. But then the last 2 nites we were at CR......I'm definitely spoiled with monorail transportation!!

 

[Bugsmom73]

When we went in Nov/Dec 2004, we took our twin stroller and DH stayed at WL. The one time we had difficulty was when our 3 yr old had fallen asleep and we had to get our 13mos and her (totally out btw) and the stroller onto the bus at DTD. Luckily, the bus driver helped us get the stroller on but other than that we, packed things up quickly. When we return in Jan 2006, we will be doing 2 single stroller, the almost 5 yearold will get the umbrella and the 2 year old the comfy liteweight Evenflo.