safe to leave strollers unattended ?

[lanand3]

I've also never had a problem other than finding it when CM's move it,which is usually just a matter of scanning around me.I would never leave anything valuable on it obviously.I also tied some bright and obvious ribbon to the handle because you would be amazed at the billions(ok,not quite,but a LOT)of strollers that look alike.Add that to the fact cm's will move them to make room and it would be very easy for someone to mistake yours for theirs!

 

[kshattuck]

We have taken a stroller on two trips and it was only ever moved by CMs making space. I agree with PPs about having some kind of "flag" -- we used ribbon. We have a Sit-n-Stand, along with 5 zillion other people, so making some kind of distinction was important.

Have fun!

 

[jenrose66]

The CM's do move strollers. I think they have CM's that it's their dedicated job to keep strollers organized

I've had my own stroller with me on 2 trips and never had a problem. Even left diaper bag filled with supplies, clothes, etc...(nothing really of value).

I know that people steal...I would never leave cameras...money...things like that. But personally I've never had a problem.

 

[arcticdisneylovers]

A great tip I saw before our trip in January was to attach something to identify your stroller from the sea. We used a giant plush flower with a fabric wire stem. It worked great, one of the best tips I saw. I'll bet alot of missing strollers are taken by accident. We left a blanket, bottled water and few snacks. But that was about it, we wore sling bags and kept them with us. But I saw tons of strollers with toys, purses, bags I was amazed that people were so trusting I am not

 

[Kat&Dom]

We just got back from Disney on Sunday and brought our own personal strollers with us and had no issues at all.

Not only did we leave our strollers unattended but we left items on our strollers - Disney water spray bottles, stuffed animals, change of clothing, toys etc. This was our 5th Disney trip and we have never had a problem with anything being taken. I realize that it is not the smartest thing to leave items on the stroller but we decided that if someone needed to steal any of our items than they needed them more than we did and we didn't want to carry everything around so we chose to leave items knowing that there was a risk of theft.

We saw lots of other people leave lots of items on their strollers too. We did notice one family at AK had someone take their stroller that was identical to theirs so they took the stroller that was the same as theirs. It was just a cheap $15 stroller though.

 

[mommylovesdisney]

I wouldn't be to worried about the stroller going missing, BUT i do have to say that about 4 years ago in epcot Future world, we came out of an attraction to find a bunch of squirrels stealing people's snacks...our diaper bag was chewed up but they didn't get inside..(thank goodness it was just the freebie one from the hospital)
That was the only issue we ever had with our stroller being left unattended

 

[r&kmommy]

I always, always lock the wheels of our stroller, both of them. We came out of IASW and our stroller had been relocated. I found it and the wheels were locked (odd, but figured the CM did it who moved it) . . . as I looked down to unlock the wheels I realized it wasn't ours becuase the bag in the basket was different. Not to say that this would stop everyone who tries to take the wrong stroller, but it's one obstacle. I have 2 pink and yellow bandannas that I will attach to the handlebars this trip to help it stand out a bit more too. . . We don't leave anything in there that we'd miss if it were stolen, though we've never had issues. I grab my wallet/tiny purse and dh takes the camera bag. On a few ocassions we've left everything in the stroller, w/ the purse and camera stuffed towards the back of the basket and the plain diaper bag and odds and ends in the front.

I'm never nervous leaving the stroller anywhere in DW.

 

[Plum Pirate]

We no longer need strollers but took them with us for several years when our kids were younger. We never had a problem, but would find them moved by CMs when we left them somewhere other than a designated stroller parking area. I wouldn't hestitate to take one, and in fact I kind of miss the extra storage it provided.

 

[disneysmyhappyplace]

We always bring our own stroller, and have never had any problems with it except sometimes CM move them. We even mistakenly left our good camera inside the stroller seat and went in for a show and low and behold our camera was still there. Its so nice to know that there are so many good people in the world

 

[cmcinc]

The two times we have been with strollers, we have never had a prob.

 

[wmharley]

I have read posts about strollers being stolen but I don't know how common it is.

Cars get stolen at the mall, but that doesn't prevent you from parking there does it?

things can get stolen from your office (experienced), but that doesn't stop you from going back to work, or having anything in there.

Rule of thumb folks.. don't leave anything valuable, just like valuables in your car or checked luggage.

The CM's do move strollers. I think they have CM's that it's their dedicated job to keep strollers organized

or unorganized at times. I've had enough times where a stroller, parked properly, is moved to a farther location, even though it may have been on a parking wall, and gets moved 20 feet away out towards the flow of traffic. Where it was was a better location for safety for the crowd, and yet still in the permitted area. We recently were in a group and had 4 strollers. We parked thm in a stroller zone, next to the wall, away from folks and traffic. The CM seperated them, 2 were more in the path of traffic, and the other 2 were placed in out of the way areas.

 

[Jensmom80]

I agree with everyone else. It is a possibility that it could get stolen but from my own experience I have never had one taken. We leave all kinds of stuff in our stroller: diaper bags, toys, we even leave our resort mugs and have NEVER came back to find anything missing! I think it does happen but for the most part I think when it does it is a misunderstanding in that someone took your stroller by mistake because it looked just like theirs. People make innocent mistakes. I have gone 11 times in the last 10 years and only once have I seen a stroller mishap. We had come out of Muppet's 3D and there was a gentleman out there rather upset. He was showing a CM where his stroller was parked and now it was gone. The CM happened to remember moving his stroller because there was something in the seat of it. The CM apologized for moving it but they had to due to the crowd. Long story short the stroller was still missing but there was another one there just like theirs minus the toy in the seat. This gentleman was a few doors down from us at our resort is the only reason I paid any attention because his daughter was near the same age as mine and we had talked. Later in our vacation we saw the family at the pool and they had gotten their stroller back with the toy! The people that had taken it realized it wasn't theirs and took it to a lost and found. The family had left their name and room number with lost and found and lo and behold it turned up and they called the family! I have faith in the people at Disney and the CM's now!

 

[SpectroMagic*o*]

I was thinking of taking my double jogging stoller to Disney next week insted of renting. Will it be safe to leave while we all go on rides. I do not plan on keeping any valuables in it , just drinks and kid supplies. Not sure if people have experienced stoller disapearing.

Thanks for any info

Thank you for posting this! It will be my first time in Disney with a stroller, I am going with my daughter who will be 18 months and was concerned of the same thing. I have decided to take it. We r driving, so its not inconvenient. Plus its much more comfy and good storage. Not to mention, I'm not inlove with my stroller so if it gets stolen I wont be completely heartbroken

Just to make it totally clear tho, there is no peace of mind bringing ur own stroller, correct?? There is absolutly nowhere to lock up ur stroller or anything, am I right?

 

[RMulieri]

Thank you for posting this! It will be my first time in Disney with a stroller, I am going with my daughter who will be 18 months and was concerned of the same thing. I have decided to take it. We r driving, so its not inconvenient. Plus its much more comfy and good storage. Not to mention, I'm not inlove with my stroller so if it gets stolen I wont be completely heartbroken

Just to make it totally clear tho, there is no peace of mind bringing ur own stroller, correct?? There is absolutly nowhere to lock up ur stroller or anything, am I right?

WDW is still the real world. Things get stolen all the time, you just don't hear about it that often.Take your stroller and don't worry about it.Don't leave anything in it that you would regret if it was stolen.You can not lock it to anything .I have seen people use bike locks to lock it to things, and I have seen the locks cut by Cms.

 

[maxiesmom]

Just to make it totally clear tho, there is no peace of mind bringing ur own stroller, correct?? There is absolutly nowhere to lock up ur stroller or anything, am I right?

Nope. If you try to lock it to anything like a railing, the CMs will cut it free. You can lock the back two wheels together with a bike lock if you want. That way the CMs can move them if the need to, but no one would be able to push it around all day. I have even read that some people just take one wheel off and carry it with them.

 

[purvislets]

We've never had anything taken, but it has happened to other people.

When we go with our Chicco umbrella stroller we don't worry about it being stolen. We've had it for years and if it goes then we'll just replace it.

On the other hand, I also have a Graco double that we lock with a bike lock (not to anything, just through the back wheels) just in case. It's almost brand new and I would just DIE if someone stole it.

On a different note, if you are going to leave snacks in your stroller while you are away be sure to put them away. I saw a whole family of squirrels in EPCOT last week have a feast of cookies from a parked stroller near the Seas. Couldn't help but wonder if someone raised a stink about their cookies being stolen out of their stroller when they got back!

 

[ShellyShellfish]

We're bringing our Baby Jogger double stroller with us this fall and I plan on buying a bike lock to thread through the back wheels for a little more piece of mind. When we went the last time, I went to Target and bought a $30 cheapie stroller so I didn't care if it got stolen or not (it didn't) and had ribbons hanging off it as well so it stood out. I'd get a cheapie stroller again, but with 2 kids (almost 1 and 3 at time of trip) I'm not about to screw around with that and I'll stick with my stroller that I know the kids like to ride in.

 

[Tara922c]

Well, you leave your stroller at your own risk, being said, I leave my stroller. I wouldn't leave a bag in your stroller, even if the bag is not valuable. I think many thives are going for the bag, and not the stroller, but to not look suspecious, they take the whole stroller. Remember, many times your stroller will be relocated. I can't think of it off the top of my head but there are some attractions where you drop your stroller off in one place, and it is moved to the next place. Also, sometimes you leave your stroller, and then 500 people park their strollers, and it seems like your stroller was moved. Best bet.... tie a ribbon on the handles so you can spot it from a mile away. If you don't want to take the chance, then rent one.

 

[pilesoflaundry]

If you have any food in your stroller don't leave it easily accesable or out in the open. I have watched many squirrels dig through the strollers or grab cheerios and things left in the seat.

Put something bright and easily identifiable on your stroller so it's not accidentally taken. So many strollers look alike and that can help you find it easier.

 

[bwilcox]

While the likelihood is not high that a stroller in general will get stolen, it does happen, and if you are bringing a double jogging stroller-that is nicer than most strollers left and could be a target for a stroller thief. I have no problem leaving our cheap second-hand store double stroller unattended, but I wouldn't bring an expensive one.