Should I bring stroller for 6yr old?????

[happymomof1]

Hi. My DH thinks I'm out of my mind...but I DO want to take the stroller for our 6yr old son!! No, he normally does NOT use it, not since our last trip to WDW, but he is not used to walking MILES AND MILES every day like we do at WDW.

Last year, he fell asleep in it a few times, and used it to sit in to watch parades and get through the parking lot quickly. Anyone else use one with bigger kids like him?

 

[Kim68]

You are not out of your mind. I have 2 boys - 6 and 3. We will be renting a double stroller for them. Yes, it will cost an arm and a leg for a Disney rental, but it's totally worth my sanity. The 6 year old will be complaining every step - literally - of the way with all the walking we will be doing. He does not use a stroller at home at all, but I know he will need/want one for Disney. My 3 year old is the one who loves to walk every where. It will be a fight to get him to take a rest in the stroller.

 

[surfgirl]

I'm in the minority here, but I would not. And have not. We just returned and our ds5 walked everywhere. It was liberating not dealing with a stroller, finding it, parking it, waiting while he climbed in and out. Did he get tired ? Sure, but so did we. With the societal problems of childhood obesity (not pointing fingers here, just stating a fact), a little more walking is never a bad thing!

 

[GaSleepingBeautyFan]

This is tricky. I do see alot of older kids in strollers.

But not mine. When they turned 5, I put the stroller away and said they needed to walk. And they did everywhere including Disney. We just went slower and took alot of in park breaks. We also went back to the room by 6pm every night so we wouldn't be lugging a sleeping child.

It worked great for us but I can see why you would want to bring a stroller.

 

[NHdisneylover]

I am yet another who did not use a stroller for that age. We did make a point of taking increasingly longer after dinner walks in the month or so leading up to the trips we took when the kids were smaller (that was good for all of us really--us adults were not used to walking miles and miles every day either). Other than that we just slowed down as needed to accommodate the kids (and rested as needed). We were surprised with how little we really had to adjust for them and they enjoyed their freedom and we enjoyed not lugging a stroller around.

 

[shoney]

The last time we went to disney boys were just 5 and 7. I rented the double stroller each day. Grandma was mortified...to quote "they look like two big doofs!" I just didn't want to hear them complain. Quite honestly, it was used more as a holder for all our stuff than for them. They did use it, but it certainly wasn't necessary. You could take breaks on a bench, curb, restaurant and get the same effect.
We also took walks after dinner, to get them used to walking more. I really think that helped.
Only you know would know how your kid may handle it. If it will make your vacation more enjoyable, bring it.

 

[NotUrsula]

Six is a tricky age. My oldest last used a stroller on a Disney trip just a few days before his 6th birthday; later that year he was fine walking. Some sixies will do fine, while others will still wilt; it depends on how much walking they are used to doing, and how well they handle the weather.

If you are going in summer and live in a low humidity climate, I'd take it for sure. Kids who are not used to humidity tend to wear out more quickly in Florida heat.

Good shoes are essential. Mine always does better in a good supportive pair of sport sandals that have a back strap and can get wet. We slather our feet with Body Glide to prevent blisters, too.

The time you'll tend to most need the stroller is after leaving the park, headed back to your resort. A lot of kids that age still wipe out the minute they leave the parks and will beg to be carried that last couple of hundred yards.

 

[AndyLL]

Hi. My DH thinks I'm out of my mind...but I DO want to take the stroller for our 6yr old son!! No, he normally does NOT use it, not since our last trip to WDW, but he is not used to walking MILES AND MILES every day like we do at WDW.

Last year, he fell asleep in it a few times, and used it to sit in to watch parades and get through the parking lot quickly. Anyone else use one with bigger kids like him?

We did. We are there from open to close (Disneyland) and he often falls alseep. Neither my wife or I can carry him any distance. Having a stroller allowed us to watch fireworks and do rides while he sleep.

Last trip we tended to park it in various places and walked from there.

I've never really understood the 'social peer pressure' that seems to be involved in things like this. Do what works best for you and don't worry about what others say.

 

[roliepolieoliefan]

As a pp stated, you see many older kids in strollers, but mine will not be one of them.

My son was 4 and daughter 5, when they walked with no stroller.

We took breaks and walked at a slower pace. And also stayed from open to close it was so nice not having to worry about that stupid thing.

 

[woodkins]

I just brought one for my 6yr old dd in Feb and plan on bringing it again in Sept when she will have just turned 7. Disney vacations are long and walking in crowds is not easy for little legs, even when we try to slow down for her, the rest of the crowd will still push, shove and speed through us. I also like having the ability for her tosit for the parades and fireworks. One night on our last trip the 2 of us left the stroller at the hotel to go see Wishes at MK. We staked out our spot on Main Street over an hour early for a front row set. I wish I had the stroller that night. Because she is so tiny, people were literally stepping over her while she was sitting on the curb, people were pushing her left and right & I almost lost my mind. Now keep in mind I am a New York City native, so I am used to crowds and rude people LOL, but this was out of control. Even my dd said she wished she had her stroller to sit in. I dread the day when I can't do the stroller anymore

 

[DISNEYFOS]

I will be bringing a stroller for my almost 6 year old in Aug. We have always used one. She makes the decision whether she wants to walk or ride. It makes for a very happy child and a very happy mom and dad.

I say if you think they will get tired and not want to walk then bring it. We walk ALOT when we are there...so much so that I get shin splints and I run 5 miles a day... I wouldn't expect my 5 year old to be able to do the same.

 

[Elmo888]

I think that 6 is that "cusp" age. It depends on which side of 6 that the child is one (early, middle, or late), the time of year (that heat in the summer can make anyone tired), and the child's stamina.

DD#1 was 6 on our first trip, and we didn't use a stroller. However, it was January (ie, not hot), she was a month from turning 7, and we took a rest every afternoon for her 2 yo sister (and the 6 yo napped, too!). Honestly, I would have rented a stroller if I saw the need, esp. at the end of our trip, but I never saw the need. (I did warn DH that I would rent one for her if needed, but I didn't tell her that!)

Also, I conditioned her with lots of walking before our trip - start 6 or 8 weeks out and just build up distance. It really helped her stamina. If she was tired, everyone was. She seemed to have better stamina that DH, who didn't really condition himself with walking.

I'm with the "just in case" party - if you have a stroller, bring it. If you don't, I wouldn't rule out renting (from Disney or one of the stroller rental companies which would allow you to have one outside the parks). Your DS might be great at the beginning of the week, but need a stroller by the end of the week.

 

[MaumeeMom]

It really depends on the child.

Personally, we never used one. Each time we went to WDW we had a 4yo with us and both boys walked all day, every day and did fine.

We don't use a stroller at home so we knew that DS would be okay with walking but we were open to renting one if needed. Thank goodness we didn't need to because I really liked not having to struggle with the stroller - getting it on the bus, parking it, finding it after a ride, etc., etc. It seems like a big hassle.

Good luck making your decision. Let us know how it goes.

 

[P.I. Squirrel]

We used umbrella strollers for both of our children (7 & 6). It was a lifesaver at times. There were also times we abandoned it at ride entrance stroller parking for hours. Umbrella strollers fold perfectly for bus travel, too. we picked them up at Walley World for about $10 each.

 

[grumpyvet]

I think if you feel you have a use/need for it, then go for it.

My DD has always been super big for her age...outgrew her stroller at 3, hasn't been in one since. The only thing we missed was the storage!! Our first trip to WDW at 4, total trooper, walked me into the ground.

We go to DL all the time, so she was already used to the rigors of commando park use!!

 

[AndyLL]

As a pp stated, you see many older kids in strollers, but mine will not be one of them.

My son was 4 and daughter 5, when they walked with no stroller.

We took breaks and walked at a slower pace. And also stayed from open to close it was so nice not having to worry about that stupid thing.

Your 4 year old is up from 7am to 1am daily?

I'm impressed.

My 6 year old rarely makes it past 9-10 if he was up early.

 

[alexandria674]

I think you should bring it just in case, but then again can't you rent one at WDW?

 

[hockeymom3]

Personally, I wouldn't - and am not for our trip in 10 days . We haven't been to Disney with our kids but we have been to other parks when our kids were much younger (3 and 4) and strollers were never even an option. They never even complained that they were tired - kids have more energy than adults do!!

 

[candance2]

You are not out of your mind. I have 2 boys - 6 and 3. We will be renting a double stroller for them. Yes, it will cost an arm and a leg for a Disney rental, but it's totally worth my sanity. The 6 year old will be complaining every step - literally - of the way with all the walking we will be doing. He does not use a stroller at home at all, but I know he will need/want one for Disney. My 3 year old is the one who loves to walk every where. It will be a fight to get him to take a rest in the stroller.

Check out Orlando Strollers. We just returned from our trip to WDW with a 6 and 3 year old and we rented a double stroller from them. It was so much better and cheaper than the Disney strollers. It worked great for even the 6 year old. We could not have done it without the stroller. Super easy to collapse for the buses too. I can't tell you how many people made comments about how easy it was.

 

[Kickapoo Joie Juice]

We stopped bringing the strollers at Disney around 6 years of age. But that decision was made based on the fact that we go three or four times a year and could anticipate them not needing it-the last trip we used it on the bags spent more time in the stroller than the kids (who are about a year apart).

So I'd say, bring it if you want it, use it if you need it.

If you rent a double stroller for a week at Disney it will cost you $189.oo

You could buy a super fantastic stroller online and have it drop shipped to your hotel for a lot less than that. Heck, you can rent a CAR for a week for less than that...

But seriously, we just used to get an umbrella stroller for 10 bux and use one of those-all you need it for is for the kid to sit while you keep moving, it doesn't need to be like a kiddie RV with all his wants/needs provided for, you just want to be able to keep moving. The cheapie stroller will accomplish that.