Special Needs Stroller Rental Report

[curemyreed]

Hi, all. We are just back from 10 days at WDW. My 7-year-old has various diagnoses including autism & low muscle tone. We have always rented a double stroller for her at each park in the past. The increase in the rental fee plus the down-sizing of the strollers caused me to look to an outside rental agency this trip. I arranged for a 7-night rental of the Special Needs Liberty Push Chair from Orlando Stroller Rentals. The stroller was already promised to someone else the last 2 nights of our stay.

The stroller was waiting for us at the luggage storage area at the Port Orleans Riverside upon check-in just as agreed. It was IMMACULATE & seemingly brand new. There was an unobtrusive label attached with "The So-n-so Family" so there would be no confusion while we were out. There was a clear bag with directions for using the stroller along with a cute band-aid holder with the company's name and several business cards.

My daughter fit very comfortably in the stroller. There was plenty of leg room. The top accordianed forward and provided the "shield" she needed when things were apparently a little too overwhelming. There was a 5-point seat belt for those who might require it. The stroller folded quite easily with one pull of a particular strap and fit (but filled) the trunk of our Windstar. We did not ride any buses or trams so I can't give an opinion as to how smoothly that would go. We were directed to the disabled que area of the monorail each time and the CM placed a special ramp that allowed us to roll the stroller right on with the child in it.

We turned the stroller back into the same luggage storage area at the hotel. First, we tied on the small clear bag of paperwork per directions that came with the stroller. The rental company picked up the stroller from there.

We rented a MK double stroller after having to turn in the one from Orlando Rental which provided a good comparison. And the comparison is.....NO COMPARISON!!! The canopy of the MK stroller was resting on DD's head. Her knees were jammed into her chest because the leg-rest area is designed for a much smaller child. And her tushie got sore from hours on the hard plastic seat. PLUS the stroller cost $31/day....YOW! At one point DD said, "Stroller, please!" To which we replied, "You are in a stroller!" To which DD said, "NO! Good, RED stroller. Please!"

One thing to note, however. I am 5'2" tall & when the canopy was fully extended I could not see the end of the stroller and was in constant fear of "hobbling" someone walking in front of us. In heavy crowd conditions I had to insist DD let me pull back the canopy enough to see the space just in front of us so as not to hurt someone. My 6-foot husband had none of these issues. Also, this type of stroller does not do "tight turns" so you have to acclimate yourself to driving it.

Bottom line: The Special Needs Push Chair from Orlando Stroller Rentals was of fantastic quality and in immaculate condition. The owner was extremely pleasant, friendly, and gave great customer service. We will only rent this stroller from this company in the future, given the choice.

Please feel free to ask any questions you may have.

 

[SueM in MN]

Thanks for the very complete review. If the company sees a demand for that stroller, they will probably purchase more.

 

[mechurchlady]

I love your report because it brings up some important issues with the new WDW strollers. I usually suggest a stroller for kids with sensory issues and autism but from what you said that may change as far as using park strollers. I never thought about the short person and the canopy either. Then there is the ease of using the new strollers which is not there, hmm. I think I will be recommending the outside companies from now on. Great in depth report, wow, very informative.

 

[ireland_nicole]

I'm so glad you had such a good trip! I hope you give us a full report of your trip; I'd love to hear how things went for you. I'm very pleased that you had such a good experience with Shannon and Orlando Stroller Rentals. I too will never rent a wdw stroller again. The Baby Joggers are so comfortable, and it was great having the stroller around the resort too.

 

[stampin_fool]

for your report on the stroller. We will be leaving in a couple of days had have also rented from Shannon and was very pleased with her customer service so far. I am glad to hear that your daughter liked the stroller. Thanks for the tips as I am about the same height. I will let hubby push so there won't be any accidents.

Ronda

 

[lawblond7]

I also rented this amazing stroller from Shannon at Orlando strollers. I have 3 boys with a mitochondrial disorder, with one of my twins 11 1/2 being the most affected and my oldest 15 1/2 second. While Clay (11 1/2) sat in the stroller most of the time - he is small about 50 pounds, my 15 1/2 year old 5'4" and 100 pounds also was able to sit in it VERY comfortably. I even sat in it - and was able to do so comfortably. The stroller is larger than almost every stroller we saw there and was very easy to push. We had a GAC card to allow us to use it as a wheelchair PLUS the tag for the stroller. I had no problems pushing it in any lines. It maneuvered easily. It also folded easily and despite its size was not that heavy. I had no problems pushing Clay in it onto the monorail, BUT did fold it up for transport on the bus.

Shannon was wonderful to deal with and Clay loved the stroller so much we are looking to see if we can get insurance to buy us one for use at home as walking any distance is getting harder and harder.

I am still in Florida at my moms, but when I get home I will post some picutres of the boys in this stoller.

hugs
Sharon

 

[lucigo]

Thanks for the great reviews, looking fwd to seeing pix!