stroller, 5 year old and toddler

[laughingmama]

what stroller do you all recommend for a five year old and a toddler -- the five year old will mostly walk of course, but I was wondering about those ones that have a sit or stand shelf for the big sibling in the back?

 

[magchavez]

I have an almost 5 year old and a 3 year old. We also have the sit and stand. It's been great on all of our other vacations, thru airports, etc. but it's never been put to the test of 5 days in a row at Disney. I think it will be ok. My 5 year old loves to jump on and off the back. The only thing I worry about is there's no backrest should he get tired. I'm debating about bringing the sit and stand or renting a double stroller while we're there. I'd love to hear what everyone else thinks.

Maggie
First Trip - Port Orleans Riverside - 9/06

 

[JJ&JSMOM]

We looked at the Joovy brand sit and stand and we liked it very much. One big con is it weighs 24 lbs. When the younger child is reclining the older child can only stand because of the seat being in the recline position. We decided not to get it as it would be a pain on the buses and just lugging it around.

When we go to WDW our 2 DDs will be 4.5 and 2 so we decided to just rent one for the 4.5 yr old if she needs it during the day and to bring our Mac Quest for the 2 year old. We also may bring an umbrella stroller from home just in case 4.5 yr old decides she needs one everyday.

Wish they made them lighter cause its a great idea for a stroller.

 

[Mickey-4-Me]

Depending upon how many days you are staying it may be cheaper to purchase a stroller. We were just going to rent a stroller, but at $18.00 per day that adds up (even with the $2.00 per day discount if you rent it for the length of your trip). When we go our children will be 5 and 22 months old. We are staying 8 days. (7 on site and 1 off site). $18.00 x 8 days = $144.00 and $16.00 x 8 days = $128.00! That is a lot of $$. It was cheaper for us to BUY a Baby Trend Sit 'n Stand LXI at Target for $120.00 (+ tax). We are spending nearly the same amount of $$ and still have a stroller for future use. The Baby Trend Sit 'n Stand gets better reviews from amazon than the Joovy Caboose. We played around with the store model and reclined the seat while my son sat there it worked fine. Just a suggestion, the choice is yours.

 

[jnordan]

We have the sit n stand, and our girls will be 4.5 and 2.5 when we go to Disney. I love the stroller, but I'm seriously beginning to doubt whether it will be good for this trip. The problem is that the seat only reclines slightly, and I'm afraid my younger DD will not be able to sleep in it if we need her to. I'm not sure what to do, either. We also have a single Maclaren, which is comfy for my younger DD. Do we buy another, cheap stroller for older DD? But do we want to be dealing with TWO strollers, especially when older DD won't be using it that much? I just can't figure it out.

 

[#1 Pocahontas]

We are having this debate too. Our DD's will be 4 and 1 when we go. We have a double stroller that we use at home and like but it is a MONSTER. Very heavy and bulky. I know it is going to be a huge pain to get on and off the bus. I have been trying to find a different solution but I haven't thought of it yet. I am sure DD 4 will want to walk a lot but after one day of walk, walk, walk I know she will want to ride, especially at night.

 

[alloyd1170]

I have a 4 yr old DS and a newly 1 yr old DD My plan is to bring the Mac Quest for DD, and DS will walk. I will also bring my hip carrier to use with DD in line (shes not walking just yet, but hope she will by Sept). If DS gets tired, he can use the stroller while I carry DD. If my back gives out, we will be renting a stroller for DS. We dont do commando style so walking shouldnt be that much of an issue until the end of the day. We also stop and have our big meal at lunch, giving us a break mid day. Plus any shows are sit down for more breaks.

alison

 

[belle&beast]

We have an Evenflo Take Me Too tandem stroller and DD will be 5 at the end of July and she fits fine. My 2.5 yo DS also fits well in the front. though he often prefers the back. When we bought ours it was around $150 and now I am pretty sure you can get it for $88. Make sure to test any stroller you buy with your kids in it! This one was perfect for our WDW trip in January and it has parent and child cupholders as well as a big storage basket. We don't have any complaints. Good luck in your search!

 

[jmurphy625]

We have a double stroller that we use at home and like but it is a MONSTER. Very heavy and bulky.

I have a Baby Trend sit and stand and it is heavy...and always a pain to fold up. I couldn't imagine toting it around disney. I couldn't even get it out of the van.

Working at a child care center we tried every type of stroller...if need be we would clamp three umbrella strollers together (I think they sell the clamps at any baby supply store about $10). Probably not great for long term but would be fine for vacation..it would be cheaper than renting. You could easily take them apart if you only wanted to use one.

 

[pooh4evr]

We rented a side by side from A Baby's Best Friend for our trip last year I think for 8 days it was $75 - the girls were 4 and 2 - it worked out really well for us. I think that the 5 yr old will want to sit down too because Disney parks are HUGE and you will be doing ALOT of walking - we did not do the afternoon breaks everyday because the girls (who are both very tall by the way (DD4 was 45 in at the time) were able to both nap in the stroller- it had a great basket underneath, a canopy and the seats both reclined induvidually. Don't get me wrong the girls both did plenty of walking but it was sure nice for both of them to have a place to relax comfortably!

 

[Mickey-4-Me]

I have a Baby Trend sit and stand and it is heavy...and always a pain to fold up. I couldn't imagine toting it around disney. I couldn't even get it out of the van.

Working at a child care center we tried every type of stroller...if need be we would clamp three umbrella strollers together (I think they sell the clamps at any baby supply store about $10). Probably not great for long term but would be fine for vacation..it would be cheaper than renting. You could easily take them apart if you only wanted to use one.

True. The Baby Trend Sit 'N Stand weighs around 25lbs. but if you compare it to other double, tandem, or Sit 'N Stand strollers the weight is similar. The front seat on the Sit 'N Stand doesn't recline fully, but at least it does some. That was a big concern for us. Our decision was made when we found out that the Disney strollers are hard plastic and don't recline at all. We bought a Kiddopotamus Sun Shade (around $25.00) for the front seat and use the canopy that is attached to the stroller for the back seat.

The umbrella strollers are a good idea. I have seen the connectors at Babies 'R Us. The only problem is the canopy isn't very large and you won't get much sun protection. Also, buy one with extended hand rails (the part you grab and push the child around). Most umbrella strollers have hand rails are REALLY short and the small of your back will hurt after a short time. I am only 5'4 and my husband is 5'10. After an hour or so we get to hurting.

Unfortunately, I am not sure that there is a perfect solution. Good luck.

 

[chr1972]

We were going to rent, but when we looked at the price of renting, we deciding to buy a Mac double. It's not too heavy for a double. My 3.5 and 1 year old fit great in it. And they like sitting side by side.

 

[#1 Pocahontas]

We rented a side by side from A Baby's Best Friend for our trip last year I think for 8 days it was $75 - the girls were 4 and 2 - it worked out really well for us. I think that the 5 yr old will want to sit down too because Disney parks are HUGE and you will be doing ALOT of walking - we did not do the afternoon breaks everyday because the girls (who are both very tall by the way (DD4 was 45 in at the time) were able to both nap in the stroller- it had a great basket underneath, a canopy and the seats both reclined induvidually. Don't get me wrong the girls both did plenty of walking but it was sure nice for both of them to have a place to relax comfortably!

How was it when you folded it up? Was it heavy and bulky? Did you take it on the busses, if so, how was that?

Thanks

 

[imp&pixie]

My kids are 5 and 2 and I went around and around with this issue for our upcoming trip. I figured it would be best for me to buy the strollers instead of renting at the parks just for the ability to use the stroller once you leave the park. What I ended up doing was buying a Mac Volo and a cheaper Babies 'r' Us umbrella stroller (Kolcraft). What I am planning to do is use one stroller for the mornings and probably bring both strollers with us when we go back to a park after our afternoon break. At least that is the plan. We'll see how it works and possibly just take both strollers with us all the time. Both of the strollers are light and easy to fold. The reason I got the Mac instead of just getting two of the Kolcrafts is that it is rated to a higher weight so DS can use it comfortably.

 

[cosine4]

We have taken our Graco Duoglider a couple of times. It is comfortable for the kids and is easier to push than alot of other strollers we have used. It is kind of bulky when folded up, but we never had a problem getting on/off buses, monorail and even the railroad at MK.

 

[pooh4evr]

We stayed at a DTD hotel so we had shuttle buses to all parks- it folded up pretty flat, it was kind of a pain to lug onto the bus, but (we went in May) they weren't really crowded in the morning so we just sat it next to us or put it in the back of the bus behind the last seats on a platform kind of thing. At night Dh did stand sometimes a with it leaning on his leg a bit - for us - for the $ and the other conviences it was worth it. No stroller to drag/ check through the airport, it was waiting at the hotel when we arrived, and we left it with the bell hop when we went home (for the co to come pick up) an dit did not look like the hundreds of other strollers parked outside rides- it was comfortable for the girls too- next time we go back we'll have a 3rd so we'll probably rent the same type again! or ???

 

[srgibbs]

We went to wdw last Sept. for 7 days with a side by side double stroller. DS was 4 and DD 14 months. They were never in the stroller at the same time and it was very heavy for DH to get on and off the bus. This year we are taking a very lightweight umbrella stroller. They can take turns riding in it. The strollers at Disney for rent do not look very comfortable for kids, as they are hard and sit low to the gro und. Have Fun!