Stroller and Plane Gate Check

[js]

Good morning.

We will be traveling with my dd/dgs in two weeks. My dd's travel stroller is close to $300 and she is bringing to Disney (I know).
When we gate check the stroller at the airport, can we put it in a stroller bag and fold it up?
When I travel, I always see the strollers open and ready to go at the end of the ramp to get onto the plane.
How do the guys that load them know how to fold them, I've needed tutorials for her strollers LOL
Do they leave them open?
Just not sure if I should tell her to get a travel bag for it since this is the first time we are traveling with my grandson on a plane.

Thank you very much.

 

[sam_gordon]

Good morning.

We will be traveling with my dd/dgs in two weeks. My dd's travel stroller is close to $300 and she is bringing to Disney (I know).
When we gate check the stroller at the airport, can we put it in a stroller bag and fold it up?
When I travel, I always see the strollers open and ready to go at the end of the ramp to get onto the plane.
How do the guys that load them know how to fold them, I've needed tutorials for her strollers LOL
Do they leave them open?
Just not sure if I should tell her to get a travel bag for it since this is the first time we are traveling with my grandson on a plane.

Thank you very much.

I would suggest a bag. Before you enter the jetway, fold up the stroller, put it in the bag, put the gate check tag on it and leave it at the appropriate spot. Having it folded and in a bag will help prevent damage from those who don't know how to operate it.

Of course, I wouldn't bring a $300 stroller.

 

[SG131]

100% get a bag. It will get banged around and I've heard stories of people's strollers getting completely trashed so I would be afraid to bring such an expensive stroller. I always have the stroller folded and in the bag at the bottom of the jetway and then they bring it back out in the bag and I take it out and set it up. The first couple times the bag was just a little marked up, but the last time I traveled the bag looks like it was in the middle of a mosh pit.

 

[Donna M]

We brought our stroller, and folded it at the end of the jetway. We didn´t have a bag which would only protect it from dirt, really, maybe tears. When we got ours back one part was pushed into another section which made it harder to initially open. The bag would not have protected it from the banging it received from being loaded into the plane.

Having a double stroller throughout the airport was very useful, we used it to carry a carseat we used on the plane too, and we´ll be using it again this Feb. They make great pack mules!

 

[js]

Thank you all very much!

 

[Disco Lemonade]

100% get a bag. It will get banged around and I've heard stories of people's strollers getting completely trashed so I would be afraid to bring such an expensive stroller. I always have the stroller folded and in the bag at the bottom of the jetway and then they bring it back out in the bag and I take it out and set it up. The first couple times the bag was just a little marked up, but the last time I traveled the bag looks like it was in the middle of a mosh pit.

Lol. Same with us. The stroller itself always made it ok but the bag got pretty beat up, particularly the last time that we needed it. Worth it to have the bag take brunt of the punishment.

 

[NotUrsula]

When we flew with strollers we also flew with carseats onboard, so we carried the carseats in backpack carriers through the airport. My standard practice to protect the stroller better was to fold it, wrap the carseat carry bag around it, and put the whole thing in the stroller bag before gate-checking it.

If the stroller has a canopy, trays, cupholders, etc. that have fastenings made of plastic, remove those and put them in your checked bag before you leave home. The cold temperature in the hold tends to make plastic components go brittle, and they become very prone to damage in transit.

 

[fabfemmeboy]

Yes, you can absolutely get a case/bag for the chair and put it inside when you gate-check it. I've seen many families do so. (I gate-check my wheelchair when I fly - which costs a lot more than $300 - so I see a lot of different ways people gate-check things).