Stroller for 3/4 year old?

[disneydreamer1970]

Do you take your own stroller for a 3 (almost 4 year old) on your cruises? We will be spending a few days at WDW before hand so it will not be a problem to bring it. I'm just wondering if you have brought them and used them on the ship.

Thank you!!!

 

[Favorite Auntie]

They have them on the ship to borrow for free - there is a refundable deposit. But if you are going to be in WDW before I would just bring your own, I think you will use it in the ports if nothing else.

 

[crazy4cruises]

We cruised in April with 2 year old and a 4 year old. They both rode in strollers both on and off the ship. They definitely came in handy when they were tired!

 

[fireplug]

Took a stroller for our 4 y/o DGD when we were at WDW just because of the walking . If you have it and they want in it, its there. I say take it along especially if you are taking long walking excursions.

Steve

 

[buzz&woody'smom]

We took a umbrella stroller last year and it worked well bc it folds so small and you can put it in a closet or under the bed. This year I plan on doing the same. Have fun!

 

[FredS]

Someone please tell me that walking on the ship is not like walking through the parks, dodging strollers all the way!

I don't mean to be rude, and I am used to encountering strollers in the normal course of life (most often umbrella strollers), but I do strongly feel that strollers are overused/abused at WDW parks and that is the one big thing I really dislike about walking in the parks. I never considered any possibility that might be a problem on board also.............please, are there just the occasional users or lots and lots and lots of those oversized monstrosities?

 

[buzz&woody'smom]

I don't think you will find it a problem but last year my 16 month son found it was hard to walk the ship back and forth that even wore his Daddy out The hallways as on every ship are narrow but I never felt it was "WDW" cramped or there were many of them. You mostly would see them outside of the shows or at dinner parked to the side.

DCL "loans" a Graco style Light rider stroller but I saw mostly umbrella strollers like I took which are very small and compact

I honestly don't think you will have a problem but the ship is huge and we use them to tote the little ones around as well as for shore excursions. Just the walk from the ship to the Castaway Cay beach if you don't use the tram is far.

The problem I have encountered on DCL as well as RCL and CCL in the last 3 months are kids roaming the ship alone. That is more annoying than strollers. I can not believe the number of parents who allow their children and I mean children to roam the ship, play in the elevators, run up and down the halls, play in the stairways etc.

It scares me and worries me. I don't know what these parents are thinking. It is not ok to send a 5 year old with 3 nine year olds to "watch" him. Kids roaming is what we have found to be a problem so be prepared.

Have a great time!

 

[watshakinranch]

Disney=kids=strollers=YOU ARE ON A BOAT MADE ESPECIALLY FOR KIDS AND THE KIDS AT HEART

There is nothing worse than to listen to a tired, grumpy child.

There is NOTHING better than to listen to a child laugh.

I hope every child you see in a stroller gives you a big smile!!

 

[crazy4cruises]

I agree, this is a family vacation. Strollers are almost a necessity for parents. You carry my tired, grumpy, 40 pound 4 year old around for me, and I'll leave my stroller at home.

 

[Dreamer04]

They made my life easy. I only wish I could talk my DD, 6 into one!! LOL


Ursula

 

[Gina]

*dons her asbestos suit*

Okay, I had to weigh in on this, because it is just a huge annoyance to me...
Yes, I understand the use of strollers for walking excursions. Yes, I guess if you don't want to take the tram on CC for some reason, a stroller would help there. But other than that, they should be merrily stowed away somewhere.

It's a big ship, but it's not *that* big! You're never that far from your stateroom, and if you're dealing with a grumpy 3 year old, it's time for a nap. And that nap shouldn't be in a stroller, taking up what precious little room there is in popular public areas such as the Mickey pool. Each time, I am amazed at how Mommy and Daddy would just park their stroller right there between the pool and the chairs, taking up the only walkway except for going completely around the other side.

Or in Shutters!! There is barely room for people in there, much less strollers.

Yes, I am a mom, and I have hauled around a cranky 40lb child -- just long enough to get him down for a little rest. Sure, it cut into my vacation time if we were someplace like WDW and had to leave the parks for a nap, but I didn't think a stroller in a crowded place was any more considerate to others than a cranky child. It was my choice to take him on vacation at a young age, and I wasn't going to make others pay for my choice. It's their vacation, too.

just my .02,
-gina-

 

[FredS]

Originally posted by Gina
*dons her asbestos suit*

Okay, I had to weigh in on this, because it is just a huge annoyance to me...
Yes, I understand the use of strollers for walking excursions. Yes, I guess if you don't want to take the tram on CC for some reason, a stroller would help there. But other than that, they should be merrily stowed away somewhere.

It's a big ship, but it's not *that* big! You're never that far from your stateroom, and if you're dealing with a grumpy 3 year old, it's time for a nap. And that nap shouldn't be in a stroller, taking up what precious little room there is in popular public areas such as the Mickey pool. Each time, I am amazed at how Mommy and Daddy would just park their stroller right there between the pool and the chairs, taking up the only walkway except for going completely around the other side.

Or in Shutters!! There is barely room for people in there, much less strollers.

Yes, I am a mom, and I have hauled around a cranky 40lb child -- just long enough to get him down for a little rest. Sure, it cut into my vacation time if we were someplace like WDW and had to leave the parks for a nap, but I didn't think a stroller in a crowded place was any more considerate to others than a cranky child. It was my choice to take him on vacation at a young age, and I wasn't going to make others pay for my choice. It's their vacation, too.

just my .02,
-gina-

Couldn't have said it better myself. There is a time and a place, and being a mom and having been there myself I still tried to balance others' needs too, and didn't think having a child gave me carte blanche to block walkways. When my child was too tired to walk we stopped and rested, or went back to the room. I can see instances where a stroller would be particularly necessary, but the overuse just amazes me. People don't complain about reasonable stroller use, or having children around, they complain about parents who can't seem to handle their children outside of a stroller, who nip heels and block aisles and generally give the impression that whatever space is around is THEIRS.

Umbrella strollers being used occasionally for movement is one thing; people loading up those huge ones like packing a camel for a trip in the desert and then carrying all their belongings and a child in dire need of a quiet bed is another. The Shutters example is precisely what bothers me, the people who seem to have no consideration for others.

And it is a SHIP! How far can you be traveling on it? I had more of a relaxed atmosphere in mind and just struggle to understand the need for much stroller use on board.

 

[moinab]

Disneydreamer1970, you might want to check out my trip report, which details my experience with strollers on board the Wonder with my almost 3 year old DS.

http://disboards.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=417172

 

[hydster]

When we did the land/sea vacation last November our youngest was 3. We used the stroller only in WDW mostly because it is such a big place and little legs get tired very easily. Just getting to the transportation stations to go back to the hotel was tiring for even me as an adult. We werent sure if we would need it on this cruise or not since this is the first time we have taken a child this young on a cruise. We usually wait until they are at least 5 before they go with us on a cruise so they dont need naps, strollers, diapers, sippy cups or anything high maintenance but we wanted to go with grandparents so we relented and took our 3 year old. He did surprisingly well. When we got on the ship we never used it once and left it in our room. I agree that strollers on a ship can be very annoying particulary if they are parked places where space is limited to begin with. Unlike the parks there are only a few decks and a few places to go and most of that involved either eating, the kids club, the shows or the pool. Many of the decks are just rooms so there is no reason to go on all of them. My 4 year old can be very tired and cranky and grumpy and is very heavy and I agree it is a hassle to try to carry them everywhere but if they are that way and get tired very easily or get grumpy very quickly maybe plan on either taking a nap, going to bed earlier or skipping a few things just to let them go at their pace. We didnt notice many strollers on our cruise but then it was a 4 day cruise in November so maybe we just lucked out timing wise.

Heidi

 

[crazy4cruises]

It seems that most everything mentioned is just plain common courtesy. I would never think of parking my stroller in the way. I always took my children back to the room for naps, and I never took my stroller to the Mickey pool. The strollers that I did see at the pool were for very small infants who need protection from the sun while they slept. You can't possibly expect mothers of infants to keep them in the room all day when they have other children who want to play in the pool. I don't see how you could go to WDW without strollers. You can't go back to the room so easily there. I think that as long as you are courteous, the strollers are not a problem. You can be inconsiderate and in the way with or without a stroller. We have all seen the people who block all the walkways around the pool with lounge chairs or the ones who walk 4 wide and refuse to step over for people to pass.