Stroller or no Stroller for 5 1/2 year old dd

[eeyoregirl1970]

I have had mixed reviews when I poll people at work... what do you experienced DIS'ers think? She is a healthy, pretty active 5 year old, but the parks are pretty big. My thoughts are we can take breaks, take it slow etc as to not wear her little legs out, but a few folks at work think she'll get overtired and grouchy. I think the excercise will be good to counteract the junk food and I don't want to encourage her to take the easy road. Maybe I am over thinking it. See... my dh and I both have a little more padding then needed and we don't want her to have that, so we have her in sports and she is just an active little girl and I was thinking getting a stroller might send a wrong signal....

am I overthinking this too much?

help!!


(we are going for 6 days DAY1 visit MK then rest up after flight--DAY2 Epcot AM MGM afternoon/Fantasmic--DAY3 AK til close--DAY4 MK all day- maybe rest and return for PM parade and fireworks-- DAY5 TL waterpark, rest, the MNSSHP-- DAY6 AM open and then fly out late afternoon )

 

[design_mom]

How long is your trip?

We did three days at WDW when DS was 5 and we did *not* take a stroller for him. He is one who would choose to ride if it was available, but he walked without complaint. We took a "time out break" in the middle of the day, but otherwise we were pretty much there from opening to closing. If it were a 10-day trip or something, it might have been too much for him, but he handled 3 days just fine and it was *so* nice not to have to fuss with a stroller!

 

[MagikMom]

When we went on our 1st trip to WDW my son was 5 and my daughter was
8. She was very tiny (and still is at 15). My biggest fear was one of them getting lost in a crowd. We rented the double stroller. It worked out great for us. I always knew where they were and the stroller was good for carrying water, snacks, ect. You will see many people with older kids in the strollers. For me it was not so much about them getting tired, although they sure did, but more for my own piece of mind. If I knew how to post a picture I would send it with this so you could see how easily they fit in it!

 

[eeyoregirl1970]

maybe I could rent the stroller for 1/2 day... or do they sell out like hotcakes! Does this sound like a compromise? Maybe I can have best of both worlds?

 

[tink06]

We took one for our trip in August with DD who turned 5 while there. Felt the same way you did, as we didn't want her using it just b/c it was there. So what we did is we only took it with us the first two days when we went to the parks at night (after resting back at the room for a while). After walking (at her pace) during the day, with the extreme heat, and being out late, it just worked out better for her, and for us. We ended up bringing it with us the last 2 days when we went into the parks during the day, but we all started to get a cold, and with the extreme humidity FL was having, I didn't want her to overdo it, again even though we went at a slow pace, and took lots of breaks. She still did walking though, as we would park the stroller centrally, and walk to all attractions in that area.

HTH. Have a great time!

 

[ajsmommy1129]

The strollers are rented for whole days only, but it usually isn't a problem to get one later in the day. If you park hop, you leave the strollerin the first park and get another at the next. Here is why I say get the stroller if you will be doing late night activities....

 

[ujpest_doza]

My DD is 4 and 1/2 and has not used a stroller since she was 2 year old and we are not taking one for her in October.

If she does get tired we can take a break or she could possibly use her sisters for a short while and we would carry the baby, but that scenario is unlikely as she thinks of herself as a big girl and that only babies sit in prams or lazy kids like her cousin who is 6 months older than her and always sits in her stroller and always has a dummy/soother in her mouth as well.

Once she could walk, she always wanted to walk.

 

[cancer_survivor_06]

My dd will be 7 on the 15th and I still bring an umbrella stroller for her from home for one its a 20 dollar stroller for the whole time we are there and we go for 10 days. I do agree that if you are going for a short trip that it really isn't necessary. My dd is small for her age and so rather than us having to stop and take a break she can and we can keep going. I will say that in MGM and even to some degree AK its not really needed but in Epcot I fully recommend having one and even in MK just to be able to go back and forth between the different lands once you are in each section park it somewhere that you will remember and when you are done pick it up. If you plan on doing late nights definitely get a stroller as a pp posted their ds asleep we have more pics of my girls sleeping in disney than anywhere we have ever been in fact I started a scrap book sleeping in disney. Really just b/c we have the stroller doesn't mean she is always in it either. For the most part its just carries our stuff and in the evening when she is getting tired and we are leaving or if we are in a hurry to get from one side to another she just hops right in and we are off.

 

[Michigan]

Since both of my kids are in wheelchairs I can only tell you that my youngest was able to wheel herself without anyone pushing her at anytime at the age of 3.

 

[hildarumpole]

We didn't take a stroller for my son. He was 5 yrs. and 3 mos. at the time of our 2 week trip. We debated it and decided if he was having problems, we'd rent at the parks. We wound up not needing one. He hasn't been in a stroller since he was 2 1/2 and has always kept up at zoos, the mall, museums, etc. At Disney and SeaWorld, more often than not, he was at the head of the group, yelling at the rest of us to get moving. We also didn't do 12 hr. days at the parks, but maintained an easy pace, took frequent breaks, and went back to the hotel in the afternoon for a rest. Strollers just seem like a hassle if you don't absolutely need them.

 

[K and K's Mommy]

If you can do any sort of test before you go, that is what we just did. We spent the day at the State Fair (not even a full day like Disney), and my DD 5 was tired and grouchy by the end. Granted, it was 90 and humid, but I think we have decided to take the double stroller. No joke, it has been sitting in our garage since our last Disney trip in June of 06. My 8 year old likes to go, go, go, and we usually only go back to the resort every other day so I think we will all be happier if she can ride with the 2 year old occasionally.

 

[justanotherprincess]

since your daughter is pretty active and you still have a little time left before you go, you might want to start going for family walks in the evening - going a little farther each time to help build up her (and your) endurance. We did this with our twins (just turned seven on Saturday) in June and they did great. The last time we went they were 4 and we rented a double stroller - they walked a lot of the time but they still really needed it at the end of the day -- and it was a great place to keep all the stuff we would have had to carry otherwise. We kind of missed having a stroller this time!

 

[SqueakyMouse]

4 1/2 yo dd absolutely refused to ride in a stroller during our July trip. Now that 7 yo db is too big/old for one, she thinks she is too. I didn't think she'd make it in the heat and humidity, but she actually did better than the rest of us.

 

[chrysdrew]

We used an ubrella stroller for our daughter last year, she was six at the time. We always stay late in the parks and by the time we headed for the bus, she was exhausted.

One thing we did was to park the stroller in different areas of the park that we knew we would be passing by again, and just picked it up later. That way she wasn't tempted to ride the whole time. She really prefers to walk anyway, but when everyone is tired, no one wants to carry her or hear her whine.

 

[Colinsmom]

You have a pretty busy schedule with little rest, so I'd factor that into your decision. We plan to bring along a stroller for DS5 (trip is in December) but won't bring it to the parks in the morning. We may bring it when we go back after nap/rest time (we also have a 1yo DS), or may not. If we end up ever renting a stroller because he's tired and his stroller is in the room, then his stroller will start traveling to the parks with us. That way, I figure that we won't have to rent more than one day (we already have a stroller here that would work for him, so it's cheaper to use that vs. renting).

I expect that our DS5 won't ride much, but then he hasn't had to walk *this much* at home.

Clear as mud, huh?

 

[laughinplace199]

I would start out without one and see how she does. If it's really hot and humid and/or she's getting too tired, then rent one.

In April, my DD was 7 and DS was 5. We did the first 3 days of a 7 day trip without a stroller. DS was getting tired by day 4, so we rented for the last 3 days. DD used the stroller occasionally, but DS used it a lot. He also got sick at the end of the vacation, so I'm not sure if that had anything to do with him getting tired halfway through the week.

In Aug, DD was 8 and DS was 6. The weather was incredibly hot and humid. I rented a double for the 4 days we were there. DS used it constantly. DD used it occasionally - mostly when I told her to use it. She really didn't want to, but she has asthma and I was afraid that the heat and humidity combined with a lot of walking might not be good for her.

When are you going? If the weather will be hot and humid, it might be better to just get a stroller so she doesn't get overheated or wiped out after an hour or two.

Also, I loved having the stroller at night, especially during parades and fireworks when it's super-crowded. Main St can be scary right after the parade when it's a sea of people and it's dark. We have 3 kids (3rd one is a baby in his own stroller), so DH and I are outnumbered. Havig the 2 older kids in a stroller made me feel more comfortable because I knew where they were and that they wouldn't get lost.

Have a fun trip!

 

[blessedby3]

I have very active and fit children too, but we have taken our Volo for our youngest DD the last two trips (just turned 7 and just turned 8). It just works best for our family. She doesnt ride in it for most of the day, but if we are in a hurry or it is late and she is tired she can hop in and take a load off. We just use it to hold all of our stuff if she is not in it. We also tend to park it somewhere (like in Fantasyland) and do the whole land and retrieve it when we leave. I like for her to be in it so she doesnt get separated from us. She always is in it late at night (especially during EMH hours) as we go from open to close. Much easier to push a sleeping child than to carry her (and she is a tiny thing). The bus lines are a long way from the rides in the parks!! For our family we prefer to go all day long and dont take breaks so this works out great for us- no whining from DD about being tired. Disney is like no other place on earth- even those in great shape can be floored at the amount of walking that you have to do.

 

[Hannathy]

We haven't taken a stroller since either child was 4. When my DS was 5 we went for 10 days over Easter and he did fine without one, and these were extremely long days from open till midnight. If he was tired usually all of us were tired. It isn't constant walking it is walk a bit stand in line, sit at a ride or in a show then walk some more. I don't think it matters a bit if they are small or slight etc. it all works out because bigger kids are carrying more weight. It is so freeing not to have to be bothered with a stroller!

 

[slo]

Next year when my youngest DD is 5, she will absolutly be in a stroller
I like the fact that I know where she is, if she wants to sleep she can, and she won't get tired as easily. I'm a HUGE advocate for keeping children in strollers for as long as you can. My oldest DD sat in a stroller at WDW when she was 7 years old - I have no regets, and I would do it again!!

 

[momof2forever]

We also took a stroller last year. Our daughter had just turned 6 and our son had just turned 3. They took turns using it when needed, but it was nice to have it late at night heading to the bus stop.

It is up to you and what is best for you and your child. Enjoy and have tun.