Stroller or not? I need opinions

[Chabby]

Hi guys:
I can't decide what to do about renting a stroller.
I'm going in March with my not so young parents, DD6 and DS 15mo. I was sure I wanted to rent a double stroller from an outside vendor, for the entire stay to be delivered at the hotel.

I know DD is old enough not to need a stroller, but I didn't want her to slow us down

Now, about DS: I wore him a lot as a small baby until he outgrew that particular carrier. I still have the baby wrap I used with DD, but he is so happy in his stroller that I rarely use it, but when I do he loves it.

I know moving around with a stroller is difficult, I can only guess how much harder it would be to do it with a double stroller. Babywearing is so much easier, but we are talking about a baby that at 11mo weighs 21 lbs. and walking all day long.

So now, I don't know what to do. I've thought about renting per day to see how it goes. Is it possible that they run out of strollers if I don't reserve one ahead of time?

Thanks for your opinions!!!

 

[Crystal824]

I would get a double stroller but at a minimum I would get a single stroller. Your 6 year old is going to get tired. WDW is not a normal amount of walking for a child. She will most likely want to ride in a stroller later in the day. Wearing your son for a while will be fine but I think wearing him all day will wear you out. If I were you I would get a double stroller so they both have options. If you don't want to spend that much, you also have the option of getting a singler stroller and wearing DS when dd doesn't want to walk. Unfotunately, that is going to be later in the day when you are also tired just from walking yourself.

 

[ScotsMinnie]

Watching this thread with interest as my DD will be 6 next trip. Not convinced she will manage round the parks in the heat.

 

[henry72]

Honestly, I would rent the stroller. We have gone twice with strollers and it really isn't that bad travelling the parks with them. I think you would get tired of wearing him and this way he can nap in the stroller if necessary.

 

[kalc12345]

We are going to WDW after our cruise and this will be our first trip without a stroller since having kids.

If I were you I would just do a single stroller. Our last trip I had trouble keeping my son in the stroller. He preferred to walk. But each child is different. My daughter enjoyed using a stroller up until she was around 6 years old.

 

[The 4 "Quay"balleros]

Rent the double! I made the mistake of thinking the boys would be ok without a stroller on our March trip- they were 5 almost 6 and 3 at that time and neither had been in a stroller since our trip the March before that(2010). Within an hour of the first park they where tired and cranky! There is just so much walking at the World. First you walk from your resort to the bus stop. Stand and wait(we stay at POP) for the bus. Get to the park and walk to the turnstiles. Now your finally in the park, do you rent a stroller(if you don't have one)? YES!!!

 

[squirrel]

I would at least have a single stroller.

If it were me I'd get a double. Not sure when your trip is but when I go it's hot still. No way would I want to carry an infant most of the day so the 6 yr old wasn't cranky and tired.

I found the stroller great to hold drinks and a change of clothes. I also put the backpack on the handles when walking around so I had one less thing on my body.

Pick up some Carabineer clips to hold spray fans, water bottles, etc on the stroller. I never left purchases on the stroller-had them shipped to the resort.

 

[fourblessings]

i would get a double stroller you will be glad you did. we were so glad we had one for your 6 and 4 year old. Our 6 yo was in it 70% of the time. plus it is nice when your caught in the crowds.

We ended up with a tandem phil and teds from Orlando Strollers To Go because it was the size of a single and the second seat could be removed if we only wanted a single.

 

[goofy53073]

I would rent a single stroller. I dread the day I have to go with no stroller Where will I put all my stuff With a single stroller your son can ride most of the time but if DD gets tired she can have a turn and you can wear the baby for a little while.

We are going in April with our then 4 children ages 9, 7, 4 1/2 and 4 months. I will bring a single stroller and my Ergo carrier. 4 month old will be the primary rider in the stroller but when 4 1/2 year odl gets tired she will ride and I will put baby in the Ergo...

 

[mandypta]

I have a 3 year old and a will be 6 year old....what I did was rent a single from an outside company, but got the glider board that attaches to the baby jogger. My 6 year old is just a little over the weight limit for that, but I don't imagine that he will really need/want to ride much anyway. My plan is that if he gets too tired to walk, I'll put the 3 year old on the glider board, and let the 6 year old sit and ride for a while. I can't attest to how well that works, since we haven't done it yet.

I'm guessing that if your 6 year old is on the small side, she could maybe ride the glider board, and if she's over the weight limit, I bet a 15 month old could handle the glider board.

 

[SweetMissy]

I wear a baby/child for as long as possible, so I would still be wearing the younger one. But if you're not used to wearing him that much then disneyworld may not be the time to start. It just depends on that factor. As for the 6 year old I would definitely rent a stroller. Our last trip, our kids were weeks away from turning 7 and 4 and we rented a double from magicstrollers.com.

 

[pinkerbell]

A stroller is not considered a piece of luggage, you can check it at the gate where you board a plane if flying. We bring one for each our dd8 and dd5 even though they do a lot of walking at our local 6 flags, Disney is much more walking and stimulation and we too want to get the most out of our day. We have always liked two in case DH and 1 daughter want to go one way and the other 2 go another. It just seems easier to get around.

 

[TosaTrio]

Another vote to rent a double stroller... Nothing dampens a vacation like tired kids.

 

[tanyaandallie]

At 6 your oldest should be FINE without a stroller. It is true that you have to slow your pace some when you have a younger child with no stroller but with a 15 mos old in tow, that would be fine. We went twice this year with my ds. The first time he was almost 6 and the 2nd time close to 6.5. He didn't use a stroller either time and he rocked it! I was worried and prepared to rent if he needed it but he did awesome without.

That said.......when ds was 4 and dd was 6 we took our double. It was the only decent stroller I had and I figured since we had it I would take it. DD rode a TON. Again, she would likely have been fine without it but we had it so she rode in it.

So......moral of my story. Your 6 year old would be fine without a stroller but if you are renting, you could really go either way. I personally didn't find a double any more difficult to deal with than a single. Also, I was an avid baby wearer but still had a stroller available for ds. If you are not an avid babywearer I'm guessing that wearing your 15 mos old the entire day would really be tough on you. I'd for sure have a stroller for the youngest.

 

[Wadecool]

Get the stroller. It's better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have it.

 

[Kat&Dom]

We just got back from Disney on Saturday. My son is 6 years old and my friend's son is 6 1/2 years old. We spent 7 days at Disney and 2 days at SeaWorld. We rented a Disney Double Stroller just on Thanksgiving Day for the 2 boys at Epcot as our focus was on the World Showcase. The boys did great walking at all the other parks but loved having the stroller at Epcot. Double Strollers rent at Disney for $31 per day and Singles are $15 per day.

Since you will have a stroller anyway and are planning to rent, I would just go for the Double Stroller so that you can put your 6 year old in it too.

When we first got to Epcot and I rented the Stroller, my son said, I am not tired. I said, sit in it anyway. Well, he was a very happy camper all day to sit in it. It definitely made for a more relaxed and fun day for everyone. I am very glad that I rented the stroller for that day - it was worth every penny.

We arrived at Epcot around noon on Thanksgiving Day and there was tonnes of strollers available to rent. The majority of people seemed to have their own strollers. I hope that helps.

 

[Chabby]

Thanks a lot!

Double stroller it is

I wore DD a lot up until she was like 18mo, but it was mostly because she refused to ride in the stroller as if it was on fire!

She is a very active and full of energy girl, but she goes to bed early. She can go on and on all day long, but by 8pm, she is out! And I do want to see the fireworks

As I said, I don't wear DS that much now, so I do worry it will make me too tired.

You've been great, thank you so much for your responses. You've helped me decide!

 

[budafam]

I would get a single stroller. I went with my son (who's 5) in October and he made it from rope drop till park closing every single day for 6 days straight. Kids have a lot of energy... they rest when you see a show or eat. Maneuvering a stroller really isn't that bad at Disney. Just when you're trying to get out of the park after a big fireworks show... take your time and don't hit anyone's heels (ouch!)

 

[Mama Who]

We don't put school aged children in strollers but I would definitely get one for the baby. A full day of babywearing is exhausting in the parks.

 

[englishteacha]

Could you bring your regular stroller for your little one, and get an inexpensive umbrella stroller that folds for when you need a second seat for your other child? The folded stroller, in theory should be able to hang off the other stroller when not in use.

Just a thought. We did lots of stroller-maneuvering with my nieces and nephews on family trips.