Stroller question

[momto2boysinmd]

Hi, I am wondering about what everyone thinks about strollers. We are going in June, doing 4 days at parks and another day at Waterparks. We're staying at Fort Wilderness campground. Our boys will be 5 and 8 when we go, and I'm trying to decide what to do about a stroller. My kids are not lazy by any means, but I know their little legs will get tired (as are ours), and trying to avoid a meltdown/ having to carry them. Just want everyone happy

 

[Marthasor]

My DS is 6.5 and I still rent a stroller for him when we go. He is about 55 lbs., so I rent the City Elite from Kingdom Strollers. He does walk quite a bit, but it's good to know he has a spot to sit when he gets tired or when we need to get from one area of a park to another one quickly (if we are in FW in EP and trying to get to an ADR in WS - it's a trek!)

Unless you need the stroller in the airport, I would consider renting. It's so convenient. Any authorized Disney stroller rental co. (Kingdom, Orlando Strollers, etc.), will deliver the stroller to your resort and bell services will hold it for you to pick up when you check in. You just give it back to bell services when you check out.

 

[Crystal824]

I would rent one single stroller if I were in your situation and let them share. I'm not stroller hater by any means, but I think by the time your kid reaches 8 unless there are special needs, they probably aren't going to want a stroller just for them. Your 5 year old will probably need a stroller especially in the evenings. Do what is best for you and your family for sure.

 

[ptlohmysoul]

We don't use strollers at home since they were walking (grocery carts, yes). However, my 8 yo did want to sit down in the stroller by the end of a full day at the parks. Of course, our 5 yo was in it way more often, but he definitely wanted to be in it at the end of the day, so I would vote for a double stroller.

 

[alhurricane]

We've been debating this for our trip next week. We have an almost 7 y/o daughter and a 5 y/o son. Since we are staying on site I really did not want to deal with the stroller on the buses. We decided that if they need a stroller we will just rent it in the park. Yes, it's more money, but they don't need the stroller outside of the park, so it's one less thing to have to contend with. We will see how this strategy works out.

 

[glvsav37]

IMO I don't know how people drive a double stroller at WDW. The crowds are hard enough with a single.

We are 2x single stroller people. My wife drives the full Graco for my 3 yr old and I rock the much lighter, easy to turn umbrella stroller for my 8 yr old

Yes my 8 year old. She does have some limitations (pediatric rheumatoid arthritis) but she does walk most of the time. The stroller is there for breaks in the hot July sun and to be our pack mule for waters and snacks and stuff.

I have no problem with people who take a stroller. It's about everyone having fun and not dragging around a haggard little one till they drop. If the kids are happy and comfortable, then I am happy and comfortable bc they are not hanging on me.

Advice: look into 2 strollers. Yes getting around may be a hassle, but once you are at a park, it is much easier to maneuver.

My wife and I are like a stroller stunt team when we weave in and out as we go down Main Street

 

[m3retired]

We are renting a sit and stand for gs and gd this trip. No way I would want to maneuver a side by side double.

 

[Trix]

Seriously? It's THAT awful to do a double stroller? We are going over the 4th of July, we don't have any other options as my husband is military and deploys every.single.year. We have a 20m old, 2 year old and 7 year old...this makes it seem like going isn't even worth it...

 

[m3retired]

Side by side doubles are really hard to maneuver inside, like at counter service eating--if they even allow it inside. Outside in the crowds--part of it depends on how polite you are. If you just plow ahead, and don't care about whose ankles you hit and how often you separate walking children from their family, I suppose it's not too unwieldy. But if you are a courteous person, they can be frustrating.

The ones where the kids sit one in front of the other--not so bad.

 

[jtowntoflorida]

IMO I don't know how people drive a double stroller at WDW. The crowds are hard enough with a single.

We are 2x single stroller people. My wife drives the full Graco for my 3 yr old and I rock the much lighter, easy to turn umbrella stroller for my 8 yr old

...

Advice: look into 2 strollers. Yes getting around may be a hassle, but once you are at a park, it is much easier to maneuver.

I couldn't disagree with this more. The offsite rental places have higher end strollers that are lightweight and handle like a breeze! I never knew how awesome a stroller could be until I rented my first City Mini in Orlando, and then I wish I would have discovered them before getting a Graco at home. The City Mini and City Elite doubles (and I believe the Bobs as well) all fit through standard doorways, so they're really not that wide. I'd much much rather deal with one lightweight, easy to handle higher end double than a single Graco + a single umbrella stroller.

 

[jtowntoflorida]

We are renting a sit and stand for gs and gd this trip. No way I would want to maneuver a side by side double.

And no way I'd want to manuever a sit and stand through the parks. That sounds like my personal idea of hell. We had one of them for awhile (at home) and I hated that thing. I can't imagine getting one on/off Disney transportation...it was tough enough getting it in and out of my car at home!

 

[Mrsjvb]

Seriously? It's THAT awful to do a double stroller? We are going over the 4th of July, we don't have any other options as my husband is military and deploys every.single.year. We have a 20m old, 2 year old and 7 year old...this makes it seem like going isn't even worth it...

yes it is esp if you have a double wide. ( the front/back ones are only slightly less annoying)

4th of July is PACKED and the crowds will make it damned annoying for you and everyone else around you with a large stroller. and you cannot bring them into the lines.

 

[Trix]

I guess we don't really have a lot of choices, we do have two sets of grandparents going with us but I really didn't want to do two single strollers as the rental is more expensive, we also don't plan on everybody being at the park all the time, we are staying at the Polynesian and the baby will need naps. The trip is really more for my 7 year old...I guess we aren't really expecting much, especially because a lot of the conversation here seems super negative about July in General. *sigh* there. Goes $7grand out the window. Oh well, it's just money I guess.

 

[Ariel on Land]

Seriously? It's THAT awful to do a double stroller? We are going over the 4th of July, we don't have any other options as my husband is military and deploys every.single.year. We have a 20m old, 2 year old and 7 year old...this makes it seem like going isn't even worth it...

No, it's not THAT awful. The past 3 trips we have used a double stroller, and I much prefer the double over 2 singles. It allows one adult to be hands free. I can't think of any time I thought, "man, I wish we hand a single instead." Never had any issues. 2 of the trips we had a joovy groove 2, and the other was a double city mini. Bring your double stroller, you'll be fine.

 

[m3retired]

And no way I'd want to manuever a sit and stand through the parks. That sounds like my personal idea of hell. We had one of them for awhile (at home) and I hated that thing. I can't imagine getting one on/off Disney transportation...it was tough enough getting it in and out of my car at home!

How is the sit and stand harder to maneuver? (I've never used one). We will leave it folded until we get to the park in the morning. And grandpa is big and strong!!

 

[Trix]

I agree about the sit n stand, I hated mine so much, it's super hard to maneuver compared to my side by side peg perego twin aria. I guess I need to rent a high end one.

 

[m3retired]

I guess we don't really have a lot of choices, we do have two sets of grandparents going with us but I really didn't want to do two single strollers as the rental is more expensive, we also don't plan on everybody being at the park all the time, we are staying at the Polynesian and the baby will need naps. The trip is really more for my 7 year old...I guess we aren't really expecting much, especially because a lot of the conversation here seems super negative about July in General. *sigh* there. Goes $7grand out the window. Oh well, it's just money I guess.

LOL! Speaking AS a grandparent--if both sets of grandparents are there, you almost HAVE to have two strollers, so they can each have one of the smaller kids!
Who are you getting your rental from?

 

[Ansky]

I agree with jtowntoflorida. We bought a City Mini Double stroller and have had no problems with it. It was a bit expensive to buy for my taste, but it handles great and it really isn't much bigger than a lot of single strollers. It is fairly light too. I would definitely recommend them. They fit through all the doorways we have encountered in Disney without problems.

 

[Ariel on Land]

Oh, and I also counter the opinion that a side by side is more difficult than a tandem. As a mom of twins with LOTS of double stroller experience, a side by side in my opinion is MUCH easier to handle and maneuver.

Really, just bring whatever stroller you and your kids are comfortable pushing and riding in. You'll be fine at WDW.

 

[jtowntoflorida]

How is the sit and stand harder to maneuver? (I've never used one). We will leave it folded until we get to the park in the morning. And grandpa is big and strong!!

First, the handling of that particular stroller in general is just no good. And then it's compounded by it being so long. It's hard to judge how much space you have in front of you. I wasn't on board with expensive strollers...until I rented one. I thought my Gracos were just fine. But then we rented a City Mini for the first time and I saw the error of my ways. You know how some cars handle better than others? The same thing goes with strollers. Some (the more expensive ones) are better designed and just handle better. I would seriously reconsider renting a Sit & Stand, especially if you've never used one before, and go for a City Mini (or Bob) double instead. We've had three trips with City Mini double strollers and never found them difficult to manuever through the parks. The Sit & Stands aren't that compact when they're folded, at least not compared to the City Mini and the City Minis have an easier folding mechanism. There is a reason why you see a million and one City Minis in the park, and almost no Sit & Stands.