Stroller: Rent or bring, or go without?

[Karmel96]

I'm hoping some of the experts out there can help me with this decision!

We are leaving in a few weeks (20 DAYS!!!) for WDW, staying for a week. It'll be myself, DH, DD7and DS4. We're trying to decide if we should budget money for stroller rental (probably wouldn't use it everyday, but at least a few times). Our other thought was to buy a cheap umbrella stroller, bring it on the plane and just leave it or donate it to someone when we leave (got this idea from another post!). OR, we could just go without; I took my then DD5 for 3 days and she never needed a stroller (but my DS is a bit more on the whiny side...).

Any thoughts? We plan on going to each park at least once or more, with one or two possible park hops. We don't plan on bringing tons of stuff (I've made do with a small backpack), but knowing my DS will probably complain at some point, we want to be prepared. (and of course, once my DS sits down, DD will want to take a turn too...)

Thanks all!

 

[Elmo888]

I wouldn't plan on one for your 7 yo. DD6 was fine without a stroller. Now, if you expect to stay at the parks all day and it is hot (which it won't be in 3 weeks), then I wouldn't rule it out (but I wouldn't let your 7 yo know that!).

I would definitely bring one for your 4 yo, esp. if he doesn't keep up well. There is a lot of walking outside the parks, and it won't be fun if you have to carry him (at the end of the day when you are tired, from the bus stop to your resort room). Plus, it is for a week, and he is bound to be tired after a few days.

Have a great trip!

 

[_queenie_]

How does your DS4 do walking in the mall/grocery store etc.? I believe the age we stopped bringing a stroller to WDW for my two older kids was 3 1/4, but we carried them a lot, and we did end up renting one for my DS. For my DD3 1/2 next month we're not bringing her stroller, and after the first day if she needs it we'll rent one (DH had back surgery and I've had a sore back, I don't think my DS wants to carry her himself, so holding her the whole time is somewhat out of the question). I already know that we probally won't bother renting one in MK and MGM, but it's AK and Epcot I'm not sure about. If you think he'll be fine in the smaller parks you could save yourself some money and not rent there.

 

[doodlesmommy]

My DD refused to sit in her stroller after she turned 3 but spent a great deal of time sitting in it last March when we were at WDW. We brought a small, easy to fold stroller that allowed us to pre-board on Southwest Airline's cattle call (without guilt) and allowed us from hearing her whine about her feet hurting or being tired. That's a long way to walk all day for a little person that age. We bring ours for her comfort (and ours as well).

 

[Cindy's Mom]

I say "rent" I love having the stroller just so we can put our stuff in there and on there. The kids take a nap in there or just sit and cool off. And with the park hopping you don't have to take your stroller on the bus - just take your tag with you and pick up a new one at the next park. simple

The kids love it too.

 

[bgirl29]

When my children were smaller I also loved having them in a stroller when the crowds were large so that I knew right where they were. Last time we were there we rented one at Epcot for my 6 yr old and it was near impossible to keep my extremely active 11 year old from hopping in too. My children were never in a stroller after they turned 3 either, but IMHO Disney is way easier if you have a stroller.

The first time we took a child my oldest was just 4 and my husband was adamant that he did not need a stroller. Well he ended up riding on my husbands shoulders many times. Wouldnt be so bad except that several times when my husband went to swing my son off his shoulders, I ended up getting kicked in the face. Not so much fun. Also once my husband forgot to duck when going under a sign and yes he smacked my very tired son right into the sign. So anyways we learned to bring or rent a stroller!

 

[irene_dsc]

Hard to say. We just got back (dd3.5, ds6) - dd loves her stroller, so it was a no-brainer to bring one for her. I kept my mind open about renting one for ds, but he was a trooper about walking, so I was never tempted to suggest it. If you have kids who like to walk, you might be able to get away without one. I did like being able to dump stuff in the stroller, esp. layers.

 

[SanDiegoDayTripper]

When we went to WDW last year with a 3 1/2 year old and 6 y.o., we took the alternate route and rented a stroller from A Baby's Best Friend. This worked out really well for us. My son doesn't use a stroller at home, for the mall, Legoland, anything, but it was really helpful for the bigger scale of WDW. A Baby's Best Friend is an agency that you can rent all sorts of baby equipment from, check out their website www.abbf.com. We got a full sized, Graco stroller with a huge underneath basket, and we didn't have to return it to the park every night, and could use it around our hotel, which was actually Ft. Wilderness, which would have been even more walking. (The bus stop for the internal bus was right nearby, but the boat dock for the MK boat was quite a hike) It was also very helpful because we went offsite to visit family.

The company delivers the equipment right to your hotel, it's waiting for you in the luggage storage when you get there. We even switched resorts halfway through our trip, and ABBF picked up the equipment from our second resort. We rented the stroller, a bed rail and a box fan for white noise. I can't say enough good stuff about the way this worked out for us.

 

[Mia'sMom]

Hey I am taking my stroller for my DD3. I can't imagine having to carry her out of the park to the bus stop when she is sound asleep. I imagine her going and going until she drops. Having to turn a stroller in might kill me. This way it saves for a few bucks for something else. I gives me something to carry all of the stuff that goes with her. It was a big decision for me to take mine. I think it's just a matter of choice. You know you child. Think about stuff like does your child keep up or start to walk slower will you start to fuss because there is so much more to see. I say take it with you. If you find out that you don't need it leave it in your room.

Enjoy your trip!

 

[katie111]

I would definitely bring one. We went last year with our DS3 and DD4. DD4 never goes in the stroller at home but was in it all the time at DW. We bought decent umbrella strollers (about $40 each) before we left home. I had thought about leaving them behind but they were great for the airport too so we brought them home. They were never a problem on the buses, just folded them up & got on. Once we got back to the resort the kids would hop right back in them for the ride back to our room and a couple of times they would be asleep before we got to the room.

 

[surfer_ed]

In October we brought one (Sit-Stand Type) and ended up renting one for my oldest, DD 3. It was noce to have our own for our youngest, but I love the WDW strollers. Easy to push and kids can take a good nap in them,. Your milage might vary...

 

[Karmel96]

Thanks so much for all the input everyone! I guess I'll have to think more about my DS and what would work best for him and us.

 

[happymommy]

I always brought one when my kids were that age. They would use it at WDW even when they wouldn't use it at home. The last time I brought one they were 7 and 9. They actually both spent some time in it. I was glad I had it as one day at MGM my DD came down with a horrible fever, fell asleep in it, and I strolled her back to the Dolphin so she didn't have to walk (she ended up having strep, and I used the EastCoast Medical where they come to your room, what a lifesaver!).

At your kids' ages, a single is good. But I definitely liked having one. We only just started going without it, but after a few days, we'll rent one for DD when she gets tired. And she's 8.

 

[bmderd2]

Last time we went our youngest was 4. We decided to rent a stroller in the park due to limited space while traveling. By the 3rd day we ended up getting the double stroller for the 4 and 6 year old. This time we are definetly taking our own since we have a 1 and 1/2 yr old

 

[BetsyinFL]

If you'd like to rent, you might try K & M Rentals Inc. They're less expensive than renting from Disney, and they bring the stroller to you.