stroller: rent or bring?

[ljcrochet]

I'm trying to decide if i should bring my girls combi stroller to disney when we go next in 10 days (nothing like waiting for the last minute for deciding) or rent one in the parks?
I know my girls are going to want to walk most of the time, except if they are tired. But they might be more willing to ride in the disney strollers?

 

[latexscooter]

I always brought my own stroller until last year when my DD was 4. I was kind of skeptical before renting a Disney stroller but I was so glad I rented. The rental strollers are made for the bigger kids and they can easily hop in and out as they need to - which was great. They were also large enough for her to fall asleep in and had a decent sun shade. The best part was they were so easy to push (even up hill and on the rocky surfaces at AK) and the handle height made it easy for my DH to push as well.

For the bigger kids, you can't beat the rentals. DD will be 5 this trip and I plan on renting again.

 

[MNMickeyWorldMom]

How old are the girls? We brought our single umbrella stroller on our first trip. At that time we only had one DS and he was almost 2. It was a pain getting on and off buses (especially when they were crowded), and we told ourselves we would rent next trip. Well, next trip we had a 3 month old and an almost 3 year old. The rentals are not ideal for infants, so we brought the single umbrella stroller again along with the Baby Bjorn. On our last trip DS's were 1 & almost 4, so we were finally able to rent. It was definitely easier getting on and off buses, but after carrying two tired kids from the park entrances to the buses and then from the buses to our room, we decided that we will get a double umbrella stroller and bring that with on our next trip. It may be a bit of a pain getting on and off the buses, but our backs will be in better shape not having to carry the kids as much as we did on the last trip. HTH.

 

[all4fun]

A multi-day rental is $16/day for a double, $8/day for a single (add $2 a day if you're not doing a multi-day rental pass) so you might want to take the cost into consideration for a 10-day stay. Of course the cost might not even be a factor for you but I just thought I'd mention it. Also, you might want to take what the weather will be like and the ages of your children into consideration. Every kid is different but you won't be alone if you have older kids that feel the need to ride in a stroller from time to time at WDW. My ds is almost five and we're taking our stroller for him to use on our next trip. I fully expect there will be times he'll want to walk (especially since his older cousins - 10, & 14 - will also be with us) but for the times he is just too tired to walk, or needs a break in the shade, we'll have the stroller for him.

hth

 

[ljcrochet]

My girls are almost 3.

 

[MNMickeyWorldMom]

My girls are almost 3.

In that case, I would bring a stroller. They will probably be wiped by the end of the day, and 3 year olds get heavy real fast.

 

[all4fun]

My girls are almost 3.

If they are wiped out, they may nap easier in your own stroller than the rentals (which are hard plastic). Many kids their age won't nap in a stroller at all, but Disney world is a whole other story! You just never know. Also, when you're leaving the park for the day, if they're exhausted they'll want to be carried so having a stroller all the way to the bus or parking lot can be quite a godsend. jmo!

hth

 

[2poohbears]

I echo those who posted about bringing your own. It's a long walk to the buses at the end of the night. You're tired AND your children are tired, so carrying them is rough at that point. We've brought 2 umbrella strollers on all our trips (our twins were 4 on our last trip in JAN 2008), and didn't find it to be too bad getting on and off buses. Just make sure you get umbrella strollers that have handles at a good, comfortable height to push all day. We use the same red and black ones they sell at Disney ($40), and even my husband is comfortable pushing them, at 6' tall. If you plan to use the umbrella strollers Disney sells, make sure you bring something to hang off the handles so you can spot yours right away in a crowd, as lots of people use them.

 

[blessedby3]

I agree with bringing your own lightweight stroller. My DD at age 7 and 8 was still falling asleep in the parks before we left for the evening. There is no way that I would want to carry her from the park to the bus and the bus to the room. We always brought along our Volo for her to use when she got tired and it was great. We also never had any problems getting on and off the busses with it. It was so lightweight and small. This past trip we had our newest DD's big heavy stroller since she was only 3 1/2 mos. and couldnt use the Quest yet. I wish she could have because that big stroller was heavy and a pain!! Next trip we will have the Quest and everything will be GOOD!