Stroller Rental vs. Maclaren Volo

[Mom2aJessieGirl]

Hi y'all! Though I am fairly new to the board here, I have tried to search this topic. I'm hoping to get a bit more information that I found in my initial searches! Thanks for bearing with me.

Here's the deal. We're headed out to DLR at the end of August/beginning of September. It will be me, my 4 year old daughter, and several other adult family members. I have been to DLR once, about 15 years ago, but I have been to WDW several times too. I've never used a stroller at either venue though!

We own a Maclaren Volo Stroller, which we only use on rare occasions. My daughter is 4 y/o, 37lbs, and 43" tall. Would she be more comfy in a rental at DLR? Do they push well?

Also, do the rental strollers "sell out" early in the day? I'm thinking we may start the day without a stroller, but what if she gets tired in the afternoon? Will be able to find a stroller then? Is it possible to rent a stroller, ditch it, then get another one later in the day?

One more question...this time it's about Lanyards. Will the resort have a variety of pre-schooler sized lanyards to choose from?

I feel very clueless. I think I have a handle on everything else, but this travel with a kid is really throwing me off! Thanks for your advice!

 

[carolinamama]

For the stroller, I recommend bringing your own. I have a Maclaren knockoff, and I swear by it. Personally, I've never been a fan of the Disney rentals at either park. I tried WDW without a stroller when my DS was 5, and that was okay until the last day. But 4 - I'd stick with the stroller.

There are children sized lanyards, but I am not sure about specifically a preschool size.

Have fun!

 

[Heymy]

I'd bring your own stroller, but that's me. My 5 yr old DD is 49 in and 42 lbs and still wants the stroller at the end of the day, especially on the walk back to the hotel. If you'll be "walking back" at the end of the evening it's crucial, otherwise DL strollers are fine. I've never seen them actually run out, but I'm sure it happens. And yes, you can ditch your stroller during the day by taking out your nametag and reinserting into another stroller without a nametag at a later time of day. Not sure if they are all that more comfortable. DD doesn't really care about comfort, she just wants to be carted around.

 

[CrazyDuck]

How are you getting to DLR? Plane? Train? Automobile? Do you want to travel with your stroller?

 

[JaxsonsMom]

On the lanyard front, the do have smaller lanyards as the PP said, I picked up a nice short one (Buzz and Woody) at Party City for a $1! I much rather spend the money on pins and he liked that it had his favorite characters on it.

 

[Mom2aJessieGirl]

How are you getting to DLR? Plane? Train? Automobile? Do you want to travel with your stroller?

We will be arriving via plane, and we will have a rental car while we are in the LA area. I don't mind traveling with it, but we haven't truly needed it since DD has started walking longer distances.

 

[CrazyDuck]

We will be arriving via plane, and we will have a rental car while we are in the LA area. I don't mind traveling with it, but we haven't truly needed it since DD has started walking longer distances.

I say leave the stroller at home... 2 reasons...
1. It sucks to fly with strollers (gate claiming etc...)
2. big kids and small wheels are no fun at DLR... too bumpy and too hard to turn...

Rent a stroller and use a Disney Rewards Visa to get 50% off

 

[Funball]

....or just start now to teach them how to walk on there own!!!!

 

[Brady's Mom]

We've done DLR with and without a stroller. On our last trip in April we brought our stroller, but it ended up being left in the car - it was waaaayyyy too crowded to try to navigate with it. DS 5.5 did just fine w/out it. We liked not having to push the stroller around but missed being able to toss stuff into it when we were tired of carrying it.

I don't know that DS 5 would have enjoyed our earlier DLR experiences as much when he was younger if we hadn't brought the stroller.

I like having my own stroller, I know how to fold it up, I know whose germs are on it, I know how it handles - so I have never rented at DLR, I've always brought my own. I also like having the stroller to use for walking back to the hotel or if you are parking for walking back to the parking structure since we always seem to be in the furthest possible corner when we park!

 

[Ariel224]

In terms of stroller ease, the Mac Volo is magnificent in terms of quick folding, traveling, and maneuverability. We took ours last fall with our then 4 year old. It was a life saver at the end of the day when she would be falling asleep before we wanted to leave the parks.

We would often park it for extended amounts of time so that we weren't totally tethered to it. The kids decorated every square inch of it with brightly colored curly ribbons & I made a huge lime green Mickey head with our name & phone on it that hung down the back from the handles. It was extremely easy to spot from a distance.

Better to take it & find you don't need it then to spend several days wishing that you had brought it.

 

[bumbershoot]

Bring your own, absolutely!

The rentals are just fine. They ride smooth; heck, they have 4 big tires, they'd better be smooth! But I've never figured out how to fold them up (though people say they can be), which means you can't take them on the train. And if a reason you're taking the train is to soothe your child into resting (4 year olds don't generally take naps, but when you have a cranky, tired, too much excitement for the day child with you...you might need them to rest a bit) (and on that note be sure to get OFF before the dinosaur part if you are trying to get them to sleep!), you're going to want to have your stroller when you get off the train.

Not to mention, the biggest part of the day that you want that stroller is to get back to the car or the hotel. You're tired, your spouse is tired, your 40+ kid seems to have gained 30 lbs...please know I'm an avowed baby and toddler wearer...but at the end of a Disney day...a 4 year old can be tough to carry.

DS at 5 (last summer) had an accident of the #1 variety while in the Buzz giftshop (totally my fault, he kept telling me he had to go, then we'd get involved in something and would both forget, then he'd remind me again, that went on for too long!) and was embarrassed. I carried him on my hip, waist, then other hip (and around and around) from Tomorrowland to PPH...that was highly unpleasant (but absolutely had to be done to save his feelings, not to mention keep him from chafing and getting cold!). When DS was 3 we went on a trip when DH convinced me to keep the stroller at home (for the airport/gate check reasons), and I ended up carrying an exhausted 30+ boy back to Anabella every night. Took a year for my hip and lumbars to get back to normal!

Anyway, getting back to car or hotel is the most exhausting part, and that's just when you have gotten rid of the rental.


The Volo is a nice ride...it's what we have. Smooth, takes a bigger and heavier kid. Folds up nice and small, can easily go on the train.

 

[disney4cam]

I agree with most pp's. If you bring a stroller, definitely take the volo. It's so easy to fold, lightweight, and easy to maneuver. IMO, you should take the stroller and maybe see how dd does without the stroller on the first day. If it's hard, then you have it.

My ds has a hard time walking for that long. He starts getting slow and cranky. We were happy to have the stroller just to speed things up toward the end of the day. Plus I loved having a place to stow our stuff.

This year he's over 5, so we won't need one. But, when he was younger, it made things easier.

 

[dmked]

I say leave the stroller at home... 2 reasons...
1. It sucks to fly with strollers (gate claiming etc...)
2. big kids and small wheels are no fun at DLR... too bumpy and too hard to turn...

Rent a stroller and use a Disney Rewards Visa to get 50% off

I always fly with a stroller and gate checking it is not hard at all. You leave it as you get on the plane and it is there waiting for you as you get off - certainly not hard! I have a 4 year old and while she normally doesn't ride in a stroller I will bring one to DL for her because at the end of a long day I certainly do not want to carry her back to the hotel, and I would hate to waste money on a rental stroller!

 

[Momrow]

My dd is the same age. Last year, we brought her stroller, similar to yours, a Zooper. We definitely needed it. She hasn't used it since. This year we are not bringing it but will rent as needed. The reason being is if we brought it she would immediately get in it and not walk at all. We brought our older dd at 4 also and did the same thing.

It's been a few years, but when we rented in the afternoon, we had no problems getting one.

 

[carolinamama]

I always fly with a stroller and gate checking it is not hard at all. You leave it as you get on the plane and it is there waiting for you as you get off - certainly not hard! I have a 4 year old and while she normally doesn't ride in a stroller I will bring one to DL for her because at the end of a long day I certainly do not want to carry her back to the hotel, and I would hate to waste money on a rental stroller!

I agree!! We've flown with a stroller lots of times, and it's never been a big deal just to check it at the gate. We have never had to wait more than 5 minutes for them to bring it to us after the flight. Love having it in the airport!

 

[imp&pixie]

Definitely bring the Volo!! We have had our Volo since 2006. We bought it for our trip to WDW and it was a lifesaver for our almost 6 year old. We have used it this last year for three Disneyland trips for our 5 year old DD. She weighed close to 60lbs. the last trip. The Volo is so, so wonderful. I am mourning the passing of having a stroller at Disneyland because DD is just too heavy now and at over 6 she can walk farther.

There are always a couple different styles of small lanyards to choose from in the Disneyland stores. Not as big a variety as the full-size ones, but enough for any kid to be happy. My DS got a Sorcerer Mickey one when he was small and DD got a princess one. DS has grown into a full-size lanyard this year.