Stroller Struggles

[debaone]

When we visit WDW in January our son will be four and our twin daughters will be 18 months old. This obviously requires two strollers.

I would find it difficult to spend $45/day over ten days to rent a single and double stroller from Disney.

Is it wise to go with my current plan to rent a single stroller in the parks for our son and to purchase a new double stroller for the twins?

My thinking is that I can actually save money by buying the stroller and using that, and it allows us to use it from the car to the parks and on our other adventures around Florida that we plan. And, I still come away from the vacation with a very nice, new double stroller to replace our current not-so-nice double stroller we use everywhere.

Seems logical to me, but here's my concern: I don't know how convenient or rather, inconvenient it is to have your own stroller at WDW. For example, we can't just leave the stroller before we board the train at MK and pick up a new one when we get off. We are definitely looking at how well the strollers fold before we buy, but lugging a stroller EVERYWHERE we go is a concern.

Anyone have any experience bringing their own stroller to WDW? My only other visit was pre-kids and all I remember was Disney strollers everywhere....so am I missing something wanting to bring my own???

 

[JTDisney]

You can rent a stroller offsite and it will be delivered to your hotel from Orlando Stroller Rentals. We rented in August and are ready to book them again for our spring trip. The double is a $400 stroller that you can rent for $85 for the week and can take it wherever you would like. Shannon was great to deal with and the strollers are AWESOME! I believe there are discounts for longer stays. We are going for 7 at this point. Can't Wait!!

 

[koolaidmoms]

Seems logical to me, but here's my concern: I don't know how convenient or rather, inconvenient it is to have your own stroller at WDW. For example, we can't just leave the stroller before we board the train at MK and pick up a new one when we get off. We are definitely looking at how well the strollers fold before we buy, but lugging a stroller EVERYWHERE we go is a concern.

Anyone have any experience bringing their own stroller to WDW? My only other visit was pre-kids and all I remember was Disney strollers everywhere....so am I missing something wanting to bring my own???

It is a pain. But a necessary one. You could probably get a deal on two strollers per day. I know they give discounts (you have to ask - they won't tell you) if you pay for for your length of stay stoller on the first day. If you don't use it one day they will refund the price with receipt and ticket on the last day you are there. Good to know for the future.

But that said 18 months old in WDW strollers are hard. My daughter loved to try and get out as we were moving. They are hard plastic and not conducive to tiny toddlers napping especially together. We took our own stroller until both children were over 4.

You know to make sure it folds small. They have to be folded on the trams, trains, etc... completely before they will leave and be completely inside.

Good luck. Hope this helps.

 

[JTDisney]

It is a pain. But a necessary one. You could probably get a deal on two strollers per day. I know they give discounts (you have to ask - they won't tell you) if you pay for for your length of stay stoller on the first day. If you don't use it one day they will refund the price with receipt and ticket on the last day you are there. Good to know for the future.

But that said 18 months old in WDW strollers are hard. My daughter loved to try and get out as we were moving. They are hard plastic and not conducive to tiny toddlers napping especially together. We took our own stroller until both children were over 4.

You know to make sure it folds small. They have to be folded on the trams, trains, etc... completely before they will leave and be completely inside.

Good luck. Hope this helps.

Agreed. Check out www.orlandostrollerrentals.com website. They have a link to the video of how the strollers fold. You will not believe it. We took ours on the buses, train and many others modes of transportation without a problem. I would NOT put an 18 month old in a WDW stroller. That could be dangerous.

 

[tanyaandallie]

I would not rent a stroller for your twins. They are young and those rentals are very hard and not comfy for smaller kids. Buy a new one or rent one from Orlando Strollers like some of the pps have mentioned. It's the Baby Jogger City Mini and it's an awesome stroller! But, it's expensive and if you need a new one long term, I'd just buy one.

We have the Maclaren Ralley Twin (older modle of what I think is now the Twin Triumph). It's a great stroller! Folds down to a nice small size so not too cumbersome on the bus. Is it a pain on the bus? Yep, but really a necessary pain. Otherwise you are carrying your twins and all of your stuff from the park entrance to the bus.

I personally would likely just buy a single or borrow a single from a friend OR buy one of the ones they sell at the park. But, that is mostly b/c I don't want to deal with having to actually go get the rental every day and I hate to throw all that money at renting!

One tip for you, if you have them, bring some type of baby carrier for your youngest kids. When you are getting on and off the bus, a baby carrier can help a ton. You and your husband can each put one of the twins in the baby carrier then your hands are free to hold bags and strollers. It will also come in handy when waiting in line. I have the beco baby carrier. It rocks. Similar to the Ergo. Totally awesome for holding older kiddos, esp on your back.

 

[all4fun]

At that age, I would bring your own: one with a decent canopy, a basket that will hold all the "baby gear", and has a decent recline. We have always brought our own stroller to WDW. Our ds is 5 and we will be bringing our single jogger on our next trip here in a few weeks. Yes, it's a pain to deal with on the busses but I guess we are just used to it! The thing that really makes it easier is to keep everything in the basket in a bag that is easy to grab so when you go to fold the stroller up, you're not taking a bunch of time gathering all your things. Now that we don't have a diaper bag any more, I actually just keep a simple canvas tote bag in the stroller and when we get ready to leave the park, I throw any odds and ends (like sweatshirts or jackets we may have worn earlier in the day, water bottles, and reusable resort mugs) in the bag and loop it over the stroller handle. Then when we get to the bus depot, we can easily break the stroller down before boarding the bus. As for the train at MK, you can either fold your stroller and take it with you, or you can park it and retrieve it when you return, if you're making the full loop. We don't find the MK train to be all that convenient for getting around the park, although we do like to ride it at least once during our stay.

hth

 

[scout68]

We have found that researching the "foldability" was the best thing we did. The more compact the better(without giving up to much in the way of quality). Also if you bring a stroller for your older child try and figure out a way to attach the folded single to the mobile double. We found this was a great solution to the prblem of one wanting to walk more than the others.


good luck!

 

[mom2jcc]

Our last trip the twins were 13 months. We took our Twin Combi Savvy and loved it. It folds up into almost nothing (well, not much bigger than a regular umbrella stroller), can be carried over your shoulder and is light weight. We were so happy we had it to walk out of the parks with, roll right on to the monorail, etc.

 

[mjkacmom]

We rent, but at that age, bring your own. I've had several double strollers, and I loved my Combi Twin Savvy - folded down very easily and small, lightweight, and easy to carry with the strap. This was my van stroller (I also had a jogger for walks, but never folded it down - PITA). Check out the video:

http://www.combi-intl.com/