Strollers for older kids?

[islandbeachnut]

Do what works for you & your family!!

 

[Brooknwdw]

...OH MY GOODNESS.... I have skimmed over this thread & its really a lot like the wheelchair/ECV threads...there are always those that judge others for something they percieve to be true.

Two years ago we went to DW with our 5 & 7 year olds. We rented a double stroller, length of stay, and found it easy to maneuver. Me & hubby took turns pushing it. Yes, the 7 YO jumped in & rode when he was tired of walking too.

Couldn't tell it by looking, but my 5 YO had heart surgery a few short months before our trip. He got tired easily & NO WAY could he have walked those parks for seven straight days in the heat! (In early June)

Did the passersby know that that this was the case?
No, and it never occured to me that grown ups were looking at my kids as we passed them by, and were actually thinking something of it! That's unreal.


In my opinion, it doesn't matter if your kids are "active" or "lazy" to use words in previous posts..the baking Florida sun & stamina required is too much for MOST kids for that many days in a row.

Oh, and I have never been rammed or battered by a stroller.


To the OP, get the stroller if you want!

 

[gssmks]

Wow, that's great reason to bring your own!! That's $100 for 6 days at the discounted rate!!

If you have one and can bring it all the way to WDW without much inconvenience, bring it. If not, pay the $100.00. I have spent around $3,500.00 on each of my WDW vacations. What is another $100.00 if it means the difference between enjoying that $3,500.00 vacation or not? It is an absolute life saver!!!

 

[gssmks]

My daughter is a petite almost-8-year-old, and she has already been "advised" that she will ride in a stroller (we call it a "buggy" for her benefit) during our 7 day WDW stay in July. With a stroller, we maximize our time in the parks, and minimize the "I'm so tired my eyes are crossed" meltdowns that otherwise occur during the afternoons and evenings. Without a stroller, we'd be done for by mid afternoon, at the latest, which would make Mr. YEKCIM have a meltdown, considering he is the primary funding agent. Mr. YEKCIM's only regret is that HE cannot ride in a stroller, and have Mrs. YEKCIM do the "driving" between rides!

~YEKCIM

We call it a buggy also. My DD would make it walking for a day or two, but there is no way that she would be able to keep up the pace for a week long vacation.

 

[gssmks]

Ok....all I really have to say is that when I was 5 I managed to walk the entire trip....And that some 8 year olds must be really lazy if they can't handle the walking....But for everyone who does use a srollerlease be very consious of the fact that you are pushing around lets just say about 50 pounds, and it is really impolite and inconsiderate when you ram into people's ankles...I realize that accidents happen, but you can't honestly tell me that the lady that cut of my parents from my sister and I (all 4 of us holding hands, sis and I first, then parents behind) then repeatedly rammed into my ankles when she couldn't get around us after Wishes....ITs jsut so rude....Just because you have a stroller doesn't mean you get to run over people....and not even say sorry if accidental...

Also, I vividly remember getting a bloody ankle from repeated stroller ramming incident... It just makes me so mad...stroller-people who will run over anyone(old people, toddlers, doesn't matter) just to get in the Buzz Lightyear ride 30 seconds faster...

This can go both ways also. In Oct 2004, my DD and I made our first trip to WDW. From this board, I knew to be at the park at opening and to dash to the ride that we most wanted to ride. Our first park was AK, we were there early enough to be one of the first ten or so guests into the park. They allowed us to go so far into the park and stopped us for a little show by some of the characters. Then the turned everyone loose and we heading for the Safari. I was pushed and shoved so many times that DD and I moved to the far left and just stood still and let everyone pass. It wasn't stroller-poeple running over and pushing us. It was inconsiderate adults who wanted to be the first to ride the Safari. By the way, after letting everyone pass and falling in behind, we waited about five minutes to get on the ride. During my ten day stay at WDW, the rude people I dealt with were adults who couldn't tolerate the fact that there were children at WDW. Do you really have a right to go to WDW and not anticipate children in strollers, or mad laughter of a child in a restaurant, or getting sprayed with one of the mister fans by a mischeivous four year old? What do you think Walt would have thought of all of these things?

 

[Lorelai]

Lorelai:
The Joovy Caboose is a regular single stroller with a rear facing bench seat tucked over the cargo area and a foot board that the child can rest feet on when sitting backward or stand on facing forward. Tricia 1972 posted a picture of one on Page 1 Post 6 of this thread. The one she posted is the red one exclusive to Babies R Us. There is also a steel blue and an orange one.

Thanks for the info! It sounds perfect.

 

[beattyfamily]

If you have one and can bring it all the way to WDW without much inconvenience, bring it. If not, pay the $100.00. I have spent around $3,500.00 on each of my WDW vacations. What is another $100.00 if it means the difference between enjoying that $3,500.00 vacation or not? It is an absolute life saver!!!

Yep, I do bring my own. Sorry but I can't justify $100 on a stroller when I can bring my own that only cost $100 once but will last for several trips! I don't care how much I spent on vacation, I'm always looking for ways to save money...that's why I hang out on the DIS afterall.

The cost of the stroller is only one of the many good reasons to bring my own. I also bring my own to have a stroller EVERYWHERE I go and to have a basket and to have it recline and to have it be more comfy for my child etc...

Yes, strollers are lifesavers, I prefer bringing my own. YMMV.

 

[gssmks]

Yep, I do bring my own. Sorry but I can't justify $100 on a stroller when I can bring my own that only cost $100 once but will last for several trips! I don't care how much I spent on vacation, I'm always looking for ways to save money...that's why I hang out on the DIS afterall.

The cost of the stroller is only one of the many good reasons to bring my own. I also bring my own to have a stroller EVERYWHERE I go and to have a basket and to have it recline and to have it be more comfy for my child etc...

Yes, strollers are lifesavers, I prefer bringing my own. YMMV.

Oh, without a doubt, bringing your own is best. There were so many times that a stroller would have been great for us while doing things outside the parks. It would have been wonderful to have one at park closing while having to wait in the long lines for a bus back to the resort. We drive down and simply have no extra room for it in the vehicle. For us, bringing is not an option, but not having one is not an option either.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

I'm going to skip over the replies and give my opinion because I can only guess what 6 pages of replies on a stroller thread would mean.

When you said "older kids", I was expecting you to be talking about 8 and 10yo kids. IMO, at least at WDW, 4 and 7yo's, esp a small 7yo, are not older kids as far as walking around the park all day.

I always brought a stroller for me son. He was almost 5yo his last trip and it was nice having the stroller. Mostly so he could sit, but also so we could have somewhere to put our stuff (equally nice for that... ).

I'm taking a trip next week with only him and it will be his first trip without the stroller (he's 6yo now). Since it will be only the two of us we will go at a slower pace, not to mention I wouldn't want to lug a stroller from home. Maybe on the Epcot day I will get a stroller, but I seriously doubt (I won't even mention the possibility to him). I'd say the only real chance would be if he were to get sick and just not be feeling 100% since he always seems to get a cold when we're there (nothing to keep him in his room, but just enough to sap some energy).

The problem with him and strollers is that then I'm pushing him around all day, exhausting myself, and he's saving his energy for later when I'm ready to collapse.

You should make the decision that works best for your family. BTW, before we had our youngest son, we went to WDW with our then 3 children, and the children were 4, 7, and 10yo. We brought a stroller from home and the 4yo never needed it. I think one time we used it, just because we'd brought it from home and were determined to use it. I think our 7yo would like to have used it, but we weren't going to push him in a stroller when the 4yo was fine to walk. So it really depends on the kids and how fast you are going to walk and how many hours a day you are going to be out. Also, that was a January trip, so the temps were not hot, which helped their energy level.