Strollers without kids?

[wmharley]

I don't bother getting shocked at the attitudes of certain people on this forum. As others say, for such a happy place, this board brings out the ugly in many people. From strollers to foreigners, to bags to FP. Goodness.

That said, while I quote certain people, they may or may not be one of the ones I mention. I'm just quoting a comment and replying.

So you're essentially bringing a rolling suitcase into the parks for a bunch of stuff? It just happens to be in the disguise of a stroller? How are you handling the buses with that...

They may not ride the bus., but I've seen many people with rolling coolers in the parks. I bet I can bring my umbrella stroller and a few small bags on a bus with minimal disruption to anyone. Its not what you bring, its how you bring it.

Not if he (Jim) is filling it with a bunch of stuff. Children can be removed from strollers and held. What about a bunch of loose little items?

I guess my biggest qualm with this is that you could just as easily throw the stuff in a backpack. Yes you have to carry a backpack with you, but if that is too much stuff, then maybe you need to downsize or rent a locker. Having a stroller with no child takes up space on the buses, among other things, and I feel like that is discourteous to other guests. If I saw someone get on a bus with a stroller that was being used as a rolling suitcase, I would be steamed.

Sorry to squabble with you on your first post, Jim, but IMO bringing a stroller to carry around stuff that could be carried in a more courteous, economical way is just silly.

Maybe he has a bad back too and a backpack would aggrivate it. Why rent a locker and have to walk al the way to the front to retreive it? If we are talking about space, what about the 400lb person that takes up more space than me and 2 bags and an umbrella stroller? Not meaning to be crass, but seriously. What about the family of 4 that let the kids stretch out on a bus taking up several seats all the while being obvlivious to everyone around? Or the person who bought 10 bags of stuff and lugs it on several seats or the aisle?

IF Jim wants to bring a stroller, go for it.

I've done this (well, brought a stroller for my five-year-old, who didn't really need it, mostly so I could use it for toting things). I did it when we went in December and it was in the 20s and 30s and we all had coats, hats, mittens, etc.

It's sort of a catch-22 though. If, as you suggested, you bring an umbrella stroller, you'll find it really isn't that useful. There's no compartment underneath for storing things, the seat is tiny, no cup holders, and if you fill up the bag on the back and nobody is sitting in the seat, the thing keeps tipping over backward. It just isn't that useful.

But if you bring a bigger stroller - then you're dealing with the bigger hassle getting it on the buses and through the crowds. So the hassle starts to be more than the usefulness is worth.

If there's really no chance you'll ever need it for a child, I suggest just figuring out a small backpack that works for you and using that instead.

I have an umbrella stroller that has a compartment. I bring it with my 7yo. While I could use a backpack, in the summer my back will sweat easily and is annoying. I know one day we will skip it, but as long as I have my 3yo, we are ok. My 7yo, while her passes expired, if its me and her again, i'll have to consider skipping. However not everyone wants or can skip a stroller.

I guess I was not thinking small umbrella stroller but more the type of strollers that I see most people renting while they are at WDW (The city mini comes to mind)

As far as getting a grip, I don't feel that I've said anything hostile or out of line on this thread apart from responding to someone who thought I had nothing better to do with my evening than stir the pot. I apologize if my opinion seems offensive or extreme, but that's the beauty of an opinion. I am allowed to have it an express it on a public forum.

OP stated umbrella stroller.

Call me crazy, but I assumed that the "troll much?" comment was referring to a newbie's very first post on the website which coincidentally hit a well-known hot button topic. Not sure why you assumed that the trolling comment referred to you specifically, especially since there were several other posters already in the discussion as well.

OP, assuming that you are NOT a troll, why why why WHYYYYYY would you deliberately make your life more difficult by hauling so much stuff into the parks that you need a wheeled contraption to transport it. Your kid is old enough to need basically nothing in the parks (no bottles, no diapers, no clothing changes, etc), and Disney is giving away free ice water pretty much within sight of wherever you are in the park at any given moment. I cannot even IMAGINE wheeling around armfuls of frozen water bottles in case I get thirsty. Just.... why? That's an honest question. WHY? If you don't like the taste of the free ice-cold water that Disney is offering, then put a couple of packets of Crystal Light mix in your pocket.

If each member of your party requires several wardrobe changes throughout the day, then rent a locker. Or, heck, I'd rather buy clothing in the park and then discard it as I go than deliberately try to wrangle an unnecessary stroller onto buses & through crowds just so I don't have to tie my hoodie around my waist during the warm afternoons.

..... says the chick who goes to the parks with her ticket, credit card, lip balm, and phone in her pockets. And that's it.

ETA: OK, so I don't want my sarcasm to seem mean. OP, you can put 5 or 6 ponchos, a small bottle of sanitizer, and 2 boxes of granola bars in a backpack that weighs about 3 pounds and can go with you onto all of the rides. It sounds like you have several people in your party to take turns carrying it. I'm not trying to be mean but I'm sincerely not understanding why a person would choose to packmule themselves around a park all day when you simply don't need to have a bunch of stuff with you. You really don't. Try it and see. I honestly think that after people are so used to carting the kitchen sink while park-touring with babies that they think it can't be done any other way. You're FREE!! Why would you want to go back?!?

I don't buy lunch in the parks, I bring sandwhiches. I also like to bring cuties or grapes, etc, and bring a small softside cooler. While we used to bring several water bottles, we bring one per person now +1 extra. I personally don't like the Disney water, it has a foul taste, and I hate the taste of CL or other stuff. I shouldn't be forced to use those taste enhancers just so certain people can try to make everyone strollerless. I'd rather make the folks who stop in the middle of the sidewalk to look at a map go away than a person with a childless stroller.

Plus, many of those enhancers have splenda or sucralose or other things that taste terrible, IMHO.

If the weather has a potential for rain, we bring ponchos. Not bright idea to put in a locker.

It just saddens me that at times here if you don't follow the herd, you get slammed. Then someone comes along and cannot have a fair discussion, gets upset at a comment and reports you for some bogus stuff.

You all don't like strollers? fine, others do. I'd wager I could make it just as fast to any part of the park with my umbrella or even the larger stroller than someone without.

I've got two words for you: CARGO SHORTS

+! I love those things. I usually carry my keys, the phone, the portable battery charger (to charge my fast draining smartphone with the Lines app), and at times the camera if I bring it. My favorite park ones can hide a water bottle for those parks or locations that prohibit outside beverages.

 

[Pine View]

When I went to the park with family last time, I always fought for the stoller to push. I have had foot surgery and some bone removed. Plus I carry to many extra pounds. Have the stroller to push makes walking easier. When my DD had me carry the back pack it killed me.

I say go for the stroller if it is best for YOU.

 

[aubriee]

duplicate

 

[aubriee]

OP, assuming that you are NOT a troll, why why why WHYYYYYY would you deliberately make your life more difficult by hauling so much stuff into the parks that you need a wheeled contraption to transport it.

..... says the chick who goes to the parks with her ticket, credit card, lip balm, and phone in her pockets. And that's it.

I'm not trying to be mean but I'm sincerely not understanding why a person would choose to packmule themselves around a park all day when you simply don't need to have a bunch of stuff with you. You really don't. Try it and see. I honestly think that after people are so used to carting the kitchen sink while park-touring with babies that they think it can't be done any other way. You're FREE!! Why would you want to go back?!?

I agree! I assumed this thread was started in jest. Why the heck would anyone want to carry so much crap that they'd have to use a wheeled contraption to cart it around all day. I see some of the huge backpacks people carry around the parks and my jaw just drops sometimes. You are going to an amusement park for a few hours, not on a two week safari. Leave the kitchen sink at home. We were in line for the Safari behind a family of four, who each had a huge, stuffed backpack. I swear I could have packed for a week using just the dad's humongous backpack. No way did that family need four huge backpacks. It wasn't any of my business, just thought it was funny and sort of sad. They each looked so hot and exhausted. My husband and I didn't even have a bag of any kind. Everything we needed was in our cargo pockets. Anything we bought we had sent back to the room. No need for bags.

Up until a few years ago, I always carried a Vera Bradely mini hipster into the parks. Then I made a trip over to Universal for a week, where some rides require you to put even small cross body bags into lockers. Not willing to take the time to do that, I invested in some nice cargo capris/shorts. That trip was truly liberating. I absolutely loved going bagless and have done all my WDW trips that way ever since. I go to WDW several times a year and never carry a bag anymore. My small camera fits in one pocket, my cell phone in another, then I have my ID, AP, TiW card, cc, KTTW key, and a little cash in a small divider thingy that gets zipped into a Vera Bradley zip ID and placed in a pocket with a small sunscreen lip balm, then a tiny hand sanitizer (that gets refilled every night) gets attached to a belt loop or camera wrist strap. There is nothing else you really need. CS restaurants give free ice water, if you need a bandaid stop off at first aid, and no way am I packing a lunch. No way am I'm carrying even a small bag around all day, much less a heavy back pack, or worse a stroller. I love the freedom of going bagless. However, to each their own. As long as they don't run over me with their stroller full of excess crap, it's none of my business. I may just glance at them, wonder why they think they need all that excess stuff, and have to smother a chuckle though.

My husband and I took our 3 y/o GS down there Feb 4th-11th and never did take a bag into the parks. We didn't want to have to deal with loading and unloading things every time we got on and off the bus, so a gallon zip lock bag with an autograph book and pen was the only thing we put in the stroller. Because the bag was clear and had only two things (clearly seen) in it, we were still able to go through the bagless lines and just quickly pulled out the clear zip lock to show them. Even with a 3 y/o we didn't need a bag, much less a huge backpack and never missed not having one.

 

[maxiesmom]

I wouldn't do it. First off, it will be a hassle with the buses. I can't imagine having to deal with folding and unfolding a stroller if I didn't need to. Plus there is always the possibility of having to stand on a bus, then you have to deal with all the stuff, and trying to hold onto the stroller and keep your balance at the same time. Yuck.

Secondly, I would worry someone would take my stuff when I was in an attraction or on a ride. WDW is not thief-free. I've found that out the hard way. And if it is food stuff you are leaving in the stroller, squirrels and birds will think it is fair game.

Honestly, it may be a little bit of a pain, but rent a locker if you don't want to carry your stuff around. It is much easier to navigate the parks without a stroller.

 

[gator girl]

Ok, I give up. You people arguing passionately for the need to tether yourself to a rolling refrigerator-slash-closet are right. Those of us who are recommending that the OP try it without the stroller can't POSSIBLY have a valid point when we say that a group with children who are all over the age of 8 might be able to get away with touring the parks using only the stuff they can carry or slip into pockets or put in a locker. We're all just hallucinatory meanies.

What do I care? Wheel your stroller around until your kids are 47 years old. Heck, why stop at a stroller... hire one of those guys that help on the mountainclimbing expeditions to carry gear. He can follow you around all day long with your stuff piled on his back and wait at the exit of every ride in case you become parched while you are inside. Or you might come across some sort of "someone call 911!" situation where you need baby carrots immediately. Or maybe you have an allergy to cargo pants - goodness knows they aren't very flattering to the thighs.

I wonder if Orlando has a local chapter of Strollers Anonymous.

 

[summermac]

Right? I couldn't wait until we got out of diapers just for the freedom of that. Then it became time to ditch the stroller and again, another WOOHOOO!!! Now I'm looking foward to carseat freedom next b/c it annoys me to change them in/out of our vehicles now.

That said, I do regret getting rid of our umbrella stroller because I would have liked to have taken it with us just in case this trip. My daughter is a very small 5 (as in the size of your average 3 year old, still wears 3T pants) and I do have some concerns over her tiring, especially near the end of our trip. She generally hangs in there well and we're an active family but WDW is a whole 'nother world.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Ok, I give up. You people arguing passionately for the need to tether yourself to a rolling refrigerator-slash-closet are right. Those of us who are recommending that the OP try it without the stroller can't POSSIBLY have a valid point when we say that a group with children who are all over the age of 8 might be able to get away with touring the parks using only the stuff they can carry or slip into pockets or put in a locker. We're all just hallucinatory meanies.

What do I care? Wheel your stroller around until your kids are 47 years old. Heck, why stop at a stroller... hire one of those guys that help on the mountainclimbing expeditions to carry gear. He can follow you around all day long with your stuff piled on his back and wait at the exit of every ride in case you become parched while you are inside. Or you might come across some sort of "someone call 911!" situation where you need baby carrots immediately. Or maybe you have an allergy to cargo pants - goodness knows they aren't very flattering to the thighs.

I wonder if Orlando has a local chapter of Strollers Anonymous.

I've been looking for a new best friend with a sharp sense of irony; will you be it?

Those guys are sherpas, and that's an interesting business idea. Rent yourself out for $x per hour or day, plus park admission and meals, just to haul around a party's stuff. Heck. A day at Walt Disney World not doing any attractions is better than a day almost anywhere else doing almost anything else .

 

[kaytieeldr]

When I went to the park with family last time, I always fought for the stoller to push. I have had foot surgery and some bone removed. Plus I carry to many extra pounds. Have the stroller to push makes walking easier. When my DD had me carry the back pack it killed me.

I say go for the stroller if it is best for YOU.

Couple of suggestions, take them for what they're worth, but please understand they're being offered only with good intentions:
First, if it happens again, tell your daughter you can't carry the backpack (if she presses that it's too painful). Your relationship with her isn't my business and please don't discuss it here, but you still have, "Because I'm your mother and that's the end of it" authority.
Second: Rollator. It's sturdier, intended to support the person pushing it, and the only way other than a wheelchair/scooter to have a seat with you at all times.

 

[wehavesix]

Okay. I must say I don't understand the infatuation with strollers. Maybe it's because we always take a midday break to go back to our resort. If I can't carry it in my small cross body bag then I don't need it in the park. There are very few things I can't live without for 3 - 4 hours. Do people really use all the things they haul or is it just a security blanket?

When my grandson was small we had no choice but to use a stroller. It was a pain for all the reasons others mention: hard to maneuver in crowds, having to park and retrieve the thing, and getting it on and off buses/trams. Ugh! My son decided when dgs was 3 1/2 that we would try not using the stroller. Guess what! We didn't miss it a bit! If we bought anything too big to carry around we had it delivered to the resort. If dgs needed to slow down a bit or rest, some adult was always ready to take a break with him. Although to be honest, DH & I were more likely to need a little break than dgs. Anyway, I have no opinion about whether or not a person SHOULD use a stroller. I just don't understand why you would WANT to use one if you don't need it.

 

[wmharley]

Ok, I give up. You people arguing passionately for the need to tether yourself to a rolling refrigerator-slash-closet are right. Those of us who are recommending that the OP try it without the stroller can't POSSIBLY have a valid point when we say that a group with children who are all over the age of 8 might be able to get away with touring the parks using only the stuff they can carry or slip into pockets or put in a locker. We're all just hallucinatory meanies.

What do I care? Wheel your stroller around until your kids are 47 years old. Heck, why stop at a stroller... hire one of those guys that help on the mountainclimbing expeditions to carry gear. He can follow you around all day long with your stuff piled on his back and wait at the exit of every ride in case you become parched while you are inside. Or you might come across some sort of "someone call 911!" situation where you need baby carrots immediately. Or maybe you have an allergy to cargo pants - goodness knows they aren't very flattering to the thighs.

I wonder if Orlando has a local chapter of Strollers Anonymous.

No, you argue about thos supporting, but there are more people harping on the decision to use a stroller. Do you use Verizon Wireless, ATT, Sprint, or something else? Why? because you probably have a choice. Your neighbor probably has a different carrier.

Do you drive an SUV or a small compact? The compact could haul 5 people in it like a larger SUV, why bother making them then?

It still surprises me the vitriol when people don't agree on certain things. Let the OP use a stroller if they chose to. You aren't him, so you don't know their situation.

Second: Rollator. It's sturdier, intended to support the person pushing it, and the only way other than a wheelchair/scooter to have a seat with you at all times.

Oh yes, takes up just as much space as an umbrella stroller. LEt us all walk down with the rollator with thetennis balls attached to the legs.

Okay. I must say I don't understand the infatuation with strollers. Maybe it's because we always take a midday break to go back to our resort. If I can't carry it in my small cross body bag then I don't need it in the park. There are very few things I can't live without for 3 - 4 hours. Do people really use all the things they haul or is it just a security blanket?

When my grandson was small we had no choice but to use a stroller. It was a pain for all the reasons others mention: hard to maneuver in crowds, having to park and retrieve the thing, and getting it on and off buses/trams. Ugh! My son decided when dgs was 3 1/2 that we would try not using the stroller. Guess what! We didn't miss it a bit! If we bought anything too big to carry around we had it delivered to the resort. If dgs needed to slow down a bit or rest, some adult was always ready to take a break with him. Although to be honest, DH & I were more likely to need a little break than dgs. Anyway, I have no opinion about whether or not a person SHOULD use a stroller. I just don't understand why you would WANT to use one if you don't need it.

Not everyone has a room onsite nor takes midday rests. And on the last line, if you don't understand why one would want to use it when you say its not needed, isn't that an opinion on whether they should use it? You are basically saying you don't get why they need one so they really shouldn't use it. just sayin'

 

[EMom]

I refused to take DD to WDW until she was 1) old enough to do without a stroller and 2) old enough to remember the trip. There was no way on earth I was going to push a stroller around WDW, avoiding people, etc. So we went when she was 5. She had long been out of a stroller.

Imagine my surprise when we arrived and saw kids olds enough to be in the middle of puberty shoved into strollers, legs all akimbo like giraffes in a shopping cart. They abounded. Yeah, a few may have had hidden disabilities, but I think most just had parents who are overly fond of the "ease" of stroller use.

Then there are those that push strollers with loads of crap in it and not a baby, toddler, child or kid in the middle of puberty in sight. They are in a class by themselves. When I go to an amusement park, I want to carry as little as possible. I'm a woman who has to carry more than my fair share of crap (emergency meds, inhalers, epipens) and even I get by with a crossover purse. DH shoves stuff in cargo pants or throws style in the dirt and carries a fanny pack. Once DD hit about 8, we told her if she needed to carry anything into the park, she had to carry her own little crossover purse. And she did.

It's not that hard. And it's niiiiiiiiiiiiiiice.

 

[gator girl]

It still surprises me the vitriol when people don't agree on certain things. Let the OP use a stroller if they chose to. You aren't him, so you don't know their situation.

It's not vitriol. It's sarcasm. I thought my advice to bring a sherpa to the parks for carrot-related emergencies, followed by the little eyeroller dude, would have made that clear, but apparently not.

I don't give a rat's patoot if the OP brings a stroller or not. I was just trying to voice the option that maybe, just mayyyyyybe, she didn't need to and would actually find it liberating to do without.

 

[TDC Nala]

If you are going to be staying onsite and riding the Disney bus or the smaller boats for transportation, you will have to take all your stuff out and fold the stroller. So maybe it won't be making life as easy for you as you think it will. and if it all fits in a bag anyway, then the stroller is just wheels for the bag and serving no other purpose. Might be easier just to rent a locker if you don't want to carry the bag and dole out a bottle of water to each person to carry, and use package pick-up if you buy stuff in the park.

Disney Sherpas, I like that idea.

 

[kaytieeldr]

It still surprises me the vitriol when people don't agree on certain things. Let the OP use a stroller if they choose to. You aren't him, so you don't know their situation.

Ah, see, I wasn't aware this thread was granting or denying permission. I thought it was about advice and opinions . That aside, while cellular phones are marketed and used for communication; and motor vehicles are marketed and used for transportation; I don't ever recall seeing strollers advertised or marketed as hauling devices.

Oh yes, takes up just as much space as an umbrella stroller. LEt us all walk down with the rollator with thetennis balls attached to the legs.

Your insensitivity and sarcasm are showing, along with your lack of knowledge. The world doesn't revolve around you; it doesn't revolve around the poster I was addressing, either, but a Rollator - not an old-fashioned walker on which some people put tennis balls on the legs - will likely make walking safer and less painful for her.

Anyway, I have no opinion about whether or not a person SHOULD use a stroller. I just don't understand why you would WANT to use one if you don't need it.

And on the last line, if you don't understand why one would want to use it when you say its not needed, isn't that an opinion on whether they should use it? You are basically saying you don't get why they need one so they really shouldn't use it.

No. She's (he's?) saying simply 'if you don't need a stroller for its intended purpose - transporting children - why bother bringing a stroller?

Other posters have offered what appear to be great suggestions for cutting down on what gets brought, or how to distribute it... And the OP has said twice they're not bringing a stroller.

 

[ssleblanc]

All of the passion over strollers now has me questioning my decision to rent one.

My daughter will be two months shy of 4 on our trip. I've never used a stroller at Disney. I don't really care to have one for "stuff" (I prefer to go light), I am worried that I will need one for her. There is a LOT of walking at Disney. While I hope that she is potty trained by then (please please dear God have her trained by then - she is fighting it now), I will probably need a change of clothes for her just in case of an accident.

I was going to rent a stroller for the duration from an offsite rental because they seemed to be a better stroller for naps and I could have it for the long bus walk back to our room at night when she is exhausted, or DTD, or whatever.

After this thread, I'm kind of wondering if I shouldn't just make her walk. Strollers sound like the devil. Is it not worth the hassel? Would you rather walk with a 3 year old (we do go back to the room for an afternoon siesta on most days, but with a tired 3 year old that trip back to the room has the potential to be miserable) - or deal with the huge hassel of a stroller?

 

[Pixiedust34]

I can't imagine bringing a stroller to carry stuff.

Everyone in our family carries his own water bottle in a holder. I have a small bag in which I carry my camera, phone, hand wipes, Advil, etc. The bag works fine. You don't need a stroller's fill of stuff for a day at the park. If you think you need more haul, have you considered a locker rental?

 

[jenrose66]

I appear to have hit a nerve (or three) with some people. I'm certainly not attempting to make anyone else's life more difficult. I'm simply trying to make ours easier.

We're talking about a relatively small umbrella stroller with a basket under it, and not some gargantuan rolling nursery. I know strollers have made our lives easier, even when the kids could walk and didn't need diapers anymore. I realize backpacks are an option, but I generally haven't liked them in other amusement parks and I doubt I'd want one at Disney.

The real bonus is that we wouldn't have to push it everywhere because the kids won't need it. (the parents on the other hand, after a long day...) I certainly don't expect to be pushing it constantly and apparently ruining other peoples enjoyment of the parks, but it sure SEEMED like a good idea when I thought of it.

Jim

It is easier to have a stroller to tote things around. However, I'd pass because when you are pushing the stroller around it's harder to walk and weave thru crowds with a stroller than it is with just people. Also, I know you could "park" it for a while. But you will still be backtracking to get it when you need your stuff. At that point it's probably just as easy to rent a locker and make a couple trips a day to the locker for stuff you need. Personally, tell your wife to get a big purse and stuff as much as you can in there.

 

[jenrose66]

All of the passion over strollers now has me questioning my decision to rent one.

My daughter will be two months shy of 4 on our trip. I've never used a stroller at Disney. I don't really care to have one for "stuff" (I prefer to go light), I am worried that I will need one for her. There is a LOT of walking at Disney. While I hope that she is potty trained by then (please please dear God have her trained by then - she is fighting it now), I will probably need a change of clothes for her just in case of an accident.

I was going to rent a stroller for the duration from an offsite rental because they seemed to be a better stroller for naps and I could have it for the long bus walk back to our room at night when she is exhausted, or DTD, or whatever.

After this thread, I'm kind of wondering if I shouldn't just make her walk. Strollers sound like the devil. Is it not worth the hassel? Would you rather walk with a 3 year old (we do go back to the room for an afternoon siesta on most days, but with a tired 3 year old that trip back to the room has the potential to be miserable) - or deal with the huge hassel of a stroller?

In your case I'd use the stroller

 

[maxiesmom]

After this thread, I'm kind of wondering if I shouldn't just make her walk. Strollers sound like the devil. Is it not worth the hassel? Would you rather walk with a 3 year old (we do go back to the room for an afternoon siesta on most days, but with a tired 3 year old that trip back to the room has the potential to be miserable) - or deal with the huge hassel of a stroller?

I would rather deal with the hassle of a stroller than the hassle of an over-tired, cranky, 3 year old.