the age-old big kid stroller question....

[Mrs~Incredible]

Yes, I know time and time again this has been posted -

I have NO judgement here -

Wondering at what age you found it easier to go without a stroller?

In the past, we rented for the week from an offsite place and it has been wonderful, especially for the bigger parks like epcot and AK.

This November our DD will actually be 6, so I am wondering if we should still plan to rent a stroller for the week, or just rent one at the parks on certain days if we need it. I am thinking she will probably be fine at MK and HS, and we could make her hoof it at the other parks, but I know that letting her use a stroller when she is exhausted will make for a better experience all around...

Also, it has been really helpful to have one in the late evenings at the parks so she can sleep!

What have you done for your bigger kids?

Thanks!

 

[kimj88]

We just went in January and the stroller was so worth it for our 7 year old DS.

 

[piglet1979]

We got a stroller (from a off site place) when my daughter was that young. She doesn't like walking a lot and it was nice to have when she got tired. She would take a nap in the stroller while my DH and DS would ride some of the bigger rides that she didn't want to. She was still napping at times at age 6. She is 9 and will still curl up on the couch and take a nap.

 

[Mousemommy1]

With our older girls, we did not use a stroller after the age of 4. We took breaks as needed and they managed just fine.

Now...when they were 10 and 8, we added another little one to our crew, so we have a stroller again. Our younger daughter (10) will sometimes sit in the stroller if the 2 yr old isn't using it, LOL. She's a tiny 10 yr old at only 4'1", 53 lbs, sooooo nobody really bats an eye.

I would imagine that once our youngest turns 4, we will probably abandon the stroller again though.

 

[Sugar Jones]

We stopped using a stroller anywhere at 4 years old. We tour according to the kids. If they are tired we take a breaks, walk slow, don't expect them to walk non stop from dawn to dusk. I would never let my5-7 year old ride in a stroller. That's just me though. Kids are more reslliltaint than adults. Make sure they have good shoes, lots of water or drinks and relax and enjoy. Listen to their cues, if they are tired rest, if they have had enough, go back to the resort and swim, or do a sit down meal to get more energy.

 

[lilly6]

We rented a double stroller for our son when he was 7 and when he was 9, though at 9 we convinced him it was a "kid pusher." Honestly it just helped in moving about the parks more quickly. He didn't mind it and neither did we.

 

[ml sumner]

Just rented our stroller for the week for my soon to be 6 year old. I know him well enough, to know that he would never make it long without one and he is way too heavy to carry around! Happy kid = happy parents. I am hoping that this year will be the last time we feel that we need to rent one for our entire stay, although they are great for holding our bags and beverages!!

 

[Vijoge]

We just took our 6 year old granddaughter in January. She hasn't used a stroller since she was three, so of course we didn't take one. Ended up renting one at Disney. . .

 

[nursejackie]

We have one for our now 9 y/o just for our disney trips. He just wouldn't last the day walking around, especially when you end up zig-zagging around the park due to FP+, showtimes, ADR's etc. We haven't ever thought what others think about it as we wouldn't judge anyone else for using a stroller.

We stock up the undercarriage with drinks and snacks, store any jackets etc over the top, and hang bags from the handles. We'll miss it when he is eventually too big for it.

 

[J. Iminy]

You know your kids best, but we used strollers for my 7, 5 and 1 year old in January. At the end of the day, it actually made touring the parks easier on us even if it was a pain to get the stroller there (the worst part of a Disney trip for me is lugging a double stroller on a bus). Having a stroller comes in handy to keep your bags and other items when you go on rides. Plus, it was great for when the kids were tired-- we can walk much faster pushing them in the stroller than I would need to carrying them. Even if they aren't tired, they may want to look at some book or concentrate on some other souvenir/distraction at a time when you want to be moving. Letting them do so in the stroller makes everyone happy.

For what its worth, my nephew who was also 7 at the time was also with us. My in-laws decided not to bring or rent a stroller for him. He was in our stroller within the first hour of the first day. All in all, three strollers for four kids worked pretty well.

At the end of the day, do what is best for you.

 

[Hikergirl]

It depends on how you tour I think. We stopped at 4 years old, but we weren't RDers and we had no problem slowing down and taking breaks if we had too. SOme days we would just go t the parks late in the day instead of all day.
If you are on the fence, then just do the wait and see approach. If you find you need one you can just rent it as needed.

 

[UNCJibble]

I'm kind of debating this too, have a 4yr old, and I think I'm leaning towards bringing one, and parking it in the morning to have it for later in the day. I have a cheapo umbrella one that is light and easy to get on and off buses, but also have a nice one that is much easier to push, but is a bit bulky. Any recommendations on which one to bring?

 

[Tattylou]

I'd bring one. Better safe than sorry. We bring an umbrella stroller - easy to fold, carry, etc and does the job for tired little legs. My kids were 6 and 8 last trip and the 8 year old even begged to sit in it at points.

 

[katie111]

I'm kind of debating this too, have a 4yr old, and I think I'm leaning towards bringing one, and parking it in the morning to have it for later in the day. I have a cheapo umbrella one that is light and easy to get on and off buses, but also have a nice one that is much easier to push, but is a bit bulky. Any recommendations on which one to bring?

I would bring the nicer one. I've used an umbrella stroller at Disney before but it!s always been a nice one, like a Maclaren, that has storage underneath. Even if your DD is not in the stroller, it's great for holding coats, drinks, snacks, etc. i can't imagine taking a 4 year old without a stroller (although I know plenty of people do it).

 

[Jen4400]

We were there at the beginning of February with our 6 yo and 4 yo. I brought our sit and stand stroller with the intention of bringing it to the parks everyday. We ended up using it half the time. My 6 yo was ok walking most of the time, but my 4 yo needed a few breaks on our Epcot and long MK days. Also, it was easier for us to load them in the stroller when we were walking in more crowded areas.

I caught a stomach bug halfway through our trip, and I totally could've used an adult stroller those last few days!

 

[Queen of the WDW Scene]

My opinion ages 5 and under is fine using a stroller.
By the time they turn 6 I don't think they should need one unless they have a medical reason.
Chances are if their legs are tired yours are too. Stop and take a little break. Then back to walking and waiting in lines.

 

[Disneyforus]

I think it really comes down to your kids and family preference. We used a stroller with one of our kids until age 6, the others were 4 or 5 when they were basically done, and used the stroller sporadically for a break. We approached our Disney vacations differently than other vacations in that sometimes we were on a mission to get someplace by a certain time, so loading our smallest into a stroller was easier on all of us. With our kid's ages spread out it's nice when the younger one can relax and possibly sleep while other family members are continuing to enjoy the parks. It was very odd the first time we toured without a stroller....and I am looking forward to our next trip having the stroller back again after not for a few trips!

 

[cubed]

The last time we went, we only did one day at MK and our older son was 3. He was able to last until the very end before needing the stroller (no breaks). Luckily for him, we also had the newborn in the stroller so I strapped him into the Ergo so big brother could get a ride back to the car. Two years later and I am pretty confident the 5yo will not need the stroller. We are bringing one for the 2yo though. We are also taking midday breaks on this trip, so I think that will help the 5yo last longer. This is going to be very kid dependent from what I've seen.

 

[Julylady]

The last trip we used a stroller was when the girls were 7 and 4. I took the double-wide stroller knowing that the 7 year old would have a meltdown if her sister got to ride and she did not. It worked great. We parked the stroller for the majority of the day but it was really helpful having it to return to the hotel at the end of the day when they were both tired. Their combined weight was too much for the stroller though and we had to recycle it when we got home. They knew there was no way I was buying them a new stroller so the next trip at ages 8 and 5 they were walkers only.

 

[Smittolis]

I have 3 children:

11 years
7 years
5 years

We travel from the PNW so the flight and all the paraphernalia required (in a kids mind!) a stroller is like a pack mule. I am somewhat of a stroller connoisseur having had almost all of the major brands of double strollers, something my wife goes to great lengths to make fun of me for!

We had the Baby Jogger City Mini-double for the longest time, this is a fantastically light stroller, great maneuverability and folds up into a small slender package for getting on and off buses etc.. It is also a nice width that allows enough space for bigger children but still making it easy to get around packed stores or crowds. I would highly recommend this stroller, we used it for all 3 of our kids during our spells in the parks. This past year we upgraded to the newer 'GT' model, this is a big upgrade in very subtle areas....

The seat width is an inch or so wider per seat without any major overall width increases. The wheels are also much beefier, they are foam / injected rubber tires that are bigger and allow the the stroller to be used on all kinds of terrain. The big benefit is that they don't want to get caught in the 'tram' lines on main street and the like, its also am much smoother ride. The addition of a multi position handle / push bar is a big plus too. I made my own 'Boogie' board (i'll do a write up soon!) that would carry a much bigger weight than the 'off the shelf' 50lbs limit.

Having a stroller is a must in my opinion, it acts like a 'base camp' with all the plush animals, popcorn buckets, ice bag etc... It also makes being in the park a little more efficient when it comes to navigating the various lands, much quicker than having the youngsters tow behind by hand! Perfect for a last minute mad dash for a Fast Pass booking! We also use it for all 3 of our kids to rest and take a break, rather than having to come out of the park while the youngest sleeps, one of us can keep watch, have them nap, get out of the sun while the older 2 go on some 'big kid' rides.

I understand that some people prefer not having the inconvenience of having to fold it down to get on a boat, bus etc... However, we like to stay at the contemporary or BLT so we tend to walk back anyway. When we do fold it down, we just make sure we have a back pack that can take all the stuff in it and its a quick fold up. My wife loves the stroller, although she is fond of our old baby trend double jogging stroller as she could sit in it! haha...