To bring or rent a stroller for an 8 month old?

[michelleiada]

We have a new grandson and haven’t traveled with a baby in a very long time. We are thinking that it will be too much work to bring a stroller...never mind risking it getting damaged by the airline. We are considering renting a stroller but want one that is clean, comfortable for a napping baby and easy to operate and fold up for Disney buses. Would love some advice. Who did you rent from and what was your experience?

 

[momto3pirates]

Have you thought about buying one on Amazon and having it shipped to the hotel? With you trip being so long the cost may be lower than a rental. At the end of the trip you can take it home or gift it to another family.

 

[Herding_Cats]

Disney has cut down a LOT on allowing stroller/scooter deliveries to the resorts. I think there is only ONE(? not sure...this is worth checking...might be 2) company that is allowed to drop these items off at bell services now for you to pick up as soon as you arrive. You can MEET the delivery vehicle from other "non-disney-approved" rental companies, but that might be on THEIR schedule, not necessarily YOURS. You can also rent at stroller at MCO. Or you can drive/uber to a local rental service and get your stroller (and then have to make a stop to drop it off when you leave.) This change happened last year and I'm sure there are a LOT of blog posts out there that have not updated this information.

if you're renting a stroller, a baby jogger city mini , or city mini gt are my recommendation. We bought one JUST for our disney trip, because there were 2016 models on clearance from albeebaby and it was cheaper than renting. And we already own a bob revolution, but here's why i talked DH into getting "another stroller." (City minis and Bobs are 2 of the most common strollers available for rental.)

city mini has one-hand fold. literally just grab the strap and lift. with the bob you need both hands, and then an additional "turn" of the stroller to be able to pick it up. the city mini also folds up smaller and is lighter than a bob.

bigger canopy. the canopy on the city mini comes a lot further forward than on our bob. more shade at disney=a good thing.

recline. I feel like they both recline the same amount, but on the city mini it's just a pinch mechanism as opposed to our bob (which again, is older, and the new ones might have a different recline mechanism) that is a buckle and you have to loosen/tighten each side if you don't want it to just lay down as far as it goes.

what I like more about the bob: it's less "tippy" than the city mini if you want to hand something off the handlebar. with the city mini, it tips over backwards if there's no baby in it and you put something heavier than a few waterbottles on the handlebar (hanging a diaper bag? not so much....that would definitely need to go in the basket underneath on a city mini)

i second the suggestion to check amazon and possibly have something shipped to your resort. OR keep an eye on your local craigslist/fb marketplace for a used one....where I live used city minis run about $100. However, on the "too much work" to bring it in the airport....when DH and I went on our trip in August we put EVERYTHING in the stroller, and put the baby in a carrier until about 15 min before they started boarding....at that point we got our gate-check tag, put our stroller in an inexpensive "stroller bag" (again, off of amazon) to basically keep the dirt off it and got ready to get on the plane. It was really only an annoyance at security because they made us fold the stroller up and send it through the metal detector. YMMV.

 

[ElenaRN]

We have rented from Kingdom strollers and Orlando Stroller Rental. They both use CitiMinis. They are great strollers. They fold easily, have a huge canopy to protect from the sun and recline flat.

 

[sponica]

We have a new grandson and haven’t traveled with a baby in a very long time. We are thinking that it will be too much work to bring a stroller...never mind risking it getting damaged by the airline. We are considering renting a stroller but want one that is clean, comfortable for a napping baby and easy to operate and fold up for Disney buses. Would love some advice. Who did you rent from and what was your experience?

Are you flying with a layover or at a time of year when your flight might be delayed after you arrive at the airport? That's the only reason I'd be inclined to bring a stroller with an infant that young...unless both adult/baby are babywearing fans.

 

[Gingerfun1]

Having traveled with two under three, I would HATE going through an airport without a stroller. Carrying the bags, walking around the gates, getting to transportation, delays... having a contained space to "hold" them is a must.

We purchased a stroller just for Disney (but ended up loving the stroller so much we bought another and they became our "travel" strollers). Instead of the giant stroller that the car seat hooks in to, we got Zoe strollers. There are other brands out there but our top must-haves were:
1. Ability for child to lie down (ability to recline)
2. Large canopy for shade
3. Big basket to hold bags/diapers/food/etc.
4. Nice to have but not a must have was cup holders for mom and dad

For my kids, I found it best to get the stroller beforehand and be able to "practice" using it, get them comfortable napping in it.

Just a few thoughts to consider.

 

[Brett Wyman]

Why not bring their current stroller through the airport and have it gate checked? Much less chance of damage as its basically just taken down the stairs, put on the plane, and then brought back up after you land. Plus you get the added benefit of a place for the child and their items while in the airport. We do put the stroller in a cheap airline bag that packs up to the size of a deck of cards for the gate checking.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Different strokes for different folks, but at that age we wanted (aka, NEEDED) our stroller at the airport just as much as anywhere else during the trip. Borderline non-negotiable. We gate checked it countless times with no issues.

Adds a bit of a process just in terms of security and then at the gate, but those are really minor compared to the convenience of having somewhere for baby to be during all that airport time.

 

[tcufrog]

How do you plan to transport the baby through the airport without a stroller?

 

[chicagodisneyguy]

I feel like a stroller store in MCO would be a smart business.

 

[sullyfam]

For an 8 month old, definitely bring your own - chances of damage to it by the airline are slim. You can use it in the airport right up until you board the plane, then when you get off the plane, it's waiting right there for you. So much easier, cost effective etc.

 

[michelleiada]

Are you flying with a layover or at a time of year when your flight might be delayed after you arrive at the airport? That's the only reason I'd be inclined to bring a stroller with an infant that young...unless both adult/baby are babywearing fans.

We are flying, but direct. No layover. I don’t think the time we are flying is a time when there are a lot of delays..mid May? Thanks for the advice...I love everyone’s point of view.

 

[michelleiada]

Thank you everyone for the advice. So many good points. I’m considering buying a Citi Mini GT stroller and bringing it.

 

[sponica]

Thank you everyone for the advice. So many good points. I’m considering buying a Citi Mini GT stroller and bringing it.

The one that didn't get mentioned is HOW LONG A WALK it feels (or is) from the gate to magical express (or the car on the way back) when you've traveled part of the day, add in carrying a squirmy 8 month old....i'd much rather bring a stroller and regret bringing it. There's nothing worse than wanting a stroller and not having it.

 

[nancipants]

I would also agree with bringing your own stroller and gate checking it. By 8 months the baby will be used to "their" stroller, and mom and dad can try having the baby nap in the stroller before going to Disney for "practice." Being able to have them nap in the park is a godsend. Thankfully our son is a pretty good stroller napper as long as he has a fan and white noise from a portable bluetooth speaker. We recline him when it's naptime and walk him around for a bit and then he passes out. He does fuss while he's falling asleep so I usually try to find a place away from people to walk him around.