Twins - Double stroller or 2 singles?

[**eeyore**]

We will be taking our twin DD next May to WDW. They will be 2 1/2 at the time. We currently have a Peg Perego Twin Aria and a Jeep double side-by-side stroller. We are planning to bring one of those, but also wondering if it would make sense to bring two light-weight umbrella strollers (we are looking at the Maclaren Volo).

Does anyone have any experience bring two singles instead of the double? I figure it would be much easier to manuver with the singles, but then again, we would both be "locked into" pushing strollers each day.

Any thoughts or experiences would be greatly appreciated!

 

[traci]

Last year we took our 1 and 2 year olds to Disney. I have the lightweight Peg double, but opted to take our single Combi's. Having two worked out so well, we are taking the single strollers again in 6 days! I liked having the singles in crowds, and they were so easy to get on and off the monorails. For our family it just worked great. I think if you have a stroller that is comfy for both you and baby you wont mind pushing it throughout the day. I truly have no complaints.

 

[katie111]

We brought 2 Chicco umbrella strollers last year for our 3.5 & 2.5 year olds. It worked out great for us as well & I am also doing the same thing again in 2 weeks when we go. You can always park one if one of the kids wants to be carried for a bit or if they want to walk. Also if you're just going out for a short outing, i.e. dinner you can always just bring one & they can swap out. It was really easy to get around and since I'm used to pretty much always pushing a stroller everywhere we go anyways, I didn't find it to be a problem. Pushing a double all day can get tiring but pushing a single is easy.

 

[hrsmom]

The first time we brought our children we brought the double and it was a big pain IMO. This time (just last week) we brought our two umbrella's (Chiccos) and it was SO much easier!!!

 

[Schmeck]

Aren't there clips you can buy to fasten two umbrella strollers together, making them into a side-by-side double one? Or you could just bring something from home to tie them together. Then you could have the best of both (stroller) worlds!

 

[lil mermaid]

We used our volo when we took our 2 year old to WDW in May. It was GREAT for WDW - light and easy to take wherever we had to go.

You could also purchase something like this

http://www.princelionheart.com/site/t_str_6550.html so that you could connect them if you needed to.

 

[pjupton]

Aren't there clips you can buy to fasten two umbrella strollers together, making them into a side-by-side double one?

Stroller clips are available for about $10-12. If you think you will only want to clip them for a short while, say, in the airport while one potential stroller pusher is dealing with luggage instead, then yeah, try that. If you plan to clip them together and push them all during your trip, then just bring the double. The clips are kinda a PIA. Clipping two Macs makes a wider stroller than a Peg Twin Aria, so you won't be able to fit through doorways. Two strollers clipped together are MUCH harder to steer than either of your two doubles, take my word for it!

 

[It's A Happy Day]

I vote for the 2 seater or at least the clips to make 2 singles a double. We went when the kids were 3 & 4 and with all the walking they definitely need the strollers. We have the jeep double and it was lightweight, compact, and easy to manuever. It seemed anytime we went anywhere with 1 stroller the swap out rule didn't work and the whining started . If they wanted to walk it was fine but there was room when both wanted to sit at the same time which was often. It also helped to have somewhere to put them when there were parades and shows as the mob can be overwhelming sometimes and I knew exactly where my 2 were we just got there early and got a front row seat so they could see.

 

[medic2707]

I vote for two umbrella strollers. We took our almost 3y.o. twin daughters in July and found the umbrellas much easier. You can fold and take with you on the WDW Train. On the Monorail we were able to leave the girls in the strollers. Umbrellas were much easier in the crowds. Also having two strollers meant no pulled hair, no hitting and no stollen snacks. I know your Little Princesses wouldn't act up like ours sometimes will.

You will have a great time with your girls at that age.

 

[Lesley]

We've done both a double (sit n stand) and two strollers (our maclaren techno and a kolcraft). I can't really say which I liked better, because they both were a pain in some ways. We did this for our girls who were 4 and an infant the first time, and 5 and 1yo the second time.

The double stroller is bulky and heavy, even if you get the smallest one out there. That Jeep model looks nice and streamlined but its HEAVY! Not great for getting on and off the bus. Also, doubles are harder to maneuver through the parks and in crowds. But you always have 2 seats and you only need one person to push it.

The two stroller option has become our choice mainly because our older dd is 6 now and doesn't always need a stroller... when she does we prefer to rent the doubles in the park because they push smoothly with a heavy child and have more room. When they both needed a stroller much of the time we were dependent on having both dh and I available to push. We like to separate at the parks often because of the height restrictions, etc... so its tough. But with 2 strollers we can also separate the girls and have a stroller for each.

We tried the connectors but they didn't work with the 2 different models we have. I could have gotten another cheap Kolcraft and used 2 of those....but I find the handles are too short to push comfortably (I'm only 5'6"....my dh is the same height and it doesn't bother him....but I have longer legs, which is assume is the problem...or maybe I just have short arms!).

Anyway, that is my experience....no real advice just more information so you can decide what's best for you. I just can't wait until we don't need strollers anymore!

 

[**eeyore**]

Wow! Thanks everyone for your great advice and sharing your experiences! It sounds like 2 lightweight umbrella strollers is the way to go. Once again, everyone on the Dis comes through!

Also having two strollers meant no pulled hair, no hitting and no stollen snacks. I know your Little Princesses wouldn't act up like ours sometimes will.

You will have a great time with your girls at that age.

Thanks for sharing - it makes me feel better that I am not the only one with two adorable daughters that have a tendancy to turn into monsters!

 

[2poohbears]

I took my sons in JAN when they were 2 1/2 y/o and we used 2 umbrella strollers. It worked out great because they were easy to fold up and carry onto buses, WDW train, etc. It's much easier to get around when it's crowded, too.

I made sure to try the strollers out in the store first though. In my experience lots of umbrella strollers have really low handles which are very uncomfortable to push if you're doing it all day long. I found some Kolcraft ones that had a wide seat area and longer, rubber clad handles---way more comfortable than the cheapie umbrella strollers I used to have. I think I paid around $35 for each one...worth it, though. We'll be bringing them back with us when we go again in JAN 2007!

EDIT TO ADD: This is the umbrella stroller I purchased. I'm 5'4" and my dh is almost 6'...they were comfortable for both of us to push.
http://www.babyuniverse.com/pro.asp...508&srccode=cii_9324560&cpncode=09-17878356-2

 

[lizally]

I've been thinking about this a a lot lately, as I prepare for our upcoming trip. We have 2 yr. old twins. We have decided to use 2 umbrella strollers on our trip because they are so much lighter. We have a duoglider, and while it is a nice stroller...it is heavy once it has 50 lbs of kids in it!! Just pushing it around the block wears my arms out, and the momentum the stoller has makes it harder to stop suddenly. So we got 2 umbrella strollers for cheap, and tried those out, and it's so much lighter and easier to push. Plus, if they were to get stollen (not likey) we'd only be out $20, as opposed to much more for the duo glider.

As for the short handles, my husband made handlebar extenders out of some pvc pipes and attached them to the strollers with gaskets. It works really well, although the strollers can't easily fold up. But that's only a problem for tram, and the train, right? Anyway, thats the only drawback, the extenders work great.

Another plus to the umbrella strollers, is that the girls love them! They hop up in the seats to watch TV, and in the parks I think it will be a benefit that they can hop up in the seats themselves, instead of me having to lift them into the stroller every time.

 

[Twingle]

Just saw this thread, and thought I'd share my experience!

We had two umbrella strollers the first time we took our twins, when they were 2 years old. It did NOT work for us - not because of getting around the park, but because my girls really did not like not sitting with each other! They wanted to hold hands and would flip their lids if they couldn't touch each other. We have an Aria Twin Peg Perego, and I guess that was just what they were used to. They would usually hold hands and share snacks in it, but I thought they would enjoy the umbrella strollers - WRONG!

When we went back this past June, we took the Aria, and it worked out much better for us. I was still able to get around the Parks with no problem, and I had two much happier little ladies that could hold hands when they wanted to.

We're going back this Wednesday, and again bringing the Aria. It just seems to work better for our twins.

Have a great time!

 

[mbc35]

Our twins were almost two last time we went, and we took a light-weight double umbrella stroller. We were able to collapse it down quickly to take on the monorail, buses, etc.

For us, the key factor in taking one stroller instead of two was that it made it possible for one of us to stay with the twins while the other adult rode on the bigger rides (Test Track, Space Mountain, etc.) with our older son. If we'd had two strollers, the one staying with the toddlers would have been stuck in one spot. With a double stroller, one adult could easily maneuver the kids around, go get a snack, etc.

 

[jlstwinmommy]

Our twins were almost two last time we went, and we took a light-weight double umbrella stroller. We were able to collapse it down quickly to take on the monorail, buses, etc.

For us, the key factor in taking one stroller instead of two was that it made it possible for one of us to stay with the twins while the other adult rode on the bigger rides (Test Track, Space Mountain, etc.) with our older son. If we'd had two strollers, the one staying with the toddlers would have been stuck in one spot. With a double stroller, one adult could easily maneuver the kids around, go get a snack, etc.

I agree with this. We took our twins at 14 months and will be going again next month (they just turned 3). I took my Combi Twin Saavy and it was wonderful. It folded easily and allowed one adult to take the twins one place while the other one took my older son on the bigger rides. I'm taking my Combi again this year. My dh and I discussed taking 2 strollers, but the umbrella strollers we have don't recline (and my kids will nap in the stroller if they are comfortable) and we decided having 2 strollers to fold up and carry around would be a pain. This way, one of us can hold the hands of the twins if needed while the other looks after the stroller.

 

[The Disney Bunch]

Aren't there clips you can buy to fasten two umbrella strollers together, making them into a side-by-side double one? Or you could just bring something from home to tie them together. Then you could have the best of both (stroller) worlds!

We did this the last time - it worked great!

 

[tanyaandallie]

If you already have the double Peg, take it! It's an awesome stroller, the smallest and most light weight double around. I am going with my 1 and 3 year old in Nov. and am taking a double for sure. We have chosen the double over two singles for the same reasons stated previously. If one of us needs to run to the bathroom, ride a ride, go grab a drink, etc. the other can keep both kids in the stroller and not have to worry about pushing 2 strollers. I think 2 singles makes a ton of sense if you think your family will seperate at any point, we don't plan to.