We are planning a trip for 8 days in the Disney park and 2 at Universal. We will be staying at Art of Animation. Our kids will be 6 and 8 by then. We went to Disneyland when they were younger and we had a double stroller. Not sure if we should bring two cheapo umbrella strollers or one or none at all. I know Disney is huge and kiddos tire out easy so I am not sure, looking for others experiences. My youngest who will just be turning 6 when we get there tires out easily and tends to not pay attention to his surroundings. One reason we are doing such a long trip is so that we have plenty of time to see and enjoy without constant rushing.
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Should I take a stroller?
- Thread starter KBurden09
- Start date
Disneydreamer23
Well-Known Member
I would definitely bring one for the six-year-old not the eight-year-old.
Weather_Lady
Well-Known Member
Honestly, only you know your child's limitations -- how does the 6-year-old do walking around at a fairground or festival? My daughter and son went strollerless at Disney starting at ages 4 and 6, respectively -- but my kids are both very fit, unusually energetic (hyper, even), and happen to be tall for their ages, plus we never toured for more than 4-5 hours at a time, although it was still several miles' worth of walking at a stretch. (We'd go from rope drop to lunchtime, head back to the hotel for a long nap and a swim, and then return to the parks from about 4-9pm).
Strollers are a hassle to travel with and a hassle to tour with, and you said you've purposefully planned a longer trip so that you can adopt a more leisurely and enjoyable pace (as opposed to a pavement-pounding, "commando"-style trip). In light of that, my suggestion would be to first try going without a stroller and see how your 6-year-old does. (The 8-year-old should be fine without a stroller in any case.) If you find that he/she is having difficulty or wearing out easily, then you can rent a stroller in the park, call one of the many stroller rental agencies in the Orlando area (they will deliver to your hotel), or take a quick Uber to the nearest Walmart or Costco and buy an inexpensive umbrella stroller.
Strollers are a hassle to travel with and a hassle to tour with, and you said you've purposefully planned a longer trip so that you can adopt a more leisurely and enjoyable pace (as opposed to a pavement-pounding, "commando"-style trip). In light of that, my suggestion would be to first try going without a stroller and see how your 6-year-old does. (The 8-year-old should be fine without a stroller in any case.) If you find that he/she is having difficulty or wearing out easily, then you can rent a stroller in the park, call one of the many stroller rental agencies in the Orlando area (they will deliver to your hotel), or take a quick Uber to the nearest Walmart or Costco and buy an inexpensive umbrella stroller.
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correcaminos
Well-Known Member
For us, 6 wasn't necessary for a stroller. My mental limit is 5 honestly and unless the child is particularly small or has some sort of health issues (physical or emotional) I don't see the need for one older than that. If you are going for so long to take it slow, I'd leave it behind. I have a 9yo and there is no way he would have been willing to get into a stroller past about the age of 5 or 6 anyway. I cannot imagine having one for an average 8yo so I'd say no to that.
I did sort of miss the stroller for holding my water bottles but it is nice to walk into the park with no bags at times. Strollers otherwise can be a huge hassle and not worth it to us. We are very glad to be stroller free.
I did sort of miss the stroller for holding my water bottles but it is nice to walk into the park with no bags at times. Strollers otherwise can be a huge hassle and not worth it to us. We are very glad to be stroller free.
Canuckgirl78
Member
I agree with the comments above. I wouldn't bother with the 8 year old, and you know your 6 year old the best. You also know what kind of trip this is going to be - one where you're rushing from ride to ride and to get to an ADR, or one where you're relaxed, taking mid-day breaks so they can nap/swim, etc.
We're going with our 2yo and almost-6yo in December and decided to rent a double stroller even though my 5yo never uses a stroller on a day-to-day basis. We're doing this for two reasons: (1) I know we're going to be walking a lot over consecutive days (not taking mid-day breaks at the resort as we're only there for 4-1/2 days), and (2) for the sake of my sanity as I know my 5yo will occasionally want to sit after multiple long days of walking and I don't want there to be arguments as to whom gets to sit in the stroller. But my intention is to let him walk as much as possible!
I figured there's also a trade-off for the inconvenience of having to find stroller parking and folding it up on the bus, and the convenience of storing water bottles and bags and having kids seated and not running away.
We're going with our 2yo and almost-6yo in December and decided to rent a double stroller even though my 5yo never uses a stroller on a day-to-day basis. We're doing this for two reasons: (1) I know we're going to be walking a lot over consecutive days (not taking mid-day breaks at the resort as we're only there for 4-1/2 days), and (2) for the sake of my sanity as I know my 5yo will occasionally want to sit after multiple long days of walking and I don't want there to be arguments as to whom gets to sit in the stroller. But my intention is to let him walk as much as possible!
I figured there's also a trade-off for the inconvenience of having to find stroller parking and folding it up on the bus, and the convenience of storing water bottles and bags and having kids seated and not running away.
jaklgreen
Well-Known Member
Same here. Once the kid is 5 then they are more then capable to walking. I was more then happy to be rid of the stroller because it is more of a hassle then it is worth. If the child gets tired then sit down on a bench for a while and take a break. There is no reason to go go go all day long, that is exhausting for everyone. The most important thing you should do for your child is feed them decent food. Food= energy. If the right food is put in then they will have plenty of stamina to walk.
correcaminos
Well-Known Member
I echo this. We tried to keep to regular schedules/food as possible. Not always easy but we do our best and would bring our own snacks when younger. We kept to nap and sleep schedules which I think really helps. Granted there are always exceptions to this and my mental limit of 5, but for an average kid I think this helps more than some realize.
21stamps
Well-Known Member
Here’s a story from 2015..
My kid was 5, we are out doing activities twice per week- ie amusement park, trampoline park, museum, city park, etc..and he was in sports.
I didn’t even think about a stroller, by that age I had already given all of ours away.
And then...one of my friends told me I should use one.
What?! I laughed it off.
After several friends/family said the same, I decided to rent one at the parks.
I’m so glad that I did!!!! Heat index was over 102 every day of our trip, we were staying up until 12am or later, waking up at 6 or 7am.
I suggest reserving a multi day rental at the parks.
Here’s what we did-
Pick up stroller when arrive at park..
Parked stroller in fantasyland, walked fantasyland and Tomorrowland.. then went to collect stroller to run and catch our next FP..
Do the same for Frontierland and Adventureland.. then collect stroller and run to our Dining reservation. Rinse and repeat.
It was nice to have when we had to hurry and especially at night for Wishes..but most of the day we just left it parked. When we left we just dropped it back off.
If you use the train at MK then you just leave it at one station, collect a stroller where you get off.
So much easier than dealing with a stroller at your resort and on transportation.
My kid was 5, we are out doing activities twice per week- ie amusement park, trampoline park, museum, city park, etc..and he was in sports.
I didn’t even think about a stroller, by that age I had already given all of ours away.
And then...one of my friends told me I should use one.
What?! I laughed it off.
After several friends/family said the same, I decided to rent one at the parks.
I’m so glad that I did!!!! Heat index was over 102 every day of our trip, we were staying up until 12am or later, waking up at 6 or 7am.
I suggest reserving a multi day rental at the parks.
Here’s what we did-
Pick up stroller when arrive at park..
Parked stroller in fantasyland, walked fantasyland and Tomorrowland.. then went to collect stroller to run and catch our next FP..
Do the same for Frontierland and Adventureland.. then collect stroller and run to our Dining reservation. Rinse and repeat.
It was nice to have when we had to hurry and especially at night for Wishes..but most of the day we just left it parked. When we left we just dropped it back off.
If you use the train at MK then you just leave it at one station, collect a stroller where you get off.
So much easier than dealing with a stroller at your resort and on transportation.
jaklgreen
Well-Known Member
We also kept a normal sleep schedule. We did not set the alarm and let everyone wake up naturally. Everyone gets cranky when they don't have enough sleep. Also at that age we never kept them out late either. We had been to WDW plenty of times before we had kids and knew we were going to go back so we did not think it was necessary to push push push and make everyone miserable just so we could "do everything". Even if we didn't know whether we would go back or not, we would never push our kids like that. The point of a vacation is for everyone to enjoy themselves and having tired, cranky kids and parents is not a fun vacation. My best advice is to take it slow, take plenty of breaks, make sure everyone uses the restroom before getting in line, and always have your child drink something so they do not get dehydrated. Also don't underestimate the power of the swimming pool.
21stamps
Well-Known Member
We also kept a normal sleep schedule. We did not set the alarm and let everyone wake up naturally. Everyone gets cranky when they don't have enough sleep. Also at that age we never kept them out late either. We had been to WDW plenty of times before we had kids and knew we were going to go back so we did not think it was necessary to push push push and make everyone miserable just so we could "do everything". Even if we didn't know whether we would go back or not, we would never push our kids like that. The point of a vacation is for everyone to enjoy themselves and having tired, cranky kids and parents is not a fun vacation. My best advice is to take it slow, take plenty of breaks, make sure everyone uses the restroom before getting in line, and always have your child drink something so they do not get dehydrated. Also don't underestimate the power of the swimming pool.
My 7 year old will be out til 1am with me tomorrow.
#badparenting Some families have bedtimes, but allow them to be broken at home or vacations if it’s a specific occasion. Kids who are accustomed to it are less likely to get cranky if they’re not being tucked in at 8pm. Totally depends on the family, my child was never that way because we’ve always been very active. By ages 6&8 a lot of kids already have busy schedules.
Bartledvd
Well-Known Member
It is down to how much rest time you have we go for two weeks each year and take at least a 4 hour break each day at our resort so we have not needed a stroller since our youngest was 2 if we could only do 3/4 day trip then maybe we might have had no choice but use a stroller for many years. Rope drop till close can be easily 12 hours a day on your feet thats hard for many adults so if your kids are not used to really long busy days or you don't take a nice long break to recharge and escape the heat i would consider a stroller
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GoofGoof
Premium Member
Every kid is different so this is a hard question to answer. My last trip my kids were 5 and 8 and it was the dead heat of August. We debated the same thing you are now about the younger one. We ended up deciding not to bring a stroller. I knew that if we had it with us then the kid(s) would probably use it but you never know if they actually need it or are just using it because it’s there. We decided we would try it without and if it turned out we needed it for a few of the longer days we would suck it up and rent the Disney ones. It’s definitely not a cost effective way to do things but we never ended up feeling like we needed the stroller and never rented one. We did have afternoon breaks every day since it was as hot as the surface of the sun our whole trip I think you have to weigh the options and know your kids too. The main advice I can give you is that if you do decide you don’t want to bring one and have a kid dragging one day you can always rent one in the park.
I think you have to weigh the options and know your kids too. The main advice I can give you is that if you do decide you don’t want to bring one and have a kid dragging one day you can always rent one in the park.
Pixieish
Well-Known Member
Take your kids out for a local day with lots of walking to see how they do. It's not worth taking it if you don't need to. (Our youngest stopped wanting the stroller at WDW surprisingly early because he wanted to be like his big brother and walk on his own...last time he used it at WDW other than for taking a nap he was 4.)
Disney Family 5
Member
We are heading to WDW next week and we are taking our double stroller.......but not for the reason it is intended. Our kids are 15, 12, 9 and 6. And yes, the 6 year old may need it by the end of the day, but the real reason we are taking it is for storage. It is great to keep the cooler in and our bags with changes of clothes and such. And there are plenty of stroller parking areas around so there is never a problem trying to find someplace to park it.
Weather_Lady
Well-Known Member
Pixieish
Well-Known Member
We ditched the stroller for the first time our last trip and I was REALLY nervous about doing it, but we're so glad we did - our youngest was 5 at the time. Honestly, the biggest differences were that we spent WAY less time struggling with/parking/looking for the dang thing and only had to stop for snacks maybe one additional time per day. We're a family of 4 - hubby and I each have a pack for important stuff (don't laugh!), I had my camera bag, and one small-ish shoulder bag for other stuff (external phone batteries, sunscreen, a few bandaids, etc.). Now that we've ditched the boatloads of stuff we were so used to toting around, it's SO MUCH EASIER to get around and enjoy the parks.
Our youngest had made it pretty clear to us the year prior (when he was 4) that he was too big for the stroller for anything but taking a nap (we're park open-to-close peeps), but even he didn't miss it for our 5-day stroller-less trip.
Our youngest had made it pretty clear to us the year prior (when he was 4) that he was too big for the stroller for anything but taking a nap (we're park open-to-close peeps), but even he didn't miss it for our 5-day stroller-less trip.
Squigglove
Active Member
How about a Wagon? My son is only four but he's already 68 lbs and rock solid! We don't do an overwhelming amount of walking generally. So when we go next year I want to take a wagon. But don't forget to check the weight limits.
Pixieish
Well-Known Member
Wagons (or anything you pull behind you) aren't allowed. They're a safety hazard.
Squigglove
Active Member
I had no idea!!! Thanks for that.
Squigglove
Active Member
Also, since wagons are prohibited, what about these: https://www.toysrus.com/product?productId=96201876
Those trikes that lock and can be pushed like strollers. Expensive, but I'd sooner go with one of these than to have to retire early because my son just can't do anymore walking.
@CherylM do you know if these trikes are acceptable (since technically it's a bike)? Where can I find out this info? Thanks a bunch.
Those trikes that lock and can be pushed like strollers. Expensive, but I'd sooner go with one of these than to have to retire early because my son just can't do anymore walking.
@CherylM do you know if these trikes are acceptable (since technically it's a bike)? Where can I find out this info? Thanks a bunch.
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