Stroller or No Stroller???

[fizz03]

Hi everyone,
I've posted here randomly from time to time and have another question for our upcoming trip to the World in December. Moreso, I'm looking for parental advice!!!
I am traveling to Disney with several adults, a 5 year old and my 4 1/2 year old son. I'm debating on how to handle the stroller issue. I think we all know that expecting a 4 year old to trot along at the world for 5 days is a little extreme. My legs ache after one day and I can only imagine how my poor sons little legs would feel! I'm exploring possible investing in a light weight stroller to bring along for the trip (this way avoiding paying rental fees). My son weighs about 37 lbs, so I'm having a difficult time finding something for his size since strollers generally are not made for 4 year old children!
Any suggestions from the peanut gallery? Do you have a stroller you would suggest? Am I better off biting the bullet and renting something everyday? Any advice at all????
Thanks!

 

[DisneyBunny]

Glad I've sparked a stroller debate!! All of this advice is fantastic. My reasoning for debating the stroller either way is that I KNOW we will need it. My son definitely isn't lazy and loves to walk most of the time, however, we only have 4 full days in the parks. And in past years, when we've taken him along with us, we don't do the usually break / nap time. My hubby and I are go-go-go for the entire 4 day trip and try our best to see everything. I KNOW this child will not be able to keep up!!! Like a previous poster has said, the last thing I want to do is have to not only try and keep track of my munchkin all day and end up carrying by the end of the afternoon, but the convenience of having one place to store the bag of "just in case stuff" is also a great thing to have. I guess I'm going to have to research the cost associated with renting v. purchasing and go from there at this point!!!

Man is this ever exhausting!

We just got back from the world with my 1 year old daugher and I broght this stroller with us:

http://www.strollers.com/Combi-247815-Helio-Stroller-CBI1279.html

It's a great stroller and I highly reccommend it...BUT I think you'd do better to rethink your no-nap policy. I know your little ones are older than mine, but I can't tell you how much the kids NEEEEED that break in the middle of the day.

Speaking as a reformed theme park commando, I used to be "go-go-go" all the time when were in Disney... not anymore. Now our trips are all about our daughter and her needs. If we didn't see everything, that's fine with us, I'd rather skip something than submit my kid and everyone in the surrounding area to a meltdown because she's overtired.

We took the stroller with us, and while it was handy to have a place to put her, especially since she's in that toddling off into the crowd stage of life... but it was honestly more trouble than it was worth to park it at rides, pick it up afterwards, bring along the rain cover, put it on, take it off again, not to mention the hassle of just finding the thing once the CMs rearranged the stroller area.

After the first few days we just left it in the car and DH carried DD on his shoulders. I know it's just not that practical with a 4 year old, but if the kid is too tired to walk around, then maybe you should consider taking them back for the nap. They'll b rested, you'll be rested, and everyone would be happy.

Just a thought :wave:

 

[mickey7879]

My vote is for this stroller:

http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2887327


It's from Babies R Us and is $99.99. You have to scroll to the bottom of the page for some reason to see the price info.

It folds up like and umbrella and then in 3rds and has a strap to throw over your shoulder and carry it. Very lightweight.

Would be a lot easier to take this onto the bus instead of a travel system.

Will take a child up to 55 lbs too!

 

[Disneykidder]

Kids don't have the stamina to go all day. I say def. take a stroller. My 4 1/2 year old son who does not nap anymore used one in August and fell asleep in it. It was a great thing to have. It was a simple umbrella stroller that reclined a bit and had a mesh bag for some stuff and a cup holder. We could not have done Disney without it.

 

[Phonedave]

Let me applaud you for taking two children by yourself to WDW. Wow. That is tough, especially at their age. And yep--in your case I would have recommended a stroller. And frankly, I should not assume that there are two parents with children. Lot's of parents do a solo trip with the kids. We have ONE, so it's no problem for one of us to keep track of her. Two would be much more difficult.

You bring up an excellent solution. If you feel you MUST have a stroller, the cheap umbrella is the best option. $10. Who cares if you toss it. It's way cheaper than the rental, and small enough to carry easily.

I take my two girls by myself all the time. They are 7 and 9 now, but we have been going alone for about 2 1/2 years now (and before that with the ex )

I will give the same advice I allways give when the great stroller debate raises its ugly head - most parents know what their kids can and cannot do, and all parents (people for that matter) have different "methods". My can (and have been) walking for an entire day since they were 4. I am also a minimal stuff kind of guy. I don't like to carry anything. Other people/parents are different.

When the kids were younger, we did rent. However that was back when rentals were a lot cheaper. Again I think it has to do with my minimal luggage tendings. I did not like dragging a stroller with me on a plane. Other people have no problems do so. Me, I like to leave it all behind.

So, to each their own and do whats comfortable for you and your kids (and your wallet)

-dave

 

[daliseurat]

Kudos to you as well!

 

[Laura]

We just got back from the world with my 1 year old daugher and I broght this stroller with us:

http://www.strollers.com/Combi-247815-Helio-Stroller-CBI1279.html

It's a great stroller and I highly reccommend it...BUT I think you'd do better to rethink your no-nap policy. I know your little ones are older than mine, but I can't tell you how much the kids NEEEEED that break in the middle of the day.

Speaking as a reformed theme park commando, I used to be "go-go-go" all the time when were in Disney... not anymore. Now our trips are all about our daughter and her needs. If we didn't see everything, that's fine with us, I'd rather skip something than submit my kid and everyone in the surrounding area to a meltdown because she's overtired.

We took the stroller with us, and while it was handy to have a place to put her, especially since she's in that toddling off into the crowd stage of life... but it was honestly more trouble than it was worth to park it at rides, pick it up afterwards, bring along the rain cover, put it on, take it off again, not to mention the hassle of just finding the thing once the CMs rearranged the stroller area.

After the first few days we just left it in the car and DH carried DD on his shoulders. I know it's just not that practical with a 4 year old, but if the kid is too tired to walk around, then maybe you should consider taking them back for the nap. They'll b rested, you'll be rested, and everyone would be happy.

Just a thought :wave:

It really depends on the kids. Mine haven't napped in 4 years, but they still like to ride in the stroller now and then when we're walking a long distance (for example - from the back of World Showcase to our car in the parking lot they will take turns resting their legs). They are not sleepy, their legs just hurt now and then, the same as an adult. They have such little legs they have to walk twice as much as an adult, and after 4 days of this they just can't handle some of the longer distances anymore. It has nothing to do with crankiness or sleepiness. They are always in a great mood at Disney, very well behaved, and they are as much theme park commandos as I am. If I told them we were going to leave the rides and go take a nap they'd look at me like I was psychotic. :lol:

 

[C.M.O]

Glad to see your post. My daughter is 5 and I was thinking of bringing one. I brought 1 when she was 4 and she used it a lot. Its a lot of walking for a little one. It is also very helpful to have a place to put stuff. I have a Maclaren umbrella stroller, it is wonderful! It is light weight, small and has a carry strap. I had no problems getting it on and off the buses. I think i might leave it home this year, but I am still debating.

 

[LuxeMama]

We just got back and we rented and took our own (we have three kids-- 6,3, 1).

Definitely worth it, as far as bringing our own. We have the Jeep double stroller and it was great for holding cups in the side pockets and hanging the bag off of the back. It folded nicely when we had to get on the bus to HS from Poly. The rental, which I did for the length of our stay, was great for which ever one wasn't in the stroller and so we could get around faster. I enjoyed just leaving it there when we left, but I hated the extra hassle of stopping to get one when we arrived at the parks.