At what age did you stop using a stroller for your child at the Disney parks?

[Marthasor]

My DS13 and I were just talking about this! I rented a stroller for him every trip up until just before his 6th birthday when it sat in our hotel room because he refused to go inside, LOL! The stroller was great for him as it really gave him a bit of a rest between attractions and enabled us to get out of the parks more quickly than if he was solely relying on his little feet.

 

[Skywalker3]

I think the last time kids were in strollers, DD was 9, and DS 7, not sure. I do have pictures of kids in strollers at those ages, so that might've been it. They are small for their ages (like generally not even on the curve on the growth chart,) so little legs. I don't think the age of the kid matters at all, we did what we thought was best for all of us, and for a smooth, happy trip.

 

[Merlin's Magic]

We stopped at age 3. At our next trip, the youngest was newly 6 and definitely not in a stroller. We took the trip slower to accommodate him. We made sure to build in an off day, made many of our lunches sit down meals, took in shows in the afternoon, and left the park when he was ready, bringing him back for the night show if he was up to it. It can be a lot if you try to power through the parks with a little one so you really have two choices. For us, we'd rather slow down the trip than increase the already too high stroller traffic there.

 

[DisLiss]

Totally different with each kid. We went from one extreme to another---the kid who learned to walk and never wanted to be in a stroller again to the kid who I thought might be happy to be pushed in a stroller for their entire life.

 

[Lilsia]

The kids were around 5 when they last rode in a stroller at Disney. And boy was I glad not to have to push, park or struggle to fold and haul one onto a bus!

Same with us, 5 is the maximum age that our kids where in the stroller. After that, they were "big girls" and would not be caught dead in one since they were for babies. LOL We did stop and take breaks more often, but that was mostly for daddy.

 

[Jeskova26]

It’s all about the kid. Some hate strollers and want to walk, other prefer the comfort.
our youngest likes to walk but there is no telling her where to go so we like the control of the stroller while my oldest like to sit in the back of her stroller for stretches of time to rest his legs

 

[npatellye]

We took our City Micro double (purchased a few years ago just for WDW trips) in November when my girls were 7 and 5. My 7 year old only used it a couple of times, mostly when waiting for the walkway to open from BLT to MK. My 5 year old used it a lot. We were walking over 20,000 steps a day, even with midday breaks and then some days only going in the evening.

Pushing the little one in a stroller was faster for us when trying to line up for things like SDD and SDMT. We didn’t have to wait for her little legs to keep up and we could hustle over to the line since she really wanted to ride those first.

We will bring it again in May since we plan on walking over to MK from GF. My older one is now 8 and won’t use it at all but my little one is still 5 and walking that many miles a day is too much for her. She used the empty seat next to her to hold her popcorn bucket. We also like having the storage for water bottles.

 

[Traver Freeman]

My oldest, 6 (almost 7), doesn't need a stroller, and hasn't used one consistently since he was about 5. My youngest now uses the stroller (he's 3).

The problem? My 3 year old hates to ride and would rather walk. His little legs just get tired really easily. My oldest, who doesn't need the stroller (we've successfully gone to the parks with no stroller with him and he's done it just fine), loves to ride in the stroller. So whenever his brother is walking, he wants in. He's always loved the stroller.

But if we don't take our youngest into the park with us for whatever reason, we don't take the stroller.

 

[AZMermaid]

We didn’t use one at Disneyland when my kids were 4 and 5 and then also didn’t need one the next summer at 5 and 6 for a week at WDW. We budgeted to get one if needed, but no one ever asked for one or complained that they were tired. We tried for out of sight, out of mind. These same kids would complain when Imparked far at Target, so I was surprised that they did not complain at all. It was a total non issue!

So the last time we used one was when they were a week shy of 3 and 4 Ag Disneyland.

 

[Lilsia]

I would like to mention, that if you have older kids in a stroller, make sure that the stroller can actually handle the weight. Many of the cheaper, umbrella strollers are not made for that kind of weight and you won't be able to push them.

 

[Rory607]

On our last trip, in 2019, our kids were 9 and 5. We rented a single from Kingdom Strollers instead of our usual double. Our oldest is tiny and definitely still within the weight limit. She didn’t sit in it very much, but occasionally. The 5 year old walked most of the time, but I really liked the convenience of being able to just have him hop in the stroller and going when you’re trying to get somewhere quickly.

We’ve been doing Disney our kids’ entire lives and I honestly love having a stroller. I love the drink holders and having somewhere to stash the backpack. But that was our last trip with a stroller. We will be back at the earliest in 2022 and the kids will be too big. I will miss it, lol!

 

[Cheburashka]

If it makes a difference I have boys and there are no special needs.

I realize if the boys walk we will probably need to take an afternoon break.

I first took my son when he was 5 and did not use or want a stroller. Between him usually walking and me occasionally carrying him, we were just fine. We kept it at a kid-friendly pace.

 

[Pyxie]

We used a stroller when my daughter was 6 and then did not use one on our next trip when she was 8. She did great with all the walking. Actually way better than I expected because she can be a complainer. I missed the stroller for holding our "stuff" more than anything lol.

 

[robinb]

My daughter was about 7 the last time we used a stroller. We started to wean her off of it when she was 5-6. We were only taking it to AK and Epcot for the last few trips and sometimes at night when we went back to the parks. She was notorious for never napping even though we would return to our resort every afternoon. Instead, she would stay awake and quietly play with her toys while we napped. Then, she would crash hard around 8 pm but we still wanted to be in the park, so the stroller came in handy at night.

 

[Megara5115]

We are going next year when my son will be 6. He hasn't used a stroller in about two years in our regular life, but I am definitely renting a BOB for our trip down there. It is just so much walking it will be good for him to have a place to rest plus we will have somewhere to stow our stuff while at the parks. He also hasn't napped regularly for probably longer than two years but he still occasionally nods off in the car so who knows what will happen at Disney.

 

[robinb]

We used a stroller when my daughter was 6 and then did not use one on our next trip when she was 8. She did great with all the walking. Actually way better than I expected because she can be a complainer.

My daughter complained when we started to leave the stroller back at the resort. She would get part way through the day and want her stroller. We would say, "What's the matter with you? Your legs are not broken." to which she started to say "My legs are broken! I want my stroller!" "My legs are broken!" became one of our family jokes.

 

[808blessing]

Same! We just completed our first 5 park day without stroller this past year at age 10 (no covid travel at 9) and we saw new things we never saw before in certain places because we were constantly focused on parking the stroller. We have only been to Disney as adults with her so it was a whole new world. Ha!

 

[MickeyMouse3!]

Our last trip(2019) the airline chopped our stroller in half so we had to rent one. Great for naps and snacks. This week was our first time without a stroller! 7 & 5. We made jokes about wanting to buy one at the gift shop and even met a dad who bought one off FB marketplace that was delivered to the hotel because his 5 year old needed it.

Let me guess....Spirit?

 

[Jmljasmine]

We are going with a 18 month, 3 year old, almost 5 year old, and 7 year old on the next (and likely last trip for awhile). We will bring a double. The 5 and 7 will walk. Pushing strollers with big kids is not what I consider fun. They weigh too much. We will go at their pace. I expect the 3 year old to walk a lot and if she is resisting strollers before we go, I may just bring a light single umbrella stroller. Can't wait until stroller days are a thing of the past.

 

[Jmljasmine]

We didn’t use one at Disneyland when my kids were 4 and 5 and then also didn’t need one the next summer at 5 and 6 for a week at WDW. We budgeted to get one if needed, but no one ever asked for one or complained that they were tired. We tried for out of sight, out of mind. These same kids would complain when Imparked far at Target, so I was surprised that they did not complain at all. It was a total non issue!

So the last time we used one was when they were a week shy of 3 and 4 Ag Disneyland.

I honestly think some of the complaining is boredom. Target parking lots are much more boring then Disney When they want to do something they seem much more capable