double stroller vs. two singles?

[Crazy old Maurice]

De-lurking and calling all moms and/or dads...

First of all I want to say thank you for all of the super helpful information that all of you provide here--it is very appreciated!!

I have been going to Disney since I was a child and now go with my own family. This year we are taking it up a notch and bringing both kidlets who will be almost 3 (DD) and a 9 month baby (also DD) in June when we go. We currently have a Graco Duoglider and 2 small (same brand) singles--in your opinion, would you bring the double or get the connectors for the singles? Any opinions on the connectors (sturdy vs. pia?)? Any thoughts or opinions on this would be really appreciated. Oldest will sit in stroller to rest at times but may want to walk. We are trying to decide what would be the easiest set up, getting on and off busses, monorails, around resorts, etc. We would rather not buy a whole new stroller if we don't have to. Thank you in advance for any thoughts...


Jen

 

[LeahA]

How big is your 3 year old? Is he/she and napper? Last year we went with my 3-1/2 year old and my 10 month old, we took 2 stollers from home. Both of them had their own comfortable space. My older son is tall for his age, and he really can't fit in the double stroller to well. If he did get tired, there would've been no way for him to sleep comfortably in it also. It is a hassle on/off the trams, if your driving, or on/off the busses, but, I can't see renting the strollers since we drive to Disney and can bring our own.


Leah

 

[tinaluis]

Welcome aboard!!!

I prefer the double to the two single connector option. The connectors are a good idea for a little while but are is a little hard to maneuver and at a place as big and full of people as WDW I'd imagine they'd be a pain. I bought two exact strollers and the connectors for a trip to WDW a few years ago and tried them out in the neighborhood before the trip. They didn't work that great. Granted, we have curbs and things like that to contend with here that are not a problem at WDW but I found that it was pretty impractical for a long period of time. Having only one stroller gives one of us a break, too, for a little while. Fortunately, my SIL was going to have a baby so I gave her one of the strollers.

In addition, my girls are all close in age, 5, 3 and 7 mos., so we tend to do everything together and no one goes off on their own. When we have a potty break, we all go and my DH waits for us with the stroller outside.

Our new challenge is that this will be our second trip with our infant and we only have a double stroller. I'm sure my 5 yo. will get tired, so it's either plead with the 3 and 5 yo to switch off in the stroller, plan on renting one or bring an extra single umbrella -- but then we're back to two strollers again, LOL.

Good luck whatever you decide.

 

[beattyfamily]

I've been going through this too. One of my DD's is 5 1/2 so that is the deciding factor...and the confusion on what to do. Other DD is 2 1/2.

On our last 2 trips, we had a cheap double umbrella stroller with a nice basket underneath but didn't recline for $55. It finally ripped at the end of our last trip and we left it in a dumpster in Florida.

Now, what to do for this year's WDW trip with a then (in October) 3 year old and 6 year old?? Do I just bring one for the little one? Do I rent a double stroller that is sturdy for my girls and wait in the rental line and pay $12 a day and then have no stroller at Downtown Disney and the hotels? Or do I buy another double stroller that my 6 year old won't fit in much longer? So many variables here!

I saw a double jogging stroller that they both fit in fine and the weight limit was 100lbs and had a basket but it was $169 and jogging strollers are pretty bulky at WDW and that's alot of money if my older DD outgrows it soon.

Then I saw the double side-by-side Kolcraft that I've seen for a couple years but didn't like because there was no basket. Well, I tried it out at Target the other day and ended up buying it anyway. It was only $55 and it reclines and has padded seats! Bad news, no basket. I ended up buying a netting bag that you hang on the back for $6. for storage and we always bring a backpack which can easily be hung on the handles. I feel good about this because now we don't have to waist money and time renting. We don't have to worry if they both get tired. It folds down very compact too! Almost the size of one umbrella stroller.

Hope this helps you decide somehow.

 

[rusty]

We bought the double umbrella stroller by Kolcraft for our last trip. My DS was 3 1/2 and my DD was 19 months. It worked out well for us. It folds down very small and so we could bring it on the train at Disney and put it at our feet. We didn't take any buses but it would be easy to carry on a bus also. It reclines enough for the kids to nap. It also fits through the gates at the entrance to the parks but you have to get the wheels going straight to make it through. I had no problem pushing it in the stores unless the store was very busy. The only down side is that a front back model will roll on the monorails but the douple was too wide and so we had to fold it there. Not really a big problem since you are not on the monorails that much. We also found that if we hung our backpack on the back of it, it was much harder to push. This time I will hang a small diaper bag on it and wear a fanny pack for heavy stuff like camera and video camera. The stroller also fit through doors fine like our hotel door. The kids enjoyed sitting by each other to share popcorn and other snacks. I did see a few people with the same stroller and so you will want to have a bag on it or some yarn or something so that someone else dosn't confuse it for there own. When you get off the rides there are so many strollers in one area. Hope this helps. Liza

 

[tjmw2727]

Your children are still young so personally I think you will be better off with a double. We tried the two umbrellas a couple of years ago when my girls were 2&4 and to tell the truth it was kind of a pain. It was very hard to push them with the connectors and a pain to have both of us pushing esp when you wanted to buy a soda or ice cream and one person had to handle two strollers with or without the connector. This was a couple years ago and perhaps they have improved the connectors?

Since your children are still both pretty much stroller age I would check out an umbrella side by side - some of them recline and are fairly inexpensive. They have a sunshade and some have a basked underneath or you can buy them separately. It may be worth your while to have another option than the traditional double. When my dd was older she liked the umbrella since we didn't have to strap her in all the time and she could jump in & out for rides etc.

We also liked the sit & stand and used it the most but your oldest may be to young to stand and you can only sit when the baby is in the upright position.

I would go to some of the baby online stores and see what options are available - perhaps try a used childrens shop for something affordable that could work for you.

TJ

 

[Claudine]

I have three kids and at our last trip in November they were 6 1/2, 4 1/2 and 21 months. this is what we did. We brought our umbrella stroller for the airport and for times we were outside the parks for our youngest. On the days we went to the parks the first day we rented a second but having 2 strollers we felt was a pain. So the rest of the time we left ours in the hotel and rented a double stroller which are the solid plastic seats and foot rest two children would ride and when all three wanted to rest at the same time the two who were seated moved their feet slightly to the side and the third sat in the foot section (I hope that description made sense) They all fit fine and nobody had to be carried. We felt it was totally worth the money they would get tired of walking and they are getting too big too carry.

 

[hellokitty]

We bring two single strollers and they both recline.
It is easier to have two people pushing and neither person feels
like they have to push more.
Also, when we seperate ways a few times. LIke going to get food/drink or to the bathroom
and it was nice to be able to just bring one kid at a time or for us boy and girl so we could
in seperate places.

It just seemed more convienent to us. It was easier to get through the crowded areas,too.

 

[Crazy old Maurice]

...for all of the great ideas!! I am taking all of them into consideration--still have to go check out that Kolcraft double umbrella everyone's talking about (assume it's that navy polka-dot one for $55 ish?) I really appreciate it!! Does anyone know 1) if a weight imbalance makes a big difference in how it handles (30 ish lbs and 18 ish lbs) and 2) does the recline keep the babies out of the sun enough? (Have a darker skinned toddler, but a super fair-skinned infant and want to avoid baby flambe... )

Thank you again!
Jen

 

[beattyfamily]

I've got a 40 lb and a 25 lb and it seems fine to me. Also, when the toddler reclines, she is still under the canopy but when the 40lb DD reclines, her head is sticking out but someone here posted how she handled this and I can't find it...