~ Please Help! ~

[pinkdiamonds1007]

Hi everyone! I know lots and lots of stroller ?'s have been posted here in the past..but i am still stumped. We have are going to WDW in Dec, we will be there 6 days. Our daughter will be 4 months shy of 4 when we go. I have read lots of posts on strollers that are great..but I can't fathom spending close to $200 on one, for 6 days, she really doesn't use one anymore otherwise. But those really cheap ones, the little umbrella stollers hurt my back, and my hubbys back b/c we are rather tall. I also thought about DTD, and the all the walking to the parking lots, and stuff. (so thats a plus for breaking and spending the money) Also, i can't imagine standing in a long line, waiting to rent a stroller. I am just going to want to get in the park and go!
Should i just crack and buy one? Does anyone know of any stollers that have high handle bars that won't kill our backs, that don't cost a fortune? We also have a rather bulky one that we could bring with us.
I also hear though of stollers being stolen alot..is this true, do you reccomend bring locks for the strollers?

Thanks for the help!
Nicole

 

[Disneyonmymind]

When we went last time with 2 kids (5 and almost 5), we rented and thought it worked great. Although you do need to stand in line to rent, you can pay in advance for the entire week so that cuts down on the lines on the following days. We stayed onsite and I think it would be even more hassle to fold and unfold a stroller to get on and off the bus each time. Our kids were big enough to walk to the buses, climb the steps and such. They only needed the stroller to keep them from tiring out with the extended park walking and also for us to keep them safe and secure.

This trip I bought a Maclaren Triumph ($120) for DD2. Its lightweight, easy to maneuver, ergonomic to push, and has a carry strap for getting on and off the bus. I also need a harness to keep her safe and secure in her seat so I decided this would be the way to go.

Your DD is in between these two ages so I don't know how she fits into the various scenarios or if this helps you at all.

Good luck,
Jackie

 

[poohkinandpiglet]

With an almost 4 year old, I'd rent one at the parks. IMO, it's just easier than having to drag one with you everywhere you go.

 

[MelodyMack]

We chose to bring our own. A few factors influenced our decision:

#1. We drive to WDW...so it was no big hassle to throw it in the back.

#2. We bought a stroller at a Big Lots store for $35.99. It is an OK stroller. padded reclining seat/ full canapy/ all terrain wheels/ basket underneath.

#3. Because our trip was for 5 days, it was more cost effective to buy VS rent anyway.

#4. We can always reuse our purchased stroller for future WDW trips, so for our upcoming trip that is one less expense I have to budget for. Also, you can just give it to somebody else to use on your last day if your not planning any return trips.

#5. We were never worried about somebody "accidentally" confusing our stroller with theirs (often happens with rentals) because ours was so different
looking.

#6. After the LONG day at the parks, my DD4 was wiped out. We never had to make the long trip to the parking area carrying her (THANK GOODNESS, cause we were pretty wiped out, too). She always just rode in her stroller.

I've never rented, so I'm biased, but I can't imagine not having our own stroller with us. Hope this helps -
Mel

 

[lovesdumbo]

I think a MacLaren Volo (around $100) would be perfect for you and if you plan on going back to Disney in the next 2 years you could use it again and if not you could probably do well reselling it. I've brought 3 expensive strollers to Disney including a $300+ double MacLaren and never worried about it getting stolen. Just don't leave anything in the basket as someone may take the stroller in hopes of finding something good in your bag. I have also rented in the parks and those strollers are very easy to push and I do love the convenience of not hassling with a stroller on the bus. The time of renting a stroller (if you do multi-day) is probably about the same as folding/unfolding the stroller.

 

[Kanga1]

If you rent multi-day, you receive 10% off. We rented a double stroller for 10 days and the total was $135.99. (-$10 refund...so just $125.99.) We used it EVERY day. Well worth the money in my opinion. Their strollers are so much easier to handle then ours. Just a thought.

 

[pooh4evr]

We rented a double from Baby's Best Friend for our DDs age almost 2 and 4. It was great for us. We paid $75 for 8 days, it was plenty tall (I know what you mean about being too tall for umbrella strollers!) it was padded reclined back and had a canopy and storage underneath. I don't remember how much a single stroller was, but the website is very easy to navigate!

 

[tinkerbellmom31]

Hi everyone! I know lots and lots of stroller ?'s have been posted here in the past..but i am still stumped. We have are going to WDW in Dec, we will be there 6 days. Our daughter will be 4 months shy of 4 when we go. I have read lots of posts on strollers that are great..but I can't fathom spending close to $200 on one, for 6 days, she really doesn't use one anymore otherwise. But those really cheap ones, the little umbrella stollers hurt my back, and my hubbys back b/c we are rather tall. I also thought about DTD, and the all the walking to the parking lots, and stuff. (so thats a plus for breaking and spending the money) Also, i can't imagine standing in a long line, waiting to rent a stroller. I am just going to want to get in the park and go!
Should i just crack and buy one? Does anyone know of any stollers that have high handle bars that won't kill our backs, that don't cost a fortune? We also have a rather bulky one that we could bring with us.
I also hear though of stollers being stolen alot..is this true, do you reccomend bring locks for the strollers?

Thanks for the help!
Nicole

Hi Im from the same area and I went to ToysRUs yesterday and got this http://www.gracobaby.com/catalog/pr...=6712&patternName=Pattern: Newport Bears*****
for $48 with tax. My son is 3 and never uses a stroller except at Disney and we borrowed a similar one last year and it worked out great. I love the big basket that drops down and the adult cup holders. I could not see spending 100 dollars for one that does not have the features I like and I will only be used on our trip.

 

[justcantwait]

Have you checked on the Families board about a stroller swap? They have a stroller down there that you can use for your trip, then pass on to the next DISer on the list. Maybe your dates are available? Worth a try. I brought both my strollers for DD2 and DS5. I found them invaluable in the parks, DTD, and also the airport. If you don't have a stroller at home any more, maybe you can try Everything But the Baby, or another company that rents baby equipment (not that your child is a baby!) to people like you, who just need it on a short-term basis. HTH

Kathy

 

[plutotigger919]

It should be easier to just rent a stroller. I mean, if you rent one, then you don't have the hassle of dragging one of your own on buses and planes. Rental is MUCH MORE CONVINIENT. So, just rent.

 

[mill4023]

We have 4 kids (1, 4, 7, 10) and the most I've ever spent on a stroller is about $70. We've mostly bought Graco strollers and we've been happy with them. When we went to WDW in April, we brought our own stroller for the 1 year old and bought a SafetyFirst stroller from a Walmart in Orlando for about $40 for our 4 year old. It is pretty lightweight, but it's not an umbrella. I also can't stand pushing the umbrella strollers because the handles are so low.

I think this is the one we bought. It was very easy to push and turn and fairly lightweight. It also reclines nicely so our 4 yr old was able to sleep in it when she wasn't feeling well one afternoon. Much nicer than an umbrella, but it is bulkier. We took the bus to MK one day and it was a pain, but we also had 4 kids and 2 strollers with us, so I imagine it wouldn't be too bad without a 1 year old to carry. For the other parks, we drove so it wasn't an issue.

Personally, I'd recommend getting one like this. It wasn't too expensive and we were glad to have it. For us, it was cheaper than renting and more convenient.

 

[hipmaman]

Hi everyone! I know lots and lots of stroller ?'s have been posted here in the past..but i am still stumped. We have are going to WDW in Dec, we will be there 6 days. Our daughter will be 4 months shy of 4 when we go. I have read lots of posts on strollers that are great..but I can't fathom spending close to $200 on one, for 6 days, she really doesn't use one anymore otherwise. But those really cheap ones, the little umbrella stollers hurt my back, and my hubbys back b/c we are rather tall. I also thought about DTD, and the all the walking to the parking lots, and stuff. (so thats a plus for breaking and spending the money) Also, i can't imagine standing in a long line, waiting to rent a stroller. I am just going to want to get in the park and go!
Should i just crack and buy one? Does anyone know of any stollers that have high handle bars that won't kill our backs, that don't cost a fortune? We also have a rather bulky one that we could bring with us.
I also hear though of stollers being stolen alot..is this true, do you reccomend bring locks for the strollers?

Thanks for the help!
Nicole

For that age, if you want a good, light and compact stroller to use, I would recommend the Maclaren Volo for about $100. The resale value is also good so you can recoup some of your investment while enjoying a quality stroller

I have a few pictures of my kids who was about either in various stages from 3.5 to 5.5 yrs old in the Volos. http://photobucket.com/albums/v499/Oakvillemoms/Strollers/

 

[pinkdiamonds1007]

Thank you for all the suggestions..the Maclaren Volvo looks great! Thanks..hope everyone enjoys their trips!!

 

[batraylover]

I also hear though of stollers being stolen alot..is this true, do you reccomend bring locks for the strollers?

Thanks for the help!
Nicole

Just FYI Disney will not let you lock strollers, in fact, during shows such as Fantasmic, Snow White, etc the CM's will move/rearrange and pack the strollers in so tight. If you have a stroller locked, they are allowed to break/cut the lock and move the stroller anyway.

 

[Darcy]

Hey

The umbrella strollers hurt my back too and 'm not super tall. i was able to fing a handle exterder, I thnk it was less than $10 and and umbrella stroler about the same. It would save $$.

Did you say you were driving?? what about a wagon, it'll carry stuff too.

 

[Darcy]

sorry that last post is so sloppy...I cut my nails completly off and can't type at all.

 

[akasleepingbeauty]

Just an FYI - wagons are NOT allowed at any Disney parks so that is not an option unfortunately.

Personally, we have strollers we use just for Disney for our kids (used to have 2 Graco Metrolites but dd5 is really too big for hers now so we bought her a new Mac Techno Quest on major clearance this year) because rental strollers are just not for us. I have other strollers for home that we use but these two are just for Disney or trips to the zoo etc. I just can't spend money on a rental when it adds up to so much - I can buy nice strollers that we can use again and again and that my kids are more comfortable in for less money. Plus we get to use them at DTD, to/from the parking lots (we always have a rental car and never use the buses - too much trouble with kids IMO), etc. I imagine when my dd is older (probably 7) we'll just get a rental for her on an occasional basis but since ds is only 2 we still have several more years of bringing our own along for him. DD doesn't use stroller for anything these days except Disney and other day-long treks (zoo, Sea World etc.) but it is still worth it to us to have something we are comfortable pushing and that she enjoys riding and that we can use everywhere on our trip. That does not mean, however, that this would be the solution for everyone as of course every family is different.

Try to evaluate how much your dd will really use the stroller and remember that Disney is much different than everyday out-and-about trips. If you think she will need one every day than I would bring my own. If you think she just may need it occasionally then renting is probably the best solution.

Good luck on your decision!

 

[Disneyrsh]

You might want to look at that stroller as more of an investment, since it's a good bet you'll be going back to Disney!

Our daughters are 5 and 6 and we still use the double stroller all the time. We figured out that we walk about 15 miles a day when we're in Disney, and I don't think there are a lot of kids under the age of 10 that can manage that.

Our graco double wide stroller sits in the garage in a bag unless we're going to Disney, because you're right, under normal circumstances they just don't need it anymore at any age over 3. But Disney's so not normal!

We're both tall, I'm 5'9" and my husband's 6'4", and the graco is tall enough for us. Might want to check out the single strollers from them since they seem to run taller. We've also got a single stroller from Century that we haven't used in centuries (yard sale, anyone?) that we picked because the handles were WAY higher up than on a lot of other ones. Go check out a few at the Babies R Us to see how they feel, then do a cost compare online.

If you really want to save money, go check out the yardsales; if you're handy you can take about most strollers down to their guts and wash and oil them, put them back together and they're as good as new.

 

[monorailsilver]

We bought a Jeep umbrella stroller. It was around $30 & it is higher then the really cheap ones but it isn't going to break the bank since I don't use it that much.

Incidently, we bought it when our dd was just shy of 4 & now she is 4 & she still fits in it perfectly.