To stroller or not to stroller

We will have a 4 and 8 year old for our January trip and we are renting a double from Kingdom. My 8 year old probably won't use it much, if at all, but we would have to rent a single anyway for the 4 year old and I'm not going to listen to them fight about who gets to sit in the stroller Better safe than sorry in my opinion! I don't expect the 8 year old to want to ride very often. Our plan is to park it most of the day and move it from land to land as needed. We go park open to park close and it's a lot of walking. I also don't understand why some people are so insistent (and sometimes rude) that kids do Disney without a stroller.
 
I also don't understand why some people are so insistent (and sometimes rude) that kids do Disney without a stroller.

Back in their day they did Disney up hill both ways on dirt roads with wolves chasing them. Kids these days are soft!

I agree with you. I don't see how it effects anyone else if I have a 8 or 10 or 14 year old in stroller (unless I accidentally run into you...then sorry!)
 
we're going to gate check and bring our old Graco stroller down with us in mid-November for my 6 year old as I'm sure he'll need the use of it. Then I'll just find some deserving family on our last day and give it to them to make use of on their trip as we have no intention of bringing it home with us.
 
We used one for our 3 and 6 year old 2 weeks ago. It really made the day easy with carting all our stuff and giving the girls a place to take a break. We go back next September and will only do a stroller for our youngest. The older one will be 7. If she can’t walk the park we will take breaks.
 
No stroller. Parks are so much easier when you don't have to back track after all of the rides to pick it up. I'm am so glad our stroller days are over. I think ds was 4 the last time we used one. He didn't even use it much that trip, maybe in Epcot. The kids will complain, they still do now at 10 and 7 but they just need a little sit down. They'll spot a bench and the RUN to get to it. I don't think they're that tired if they can run ahead to sit in it. ;) Just sit down if you need to. Seriously, it is sooooooooo much easier NOT having that darn stroller!!
 
I vote no stroller. We broke down and rented one when DD was 5 in Epcot, but when she was 6 going on 7 in August, she did just fine. She complains a LOT about walking, still rides the cart when shopping too, so we were ready last trip to rent one again. Lots of mid-day breaks, rides, slower pace, stopped at fountains and water play areas, A/C areas, etc., and we took advantage of the Friendship Boats in World Showcase. Dragging around a stroller, even renting one in the parks, is such a pain. You will feel free, which is nice in the sticky August heat.
 
I have two very fit and very active boys, and at age 6 I would definitely get a stroller. The younger one just did not have the same stamina as the rest of us and would give out before the older kid did, sometimes very suddenly too. Having the stroller allowed us to have a longer day than we otherwise would have had, and helped us avoid meltdowns when the 6-year-old suddenly hit his wall. We brought a smallish umbrella stroller (mac volo with the sunshade removed). We did not use it all the time and would often leave it parked for hours at a time while we walked. It came in handy for hauling all our stuff too. I kind of miss having my cupholder now that we've completely outgrown strollers!
 


We were the crazy family at Disney World this August with a 4-year-old and no stroller, because she’s refused to ride in one since a few months after she turned 3. We did carry her a bit - sometimes because we were in a crowd or needed to move more quickly than she walks, and sometimes because she was hot/tired and wanted to be picked up - but she walked most of the time. (Thankfully she’s light, if she were bigger/heavier carrying her would not have been as feasible.) My 8-year-old walked the whole time without really complaining. We live in New York City though, so both kids walk a lot every day.

On our two previous trips, we had a single City Mini for my younger DD, and the older one rode in it sometimes. At 5, she was a bit tall for it but still fit alright. At 6, she was too tall to really ride comfortably. There’s no way she’d be able to fit in one now at 8, she’s 52” tall.
 
Let the two kids push each other in the stroller for one day. When they complain, tell they no more stroller because you and Dad are tired of pushing it around. Spend the hot time of the day in the pool or water park. Go to the theme park early in the morning for a few hours, then again for dinner.
 
We had my 2.5 yo great nephew and one day we were so sick of dealing with the stroller that my niece left both strollers in the room and wore him all day in the Tula. She commented afterward that she really looks forward to coming back and NOT needing a stroller. Having to park it before getting in line, go back for it after riding, over and over and over again was a real pain. My niece described the stroller as a necessary evil for the toddler set. Touring seems to me to be much easier and faster without the stroller.
 
Pretty sure I'm not taking a stroller for my son, who turns 3 on the trip. May sound crazy, but he already does 5 miles easily on trips to area attractions (zoo, Six Flags, etc) and we're designing the whole trip around him. So generally 4 hours in the park, return to room for nap, then another 4 hours in the park. Between the 3 adults, we can carry for short bits when needed. Out touring plan minimizes walking, and we're not doing World Showcase at all. It's not for everyone, but it should work for us.
 
For a 5 and 7 yo - no stroller. NOT ONCE has my niece complained about walking at Disney - at age 5, 6, or 7. We typically average 5-9 miles a day. And she's just an average activity kid.
 
We are renting a stroller for my 6-year-old. He is a very active kid, loves to run and play sports, but he is the pokiest walker ever. And I like to walk really fast. The stroller saves us from getting frustrated with each other. I also like having the stroller storage. He hasn’t ridden in a stroller at home since he was 2, but it makes us all happier at WDW.
 
The last time we used a stroller mine were 7 and 5, but instead of renting a double we rented two single strollers. This was 100x easier! While it meant two people had to push, it also meant we only had to push half the weight. We also made them walk a lot more and left the strollers parked for longer periods. That said, just TWO months after that trip we took them both to DL in California and did NOT rent a stroller. It felt like almost as much walking as WDW because we were also walking back/forth from our hotel, but they did really well. Yes, they were tired at the end of the day and might have wanted a stroller, but they did fine. **One downside to not having the stroller is that Mom/Dad/Grandma lose the "shopping cart." I used the stroller to hold a lot of our stuff, so I had to pare down what we took into the parks and be more conscious of what/when we purchased since I would have to carry it.**

This year when we did WDW we didn't get strollers (8 and 6), but I did splurge and get them each a Camelbak backpack so they had their own water and snacks. They LOVED it. I even prepared them that they'd be walking more and since we didn't have the stroller to store things in they would be responsible for their packs (Mom isn't carrying water for 3 people!)...and no one else would carry it for them if they got tired. NOT ONE complaint. In hindsight, I probably could have done the Camelbak thing last year (7 and 5) and just cut our days short if/when they got tired.
 
Umm... have you asked them if they'd use it? I can't imagine an 8 year old would want to be seen in a stroller or have photographs of him or her in one. I used to teach 4th grade (so 9 year olds) and I can just imagine the teasing that would occur if they heard that someone was still using a stroller. 5 or 6 would be pushing it assuming a normal, healthy child. I get that every family is different but if you go at their pace rather than pushing them, I'd think you'd be fine.
 
Very little downside to having one IMO. I like not having to worry about losing my child when the park is packed, because I always know she is in the stroller! It's also a life saver at the end of the night when she is totally bagged. She is too heavy for me to carry her out of the park.
 
Umm... have you asked them if they'd use it? I can't imagine an 8 year old would want to be seen in a stroller or have photographs of him or her in one. I used to teach 4th grade (so 9 year olds) and I can just imagine the teasing that would occur if they heard that someone was still using a stroller. 5 or 6 would be pushing it assuming a normal, healthy child. I get that every family is different but if you go at their pace rather than pushing them, I'd think you'd be fine.

I don't think most 8 year olds would care about being in a stroller, if they were tired and didn't want to walk anymore. They certainly are not as worried about image as adults are.
 
Our family believes in strollers for all day festivals and disneyworld. 5 year old son mostly uses the stroller. My petite 9 year old is a competitive gymnast and still fits in our bumbleride indie and asks to take breaks in it. My husband just prefers pushing them around than having to carry my son or stop to take breaks. We take midday breaks but it sometimes is still exhausting, even for us grown folks.
 
Our last trip our kids were 2, 4, 5, and 7 and we brought a double stroller for the younger 2. The 5 and 7 year olds were really fine. Just one day it was particularly warm and my oldest (who is on the autism spectrum) got really hot and overstimulated, so he climbed in the stroller and pulled the shade down all the way over himself for a while to take a break. Other than that, they were good to go.

I think a lot of it depends on the kid. My 2 year old refused to sit in the stroller almost the entire trip. But my 4 year old refused to walk at ALL. When we go for hikes in the woods, my 4 year old is whining and exhausted pretty much immediately and my 2 year old is like the energizer bunny.

Next trip they will be almost 4, almost 6, 7 and 9 and we'll probably bring just a single stroller and they can take turns.
 

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