Stroller questions: Bringing your own a hassle or handy?

[englishteacha]

We have two lightweight strollers. We're going to Disney next year (I hope!) and my husband and I are at odds over bringing a stroller vs. getting one in Florida. He thinks it will be a hassle to have our own. I think it would make perfect sense to bring our own, as well as being much cheaper. We could use it in the airport and gate check it.

He thinks we should buy a cheap one and have it shipped to our hotel and then just give it away when we head home. He thinks "we" would be fine with a cheap umbrella stroller, but I know he will hate pushing one because it would be too short, and there's no basket which he will also hate. So the cheap umbrella stroller becomes a $50 Kolcraft Cloud stroller (The cheapest stroller we'd be happy with...as I know because we have an older version and we love it. We also have a First Years Ignite). Still cheaper than renting, but we have 2 perfectly good strollers at home!

So, what thoughts does the Dis-mind have on the bringing a stroller debate in the EnglishTeacha house?

 

[MunchkinSweetPea]

Bring the ignite but get a sunshade extender for added coverage from the FL sun. If he doesn't want to be bothered with it at gate check or throughout the airport, you push. Then make him push for the entire remainder of the trip! Lol just kidding

 

[Mousemommy1]

We have a City Mini and we brought it with us. We already travel with a lot of stuff, so that is just one,ore thing, lol.

 

[StirlingSilver83]

I have an expensive jogging stroller that I take literally everywhere. Its very handy and a lot can fit in it. That being said it is extremely bulky. `When my older son started school this week we went back with all the plaground equipment closed down so now i have to put the 2yr old in the stroller to contain him while I wait for my older son to come out. Anyways my stroller is a real PIA to put up and take down because its so bulky. So yesterday I went to walmart and found this stroller http://www.walmart.com/ip/Kolcraft-Cloud-Umbrella-Stroller-Black/38542557 Its like a deluxe umbrella stroller and its super lightweight and has a nice visor on it too. I cant wait to use it on tuesday at pick up. If your husband is set on buying something and having it shipped I would vote for that. Its also cheaper than renting a stroller too.

 

[party-of-five]

I'm with your DH on this one, or rent one if you think you'll need more room. We've had 2 strollers ruined by gate checking - and yes, they were in sturdy travel bags. Maybe just bad luck on our part, but it wasn't fun both times to arrive in Orlando with kids, bags, and an unusable stroller with a broken wheel.

 

[khertz]

We like bringing ours, mostly to use in the airport! We are renting for the first time on our upcoming trip only because we need a double and don't need to buy one to use at home. We are still planning to bring our umbrella stroller to use for DS in the airport (DD will be in a carrier). It's nice to not have to keep track of DS by holding his hand while trying to get all our stuff through the airport.

 

[mzsarah10]

We always take ours. We use it at the airport. You never know when you are going to have the last gate and its so much easier getting there with our LO in a stroller fathering than walking.

 

[Soon2beMrs.]

We always bring ours because we can use it in the airport and its familiar to the kids.

 

[kboo]

We have a Maclaren Volo that is pretty sturdy. It's been gate checked on numerous trips and it's been SO useful in the airport. Even though DD now mostly walks, we use it to shlep all our carry ons (3) and food bags if we buy food to bring on the plane.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

If you think you need one in the airport, bring your own. It is quite a pain though. I always hated folding it up and putting through security and then waiting for it at gate check. We rented strollers for years and, while it added a little to our costs, it was so convenient to just pick it up at bell services and drop it off when we were done!

 

[Jess_S]

For me, whether to bring your stroller or not would depend on a couple of things.

1) Are you bringing a car seat for use on the plane? If so, having a stroller with you at the airport is handy because you can stick the car seat on top and push the two. Schlepping a car seat by itself is very awkward.

2) Are you going anywhere that you can't take a Disney rental stroller? If so, how likely is it that your kid will want to be carried? There's really no way I'm going to carry my son around for any extended period in 90 degree weather, so this is a big deal for me.

3) How tight is your budget? For us, the stroller rental money would have come right out of our food and drink budget. I would rather the inconvenience of taking the stroller on the plane if it means I can have another nice meal or a few more cocktails.

 

[tigger21475]

I would rent one. For the last 2 times we have gone down we have rented one from Kingdom Strollers. Last time we went we brought our stroller from home for the airport and gate checked. We then just put that at luggage services until we left. We rented a double stroller. Super nice!! At the time we had a 2yr 7yr, 9yr and a 12yr. Even the 12 wanted to sit in it. It was the best $75 I spent.

The plus side of renting one from an outside service is that you can take it with you where ever you are. Park strollers have to stay in the park. The strollers are left a Luggage services if you stay on property. They are clean are are super easy to fold.

 

[Wineorella]

I'm so on the fence of what to do. I have a 3 year old and a 16 month old. I love my City Select stroller, but I think it will be so cumbersome at the airport and on Disney transportation. I'm thinking of just bringing a cheap double umbrella stroller. Anyone have any regrets leaving their good stroller at home?

 

[Capang]

Depends on how you travel. I'd you need one in the airport take the strollers you own if they are easy to fold up. They are also handy at some of the resorts. Depending on where you stay you may want a stroller to get from check in to your room. We used our own and we don't regret it. But we didn't see it as a hassle to fold it up or gate check it or sit with it on a bus.

 

[PurpleKomodo]

We also rented one from an outside company (Orlando Stroller) last trip and it was great! Although, we drove and had limited space in the car, which played a large role in the decision. But, I am glad we rented instead of bringing since the City Mini we rented was actually nicer, easier to fold, and had a better sun shade than the stroller we use at home. Plus they threw in a rain cover which we definitely used and didn't have one for our own stroller. In the grand scheme of Disney it was not that much extra cost and it was nice and convenient.

 

[quagmire0]

I'm assuming you only have one child? If that's the case, rent. On our previous two trips to Disney we had 2 kids and 3 kids, respectively. And they were of the age where we needed that stroller for the airports. I will say that the nice thing about the rental strollers (Got ours from Kingdom) is that they are REALLY nice and easy to push/move/maneuver. Even when we had a double on our last trip and a 6yo and 3yo in it, I was able to move it pretty easily. I shudder at the thought of pushing some rinky-dink stroller.

Having said all that, I really don't think that bringing a stroller is THAT big of a hassle, especially if you only have one kid. Just make sure everything is ready to be pulled out when you get to security. Then, when you get to the gate you get a tag for it and drop it off before you get into the plane. It's there when you get off. We'll be going with 4 kids in June! The oldest two are probably too big for the stroller, so we'll likely just bring a smaller stroller with us for the youngest at the airport and then rent a double for the parks.

 

[22Tink]

We always brought our own. Super easy to gate check at the airport, and so handy to have for walking through the airports!

 

[Crystal824]

I have both rented and taken our own. I didn't find it to be more of a hassle taking our own. We gate checked it. It was actually helpful in the airport to corral the kids. We also hung a lot of bags on it as we headed toward Magical Express.

 

[LuvMyEAR]

On our first trip with 3 grandchildren under 5, we opted to purchase inexpensive Walmart strollers. Not the cheapest one, but still very reasonable. Also had a transport chair to be gate checked, for my mother so we figured we had enough in tow. We planned to leave the Walmart strollers behind in our rental house, but my daughters loved them so much they took them home, AND brought them along on subsequent trips. The strollers weren't fancy but the shades were adequate and we could hang bags on the handles for supples. It was much cheaper than renting, and considering that they were used for a second, and eventually passed along to new babies in the family, they were worth their weight in gold.

The other bonus was that we viewed them as "disposable" so had they been lost or damaged in transit, we wouldn't Be even a little bit stressed.

 

[SweetMissy]

We rent one, either from magic strollers or kingdom strollers. I babywear when they're little, so I don't even own a stroller other than an umbrella stroller....which isn't the best at Disney. So much easier....one less thing to pack and/or check at the airport.