Stroller Age limit

[Our2Girls&Disney]

I am in the early stages of planning our Disney Vacation and I have a silly question to ask. I have an 8 year old daughter and I think all of that walking in the hot sun will tire her out. Since, I don't want to give her a piggy back through the park, I thought about buying one of those umbrella strollers just in case it is needed. Does anyone use a rule of thumb for the age limit on bringing strollers to the park or will she look plain old silly sitting in one of those strollers?

 

[staci]

Well I know most umbrella strollers have a weight limit on them that your daughter would likely exceed; idk how easy it would be to push over the weight limit. Im thinking it is about 40 lbs or somewhere around there? I know there are some strollers that will hold up to 50 lbs.

I would think that if you need something for an 8 year old the best route to go would be to rent a WDW stroller. They are really designed better. I have heard that they are very easy to push even with a older child. They are wider than an umbrella too.

Hope that helps you!

 

[utahkennedys]

My Maclaren Volo will hold a child up to 55 pounds. I couldn't live w/out this stroller at home, but especially at WDW. Not sure how much your 8 year old weighs, but maybe it will work. The "cheap" umbrella strollers would never cut it.

 

[OurDogCisco]

I agree the parks can be a bare on your 8 year old. We took our 7 1/2 year old last May and the parks really tired her out. We took her out of school for a week and she was so exhausted from the trip that she could barely do her homework and we were taking a lot of breaks. Unfortunately, I think that is what did her in because we would go to the parks in the morning then, come back in the afternoon for a nap and swimming then, back to the parks for the evening. It just wiped her out. I think next time we'll take full day breaks. Go to the parks every other day. All that back and forth just killed her. We did put her in my youngest dd stroller that holds up to 50 lbs and you could tell it could barely support her. GL...

Tina

 

[Schmeck]

I'd plan on renting, otherwise you could end up lugging an unused stroller around all day! Or, you could waste so much time during the day fetching the stroller after each attraction. Of course, if you did end up having to rent one you'd be fetching that one too, but if you planned to do early mornings and got a lot of rides out of the way, and rented a stroller for late afternoon/evening, you'd probably get a lot more done!

 

[eeyoreiscool]

During our last trip, we saw what looked to be an adult curled up in a rented two person stroller. From what I can tell, people don't seem to worry about how you look and if it makes your life easier then definately use a stroller. The park strollers seem sturdy enough for older kids.

 

[crisi]

My seven year old looked silly. The only reason he was in the stroller was because my six year old had one and we rented a double.

I'd recommend renting, and figuring out where you need the stroller. My six year old is not a great walker and can be a little whiney, but did great at the MK strollerless. We really needed it for long days and in Epcot. There were a few times where we were late for PSs that having the stroller was really nice. There were lots of time it was really more of a pain than it was worth.

The MGM rentals are bad for older kids.

 

[susykt4]

We stayed at POR and needed the strollers just as much to get around the resort as we needed them in the parks! I took DD5 to MGM one afternoon mainly just for character greets and she was fine walking all over that park but really appreciated a stroller everywhere else. She was just over 40 pounds and pushing the cheap umbrella stroller was no problem but she was really too big for it. We're going to attempt the umbrella strollers one last time for our January trip but I can't imagine using them when my daughter is any bigger. I think keeping both kids (dd5 and ds3) in strollers as much as possible kept them soooo much happier and we accomplished a ton in 5 park days.

 

[robinb]

My 6 year old does fine at the parks during the day, but uses a stroller at night. She usually passes out in it!

 

[In a hurry]

I'd plan on renting, otherwise you could end up lugging an unused stroller around all day! Or, you could waste so much time during the day fetching the stroller after each attraction. Of course, if you did end up having to rent one you'd be fetching that one too, but if you planned to do early mornings and got a lot of rides out of the way, and rented a stroller for late afternoon/evening, you'd probably get a lot more done!

We rented at Epcot, which my 6 year old daughter doesn't find quite as entertaining, and is a long walk to boot. She did fine in the other parks, so I was glad we hadn't lugged our down and around.

 

[Brina]

My 5.5 year olds did great in the parks without a stroller. We stuck to their typical bedtime, got up when they woke naturally, and took a break for a few hours each day. They were troopers. I had talked about getting a stroller for the big parks like Epcot, but they never needed it.

 

[FourFlans]

Just back from a week at WDW with DDs 8 & 5. I rented a double stroller every day!

Some of the time the stroller was packed with my daypack, ponchos, etc. while the kids walked and played. Other times both girls were sacked out in the stroller!

I found it much easier to have it available. And I noticed many other families doing the same thing. DD8 did no look silly and appreciated having a place to sit and rest, especially in the evenings when we parked to watch parades!

All in all, I'd go with the rental. They are easy to push and it's worth having it just to cut down on the whining.

And who cares what other people think?

 

[JenDaveBrendan]

We brought the cheap umbrella stroller last year when DS was 4 1/2... do you think he would look ridiculous in it this year at 5 1/2 yrs old, about 45" and roughly 50 lbs??? (he has gained about 10 lbs. and 3" from last year) I know he will need a stroller at WDW, since he tends to complain and wants to be carried/put on DH's shoulders if he is tired (he is just too heavy to carry around in WDW). Would I be better off renting a stroller or just bringing the umbrella again? I would like to avoid paying to rent the stroller, but I don't want to get funny looks either....although, who cares what others think right?!?!?!!
He NEVER uses a stroller, hasn't for about 2+ years, but at WDW it is a different story....he poops out.

 

[sskem96]

We ended up renting a double stroller for my girls last April. They were 5 and 8 at the time and weighed about 60 and 75 pounds. The jogger type strollers at MGM were the best because they could sit up right in them and they had a foot rest that allowed their legs to hang down and their feet to rest in a normal position. The double strollers at the other parks are more for a kid with short legs or a kid to sit indian style in. They were very cramped, but probably would have been ok if there was only one of them riding. We generally parked the stroller in one "land" or area of the park depending on what park we were in, rode all the rides and saw all the attractions in that area, then the kids rode while we went to the next section. We never would have seen everything we did if we had walked at their pace the whole time. After spending a day with them walking at AK and not getting to see much, we decided the stroller money rental would definitely be worth it and it was.

 

[scrappinmom]

When we went in October....I rented a double every day....not only did it hold my backpack, but my 2 girls were 11 and 6 and THEY both sat in it at some point....Especially at Epcot! Mommy wanted to "drink around the world" they were pooped...but perfectly happy to sit in the stroller & people watch with an occasional treat!

 

[alisonbestford]

We bought a stroller at Winn Dixie ($20) on our last visit when DD was 6 and weighed 50 Ilbs
She insisted that it came home with us to the UK, and we took it on our last vacation to Turkey, where it held out well too
DD rarely sits in it but it's great for parking bags etc so it will be definitely accompanying us on our Easter trip (when DD will be just turned 7) .......

 

[liamsaunt]

Another vote for renting the Disney strollers. I got one for my 6 year old nephew the night of MVMCP (free) and another night at Epcot when we planned to stay for illuminations ($10). He is 49 inches and 50 lbs (approximately), and I was able to push that stroller using two fingers! The stroller looked like it could hold a taller kid easily. It really worked great for us as he was not worn out and whiny, just sitting back taking it all in from his "throne."

On the other hand, we brought a stroller from home for my four year old niece, who is 40 inches and maybe 35-38 pounds (again approximately), and I thought I was going to break my back pushing her stroller! The Disney strollers are a dream to push--it is worth the cost of rental.

 

[tessqt]

We recently got back and after the first two days of complaining I rented a single stroller the next day for my ds then double for the rest of the trip for my 6.5 ds and 8.5 dd. The strollers in the Animal Kingdom are somewhat different and I had some problems turning with them both in it. I preferred the ones in the MK. My dd is around 70lbs and my ds is around 40lbs.

 

[laughinplace199]

... do you think he would look ridiculous in it this year at 5 1/2 yrs old, about 45" and roughly 50 lbs??? (he has gained about 10 lbs. and 3" from last year) I know he will need a stroller at WDW, since he tends to complain and wants to be carried/put on DH's shoulders if he is tired (he is just too heavy to carry around in WDW). Would I be better off renting a stroller or just bringing the umbrella again? I would like to avoid paying to rent the stroller, but I don't want to get funny looks either....although, who cares what others think right?!?!?!!
He NEVER uses a stroller, hasn't for about 2+ years, but at WDW it is a different story....he poops out.

We used umbrella strollers for DD6 (44" and 42 lbs) and DS4 (41" and 32 lbs.) last week. No one looked at us funny.

 

[RN01]

I think 8 year is is definately too old to be in a stroller. Start a few months ahead of time and have her walk with you a little farther everyday so that she builds up tollerance to walking long distances. She'll probably be so excited to get to the next ride/attraction that she will not care how far she's walked. Good Luck!!