Stroller advice

[Disneye]

We’re going to Disney staying onsite next week with a 3 month old (wish me luck). We have a large uppababy vista which is great but big. We also have a smaller minu which is really portable but probably not as comfortable for her.

Total dilemma which one to take. Would love the vista but it takes up a lot of room and also very expensive.

Does anyone have any experience of taking a large pram? Is it a total pain? I’m thinking the smaller one that folds much smaller and is much lighter is the most sensible but I know she sleeps well in the large one.

We’ve ordered a standard SUV so hopefully plenty of room. The issue is going to be the buses and navigating around the parks.

[KRBarnard]

I wouldn't worry about getting around with the big pram, people take double buggies and those massive ECV's everywhere, and we saw a number of the bariatric wheelchairs last time too and nobody seemed to have a problem.
There is loads of Stroller parking and you see all types of buggies parked up. You do need to be able to collapse it for the bus.

All I would say is, they do get manhandled a little bit by airline staff and it could pick up a couple of scratches when they are put in the hold and then unloaded for the flight. If you would be devastated if that happened, don't take it. If you wouldn't be too upset then I'd take what you think baby is most comfortable in.

[Woohoobb]

We’ve just arrived with our twin 4 month olds and buy a holiday pushchair for this very reason. I love cosatto as it stands out from all the black/blue strollers and they have some epic Black Friday deals on right now. They lie flat really well and have great hoods. My 3 year old still uses her ‘holiday’ pushchair and it’s been transatlantic around 6 times and still in great nick!
Good luck!

[Donz23]

Tricky one as like you say she sleeps really well in the Vista.
We have a Vista but did not take it to Florida - we bought a 2nd hand Baby Jogger City Mini and our then 9 month old loved it, was very comfortable and napped really well.
The issue you have with the vista is it being a travel system so a separate bassinet/seat and then the frame itself to collapse. If you are using buses/trams it could end up being very fiddly holding the baby and bags and then having 2 parts to the buggy.
Which ever you decide we bought a sturdy stroller travel bag and packed nappies into the bag with the stroller to give it a bit of 'cushioning' for the flight. This seemed to work well.

Also you mentioned you are hiring a car - if you are taking your car seat we also bought a travel bag for that and bubble wrapped the life out of it at the airport before putting it in the bag - worked a treat.

[ely3857]

I second the Baby Jogger City Mini (we had the GT version which is slightly larger). Easy to fold (can do one handed), lovely to push and lies flat. Has a massive hood for shade but when laid flat has a vent to prevent over heating.

Downside is loads have them (which is evidence how good they are!) so mark yours our or get one that isn’t black and orange which seems to be the most popular colour in the parks!

[Caroian]

The biggest problem with the Uppa Baby is that - if I recall correctly - it does not fold in one piece. Getting on and off buses - if you are planning to use them - could easily turn in to a nightmare. If you have a sleeping baby that you need to lift and hold, and then separate the parts and get them all on to the bus, it could quickly get stressful. (In fact, with a three month old - and especially at the moment whilst it's not blisteringly hot - I'd probably plan to use a sling as much as possible if only for the reason of not having to lift a sleeping baby out of a pram!)

There is a reason that the Baby Jogger City Mini is so ubiquitous in Florida - it works well in terms of ease of folding and carrying whilst folded, has a good hood etc.) All of the Orlando based hire companies have this as one of their most popular models because it works well in the parks.

[Ivegottadream]

I'd also recommend the baby jogger city mini GT. When staying onsite all pushchairs must be folded on the Disney buses before they will drive off and the GT is so simple to fold.

[KRBarnard]

I agree the Cosatto we bought as a holiday pram was great in Disney. The patterns are bold and bright and it was easy to spot a mile away. Our little one loved his as it lays flat and the hood is really big and comes all the way over. Two step click system and it's flat in seconds and has a carry handle on the side. Amazon have them on a special deal for Black Friday at the moment and they are a bargain at £99!

amazon/dp/B0811PW1..._Vj62DbGHM1M2K

[Disneye]

Thanks everyone for the replies. I generally agree that a compact pram is ideal and I welcome the suggestions. My fear is that the little one is just a bit too young and has suffered with bad reflux so I don’t want to get a new pram, get there and find out she can’t settle in it well. If she was a month or two older the decision would be easier.

Our plan is to take the vista, it does fold as one piece but is quite heavy. I don’t think we’ll be using buses too often anyway (definitely a benefit of the yacht club).

We booked the trip over a year ago after a bit of bad news and now we have a 3 month old we realise this won’t be the same kind of trip as when we went just the 2 of us! Keeping the baby happy and settled will be a bit of a priority so her familiar pram will help with that.

Thankfully uppababy do a travel bag which essentially acts as an insurance policy against baggage handling mishaps.

With regards to security I assume stroller locks aren’t allowed? I’m going to try and make it stand out and am considering a tile device if anyone has any experience of these?

[ely3857]

Stroller locks aren’t allowed as CM’s often move strollers left in the parking area in order to keep it compact and neat.