I will be honest, this is my favorite approach. The key here is that you need to have selected a stroller that works well for traveling and fits within Disney’s guidelines – check out my previous posts on features and suggestions! What’s great about this option is that you can have your stroller with you at every point of your journey. This is especially handy when you are wrangling multiple children, suitcases, and bags all while navigating crowded airports, hotels, and parks. 

If you are flying, strollers fly for free! While you can check it as baggage, I recommend utilizing Gate Check for strollers. This will ensure that your stroller is brought back to you at the gate when you arrive at your destination – which is ideal when flying into Orlando as it is quite a walk from the gates to baggage claim. Don’t start your Disney vacation with your kids already complaining about how much walking they have to do just in the airport. If you utilize this method, I recommend purchasing a stroller bag to put your stroller in before doing the gate check as airports can be rough on any kind of baggage. Since this is your own stroller from home, you can personalize it in more permanent ways as you prepare for your trip ahead of time. This will help you locate your stroller in the expansive sea of stroller parking and minimize the likelihood of theft. 

There are a few drawbacks to bringing your own stroller from home. At several points during your Walt Disney World stay you will need to carry your stroller – at the airport, on buses, and into your airport transfer vehicle of choice. Beyond lines and select transportation, you will be able to utilize your stroller for almost every moment of your vacation. In some instances, guests have discovered that their stroller has been stolen after leaving it at stroller parking. While this is not a common occurrence, if something happens to your stroller it is your responsibility to fix or replace it.

Disney just updated the design of their park strollers and I will admit that they are super cute! With Mickey and Minnie graphics on the sides, these strollers are sure to make your kids smile.  Features include a wide base to minimize tipping, a low seat that’s easy for kids to climb in and out of on their own, medium-sized canopy to provide some shade, 3-point seatbelt, and a few assorted pockets on the back for storage. Overall, the rental strollers are not stellar. The seat is a hard plastic that is certainly not very comfy, can get hot in the sun, and is in a fixed position that does not recline at all. Additionally, the canopy is small and provides little shade. All of this coupled with the lack of shoulder straps on the seatbelt means that the Disney rental is not fit for infants or smaller children who often need naps. 

Renting sounds so appealing – not having to carry a stroller on transportation, not having to worry about spills or potty accidents, and having a guaranteed replacement if necessary. However, all that appeal comes with some trade-offs.

The biggest drawback to the Disney stroller rental is that you have to pick-up and drop-off at the theme park gates. This can have a huge impact on your day that adds up over the course of your stay. Rentals can only be purchased at the entrance of the parks and then only after you have been admitted through the gates. At park open, long lines will form at the gate and once they start admitting guests people take off quickly to get in line for Starbucks or attractions. When utilizing the Disney rental, your first stop will be for a stroller while all the other guests pass you by. It doesn’t get better at the end of your day either. If your kid falls asleep in the stroller after the fireworks, you will have to wake your child up to walk or carry them from the gate all the way to your transportation. Yeah, that’s not pleasant and can be an extremely long trek. Even if you are planning to hop from one park to another, the Disney rental stroller has to be turned in before you leave and cannot be taken with you beyond the gates. (The good news is that the daily rental fee covers stroller use at all of the parks – just be sure to keep your receipt.) All of this eats into your day and occupies time when you could be doing other things in addition to also tiring out your already exhausted kids.

When locating your Disney rental stroller, it will look like all the other park rentals in a sea of stroller parking. Plus, these strollers do not come with a rain cover. Personalizing it for ease of location or covering the stroller due to inclement weather are much trickier tasks to undertake when renting from Disney. 

If you find the idea of bringing your stroller to the airport to be a hassle, if you’ve already gotten rid of it as your kids grew, or if your stroller at home is too bulky, too trim, or doesn’t meet your needs for the parks, consider renting from a third-party service. These strollers will be yours for your stay, meaning you can take them to your room and the parks as you want without the need for pick-up and drop-off each day.

Third Party rentals are delivered to your hotel, whether it’s a Disney resort or not. You will be able to utilize this rental through almost the entirety of your stay except for the airport portion. Strollers can be a costly investment, especially when upgrading to a double model. Renting from a third party company is a great way to test-drive various options to see which ones work best for your family before diving into the purchase. These rentals include a rain cover and you are able to select a specific model type.

With numerous stores in the Walt Disney World area, grabbing a stroller is easy enough to do – especially if you are not looking for something specific or fancy. However, retailers may not have a large selection available or the specific type you are looking for. Even if you check online ahead of time, with thousands of visitors arriving in Orlando each day you should expect that inventory will change rapidly. Once you arrive, you will need to coordinate either a delivery to your resort or a stop to the store. Shopping beyond the parks when you have a rental car is fairly simple, but if you plan to rely on Disney’s transportation it is near impossible. Rideshare options are available in the area, but if you have not brought a car seat with you there is an added layer of complexity. In the end, between the inventory concerns and the process to obtain the purchase, this option adds unnecessary stress to your vacation.

The freecycle concept at Disney is one of my favorite things – it’s kind to both people and the planet. Guests who have items they no longer need can offer those things to others at no charge. This can include anything from unopened snacks and beverages to balloons and bubble wands. Yes, you may even be able to find a stroller! However, the items found in the freecycle groups are constantly changing and you are limited to what people have to offer. A stroller could make its way through ten families or simply just two before someone decides to take it home with them. Typically, when you claim a stroller through freecycle, you pass it on to someone else at the end of your journey but it is not required. Relying on this option could certainly be a cost savings, but it’s also a gamble. Coordinating pick-up may be tricky as the stroller offered may not be located at the same resort where you are staying. The magic of generosity is amazing – pass it on if you go this route!

Final Thoughts

As you determine which of these to try, rest assured that each one of these stroller options has single and double offerings. And remember, if you have an infant you will not be able to utilize the Disney parks stroller rental. 

Overall, I find the “bring your own” option to be the most cost effective and family friendly choice. Your stroller is one that you and your family are already familiar with and something you can utilize for many vacations to come. If you don’t already have a stroller or aren’t ready to commit to one yet, my recommendation would be for Third Party Rental. Whichever you choose, having a stroller for every step of your Disney adventure allows you to focus on all the other magical moments of your vacation and keeps your little ones from tiring out too quickly.

— Jennelle