Alright, I'm back. And I've got a small stack of Disney Cruise-related posts to get to, but last things first: we tacked a visit to Disney World onto the [wrong] end of our trip. Despite having once worked for The Mouse, I have not been to a Disney park in like 30 years. Holy smokes, the humanity. The fat, lumbering, sunburned, t-shirted, madeover & beglittered humanity.
Apparently people wandering around gnawing on massive turkey legs straight out of the Flintstones is considered a sign of progress for civilization? I have no idea. Except that it made this sprawling stroller parking lot outside the Pirates of the Caribbean only the second most stunning sight in Adventureland.
Which turned out to be a stroll in the park compared to Fantasyland. Not only does Fantasyland have 100% fewer trees than Adventureland, it has 200% more strollers. This is one of two sprawls that bracket Small World [way less interesting than I remember] and the truly, deeply crappy Peter Pan ride.
In case you're keeping score at home, in 10 hours on duty, I spotted four Quinnys, three Phil & Teds, and NO Bugaboos or Stokkes. But ONE Orbit. Clearly, the international strollerscenti were all at Epcot.
here in LA there are special movie screenings for new parents (monday morning mommy movies.) the first time i went i counted over $40,000 worth of brand new strollers parked in the lobby. it definitely made me ashamed of my stupidly expensive cameleon.
Nobody would bring their Bugaboo or Stokke to Disney- it could get stolen :gasp:!
I'm having sticker shock with strollers. The stroller we are looking at for our expected child costs more than my first car. We even bought our new car with the size of a new stroller as the benchmark.
I think $300 is totally worth it. More than that and I fail to see how it transcends being a cart for an infant and becomes a life sustaining baby pod with a price tag of $700. Out of hand perhaps?
When we went last year I saw lots and lots of Baby Jogger City Minis, Phil & Teds in abundance (with obligatory slumbering baby in rear seat), 2 Quinnys (one of which was ours) and one very, very brave (or foolish) person pushing a Stokke Xplory in white!
To concur with Eliza, I'll snap a few photos for you the next time
I'm at the Santa Monica Sunday farmers market. It's the #1 choice among the Strollerscenti for organic leeks and pony rides.
I'll second the Santa Monica farmer's market. Also take some snaps of the SoCal Metrosexual dad. Its a different species from the European or New York cool dad. The outerwear of choice for SoCal dad is the hoodie. For Euro-dad, the corduroy blazer. For New York dad, I'm not sure...the cotton jacket?
Actually, the Bugaboo Kraken would be an awesome name for a stroller.
We have a P&T and Bug. Bee, but the stroller I use now is a 2003 Maclaren Triumph I got off of craigslist for less than $30. At this stage I feel like the best stroller is light, compact, and I don't care if it gets stolen or destroyed during a plane trip. Now to unload that Bee...
During our Jan. trip to DWorld, we brought our hideously bright green MacLaren -- and promptly had it stolen by someone who mixed ours up with THEIR hideously bright green Mac.
With no help forthcoming from the Mouseketeers ("it will probably turn up at the end of the day..."), we ended up stalking around Adventureland until we found our stroller to steal back. And left their stroller back at the Country Bears, for them to find.
Release the Kraken!
I would love that bee, but here in Oklahoma, it's hard to get to. I've got a Phil and teds smart id love to unload! We took our bugaboo there, at that point I wished it had been taken! And me too!
You say you tacked the Orlando trip onto the wrong end of the cruise vacation--was that the back end? And why was it the wrong end? Doing research for a possible Disney cruise on the next new ship next spring. Thx, dude.
Yeah, I meant the back end. The boat is basically the Disney Experience on crack, distilled and concentrated. With the exception of a couple of the big rides, the park [and the crowds and chaos and lines] felt like an exhausting mess.
I imagine, though, that the slick freshness of the cruise would feel better after an intense day or two at parks. It's only one metric, of course, and it's not one that mattered to us at all, but on the basis of pure character interaction time, the cruise absolutely kills the park.
We went in February and the park was EMPTY. Walked onto nearly every ride. We left our bug at home and rented a double city mini to assimilate with the masses.
We rented a double last year and it was stolen from the parking areas four times within two days, despite the giant sign with our name on it. Who steals strollers at the Happiest Place on Earth? In front of their kids? Grrr.
You'd think that Disney would have developed some sort of stroller share program (like the bike shares in many cities). You pay some flat fee and you can use a stroller to get from one attraction to another and then let the next person have a turn.
We have a cheap double stroller that we use just for Disney. It's an umbrella stroller that we bought for $30 or $40. We bought it, even though our 4 year-old had stopped using hers, because some friends mentioned that their kids get tired, plus they can store their stuff in it as they move around the park. So, even though we only have one child, we bought a double for the luggage. I think we have one more use out of it when we go next month.
The only problem with a stroller share program is where to put your stuff. Having you own stroller, or renting one, gives you a place to keep snacks, souvenirs and other non-valuables while you're in the ride. Plus, you know how (relatively) clean your own stroller is.
We bought one for Disney, too. It's used, but works great for our trips. And I found this site that has used strollers fairly cheap. No bidding - just buy it if you like what you see.