Strolling Around “The World” – Tips for Families with Strollers

“Failing to plan, is planning to fail.” I’m sure you have all heard that line before, and I’m sure most of you painstakingly make plans before your trip to the Walt Disney World Resort—which resort to stay at, Advanced Dining Reservations, and reserving attraction ride times with FastPass+. However, when I’m helping friends plan their Walt Disney World Resort vacations, I notice that they fail to plan on how they’re going to get from place to place. To many, planning your mode of transportation may not seem like a big deal, but if you are going to be pushing a stroller, taking your transportation plans into account is a MUST!

My princesses in their “Royal Carriage”

When en route from one destination to the next, the less I have to take my children out of their stroller and put them back in, the better. No one wants to wake their child who is exhausted from too much Mickey and risk an epic meltdown. Taking that into consideration, navigating Walt Disney World Resort with a stroller is not always an easy task. I am including some tips and tricks that I’ve discovered (mostly through trial and error) that have made our trips much easier:

My stroller “Sleeping Beauties”

• If you can, avoid taking buses or boats. Both the buses and boats (except the Magic Kingdom Ferry Boats) will require that, for safety reasons, your stroller be folded up before being allowed to board.  Even if your child is sleeping in the stroller, you will still be required to remove them.  After boarding the bus, you will have to stay with your stroller to make sure that is does not shift or fall during travel and accidentally injure another passenger.  Holding the stroller as well as my two young children would be impossible for me to do on my own, and is sometimes a challenge for my husband and I together depending on how crowded the bus is.  I’ve seen many guests surprised by these regulations and become frustrated. Also, they hold up the boarding process for other guests in the process while they figure out how to board the bus.  Taking a bus or boat cannot be avoided in many cases depending on your resort accommodations or your time limitations; just be aware of these rules and have a plan for how you’re going to handle boarding the bus with your stroller and your children.

Strolling around Epcot World Showcase

• Request a ground floor room, if possible. Some of the resorts on property do not have elevators to the upper floors–you’ll have to fold up your stroller and carry it up the flights of stairs.
• Use the monorail. You are not required to fold up your stroller when riding the monorails on Walt Disney World property, which makes it our favorite mode of transportation.  It is so easy to walk to the monorail platform and then be whisked away straight to the Magic Kingdom or Epcot, and never have to deal with taking the kids out and folding up the stroller.
• If you have a car, drive to your destination. Since my family lives relatively close to Walt Disney World Resort, we travel down in our own car. I know others sometimes opt to rent a car during their stay. For us, driving our car to the park we’re visiting is very convenient.  If you are an Annual Passholder or staying at a resort on Walt Disney World property, then parking at the parks is free for you!
• There is one exception to my “No Bus” rule, and that is when traveling to Downtown Disney. With much of Downtown Disney being converted into Disney Springs at this time, parking is very limited. In this instance, it might be more convenient to take a bus than to deal with the traffic congestion and parking headaches in that area.

These are tricks that I have picked up during my travels around “The World” since becoming a double stroller wielding parent. I hope they are helpful as you plan your travels and consider the rules and regulations of Walt Disney World transportation.  Happy Strolling!!