What age to stop taking a buggy on holiday?

[LivvyA9]

We are going to Majorca at the beginning of June with DD who has just turned four. I am torn wether or not I should take a buggy for her. She still has a buggy and we keep it in the car and use it for days out or when she’s a bit tired and we need to get somewhere quickly. We haven’t been on holiday with her before so I am not sure what she will be like in terms of the heat and the long days.

I am hoping that we can get her settled in the buggy in the evenings if she is tired so we aren’t stuck in the villa. Worst case of scenario I can just use it as storage for the beach bag.

Would be interested to hear what others have done in the past, AIBU?

By three my child was 100% refusing to even get in the buggy and definitely wouldn't nap in it. I'd be surprised if a 4 year old would nap in a buggy unless they were incredibly placid.

I think depends on the holiday actually. Where are you staying? You said villa. Many are a mile or so from pollensa. When we did this she was fine to walk a bit but to and from town was beyond her and you wouldn’t want to have driven if you could avoid it.

My daughter is 5 and we have taken it for every holiday (about 20 at this point). We walk 20-30k steps a day so it is just not doable for her otherwise. We have noticed in big cities like London and NYC it is more common to see 'bigger kids' in prams than other places - guess it is the lack of car ownership which encourages it.

As others have said, it is great for the airport. We have a babyzen and take it on the plane with us so she has it during security queues etc. god send when we waited an hour at 11pm!

For the people saying a kid in a pram at 4 is babying her - I assume they have a car and drive everywhere. There is a difference between a kid walking from car to nursery or car to shopping mall/play park than one who has to walk to and from these places as well as the actual activity. Not to mention all kids are different...

Take the buggy!

I wouldn’t normally take one for a 4YO. At that age we managed to nudge DD onto a a schedule of staying up later and sleeping in later, which was nicer for us as no early starts and she was pleasant company at dinner, unlike when they’re toddlers and you can’t properly relax until they’re asleep. The last thing I would want was her crashing out at 7pm and then one of us having to get up with at 6 every day (her normal schedule at home at that age). Obviously there are exceptions e.g. if you’re going to somewhere like Disney where she’d need to walk miles, or if it’s a long haul connecting flight where she’d have to trek through an airport when her body clock thinks it’s the middle of the night.

For the people saying a kid in a pram at 4 is babying her - I assume they have a car and drive everywhere.

Or their children have learnt to walk a lot because they aren't in the car all the time?
I wasn't the person who said it was babying but we have had our DD1 out of a pram since she was just under 3. DH isn't allowed to drive due to a medical condition so she is just used to walking a lot, plus when DD2 was born our car doesn't fit two prams so DD1 just had to walk if we ever went out for the day. I took DD1 to London for the day a few months ago (she was just over 3.5) and I did 25k steps and she walked the whole time just as much as me. And then when we got home immediately ran out onto the garden to play. So I don't think it's fair to assume that people who don't use prams just don't walk.

I also don't think it's fair that people called it babying though, and I don't think OP is unreasonable to take the pram on holiday.

Yes. I just took for my 3 year old travelling.

At home he rarely uses now, but it’s different travelling. At home
very few people take their 3/4/5 year olds for long boring walks at 4am (airport), or stay up late or arrive home late so often.

We took a buggy on holidays abroad for DS until just after he was 5 - it's probably different now but we were able to use it right up until we boarded the aircraft so getting through security etc was quicker and as others have said, children can get tired in the heat. I can remember us going to Porec in Croatia the summer after DS turned 5 and us going for a long walk through the trees along the rocky coastline, also just going out in the evening - made things so much easier.

To add - we stopped using at home a couple of years before this .

I would take it, airports involve a lot walking, be much easier with a buggy, if your DD is tired, wants to nap etc.

It REALLY depends on the child. We got rid of DD's at 18 months because she hated it, walked everywhere and was just very very independent and big for her age. And never complained.

But if I'd had her cousin, who was much smaller, less of a walker and slept in it, I would absolutely have used it.

@LivvyA9 my child hasn’t been in a buggy since six months old, they crawl everywhere. Don’t want a lazy baby now do we! 😁
Competitive mumsnet madness has reared its head I see.
Make your life easier OP and have a lovely holiday.

I’ve just bought a cheap umbrella one to take on holiday. DD is 4 in Sept. Hasn’t used her pushchair at home since the winter but she is a terrible walker and we want to do some days out on holiday.
I don’t know how much we will use it but I got one that went up to 22kg so it can be used for a good while yet (she is 16kg now).

Take it!!!! It will be invaluable. Kids often can't manage eslkibg around as much in tge sun/heat as they normally do at home. Very handy for afternoon nap given heat, great for shade if required.

Thanks everyone, the villa is quite far from everything so I think it will be worth taking one- if she doesn’t want to go in it then we can just load the backs into it or leave it in the villa. I would rather have it and not need it than regret not taking it