To bring a pushchair for a 5 yo on holiday?

[Fancycrab]

I’m going on holiday with my 5 and a half year old soon. It’s just the two of us, it’s going to be 30+ degrees most days, and some days are going to involve a lot of walking, sometimes in busy, crowded cities. I know this is going to trigger a LOT of whining, crying and constant requests to be carried. And generally make her tired and grumpy. The places we’ll be walking are places I know she’ll love but she’ll hate all the walking in the heat. I still have her old Yoyo buggy, it’s super light and compact. Would I BU to bring it? She’s tall for her age and weighs around 21kg, would it be hard work pushing her? Would she even still fit? (I haven’t tried yet as the buggy’s at my mum’s and I can’t get it back till the day before we go). Any advice much appreciated!

I wouldn't take the buggy especially if she's too big for it. A healthy 5yo can and should be walking - bribery definitely helps so carry haribo, snacks, drinks, and plan regular ice cream stops! And definitely look into public transport if you're in a city, that can feel like a fun adventure in itself.

You know your child and destinations best, but I've always found buggies more of a nuisance in a city. Far easier to just get yourselves onto a bus or metro where possible, and arrange your itinerary to avoid longer walks (at least, given the choice that's what I'd do). Having to haul a buggy up and down the stairs, see if there's space on public transport, find somewhere to store it in every museum and cafe etc. gets tiring in itself.

I took a scooter with one of those leads that you can pull them along with/keep them close with at that age. It worked well.

Personally I wouldn’t. I’d plan the day so you are walking around early - then back to accommodation for a siesta between midday and say 4pm and do rest of activities much later in the day when the sun is low in the sky and stay up til 10pm.

If it makes everyone's life more pleasant and manageable, then go for it! Lots of walking, particularly in the heat, is unlikely to be very practical for a 5 year old.
I can't remember when we finally ditched our pushchair, but it would come on holiday with us, as our son still needed an afternoon snooze till quite old. His older sister would sometimes chill out in it as well some of the time.
We did have a decent size one though, not a lightweight one, as they became too heavy/big for that when younger!!

I think I'd look at the itinerary first - why is it so jam packed if it's just the two of you? Can you slow down a bit and just walk at her pace?

I was super delighted to ditch the buggy (but wouldn't judge anyone using one - you'll just need a different one) but we were happy to move slow, take breaks, have an ice cream stop whenever and just accept we might not see everything in a city in one trip. Our kids did great with one outing and then a park / beach / playground break and then repeat.

I can't imagine putting my 5yo in a pram tbh. He hasn't been in a pram since he was 3 and that was only for a place that has a huge amount of walking. We've been since and he's walked fine.

You can't put a kid in a pram because they whine, they're 5, they whine about everything, my 5yo is currently kicking off in his bedroom because I let him watch a program this morning. Kids whine, that's just life, she'll probably whine and be mardy on holiday whether you take a pram or not. Because she's 5.

Part of going on holiday with young kids is accepting that they're probably going to ruin it abit. Unless you just give in to every demand but they can always find something to kick off about. Parenting young kids is not supposed to be pleasant.

Take the buggy, it’s fine. I’ve seen the poll and I’m not surprised, Mumsnet always seems to have a bias against buggy use beyond 3yo and seems to equate it with overweight, lazy children who do nothing but temper tantrum.

I have travelled extensively with my now 7yo and this is the first year that we haven’t brought something for her to sit and be pushed or pulled a bit in. She is an incredibly active child, runs and cartwheels wherever she goes and interacts with things in the world (hills, artwork, public spaces, puddles, people, if you get my idea). She isn't good at conserving energy to do dull walking from a to b and actually, the fun stuff is what I want to see her engaging in, so we have needed a buggy to give her a rest while out and about.

I have two older children and they didn’t go in a buggy from the age of 3 or 4. Our trips when they were small were tailored around what they could manage but with my youngest, she has had to fit in with what the whole family wants to do. Now I wish I had taken this approach with all of them, ie, facilitating and expecting them to join in with more. Youngest DD has gained a lot from being supported to do more.

Take the buggy, it’s fine. I’ve seen the poll and I’m not surprised, Mumsnet always seems to have a bias against buggy use beyond 3yo and seems to equate it with overweight, lazy children who do nothing but temper tantrum.

from people who drive their kids everywhere and who spend their lives in a car seat not less 😂

A few other points I meant to make.

Despite Mumsnet bias against older buggy use, I have never encountered any negativity towards it out in the world at all, never even noticed a look.

Pushing her was not always comfortable, but always worth the cost. It was better than her running out of steam half way through a day or being fractious for something we knew she’d enjoy if she wasn’t exhausted by walking for an hour in heat.

I’ll be honest, we never checked buggy weight limits, if she could sit in it comfortably, we took it as fine to use. This isn’t like putting a baby in the wrong car seat - she can communicate discomfort and isn’t going to sit there being harmed by it and not say anything. It it had fallen apart, we would have chucked it and bought another. You want it very lightweight and easy to carry in one hand while holding her hand for steps and stairs.

She's five and a half, absolutely shocking that you'd consider using a pram with her imo! Genuinely can't believe that it's something everyone is saying is normal!

Get her a Mini Micro scooter instead. More fun, more age appropriate. Buggies can be horribly sweaty too.

Can you look to get taxis? Walking in heat is fun for no one, I can't imagine pushing a 5 year old around in 30+ heat. We've just got back from Turkey and minimised walking around as much as possible

If it stops the whining sounds worth it. Could you hire one or buy a bigger cheap one where you are stopping?

Would there be a weight restriction?

Definitely take it

I'm a bit shocked at everyone saying they'd be okay with this.

At 5, they should be walking, not being pushed around or needing to be carried, unless there are some additional needs. They're in school at 5!

Get hold of a better one and take it. We took our Maclaren buggy on holiday when one of ours was well over four. and had t used it for ages. We used it to carry snacks, jackets etc all day and when he was tired he got in it. At night I took him to the loo to get a quick clean up and tooth brush, and changed him into his PJs, and then put the buggy back right down and he slept in it - with his feet sticking out. We watched the fireworks with him fast asleep in the buggy while other families were grappling with their overtired kids with no buggy.

At 5yo? Good lord no.
Adapt the itinerary, carry water, take cash for ice creams, refillable bottle for water, stick to the shade, take buses/metro, have siestas.
I never tolerated whinging.

I took my daughter ( just turnt 6 ) on a caravan holiday and we were half a mile from all facilities, I also have a baby and she kept having to sit in the base of the pushchair because her feet were hurting her. We were doing over 10,000 steps a day.

we are due back in a few weeks. I’m thinking of a buggy board. We didn’t have her sibling last previous years and we normally rent a bike or something else but unable too due to her sibling,

Hello,
looking for financial advice,
I have a 2yr old and have not been at work since she was born. I am going back to uni to study and I will hopefully get a paid placement which means I will earn around £600 a month. Over the past two years I haven’t had any income bar my maternity leave which was around £780 and that was very tight with expenses. My partner earns over £100k and we try to be as frugal as possible, buying second hand as much as we can ect.. so far we haven't shared finances if that makes sense. Once my maternity stopped i had some savings which lasted a few months but since that ran out i get £150 a month for my allowance. I will be at uni and placement for 4 days a week and I’ve taken out a student loan that just covers the cost of this. My problem is that my partner wants me to give him a large chunk of my placement money and will stop my allowance when I get paid. Is this fair? I feel like I’ve been living so so frugally and £150 a month barely gets me by as I visit family and the cost of the commute is £100 a month which leaves me with £50 a month. I was really looking forward to having some finances again and being able to save but I feel I will be unable to do this now. For context we dont have major high living costs at all and I don’t get my hair done ect.. I haven’t went to a. Shop to buy myself something new for years now and I feel he has so much more freedom than I do. He goes on foreign holidays with his family and trips with friends. I feel like when he will spend money it performative as in he gave me money towards getting my hair done for his friends wedding and to take me out for a nice meal once a year for our anniversary, but that’s really it. He did pay for a holiday this year but that was something he wanted to do rather than myself, last year we had a very cheap holiday booked for somewhere I was desperate to see and he cancelled it last minute. I just feel that I’m not treated as an equal. I’m at home doing all the cooking, cleaning, childcare… now I’m paying for the childcare and will still have to study, keep up with house work and cooking whilst still having very limited finances.
I feel that as I am taking care of the childcare costs he could not have to ask for part of my placement money. Is this fair?

Some places are not good for buggies and it can be a huge pain storing them and taking them on a train (or plane I assume). I'd look at adapting your plans slightly, find games to play as you walk, definitely lots of ice cream stops, and try public transport too - my daughter loves doing that!

Whatever you choose, hope you have a fantastic holiday.

She won't fit properly in the pushchair. It will be hard to push and could be dangerous.

Which city?
I didn't take a pram above age 3, but avoided unsuitable places!

I can still remember my parents telling me I was too old for the pushchair because I was three.
I stuck to that rule with my own two children - and we always walked miles on days out - it worked well for us!