Disney (For Example) Babies on Buses Without Carseat?????

they have a monorail aswell, you could bring the seat and pay for a locker.

But usually i stay IN the PARK at a disney hotel, so the only traffic is US

M

Even if you rent a car you still have to get on a bus from the airport to the car rental and other areas of Disney require riding a tram or bus from the parking lot to the actual park. I have done it w/all three of my kids as babies and they were fine. I have never seen anyone use a car seat. What would you do with it? Carry it around Disney? Relax and enjoy.

Your instincts are correct. There was a time decades ago when parents thought that holding their children on their laps in moving vehicles was "safe". Now we know better. When were on vacation we tend to let our guard down and do things we would never think of doing otherwise.
The laws of physics simply do not fail to apply when you're on vacation or when it would be more convenient to pretend they don't exist. If you were a first responder to accident scenes and have witnessed the terrible results of an unsecured child in a moving multi-passenger vehicle, you would never consider allowing your child to ride unrestrained. On Disney property there is an exemption, however shuttle busses and vans that leave the property and travel on the roads to airports and hotels are required to have restraints. Unfortunately, law enforcement doesn't posess the resources to enforce every vehicle. It will take an unfortunate accident with mutiple young children before I think the enforcement begins to step up.
Just because you can get away with it, or because everyone else is doing it, or because it isn't "convenient" were all arguments put up against these child restraint laws in the legislature.
From reading the responses and answers from some of these parents above, all I can say is I'm glad that there are laws to protect our children. Because if their weren't , these same parents would drive around everyday with their children unrestrained simply because it's more convenient, everyone else is doing it.
If you have small children, don't play roulette with their safety in trade for convenience. Rent a car and reserve the proper child restraints. Please.

Hi S.,

As far as planes go, you can purchase a seat for an infant and easily secure a car seat. As far as cabs, many have car seats stored in the trunk. If you call a cab compnay and order a cab you can specify at that time that you require one with a car seat. I don't know why buses have no way of securing small children.

As you know from previous experience that when riding the Disney buses you need to hold your child in your lap, many times you'll need to stand, which makes it almost impossible to hold an infant, but I've seen it done. And I agree it is NOT safe.

I would recommending staying at one of the hotels where you could use the ferries or the monorail, as those modes of transportation are much safer.

For the safety of your kids, and your sanity, you may want to look into renting a car. It will give you the freedom to leave the Disney complex if you'd like for meals or those extras you may need. We found that eating a meal a day out of Disney was good relaxing down time for the whole family, and it saved us quite a bit of money too.

hey S.,
bring it down just one notch,
i'm not sure about buses or trains but....
on a plane appropriate car seats are required, which means u pay for more seats.
everything is a process, so this to will take time to iron out all the kinks.
i do recall the trams @ disney, no seat belts, lots of kids , not a lot of room for bouncing about. when my guys were younger i kept one in a carry sack, one by the hand and a stroller in my armpit, when entering transports.
maybe u could contact them and request some services, help, info.
goodluck & have fun M..p.

Hi S..

We've been to Disney loads of times with our kids and it was hard when we had no carseat to put them in, I agree. The buses are always so crowded too, especially in the evening on the way home. The last time we went we rented a car and it was GREAT to have that convenience!!! When you stay on site you get parking for free anyway so you don't have to worry about that. The last time we went we actually brought our carseats from home and buckled the kids on the plane and then when we rented the car we had everything we needed.

While I understand your concern completely. The bus from the airport to the resort is a motor coach luxury type bus and does not require a car seat - the buses from resprt to theme parks is much like a city bus and there is no way for you to strap a car seat in there, much less would you want to carry one all over disney. People do it all day every day without issue. If its a big deal for you, consider staying on the monorail and take that for transportation.

have a great time - we are going for our second time this thanksgiving!

I am born and raised in New York City, where litterally millions of babies and kids go on busses and in taxis daily without carseats. It is the only city I have been to where you can get in a taxi from the airport without a carseat, because since no one (barely) owns a car, no one would have a car seat.

I have been to Disney World, and the busses there are if anything much smaller, and go slower, than the busses in NYC. So, I woudl ask yourself what makes you and your kids so different than the millions of NYC kids - rich and poor and in between - who live without carseats all of their lives?

Some advise, if you choose to let the carseats go for this trip, which I highly recommend: Use a foldable doubel stroller. Call ahead and see if you are required to fold strollers on busses (in NYC you are, most other places you are not). Sit them on your laps, or sit next to them with your arm around them and allow them to kneel or stand (in the case of your younger one) to look out the window.

I understand people who have been born and raised in suburbs are utterly car-dependant, but I urge you to do your family and yourself a favor and try to look outside of your box here. The stress you spend with carseats on busses you will pass on to them, and the wasted time will make everyone stressed out. Call Disney and see what they say too.

Good Luck.
- Alex

Well, first there is no way to secure a car seat in a bus seat as there are no seat belts. Second, I don't know if you'd be able to keep the car seat on the bus all day long so you may have to carry it around the park with you all day. And being that your kids are so young (as are mine) you already have an outrageous amount of items you have to bring with you for a day out. Just this once I wouldn't worry about the car seats. More hassle then their worth this time around.

my sone was 14 months old when we went...he sat on my lap on the plane and on my lap on the buses to and from the hotel...it's about a 4 minute ride...where in the world would put that car seat when you get off the bus? and it's impossible for you to do anyway...they are kind of like city buses...if you feel that strongly than you should rent a car, but to be honest it's prob a waste...or if you are that stressed that you should postpone your trip until they are slightly older, because Disney is not a vacation, but more like a big job, and all that added stress isn't going to give you the fun family trip that you're looking for.

Guess you need to rent a car. If everyone that had an
infant started installing carseats on the bus, there would
be a revolution. You know how crowded they are, how
tired people and kids are. The buses would be delayed a
good 20 minutes at least waiting for everyone to install
the seat. Just not doable. Sorry.

You'll be FINE on the buses and mass transit there. I'd suggest putting each baby in a baby bjorn so they are secure and close to your body while you ride the buses + monorail.

Remember - families travel in NYC on buses and subways and trains on a daily basis w/ no car seats ever and they turn out just fine. I've never heard of an accident where anything happened to a kid riding on mass transit w/ no car seat and I've been living in NY for 10 years.

I will say this though - at Disney - those buses take FOREVER to get you to the park because they make a bunch of stops and you have to wait for them to show up - you'll get to the park faster if you just drive your own car. If you're staying at a Disney RESORT - you get FREE parking at the parks.

Have fun! and don't stress....

I never dealt with this issue myself, my kids were 5 and 9 the first time we went to Disney, and never would have gone with a baby but if I had, I would have wanted to bring the carseat on the plane and buy their own ticket, and rent a car so that the baby could ride safely in the appropriate car seat.

hi S.-
we went to disney back in may with our 4-year old and 7-month...we stayed on disney property and used their buses to get from hotel to the parks, as well as from the airport to the hotel. we did not use a carseat either, and i was hesitant in the beginning, but it really was just fine. (and selfishly much easier then lugging 2 carseats with you and cheaper then renting a car). if it is any help - there were tons of kids (all ages) riding the buses.

For the 9 month old, do you have a baby carrier like the baby bjorn. We live in LI and take the LIRR to the city often. I carry him in the bjorn all the time. He is secure against me and i put on the seatbelt in a cab. I haven't taken a bus yet, but did take a shuttle bus that allowed us to keep him in the carriage and with the wheels locked. Enjoy Disney, we are going again for Halloween!

I believe there is research showing that buses, because of their size and seat configurations are actually safer without, well, seatbelts. So I imagine the car seat thing is similar. If it helps you at all here is some pretty new evidence that after the 20 lb. size limit, having your child in a car seat vs seatbelt-only actually has a slightly worse outcome in crashes. The researcher theorizes that this is because in a car seat the child is positioned farther out into the middle of the car and so is more likely to suffer from impaction.
http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/steven_levitt_on_child...

Hi There,
We went to Disney with our toddler daughter last October. She was older (23 mos) but is physically tiny. We simply held her on our laps on the bus like all of the other parents with babies and kids. Atleast she was old enough that she wasn't very squirmy like a 9 month old would be. I would just put myself neer one of the poles, so I could stabilize myself with the pole and one arm around my daughter. We stayed in the park as well, and it was quite convenient.... The overall traffic within the parks does not seem overwhelming, atleast in the fall months, so atleast there isn't a huge traffic or speed issue.

We've been to Disney twice, once on site and once off site. I did bring a sit n Stroll with me, so I used it as the car seat and the stroller whenever possible. Sadly, there is no way to secure the car seat in the bus. The 2nd time we rented a car, and it made things easier all around. I can't imagine not being on site without a car. We made so many trips to grocery stores, parks, and just here and there. It made life easier to have a car since I could just put whatever I need in there and not to have to worry about a lot of safety issues.

Hi S. - We go to Disney every year so we have dealt with pretty much every age now. Even if you don't stay onsite you will still be dealing with other forms of transportation such as the tram. You can stay onsite at hotels that you can take a boat from rather than a bus and the kids can stay right in their strollers. Would you be flying to Disney? If so, you can simply buy a seat for your baby and bring her carseat and then bring it with you on Magical Express. This is what we do. The plane is actually the most dangerous place for a baby without a carseat but many people don't want to spend the money for a seat for a baby since they don't have to.

Try getting a baby carrier. We have an ergo (www.ergobabycarrier.com) and we love it. They can be used up to 40 pounds and 4 or 5 years old in several positions so you can find one that is comfortable for both of you. This will keep your daughter close to you so she will be more secure. You and your husband will have to each keep one child on your lap and also bring an umbrella stroller so that you have something for both kids if the 3 year old gets tired. Babies ride trains, buses and subways without carseats all the time and if it was a big issue, the laws would have changed. As long as you are holding your kids you should be fine. But if you are still concerned, as you seem to be, you should just rent a car or stay walking distance from the theme park.

I haven't been to Disney yet-we're going in a couple of weeks-but we have gone to Colonial Williamsburg when my daughter was less than a year old. We used the bus there to get from one part of the park to another. I just folded up the stroller and held her on my lap. I hesitated at first, but then I realized that the bus moved relatively slowly...that doesn't mean that there could not have been an accident, of course, but it made me feel a bit better that we weren't moving at highway speeds. Perhaps we should lobby for legislation: As buses/trains/subway cars/cabs are replaced, seatbelts or LATCH systems for car seats are required in the new ones; or, all public transporation is required to install seats with LATCH systems for car seats by year 20XX.