Originally Posted by
Eclipsepearl
In Germany and Scandinavian countries, they have these massive vehicles for their tots that sometimes are used as cribs as well. They do a lot of walking and want a smooth ride for their tot. I had a big German double stroller but it never came anywhere near an airport. It was nice for the park and walking to school but definitely not a convenient item for travel!
But there are significant differences here. Generally, the
babies use those, not toddlers and school age children as is often seen in America, and they are for outdoor walking. They are also usually not taken into areas not designed for them, and I cannot recall having to navigate around them or being completely blocked off. Go visit EuropaPark or Disneyland Paris and you will not see many strollers (and generally those are seem to be used more often by guests from the UK) Go to WDW and these days it is virtually impossible to navigate around the monster strollers, often with children of age 7,8,9 inside (I'm not kidding; go read any Disney message board and you will see parents asking about that)
Many airports have rental strollers, and collapsible strollers are usually returned airside in Germany. The combination of family friendly policy and the mindset of not putting a child in a stroller is a big difference.
What do people do on layovers? Rent a stroller, carry the baby, walk slowly with the toddler.