Airline lost your luggage? Hotel ran out of cribs? Or perhaps you simply want to travel light. It’s 100% possible thanks to Lileo stroller rental in Tokyo and most cities in Japan.

Travelling is one of the best experiences a parent can give to their kids, and.. themselves. Look, as much as we love saying “we’re doing it for the kids”, we’re really half doing it for ourselves. True? There’s no shame about that. Heck, I ain’t judgin’. I’m applauding. However, the reality of travelling with young kids is hella challenging and, in most cases, puts your physical strength and resilience to the ultimate test.

By that, I’m talking about lugging oversized suitcases, travel cribs and car seats, whilst simultaneously carrying a baby on your chest and running after a toddler that’s gone rogue.

Four years into travelling the world with babies and toddlers (who have now grown into rambunctious lil boys) – I’ve only one piece of advice to give. Travel light. Easier said than done, right? We’ve mastered travelling with one check-in suitcase between the four of us so that we have more limbs available to fish back unruly boys who do not heed to the call of roaring parent voices. I swear, having kids gives you a first-hand experience of what it feels like to talk to a wall and completely waste your breath.

Via thorough destination research and picking the right accommodation with family-friendly amenities, we’re now able to achieve travelling light with less stress and hair-tearing-out situations. On our most recent Japan family holiday, we came across the brilliant team at Lileo Japan, who provide stroller rentals in Tokyo and most major cities in Japan.

What type of stroller is best suited for use in Japan?

Compact and easily foldable. If you ever get caught in Tokyo peak hour (which I do not recommend getting stuck in with or without kids) and you miraculously manage to squeeze your stroller into a carriage, you’ll be thanking whatever higher powers there are for having a compact pram.

Plus, if you want to swing into those teeny tiny delicious local eateries, having a bulky stroller is going to be your biggest setback. Staff will most likely ask you to fold it up or leave it outside.

5 Reasons you need a stroller in Japan

▪︎  Copious amounts of walking. The best way to explore Japan with kids is to *drum rolls* walk. Whether you’re wandering from one station to another or through epic department stores and alleyways, you’ll find yourself clocking up those fitbit steps like never before. The problem? Well, kids don’t seem to like walking.

▪︎  Kids are lazy. Unless the end destination involves a playground or ice cream, kids don’t see a reason to walk. Our 4-year old was always worn out by the afternoon from all the fun activities and general awesomeness of Japan, so we were immensely grateful for our stroller that allowed him to rest.

▪︎  Even older kids will nap. Spending an entire day exploring the nooks and crannies of Japan is pretty exhausting, not to mention the jetlag that the kiddos will experience in the first week. A stroller is a must to avoid hand-carrying the kids.

▪︎  Get moving quicker and safer. Cities in Japan are densely populated and if you’re gallivanting around busy and touristy areas, it’s easy to lose track of small kids in a sea of humans. Plus, you’ll move from A to B a whole lot faster when they’re tucked safely in a stroller.

▪︎  A place to drape jackets & hang shopping bags. We used our Bugaboo Bee rental stroller from Lileo as a child transporter, a mobile coathanger and shopping bag carrier. Why lug bags and clothes around when you can hang them off a stroller?

Pick your stroller rental at Lileo today and get 10% off your order by using our special coupon code hangrybynature. 

Rent Quality Strollers & Travel Cribs

You won’t be getting any random stroller or travel crib that you see at Wal-Mart or Target. Nah-uh. Top of the range brands is what you’re going to expect at Lileo. Their rental range consists of high quality products from reputable brands – they’re honestly so good that you’ll grow desperately attached to your rental by the end of your trip.

We named our rental stroller ‘Bumblebee’ like the yellow guy from Transformers and when the time came to drop our ‘Bee off at the post office, even my husband shed a couple of man tears.

Lileo’s range of strollers and travel cribs arrive disassembled for easy transport and thoroughly sanitised. For real, our rental stroller was so clean and in top notch condition that we were convinced it was brand new.

When you rent a stroller or travel crib for your Japan family holiday, Lileo offers the popular and much-loved Bugaboo Bee 5 and the BabyBjörn Travel Crib that comes complete with a mattress and organic cotton sheets.

Delivery & Drop-Off in any City

Travelling to Japan with a baby or toddler has never been easier. Lileo don’t just provide stroller rental in Tokyo – you can pick up and drop off rentals in any city in Japan. However, the lovely team at Lileo are more than happy to accommodate to requests to the best of their abilities. That’s what makes their service so exceptional.

If you’re staying in a hotel, your rental item can be delivered directly to the front desk. In some cases, Lileo are even able to arrange for rental pick-ups at Narita airport so that a stroller is available to transport your little ones as soon as you arrive. Be sure to contact them directly to see if an airport pick-up is available for your arrival date.

For visitors staying in Airbnbs or apartments, the process is also super easy. Have the stroller or travel crib delivered to the nearest post office and it’ll be waiting patiently there for you. Unlike many other countries, Japan Post is one of the safest and most efficient methods of delivery – post offices can be found on almost every block in Japan.

Get 10% OFF – use code ‘hangrybynature’

What’s Included in Lileo Rentals?

Stroller or crib. Your rental product will arrive neatly packaged in a compact travel bag.

Detailed English instruction guide with pictures. An easy-to-follow English guide is provided to help with assembling rental items, as well as instructions on how to return the product.

Transport bag. Rental items arrive safely in a cover for protection and easy transport.

Rain cover (Bugaboo strollers). This is also provided to help keep little ones dry inside the stroller on rainy days. Absolute life-saver because it rains a fair bit in Japan.

Return shipping label. A pink slip will come with your rental which needs to be provided to your hotel or post office for return.

•  Don’t breastfeed in public. It’s not exactly a sight that the Japanese are attuned to, however, private nursing rooms can be found in almost all department stores and shopping malls.

•  Don’t travel during peak hour. Holy moly – don’t do it. It’s a sweat and claustrophobia-inducing experience. Let’s just say it’s like being sardines in a can and there’s no way you’ll even come close to getting a stroller onboard.

•  Did I mention don’t overpack? Seriously, don’t. You’ll want to utilise all the extra space in your suitcase for the ah-friggin’-mazing Japanese souvenirs and snacks you’ll accumulate. If I could’ve taken the whole country and incredible people home with me, I seriously would’ve.

For more tips on travel to Japan with a baby and kids – watch our How Family Friendly is Japan video.

Should I Rent a Stroller in Tokyo & Japan? The Final Word

If you’re not planning to bring your own stroller and you’re not 100% confident in your kids’ walking abilities or they still enjoy their naps – yes, yes and yes! You won’t regret renting a stroller in Japan. It will be your best companion for carrying the weight of kids, snacks, jackets and probably gachapon (Japanese vending machine toys).

A friend of mine who travelled to Japan with her 6-year old regretted not bringing a stroller because they spent most of their days walking and exploring, which – let’s be real – kids aren’t wholly into unless some form of bribery is involved.

This is what makes Lileo such a great service, as it caters for families travelling light and also parents who no longer own strollers, believing their little ones to be capable walkers only to find out that it’s not the case when an entire day of walking is involved.