Looking for advice on what sort of pram/pushchair/travel system/car seat etc to get

[xanadareous]

hi everyone, am new to the forum and my partner is expecting our first in April.

I am looking to get some advice on pram/pushchair/travel system/car seat combinations. There's so much choice and quite a few options we have no idea what is best. We dont want to rush out and spend £500 on a travel system if things are going to change down the line, like a second baby.

We mainly want one where the baby faces us for up to a year or so.

I am undecided between getting:-

1. Travel system where baby faces parent for 1st year, then can face forward after that in the same pushchair. We dont want one where it has to face forward from birth or after a few months or where they sit in the car seat in the pram (as they can only do so for 2 hours).

OR

2. A normal pram then buy a pushchair later on.

We would like a second baby as soon as we can, so hopefully next year. So thinking number 2 may be better as we will then have both pram and pushchair for both, as with number 1 we would have to buy another one anyway.

On the other hand there are some prams/pushchairs that can fit 2 babies in which would be ideal so one parent can go out without the other.

Also, I am wondering if we should get the car seat that go with the prams/pushchairs so would be handy to carry him around in briefly (up to 2 hours) OR get the 0-4 year car seats, and then just move him from that to the pram/push chair. With this one we dont have to buy another car seat when they get bigger.

I have no idea!

Any advice appreciated, thanks

 

[Bec L]

LOL, we found the whole pram thing a real minefield too. The one main stipulation that we had was that the pram could face us in pushchair mode as well as pram mode, and that we could fit the car seat directly onto the chassis. Because of this we went for the M&P Pliko Switch which we're really happy with.

We would also like another baby fairly soon but we didn't let that influence the travel system we bought and decided to cross that bridge as and when (if we are lucky enough for it to happen a second time!)

We alos have a McLarens buggy because someone kindly bought one for us, but have no plans to use that until Poppy is quite a bit older, or maybe if we go on holiday with her.

Not sure if that really answers your questions but hope it helped a bit!

 

[Spartacus]

lol! Yes all very confusing!

We went for a Graco Travelsystem which we got for under £200

https://www.toysrus.co.uk/Babies-R-...co-Quattro-Tour-Travel-System-Caramel(0028140)

the reason being we got everything with it the car seat, rain cover, foot muff, change bag etc.

I must say it has proved real value for money - especially if you are trying for a second soon after (very brave lol!!)

I know you said you wanted one that faced you - with having the car seat with the Graco travelsystem your little one can be facing you whilst in it. I find it really useful when we are out and about because our lil man falls asleep pretty much as soon as he gets in the car so rather than disturb him and wake him up to put him in his pushchair you just clip the carseat on to the push chair.

What we found is you can research and research and end up doing your head in and everything just adds up! So we went for this option knowing that we would have to replace the car seat in approx 9-12 months and a different buggy.

Everyone is different though but I hope it helps!

 

[Emmea12uk]

I dont think you would actually make much use of a pram for as long as you think. Tom wanted to be up and able to watch what was going on pretty much within 3 months. It is a good idea to get a travel system which does everything you want it to.

A few things I didnt count on before i had used the pram for a few months:

Where are you going to use it? If you like going for walks or are likely to push it on a surface which isnt concrete - suspension, pumped up types or even three wheelers would be q good idea, BUT three wheelers can be hard to fit in the boot of your car - some of them are excellent though! I think mamas and papas do an excellent 3 wheeled travel system.

Although it isnt good for baby to be cooped up in a car seat, sometimes it is very practical. Such as when they fall asleep in the car when you are just nipping out for something. You can just clip them into the pram and do some shopping, pop them back in the car when you are done and they dont have to be woken up. BUT, make sure you get a car seat which will do them up to 12 months. Some of them are tiny!!

Weight and how it folds - make sure it fits in your car and make sure you can carry it. I bought an ultra lightweight pram which wouldnt fit in my car as well as my travel system did!

I bought a mamas and papas pliko P3, and it has been amazing. The car seat was perfect and has seen him right through. it clicks in to a base in my car in a second. The pram itself has really good suspension so will do for walks in the forest. It also is the lightest travel system you can buy and folds down suprisingly small.

I have tried seperates, but none seem to be as comfy and easy to use as this. Facing you is a good ida, but in practice, my son always turns his head when going backwards, straining to see what is in front. I know they say that they should be forward facing these days, but that is only because parents arent communicating with their children enough. I dont think them facing you when you are running about doing your shopping or whatever makes any difference! If that is why you want a parent facing one, you may be wasting your money!

 

[mrsdcooper]

we brought the travel system 8 in 1 from mama and papa's MPX.

we love it it has a pram, pushchair, car seat all in one and the pushchiar frame and an indoor frame.

What i like about it is i used the pram for the first 3 months (now she is nosey and likes to look about) but i still use the pram top inside the house on the stand - so we didnt need to buy a moses basket.

The pushchair feature faces you and can face away. all clicks on and off to the frame so you only carry with you what you want which is easy. you can put it up and take it down with one hand which is easy when baby is kicking off in the other.

ONLY problem we found is that it is large - but i dont mind i think it is worth it, its versatile and excellent - oh and if anything goes wrong with it you walk into mamas and papas and they will give you another there and then (uptp 3 years as long as you have the recipt)

its expensive but when you look at the price of buying a pram, pushchair, car seat, moses basket etc it isnt really.

Go in and ask for deomonstrations thats what we did. we are planning on having #2 when Hermione is around 18 months - gonna get a chair bit to sit ontop of pram and buggy board so she can stand.

https://www.mamasandpapas.co.uk/product-ultima-8-in-1-mpx-chassis-polka/259783000/type-i/

 

[xanadareous]

travel system 8 in 1 from mama and papa's MPX

£595, ouch! although that includes all extras I suppose, even a chair so actually its probably a good price if you were going to buy all extras anyway. but looks good, I know my partner will want it just for the polka dots .

does anyone have any experience with "a 2 babies in one pram" system?

thanks for all replies, I will go through it all with her tonight.

 

[Bec L]

My sister used a Phil and Teds pram with her kids so the baby goes underneath the pushchair.
https://www.philandteds.com/classic_index.htm

She was really happy with it.

 

[xanadareous]

what does everyone think about using the car seats for the rear facing option in a pushchair when you are only supposed to keep them in the car seats for no more than 2 hours? So if in town all day would you be taking them out every 2 hours?

There are many lower cost pushchairs that use the car seat for rear facing, but we are not sure we want to take him out every 2 hours if we are out all day. If its a real pain to do this, then the rear facing prams which you can leave them in all day cost a hundred or two extra. Are they worth that?

Thanks

 

[charliebear]

We have a Silvercross 3D, and it works great for us. (Similer to the M&P Pliko.)


We used it as a pram first and now LO is too big were using it as a travel system.
LO is never in the car seat too long, and now he's 3 months he's quite nosey and likes to look around.

 

[Stef]

I have the iCandy Cherry and i love it. so leightweight, yo can get the carry cot for it and the maxi cosi car seat adapters come with it too so you can use the car seat on it.

I had the silvercross 3D jet sport and I hated it. She was only in the pram for about 3-4 months before she was too big for it. so then she was forward facing. Im so glad now to have her rear facing again. The pram itsself was far too bulky & heavy and you cant actually fit anything in the basket under the pram, I used to have to fight to get the rain cover out.

x

 

[lady3]

I have the Quinny Buzz which has a lot of pros and cons with it. It's very adaptable to the needs of your child. The chair can face in or out. There's also 2 seats that come with it, so when your baby gets bigger, he will have a comfier ride, but for a newborn, the smaller seat is nice and cozy. I didn't end up buying the carrycot that comes with it as I felt that the seat lay back far enough, and I was right. My LO would never have enjoyed being in the carrycot. She didn't even like her moses basket! I also used and still use the carseat that attaches to it quite a bit as it's so convenient to just pop her in and out of the car and let her sleep.

Some cons with it are that it's heavy. It's also quite big, so if you're taking the bus or public transport a lot, it can be a pain. It fits on buses well, but if there's another buggy, it can sometimes take a lot of maneuvering and sweat to get it to fit! And forget going up and down a large flight of stairs! I need another pair of hands for that. Saying that though, I have 5 or 6 stairs leading up to my front door, and it's brilliant for bumping up and down them.

Also, the basket at the bottom is really small, but the pushchair is so sturdy, you can place your bag over the handlebars, and even without a baby in it, the chair stays up.

Hope this helps a little. I really do love the Quinny, but for sake of ease will also be getting a lighter umbrella stroller soon for some trips.

 

[jen1604]

Ok Ive had a Mothercare Urban Detour 3 wheeler which I loved.We didnt have like the carrycot bit in it,she just led right down flat from the start.
The pros were-really manouverable,Ophelia loved it as the footmuff is really fleecy so cosy.HUGE basket underneath for shopping
The cons--huge and quite heavy so not easy for going round shops.Also is still pretty big when folded

Then my OH's parents bought me a Bruin Zen which I hated from the start.Only pro is its small and light.
Cons--really flimsy,not great for manouvering.I just HATED it.Its still in my attic if anyone wants it lol

Now we have a Mamas and Papas Luna which I love.
Pros-light and quite small so fab for going round the shops.Ophelia loves it.You can change the inside liners to give it a different look.Also got a great deal so we've got a carrycot for next baby
Cons-sometimes not as easy to push as my urban detour and also you cant put a lot of shopping on it because being so light,it will tip up!

Sorry this was long,lol x

 

[Chel]

I hate that it takes using your pram daily before you really know what you want in a pram!

I would almost recommend not buying a pram and seeing if you have someone you could borrow their pram for a couple of months, because even if its not the 'right' pram for you, once you getting around the shops, up and down stairs, in an out of the car etc. you'll know what it is you need in a pram!

I have the Maclaren Techno XT.

pros - its very light and easy to collapse, it collapses down quite small. Its suitable from birth to toddler, its easily adjustable once you work out how. Its really easy to control, I can push it easily with one hand while holding Jasper in the other!

cons - as a newborn it didn't seem very comfortable for him, he's only now happy to be in his pram now that he can sit up. Its an absolute pain to take to the park, because it cant handle the grass! Its only forward facing, and there are times that I would have liked to have had him facing me and its stable provided you dont put ANYTHING on the back of it, one bag of groceries puts it off balance, and it has a tiny bit of under storage, I can keep a folded change mat and a few plastic bags under it and thats it!

I've looked around at prams that friends have and I quite like the look of the Steelcraft Striders. I'm thinking our next pram for the next bub would be the strider take two - which I think would be great as a first pram if your planning another baby within a couple of years, as it works as a single pram and then you buy the toddler seat attachment - and the toddler sits up quite high so they're pretty much be able to talk to you and look you right in the eye, which.... could be frustrating if they're tantruming, but I think generally would be lovely one-on-one time with your older child, while the baby sleeps or rests in the pram!

 

[xanadareous]

thanks for all the info... to update you all I bought a Gracco Quattro Tour from BabiesRUs. Although I havent used it yet as we still have a couple of weeks to go, I am very pleased. BabiesRUs were selling it on offer for £199. It included the carry cot so the baby can face you in first 6 months, then it reverts to the pram, it also included the raincover, footmuff, changebag, car seat AND the car seat base! So all this for £199, I am over the moon. So many other travel systems cost around £400/£500 plus for all this. It folds easily and has a large space underneath for extras. But the test will be in the use, but I was told Gracco have been doing prams for years and its a good seller. I wanted the I Love My Bear version but that was about £259 without some of the extras, it would have cost an extra £150 to get the same I Love My Bear system.

 

[princess_bump]

yay! so pleased you got what you wanted

 

[MoonMuffin]

I have the britax vigor, it's wonderful. It's so smooth, and can face rear facing or forward facing whenever you like. They also make an infant seat that just clicks in which is very convenient, especially when baby is sleeping, you can just carry them inside or put them straight into the stroller. Only downside is that Kathryn is 6 months and grew out of her car seat (length wise) almost 2 weeks ago. However she is very tall for her age. Now we have to transfer her from car seat to stroller and I certainly miss the ease of just moving the seat to the stroller frame. We got both the stroller and infant carrier as gifts (had them on my registry), and it really is a wonderful stroller. If you decide to go for a convertible car seat instead of one that goes with the stroller, I recommend the evenflow symphony. It has great reviews, is really easy to install and is nice and cushy, Kathryn loves it. But ultimately it's up to you but make sure to read reviews and test the product out in person if possible. Good luck, it a hard choice with all the different products out there.