Or pram. Or stroller. Or buggy. Or complete travel system…. There are as many names as there are design options, it’s enough to make you completely confused. I thought it was about time I put together a post for the very new Mama’s/those of you still expecting and who are having difficulty finding your perfect pushchair.
The choice is incredible, there’s no denying it. You could spend a LOT of money. Lots. Especially if you become swept up in all of the snazzy accessories and whatnot. Unusually for me I was really quite practical when it came to selecting our Quinny Buzz 3.
It had everything on James and I’s “must have” list. Lightweight, easy to unfold and collapse, suitable for navigating potholes (!), compact for easy manoeuvring, compatible with our Maxi Cosi car seat (it has adapters), the ability to make it front facing, rear facing and a horizontal “sleep” mode and suitable from newborn to 15kgs (3.5 years approx) without the need for an extra carrycot.
The buzz comes with a special inlay that you can use for very small babies, it worked fine (you can purchase a specific carrycot piece for about £165) but actually, we found we used the car seat as the “pram” piece more than the actual chair itself, we still do more often than not to be honest. We bought our Quinny Buzz 3 from John Lewis but it appears to have been replaced with the Quinny Buzz “Xtra”. This seems to be exactly the same as the 3 from what I can make out from the description available on line, I assume it must be the latest “face-lifted” version.
I went for “Rocking Black” – by the time we purchased it I knew we were expecting a girl but I figured it would last a lifetime should we one day extend our family and welcome a baby boy. I know, told you I was practical – I even surprised myself. I won’t fib though, there were times when I looked longingly at anyone who walked past with the prettiest shades of pink or peach.
We looked at and subsequently considered a wide variety of alternative models, all much of a muchness. I found many of them too heavy or cumbersome, and of course there is the important question of “is it going to fit in my ruddy car boot?!”. It does (I bought a new Nissan Juke in March last year) but only just, and I have to take a wheel off to do so. I realise this may sound drastic as I write but it’s literally the push of a button to remove and one short click to put back on, super easy peasy.
The two main deciding factors were the fact so many friends had recommended the Quinny brand and of course the price. We picked up ours for £299, nearly all of the other contenders were more than twice that amount. We’ve had the Buzz for over 10 months now and it’s been almost perfect really, no obvious complaints at all. And apart from my occasional desire for a more feminine hue (I remedy this by the ability to utilise so many beautiful blankets as EVERYTHING goes with black!)…I haven’t ever regretted my decision.
Except for when I was in the Westfield shopping centre a few weekends ago and spotted the Stokke Xplory (I discovered the name from googling as soon as I came home). I have never seen anything like it?! It is so tall yet also compact and stylish looking! ….it is also £829. What does it do to make it so spendy? tell you exactly when your baby is hungry/tired/bored/needs their nappy changing? (to be fair if it did I’d pay double.) I don’t know a whole lot about it (super marketers dream PR pitch if you read the associated description though mind) but there is no denying it is a very very covetable piece of design.
The Quinny Buzz 3 was a good buy. I’m not saying my review and obvious recommendation should mean that you should all go out and buy one, or that it is indeed perfect. I’m actually hoping this feature will encourage all of you other knowledgeable (and now experienced!) buggy users will chime in with your purchases and what was the best option for you.
What pushchair/stroller/pram did you go for and why?
Did you shop around with regards price? (I ask this because at the moment the Quinny Buzz Xtra is £150 more on the Mothercare website compared to John Lewis and I can’t for the life of me work out why.)
Do you find you use the car seat (should you have an adaptor) more than the carrycot/chair piece?
Have you seen anything since your chosen model that has made you change your mind?
Have you seen the Stokke Xplory?!!!
Please do leave any advice or thoughts in the comments box below, I can see this being quite the discussion!
David is 2 now and we hardly ever use the buggy anymore as he likes to walk. we had the mamas and papas Sola which is suitable from birth but also has the option of a carrycot. we had the carrycot which was good for overnight family visits in the first few months. I think it’s a great buggy, it folds up relatively small for a travel system, faces either direction, and is easy to steer with swivel wheels. buggy, carseat and carrycot were bought together for £500. I did later invest in the footmuff and parasol, all in a cheerful and gender neutral red.
Hi Kathryn, I think it was this model that was in our shortlist – very compact and stylish x
Oh I do not miss the ‘what buggy to buy debate’! I’m pretty sure the Quinny was a lot more than that when I looked. After many trips to John Lewis and Mothercare (I worked by both so popped in a lot!) we finally settled on a Bugaboo. It took a long time as I just couldn’t bring myself to spend that much on a buggy. We looked at second hand but non near us seemed to be in that great condition and they were still really expensive so when Edd’s dad very kindly offered to buy our buggy so we figured we could put the extra. On a lunchtime trip to Mothercare they had an immaculate ex display reduced to £650 and I cheekily asked if they could take any more off and they did. Instead of nearly £900 I paid £550 (still sooo expensive!) for something that had just been pushed back and forwards on a stand. It still came with all its guarantees etc and even better The Father in Law paid for it all! We went for red and I loved it. So easy to manoeuvre and fold up and down. We too mainly used the car seat adapters when out and about but I did use the carrycot lots for walking around the lanes near me. I walked most days with Molly so it was great. When Alice came along I found I hardly used the Bugaboo other than for the few trips to the shops. Going out with an 18 months old and a baby was not the easiest so didn’t really do long walks and I did not want a double buggy. I also found my boot was too full with stuff for two kids and the Bugaboo. After much deliberation once Alice was 6 months old we sold the Bugaboo and got a foldy McClaren and a buggy board for Molly which although not as nifty or smooth as the Bugaboo does its job perfectly. Its still bigger than I would like but suits us for now and allows me to strap her to stop her running off when we are out and about! xx
This is such a well timed post. I’m currently 24 weeks pregnant and we have just started looking for prams. In fact I got a bit emotional in mothercare last week because I didn’t understand the different types of pram, so this of course led to how on earth am I going to look after a baby if I can’t even pick a pram. Totally rational pregnancy thinking! Thanks again for a great post RMS x
I had my first pregnancy teary freak out in John Lewis when looking at prams too SD, so don’t worry – it is very overwhelming!!!! x
We were tempted by the Quinny, but went with the smallest we could find which is the Bugaboo Bee 3!
This was mainly because I owened a tiny two seater Dihatsu Copen at the time our daughter was born and was in denial that I’d need a bigger car. The Bugaboo literally fits into a thimble.
We bought it in the lovely ( but rather I practice) off- white ( can you tell I’m a first time mum?)
We bought the cocoon, parasol and hood plus system for around £800. The great thing is that baby can lay flat from birth, so we didn’t need an annoying carrycot attachment and you can buy adapters to fix your car seat onto the system, again you didn’t need to remove existing seat to do this. This results in having to hike around very little and it’s really light ( for a travel system which all seem to require pop-eye arms to set up and fold down).
It’s really easy to manouver around shops etc but is not going to be any good for “off reading”. I believe they market it as the ultimate system for urban living. It does sit pretty low down, which is weird but fine. Baby can sit forward or reaer facing too so we hope to use this for a few years ( although I can see me swapping the colours later to avoid weekly washing). We purchased ours from John Lewis as they offered a price match, 3 year guarantee on the frame and free delivery.
Lisa, John Lewis are very good at price matching – at the time our Quinny was more there but £299 on Amazon (I think) so they matched it x
We went for the Bugaboo Bee too Lisa, but I resisted the gorgeous white shade you’ve got and opted for the grey
. Although I did have to drag Matt away from the £1000 special edition military style Diesel version (did anyone else see that?! Ridiculous!!!)
It’s a great option – it’s really easy to maneuver and is small and light. It doesn’t really like gravel or rough terrain, so definitely one for shopping trips rather than hiking – but we tend to put Elle in her carrier for longer walks on the beach or in the countryside.
The basket is nice and big which was important to me, and the whole thing is sturdy considering how light it is.
We bought ours knowing that it would last and also you can buy individual parts for it from Bugaboo should any need replacing.
Definitely a good option if you want something that is good quality and will last and you don’t need to spend the money on the bassinet. And when you have a baby that extra £100 or so will come in useful for something else – they are expensive little creatures.
But like Lisa says baby is quite low which some people won’t like x
Lisa,
Do you find it tricky to open the buggy up? We have a buggaboo bee and I absolutely (and hubby) find it so difficult to open once it’s collapsed? It’s very heavy too. Always wondered if we just unlucky to have a tricky buggy or if this is the case. Agree off road is poor. For us on reflection needed something more substantial.
Coming up for 33 weeks (eeek!) and i guess the most helpful thing for us was thinking about our lives and what we need a buggy for- we live in the Styx, and love long walks, and I wanted an all terrain running buggy. Nipping to the shops and public transport manoeuvrability were not important, but it had to fit the car seat, and be easy to put up and down, with easy to remove wheels to get rid of mud.
We got a Baby Jogger Summit from eBay second hand for 200 quid- it’s immaculate and we are made up! Now to wait for our little passenger
Hi Lucy – exactly, you have to think about where you will be using it the most. Mine was for more urban living really although the wheels are useful for walks (which we’ll hopefully be doing more of this summer) – what a bargain you found! x
I’m sorry for my terrible spelling, I promise it’s predictive text and not my appaling English!
We are now 14 months in and still loving our uppa baby vista. We drove ourselves crazy looking at prams way too much choice and not much between them. Our decision was helped by a friends recommendation. Although it is a little heavy once folded it has been great.
Oops posted too soon.
It is on the pricey side but we shopped around (lots!) and ended up getting £150 off when we bought it at a baby trade show. We bought the adapters and the BeSafe car seat. I found the click in seat so practical. We also chose black for longevity reasons but it does come in a whole range of gorgeous colours! As a bonus it has a huge basket for all those trips to the shops!
We have just purchased a light weight stroller for holidays and quickly whizzing around the shops, now she is a little bigger it will make life easier. It’s the silvercross pop and it comes with a really handy extra long hood. So no more wrangling with sofia to get the sun brolly off her! Whoop!
Good luck ladies xx
Louise we are in the market for a light weight stroller for holidays! I’ll take a look at the pop x
I got mine for £90 in mothercare should have been £140.
Super thanks Louise x
As a soon-to-be first time mother I found the task of finding the perfect travel system very overwhelming! After numinous trips to M&P’s and hours of online research we actually decided on the Ickle Bubba Stomp V2. Originally I fell in love with the Urbo2 from M&P’s but just couldn’t pull myself to purchase it knowing that at the end of the day we would be dropping some serious money when also purchasing all the bells and whistles to go with it.
I actually found the Ickle Bubba V2 online at Costco priced at £299. After researching Ickle Bubba and reading the reviews, I felt like how could you not go with this travel system. It has everything you need/want and still has a great look. You get the chassis, pushchair seat unit, carrycot, car seat, cosy toes, rain cover and a basic changing bag with changing mat. Worth checking out for those budget friendly mother’s to be.
Charlotte – Your next article should be on changing bags. That is also another fun purchase!
I’ve not heard of this brand Kerry but this is why these posts are so useful for everyone else, thanks so much for your detailed comment. Ha! funny you should say that….I may just have discovered the best changing bag in the world 🙂
We have the Quinny Buzz and I LOVE it!! My parents wanted to buy us the pram when I was pregnant so I didn’t want to go too spendy, but I have totally never regretted the decision!
I really love the Stokke Explory but hubby hated it! He said it was wierd looking, silly man!
We decided to buy the carrycot with our Quinny, however we ended up just clicking the Maxi Cosi to it 90% or the time as Elsa hated being laid flat, so for baby number two I may buy the from birth inlay. Xxx
Pah ha ha!!! Kelly my husband said the same!!!! What do they know anyway? 🙂
Mabel seems to be really comfy in her car seat even at 10 months – and it’s so much easier just to click it into the Buzz frame when she’s asleep so we don’t wake her with the transition x
I used to see quite a few of the Stokke prams knocking round when I had my first baby and I’m afraid I’m with the boys – I think they look a bit odd. Sorry! I just can’t take to them and think I would feel a bit daft pushing one round.
We’ve got a Bugaboo Bee. It was chosen purely because it was the smallest pram we could find and we love it. It’s still going strong on child two and has been a great investment. I really like the fact that it turns into a decent stroller too, so we haven’t had to buy a buggy like a lot of my friends have as their children have got older.
I think the pram debate went on for about 4 months of my pregnancy as I really wanted the bugaboo bee, but my husband wanted a huge silvercross, you know, the really old fashion style ones that has suspension and needed to be lifted up to turn a corner! I knew that I had to have a c-section so firmly put my foot down on this one as it was far too heavy for me to use in the first weeks of having baby, and to be honest I use it more then anyone else!! So we compromised and purchased a silvercross wayfarer. I love it! We got the car seat, adapters the sleeper and the stroller part, all for £500 from a baby show! The foot muff etc can be changed for a different colour, and because we didn’t know what we were having I naturally went for a very gender neutral, um, blue(!?) luckily we had a boy! It’s like I knew! But this can all be changed should we have another baby!
The only problem I found was that there is no bar to push on to get up curbs, otherwise it’s excellent!!
Sounds lovely Lizzie! and what a good colour choice x
This is my first post here…I’ve moved over from RMW! This is such a timely post…I’m pregnant and 2 weeks ago we braved the buggie shop. I had heard friends say it takes weeks to decide on one so I wasn’t particularly looking forward to it (especially as my first trip to Baby’s R Us the week before had lasted 10 minutes as I left thinking…Oh God…There’s. So. Much. Stuff!!!!) . Hubby and me spent all day Saturday roadtesting different types and settled on the Bugaboo Chameleon in the petrol blue, and ordered it there and then (Fern – my hubby loved the Diesel special edition…but there was absolutely no way…camo, army packs…mohicans!). Its our only purchase for the baby so far but I feel like we’ve made the right one. We looked at the Stokke’s…they looked really cumbersome to put up and down. L x
Hi Lindsay *waves* so nice to see you!
Ha ha ha I’m glad I didn’t see this Diesel limited edition, I do love a mohican 🙂 x
I considered the Explory but the area we live in is quite hipsterish and literally every second pram you see is a Stokke Explory.
In the end we went for a Silver Cross Pioneer which comes with a carrycot suitable from birth and a puschair for later on. We also bought the car seat which clips straight on. One of the great things about the pram is the base is black but hood and apron come in different colours so if baby number two comes along I can swap these out for a different look!
What a good idea with the colour swapping. It’s quite scary how we consider baby number 2 having not even had the first one x
I was excited and dreading choosing our pram in equal measure, my husband is not a shopper so I suggested we went to The Baby Show at the Trafford Centre in Manchester so we could research all the available options in one go and then shop around for he best deal on the one we like. As it was my husband got totally into it and being an engineer, he was testing all the samples to see which ones folded down the easiest and which ones we could easiest interchange the carrycot/car seat/buggy parts with the frame. In the end we went for the Britax Affinity as it seemed to be the smoothest ride and you could interchange all the parts with no adapters and with the click of one button to release the car seat from the frame. We ended up buying it at the show because they were offering good discounts and freebies such as the cosy toes sleeping bag which my daughter is using every day at the moment. 6 months in and we’re very happy with our choice. I have never seen anyone else with this pushchair and I like that. Hopefully we will be able to continue using it if and when number two arrives, although my husband has promised me a different colour pack (they are interchangeable) if number two is a boy!
Hi Natalie I’ve not heard of this make either – and I feel quite bereft that we never went to a baby show….I guess there is still time 🙂
My husband has an engineering degree, he was very into the “hydraulics” rather than the design (which was my area obviously) 🙂 x
I have a Stokke Xplory and love it!
It was the fact that the seat and carrycot are so high up so baby is so near you that swung us, and once you get the hang of it, it’s super easy to put up and take down. The only slightly annoying thing is that is doesn’t have anywhere to ‘shove’ stuff! The shopping bag is quite large and you can get lots in it, but the prams with the kind of tray at the bottom where you can just throw your shopping in would be more convenient I think.
I’ve now had mine for just over two years and have just bought a buggy board to go on it so when baby 2 arrives (hopefully only 3 weeks to go!) our toddler can ride alongside!
Kim I love those buggy boards! so clever. Wow 3 weeks to go, it seems like yesterday you had the first, time flies. I thought the same about the storage situation although our basket is VERY small. We attach our nappy bag to the handle which is where all our essentials go, there isn’t much room for shopping bags as well unfortunately x
In other news I find baby ‘furniture’ pretty offensive – what’s with all of the garish colour schemes? I wanted a nice looking bouncer and high chair which wouldn’t look out of place in our home so went for the Stokke steps system with grey bouncer chair. It’s quite spendy but it looks great and I like that the baby is at the same height as everyone else when we sit down for dinner.
It works from birth right up to age 10 apparently (although I’m not sure what 10 year old would be happy still using a ‘baby’ seat!)
This is such a brilliant post. Wish it had been 6 months earlier, however, as little one is now 4.5 months old! The pram is one of THEE most important purchases when planning for the arrival of little one and without doubt it’s a pram jungle out there. I started off looking in John Lewis. I knew that I didn’t want a carry cot and something I could use from birth, in addition to being light weight. This quickly narrowed it down to the Bugaboo, specifically the Bugaboo Bee. Reviews seemed good. Parents were kindly purchasing for us. We decided to look on eBay and found a 6 month old Bugaboo Bee and purchased for half the price. It was in a very good condition and in that respect could not be happier. However, I desperately struggle to get the pram back up when it’s collapsed and unsure if it’s just a bit dodgy or if this is the case in general. My husband struggled at first but feels he has nailed it and it takes practice. Not going toie how many swear words have come out my mouth (in the poring rain at times) when desperately trying to put the pram up. It’s super smooth around town but useless on even a bit of gravel and we now live near Cambridge so I bitterly regret buying the bugaboo bee. Maybe I’m seriously weak, but I definitely do not find the bugaboo particularly lightweight when lifting into my car. I think it’s quite heavy considering…it fits in my Seat Ibiza boot nicely, however I’ve seen more compact prams out there. Definitely not the compact lightweight mode I had anticipated.
Anyway, all the mums locally have a bugaboo, mainly the next model up (forget what it’s called). I remember sitting in a car park a few months back and watching a mum pop open a I candy with such ease that I actually get pram envy. I’ve notice the Quinny lately as similar to I candy but had not seen this during my search. But having Sen your review and that its relatively cheap (in comparison to the I candy) I’m going to John Lewis this week with a view to purchasing the Quinny and replacing the Bugaboo Bee. That’s how strongly for me I feel about the Bugaboo Bee, I just don’t even want to persevere and find it a heavy faff.
In hindsight, I would look at the Quinny and I candy simply because I’ve seen how easy parents seem to navigate them. I know there is so much love for the Bugaboo Bee but when all has been said and done it’s simply not been practical for me, not least because I need something more durable that can make it across the gravel to my car. Bugaboo disappointing experience for me.
Thanks for sharing your experience as this has made me feel so much better and happier that in making that decision to ditch the bugaboo!
Emily I’m sorry to hear your choice didn’t work out, I’m sure you could still sell on the Bee though and the Buzz isn’t expensive.
The Buzz is very easy to put down, I actually stand in front of it (I am the weakest person alive so find this even easier than standing at the back of it) and hold the buttons and just pull down – it takes seconds. x
Sorry for the typos and poor grammar in my post above as I am feeding my baby whilst typing with one finger. 🙂
This is something I will need to think about in a few months time so will look forward to coming back to see the comments. Just out of interest, how far ahead of d-day did you actually buy the pram and is it true they takes ages to come?! I’ve no idea when to start even looking or where to look. Do you test drive them?!
Hi Victoria, we did lots of looking on line but it was John Lewis where we tested some of them, they were helpful and at the time the store was quiet (I wouldn’t advise going on a Saturday afternoon)
Ours was in stock so it didn’t take anytime, I guess it depends on availability. We bought ours a few months before Mabel’s due date x
Thanks Charlotte! A post recommending when & where is good to buy the essentials and what the essentials really are (so many places list so many things you can’t possible NEED them all?!) would be AMAZING! And your (and other people’s comments) opinion on “can’t live without” things. I’m not far into my first pregnancy and already have people and leaflets telling me different things…ARGHH!! It’s all so confusing.
But all the muslins!
You will wonder how you ever went about your day to day life without these little pieces of fabric!
We have the bugaboo cameleon – LOVE it! Now that I am a pro and just as speedy at putting it together as the swishy lady on the website its perfect for us living near the woods for long walks, nipping from the carpark for the school run, long shops round meadowhall etc. I love the varied seat positions and find that just altering it when she is bored will buy me another half hour! Having said that they are SOOOO expensive but since my lovely sister in law gave us her brand new one for free (living in london they never use a buggy) all I paid for was the £14.95 coffee holder. It is so lovely to push.
Having said that it does depend a lot on where you live and what you do. When we had our first baby we lived nearer town in a very traditional Sheffield house with a wonky gennel and a teeny back kitchen enterance. We bought a huge great travel system that did so many fancy things but when we tried it and realised we’d have to take a wheel off to get it down the wonky gennel to get to and from our house we scrapped that idea and bought a £100 from birth basic stroller instead! That was perfect for the first two as we tended to use the sling and jump on a bus or do a quick walk to town anyway.
Ebay is great though – I bought a double buggy off there to take on holiday so they would both sleep peacefully while we did nice meals out (haha – I was optimistic) and when I stuck it back on ebay after a year it sold for more than I bought it!
Victoria YES test drive it! The worst thing is having a new tiny baby to get back into a car with a buggy you can’t work out how to fold for the boot! It’s a stress you really don’t need! Practice taking it apart and putting it back up again until you’re really confident and its a good way to keep active in labour or bring on a few contractions closer to the day! OR make your first trip out to John Lewis as the ladies in the baby section are really well practiced at helping new mums panicking in the carpark! 😀
Ahh sorry Victoria – I misunderstood – but yes you can at least take them around the shop and you can certainly try it around home and in the car and take it back if it doesnt work for you. Most places are really good at helping demonstrate it and packing it in your car with you if its nearby.
I’ve just had a quick gander at John Lewis website and they do a make of pram called Cosatto and they look great! Nice and colorful without being too gender specific and sturdy looking…not that I know anything about prams, plus I’m not even pregnant! Just well nosy! Suppose you could call it research for future plans!
Hi there, not sure if you have seen, but I saw some videos showing the front wheel of the cosatto just coming away mid walk, lots of people have complained.
I’m sure cosatto will have rectified this but I just saw your comment and thought I should say something xx
Clearly I’ve not done enough research! Thankfully I’m not needing/haven’t bought anything pram based…good to know though! 🙂
Pram shopping can be overwhelming but also so exciting – it was what made my pregnancy really start to feel real!
We had a Stokke Xplory for our little boy and I loved it. We ended up buying it in cream secondhand for £400 and have worn it into the ground for the past two years – admittedly now its on its last legs as it was already over two years old when we got it but it looked fab and I have had so much use out of it including daily walks with a Great Dane (which it was fab for as so easy to push and manoeuvre one handed). It’s so great having your baby so high up and close to you, I’d say this is the main selling point. It fits into quite teeny spaces despite how tall it looks and is perfect for urban living and shops. The bag on the front is deceptively large and you can also use with a maxi cosi carseat with the adaptors.
We now have a Phil & Teds sport that we also bought secondhand from gumtree for £50 – not ideal for shopping or public transport and its quite heavy but great for dog walks and being more off road.
Totally off topic but talking of the John Lewis website can I just claim a proud mummy moment and link you to this lovely little boys shirt worn here by my favorite boy in the whole world. Ahh this is my gorgeous little boy! http://www.johnlewis.com/john-lewis-boy-check-oxford-shirt-green-multi/p1715126 (sorry- they just put it on and I’ve not had chance to show anyone in real life yet!) He looks a bit sensible and more serious than normal here. :’)
Amanda what a handsome chap! he looks very cute indeed 🙂 x
Thank you! <3 him so much! And sorry for the interruption – back to prams everyone…
Very useful post – however, am expecting twins (yikes!) and I suspect that twin buggies is a whole different ballgame….currently thinking of getting the icandy peach 3 blossom. Just need to remortgage the house first, ha ha! I second the posters who ask for a post on changing bags and a post on baby essentials. Pretty please! xx
Bex who writes the olive dragonfly blog (not sure how to hyperlink on my phone!) has twins & I’m sure she wrote blog posts on the pros & cons of the available twin buggies.
Might be worth a look? x
Thanks, I’ll take a look! Xx
Lisa huge congratulations! And anything called “peach blossom” wins in my book 🙂
I’ve taken note of your requests xx
I have the stokke xplory in the same colour as the pic above! I bought one (read – my dad did!) as my sister had one in navy and I was completely unaware that a pram could be so darn stylish! But after almost 2 years of having it I’m soon to be sticking it on eBay and will buy something completely different if we have another baby! I just didn’t get on with my stokke. It looks great and manoeuvres like a dream but it’s a big bulky awkward to put up nowhere to put anything pain in the arse! Plus ours broke and had to have it repaired. And the price is just ridiculous. I blame first baby brain!
Lucy good to know – I did wonder how they “fold” as it were, and as they are so tall what kind of boot they would fit in! x
We had a 3 door Ford Focus and it JUST fitted in. Bugger all else was getting in there though!
I completely agree that the pram is the most confusing/stressful/research heavy thing to try and get right – I’m 30 weeks and it’s the one thing so far that we have been most worried about getting wrong!
This post is just a tiny bit untimely for me, as after a month or two of researching, testing and lasking everyone we could think of who have kids what they’d recommend, we just ordered ours at the weekend. We went for the Mamas and Papas Armadillo Flip XT. We went for it as it’s light and compact, has a reversable seat, has a massive hood a peekaboo hole, has a good size and easy to access basket, lies flat but you can also get a carry cot, folds SO easily (defo the best/easiest of all we tried) – and also folds when the seat is facing forward (for a lot of the others you had to unclip the seat and change this around before folding), once folded will freestand and looks nice too! The XT model has slightly chunkier wheels than the normal version, which we went for in the end despite living in London as they don’t add to much weight or size and will give us more flexibility for going off the pavement.
We’re having a boy, but wanted something neutral anyway, so went for the navy option though ‘Mulberry’ was a close contender.
Other options we were strongly considering were the Bugaboo Bee 3, iCandy Raspberry, City Jogger Mini and the Uppa Baby Cruz. All had lots going for them, but also had something we didn’t like (i.e. the fold, didn’t like the flimsy hood on the Raspberry, the Cruz was brilliant but a bit big for us). I think you can end up tying yourself in knots trying to make the ‘right decision’, but some friends said to us not to worry too much as so many are really good that there really isn’t much between them. So we took a deep breath and went for it (with the carry cot, as we thought this might be useful for sleeping during the day at home as well, esp as we won’t be using a car seat much in London and we have a crib not moses basket for our room).
So good luck everyone! Lau x
Thanks for such a detailed comment Laura! seems like you really did your research and chose the right model for you. I’ve not seen anything in navy or indeed Mulberry…..quite jealous x
My daughter’s 3 weeks old and we’re using a Quinny Buzz given to us by my SIL. It’s working out pretty well, but I really wanted an Uppababy Vista. They’re £750 though, compared to the Quinny which was free, so practicality won out! x
I have an uppa baby vista and can’t recommend it enough it’s brilliant- expensive but the built in uv shade and massive basket make it worth it for us, it’s all good for cross terrain so perfect for nice country walks and shopping in town. It is quite big but ok once you get the hang of it. Took me a while to get used to putting it up and down and would recommend practicing in advance!
I found buggy shopping really stressful our first trip to Mothercare didn’t last long and was followed by an emergency coffee and cake with the husband to calm down from if I can’t even choose a buggy how can I look after a baby fear!! Can luckily say nearly a year on from panic both baby and buggy are doing well!
18 months on we are still loving our uppababy vista! The big basket is a godsend. no issues at all and SJP had one so I figured if its good enough for her!!! Plus it’s a which best buy.
We also have the uppababy g luxe which is a lightweight umbrella stroller. We wanted a light one to take on holidays etc and it’s the lightest we could find where baby could lie flat so she would nap. It also has the fab pullout sunscreen like on the vista. It is a bit spendy but would totally recommend.
Bit late to the pram chat – this is my last week at work before I start maternity leave and my gruelling handover means I haven’t even looked at RMS until the bus ride home!
We bought the Bugaboo Cameleon 3 on Boxing Day. From a really good website called Baby Baby Online. They do bundles where you get all of the fabric and the car seat and adaptors and we saved over £200 I think.
They are expensive, but my friend has used hers everyday for 5 years – she’s got to boys – and it’s still in brilliant condition. So I wanted something that came with a good recommendation and that was a sound investment for future children. (I’m expecting my first in 3 weeks) Also, she lost all of her baby weight power walking up and down the hills near where we live with her Bugaboo so I’m hoping to use it for the same!
We’re expecting a girl and got it in black with petrol blue fabric – which is actually more of a sagey green. You should check out baby baby online if you’re considering a Cameleon – it really was worth it for us.
We have an Uppababy Cruz which is fab. We deliberated for a long time and then found out that Uppababy have excellent customer service, which swung it! We have needed to call them once (when the retailer didn’t send the right adaptors for the carrycot stand) and they sorted it, super speedily, no questions asked, at no cost to us. It gives me peace of mind should anything go wrong in future. As for a changing bag – have just switched my Pacapod for a Bababing – I love it! x
We went for the Mama’s & Papa’s Urbo2 in the Donna Wilson print – I liked it for it’s compactness, lightness and ease of putting up and down, the husband liked it because of the foxes. Winner all round! 7 months later and I couldn’t be happier with it! I love the tan leather handle and strap across the pushchair, perfect excuse for me to buy a tan leather changing bag which I also adore (whole other post!) xx
Ooo nice to be able to post and feel like I can offer some advice as a relatively new mum…9 months in I have otherwise just been taking the advice rather than offering it! Anyway, we have the uppa baby vista and love it. It is quite big and bulky but with a 6’3″ husband so many of the others we tried just looked like he was pushing a doll’s pram! The huge basket is great for shopping (I have got a whole week’s food shop in there several times!) and the built in sunshade is great even at this time of the year when the late afternoon sun can be quite low. It also means my nosey parker of a son can’t see out quite as much when he should be sleeping! I went for it as my mum works on the nursery section in John Lewis (rather handy as you can imagine!) so it did really help that she knew the range inside out so could recommend for us based on our lifestyle etc. The wheels are quite weighty to get in and out of the car and they do take up most of our boot (we have a golf) but I figure the lifting must be doing the bingo wings some good 😉 I love the fact that we can happily walk anywhere without worrying about the terrain and steps and kerbs are a breeze, we also got the cozi insert as George has always been quite thin and long (!) so he was out of the carrycot bit quite early but needed something to bulk him out a bit in the buggy bit. We have the BeSafe car seat which sits on the wheels really easily with the adapters, we went for that as it has such rigorous safety testing. Hope that helps anyone on the look out for a travel system. I was so thankful that we only had the choice on offer in John Lewis to choose from, we went into kiddicare a few weeks later and there was a whole wall floor to ceiling full of different buggies and prams and I think I would have ended up in tears if we’d have had to start to try and pick one there!! On a completely separate note…and I know there is a separate post on here about high chairs but I cannot rate the ikea antilop highly enough!! x
I agree that pram shopping is the hardest but of buying for baby! My boy is 1 month old now. We also had generous grandparents who offered to buy our pram and said we could have anything, but I got so confused by everything that in the end we just went for the mamas and papas zoom package, you get the car seat, carry cot and standard pram seat thing for £300, and the car seat clips onto the chassis. It ticked all the boxes for us (and the in laws who bought it – I wasn’t bothered about the carry cot, but was told it was essential for a winter baby!).
We have so far only used the car seat on it, we have an ergobaby carrier for walks. The carry cot I have used for daytime naps, and a couple of nighttime ones when the boy would not settle in his crib in the early days!
The only downside with it is that I also have to take the wheels off to fit it in my boot (a polo) but I just couldn’t justify the money that a smaller system would have cost, even though it wasn’t my money! And it is just a click of a button and they are off. It’s very easy to put up and down too.
Hullo,
just a little suggestion for a potential future post…how to plan financially for a baby?? The above post has really given me food for thought on just how much a baby, and all the related accoutrement, can cost! Some help and insight would be greatly appreciated 🙂
Annie, a very good idea – leave it with me x
We got the Bugaboo Cameleon when we had Holden 3 years ago and love it; it was used almost all the time for 2 1/2 years and now it’s ready to use again for baby arriving this week!
It still works as well as it did when we bought it and we’ve also taken it on holiday everywhere we’ve been, including Australia & Florida.
Originally we bought the grey base fabric with the blue set, which we’ve just changed to a new purple one for baby girl.
My sister had the same one first so we had seen how it worked and liked it. My sister in law is about to buy the same one too for her new addition.
Yes they are expensive, we were very lucky my parents bought it for us but I think it’s been totally worth the money. We have just bought the buggy board for it too.
Hi Gaynor, I think it’s as much to do with “value” as the actual cost – yours has clearly been super value! great that you can change colours too x
Just in case anyone is looking for a really good off roader (we live in the countryside) I would thoroughly recommend the Out and About Nipper. It is a three wheeler, all terrain and not the lightest but fits in the back of a Golf easily. Fits with a maxi cosi car seat and a couple of my NCT friends have ended up buying it as a second pram (eek ££) because the original ones they bought were so bumpy on even the slightest shingle or public footpath. This is an excellent pram, I’ve loved it. Had to buy a second hand Phil & Teds navigator double buggy recently (maybe we should have bitten the costly bullet and bought this when baby number 1 was on the way as it converts into a double) but as soon as baby number 2 gets old enough to not use car seat adaptors very much, I’m getting the out n about double (second hand) as I think I’d prefer them next to each other rather than one in front of the other. Less chance of kicking…! ; )
So another serious consideration i would advise others to this already complex pram buying is to really consider getting one that converts to a double. You never know when number 2 might come along……..bf is not contraception peeps ; ))) xxxxx