Rear facing double buggy -just The Donkey?

[WittgensteinsBunny]

Is the only option The Donkey?

I've had a bj mini gt, which was fab but I hated that it didn't parent face and dd1 was a big baby who grew out of the carrycot in 10weeks! I wasn't confident or happy to put her in the main seat. I just felt I needed parent facing. So we switched to a Cham 3. I love my Cham 3. DD had ample room in carrycot until she was 5 months and has been really comfy in the seat since (she's 13 months) and it's her napping place of choice. I still put it in parent facing mode so we can chat / talk etc

Now due dc2, dd1 will be 21 months when they're born and I've figured that a double buggy is unavoidable.

I've looked at the bj and mountain buggy duet - these don't appear to parent face. I hate the idea of one under the other too, so that's the Phil & Ted's out.

Maybe I'm being too fussy. I don't know. Could i do dd in pram and baby in sling? I had a bad back after birth last time but maybe just have to get on with it?

Other considerations are that we have a small edwardian terrace with a narrow front door and live in a village with narrow pavements. I've seen one Donkey, once in our local Coop and it looked like a nightmare tbh. However, this really feels like my only option at the moment.

[Bangkokbaby]

I had this problem too, we are expecting twins and I had my heart set on a parent facing buggy. After a lot of research I had to go with the phil and ted promenade. which doesn't parent face :(
We measured the width of the side by side doubles and discovered that none of them will comfortably fit though the doors of our house, so the decision was taken out of my hands. I did find the promenade on sale in kiddicare for £400 including double kit, so that softened the blow a lot, The donkey was going to be almost £1000 more.
I still wish I could have had a parent facing one though.

[Ihateparties]

From what you have said it sounds like you will struggle to accommodate the width if a side by side pushchair. The benefit of a double can be negated if you can't comfortably fit it in your house and local places that you go. The duet will fit where a tandem will.. You would just have to face the forward facing issue yourself, which is a totally personal thing. Fwiw #2 and 3 of mine forward faced and went in tandem lower seats from birth as well as parent facing and being carried and the only person bothered about it was me. The only other potential issue with the duet is fitting it in a car, it's one that you really can't make smaller because of how it folds so you need to boot space to accommodate it.

Hating the idea of one under the other is extremely common and understandable but the practicalities of a much smaller pushchair do often end up winning for many people. Ditto parent facing really. My ideal tandem has a parent facing flat seat or carrycot in the top position then a forward facing lower seat for a toddler to be in and out of below. The logic being that the toddler has the benefit and freedom of walking some of the time and doing much more overall so the restricted view is more temporary for them than it is for the younger child. Again fwiw all of mine loved being in the lower seat and would fight over being the one in there, they have always viewed it as the prime seat of the two. Not necessarily what you'd expect but again seems common,

Another option might be fitting an easy x rider buggyboard to your cam3?

[beccajoh]

Do the seats on the city select rear face?

[FoodSchmood]

on phone and feeding so can't post properly, but take a look at the stroll air double,I think it's called the my duo or something like that. there's a uk stockist now. I haven't used one, but it's come up in my research and if/when I need a double I'll be going and looking at that one! It's narrow enough for regular doors, parent or front facing for either seat and has a decent size basket too.

[WittgensteinsBunny]

Thanks everyone. We've got a lot to think about! We've decided that we won't be buying a pram before the baby arrives as we felt we rushed the last one and ended out selling and buying the Cham less than 3 months later!

The city select looks like a contender. I think this is the one that DH said was "too long" when I pointed it out. But again, he said the Cham was far too big and expensive when we were first looking at prams

ihateparties I know it's me that will be upset by non pf and the inconvenience factor of the donkey seems, well inconvenient based on our circumstances. I have seen other doubles around the village and they seem to get on fine but the donkey seems much bigger.

I do wonder if we just get along with a sling for the first 4/5 months and then see how we feel, and then check out a range with the 2 dcs in the shop. thinks to self what a fun trip that will be!

[NutellaLawson]

On phone have to be brief, but look into the joint caboose. We have one and love it.

[NutellaLawson]

Joovy caboose, sorry.

It takes a car seat so baby can rear face and toddler sits in seat at the back either forward or rear facing.

[Ihateparties]

I guess the donkey seems bigger with the seats parent facing as it occupies more of the vertical space? It definitely isn't any bigger in terms of footprint, infact it's narrower by a couple of cm than most side by sides.

Pushchair shopping with both dcs sounds like a plan... Not an enjoyable one but practical..

Reading back over your op you have many months to think about it and look at your options, there could easily new product by the time you come to actually buy.

[2LittleFishes]

I also hated the idea of one seat underneath the other but due to narrow doorways/ frequently on busses ect even the narrowest side by sides wouldn't work!

In the end and lots of stressing out we went for the Oyster Max and I love it. Toddler on bottom seat (forward facing) but lots of room and views not obscured by other seat, plus she still gets to chatter away to me and her brother. And I've yet to find a door/shop/bus I can't manover around easily.

Upper seat is either but we have that one parent facing and think we probably always will. Second seat can be removed for a buggy board which will probably be handy for you once your totter gets a bit older, my oldest is 19m an we've used it a few times when nipping the corner shop.

If you have a kiddicare near you they have most of the models people have suggested so might be worth a visit and a bit of a play. We found it invaluable to have a test run to find a double that worked for us.

[WittgensteinsBunny]

I'm only just 6 weeks and trying not to get too ahead of myself. I guess I've just put my practical / distraction head on as we were not planning to have such a close gap. As it took 4 years to get dd, we didn't think we were even in with a tiny chance of making dc2 whilst still bf a co-sleeper! And now we're looking at double prams - eek!

Lots of time to consider but I like to know my options and the first pram was a nightmare to get right, so I thought I'd start my research early!

I'll take a look at some of those other prams as I haven't heard of Joovy prams before.

Thanks everyone!

[SweetPeaPods]

The new iCAndy peach 3 blossom cN be parent facing.

[HappyAsASandboy]

We had a Firstwheels City Twin side by side. It has two independent seats/carrycots that can independently forward or parent face. It is quite wide, though I only had a few places in my town that I couldn't go (the left hand lift in a multi-story car park, my GP practice and HSBC bank!). I loved it and am sad my twins have outgrown prams now.

I also had a Britax B Dual, for takin when I was going to crowded places and the doctors. It is one in front/above the other, but has a bigger space than Phil & Ted models and both seats can recline. It can take any combination of car seats, carrycots or seats and has about 28 different configurations! It is only slightly wider than a normal single (if anything), but seems bigger because it is fuller to a higher height.

In your shoes, I'd get a Britax B Dual. The toddler could go forward facing in the bottom position and the baby face you in a carrycot in the top position. The toddler would have an ok view, and if they looked up would see you to speak to. If you went for the soft carrycot instead of the rigid one, you could switch who was in which seat and give your toddler forward or rearward facing time in the top seat when the baby was napping (because the soft carrycot just clips onto a reclined seat unit). If you reach a point where you don't want a double anymore, the rear seat can be left off, and you're basically left with a Britax B Smart.

I am expecting a baby when my twins will be four. I am keeping the B Dual (and getting it a buggy board) because it is so flexible. I love it.

[Tiggywunkle]

I think there are more options to parent face in a tandem, than you think. Some have been mentioned above - the City Select, the B-Dual, the Oyster Max. But once you start looking, you will find loads including the iCandy Peach Blossom 3, the Emmaljunga Super Viking, the Kidz Kargo Duellette, the Bebecar 1&2, Casual Play S Twinner etc.

You MUST consider your circumstances. The Bugaboo Donkey is lovely, however with narrow pavements and a narrow front door, you need to make sure it would work.

Also throw your perceptions out of the window. You may find as your eldest grows, they love being in a lower seat and 'hiding' from the world. You may equally find the baby loves being under there. A good number of pushchairs with a lower seat have a good view out for the lower child, or the seats ,ay in fact face each other. I like having the eldest at the back to chat to.

Consider things like shopping / changing bag space; how a 6-12 month old will nap when the toddler in on board; where you will store it etc. The City Select is actually shorter than a number of tandems because again its perceptional - the seats sit pretty much within the chassis, whereas if you look at a Phil&Teds, the lower seat overhangs a long way at the rear.

Be very clear on what is most important to you. If how the children sits is the most important (bearing in mind the baby may well sleep most of its first year's outings away) then stick with that, but in reality practicalities with a tandem really should rule eg width, whether you can push it, where the children sit at each stage (baby as newborn, 6 months, 12 months) etc will make the difference in what is right for you.

[JenSmith1508]

I'm thinking of upgrading my icandy peach2 to a peach3 solely because it is now parent facing (that and the funky new colours!). I was worried when I got one that DS and DD weren't side to side but it works really well - plus they can't kick each other!

[HiccupHaddockHorrendous]

I have a city select for childminding. It's such a good, solid buggy. It is quite heavy to push in certain configurations but so comfortable the children and really compact when folded.

I've used quite a few doubles and this is the one that will stay. I also love using it as a single and it has a huge basket!

[Artandco]

I would just add a buggy board to the chameleon for eldest. That's what we did with 16month gap.

We did buy another seat frame though so could have newborn carrycot plus regular seat both set up.

Long journeys we could put baby in sling and eldest in seat or from 6 months just seat and board and sling and swap baby into sling from pram if eldest tired

Usually aimed to be home for both to nap after lunch together so only baby really needed place to sleep

You can spend next month getting eldest used to walking more also

Oh and neither used pram after 2 years so a double would have been very costly for just a few months use max

[slightlyinsane]

Another vote for the city select. We have twins, couldn't have a side by side and hate the 2nd seat at back tucked underneath, so we got a city select. Love the fact you can have it in so many different configurations, baby at front and toddler facing you as lets face it, it's months before baby needs interaction like a toddler does.

[Lisaew]

Hi my daughter is having twins so we are starting to look at pram possibilities she would prefer a parent facing one but looking at the options there aren’t many to choose from and the next to eachother buggies look quite wide
Can anyone who has had twins suggest a good push chair please

[Buttons294749]

The MB duet does parent face, you just need to buy an additional frame thing

I hate it generally but it does have that quality lol

[Amaterasux]

Mountain Buggy Duet does parent face but only up to a certain weight limit.

You need to buy the Carrycot Plus to get it to do this.