Best wheels (scooter, trike etc) for a 2 year old?

[Rainbowpjs]

My DS is 22 months and we are thinking about getting him a scooter / trike / bike type thing sometime soon, but as a first time parent I have no clue what is the best thing for this age??

He's very active and energetic. At nursery he enjoys sitting on a little pedal car but I don't know if he can pedal. He also tries to steal other children's scooters in the park!

I know you can get push along pushchair type scooter seat things (not sure what they are called), tricycles, scooters and bikes etc. We can only afford 1 thing and we have the tiniest hallway in the world and nowhere else to store things...

So with that in mind can anyone recommend what sort of toy wheels we should consider? Preferably something that lasts a while as he develops?

Thank you

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MNHQ

Second hand mini micro with a pull handle or else a decent balance bike. Something light you can pick up when he inevitably abandons it. We got years and years out of a Strider balance bike, and then both DC got straight on to pedal bikes with no issues.

I would go for a micro scooter or a balance bike.

Try to get a microscooter if you can. I found them so useful for dragging a tired toddler home. It took DD a week or two to get used to steering, but after that it was brilliant.

If you can't find one on eBay, try asking on Freecycle. What i liked about them was the availability of spare parts

The ride-along seats didn't exist in our day and i was short enough to be able to drag the handlebars without a leash.

Out of interest, I have just looked on eBay and there seem to be plenty of mini micro scooters available.

I paid £5 for mine from Facebook Marketplace, although £10 - £20 is the usual price range. It's the Maxi microscooters that are hard to get hold of second hand.

Mini micro or balance bike

Sorry to sound daft but what is a balance bike?

And also, to clarify, you all think a mini micro would be fine for a just turned 2 year old?

Thank you

My DS was on his sisters mini micro at about 18 months and a balance bike before he was 2. A balance bike is a proper bike without pedals. No stabilisers or anything. They sit and use their feet to run around, then lift feet off the ground when they get used to it. You can get up quite a speed but they're small, light and easy to put in the car or carry home. My DS was an absolute demon on it and at 4 he rode his first pedal bike with no trouble. I got a second hand one for a tenner, no need to spend a lot.

Balance bike is a 2 wheel bike without pedals. They push along with their feet and learn to glide and balance (ie the skills needed to ride a pedal bike) so once they’ve mastered that the transition to a pedal bike is easy. We got DS a balance bike for his second birthday and he pedalled away on a pedal bike on the morning of his 3rd birthday. Lighter the better both for the kid to use and you as you will end up carrying it! We had an Islabike Rothan but cheaper brands are also good like the strider or Puky.

It’s a bike with no pedals, to get them used to scooting along and balancing. Look for a secondhand one on marketplace, Puky, Chicco Red Bullet and Islabike are all good.

Ok thank you. We don't have a car (London) and DS is a live wire, so I'd struggle to carry bike and keep him from running into the road. I might start with the micro scooter to use in the park and switch to a balance bike once he's a little bit older and able to follow instructions...!

Scuttlebugs are great first trike type things. They use their feet instead of pedals.

Doona trike. The absolute best things I've ever bought for my toddler. Quite pricey but worth every penny imo.

A balance bike. They're really good because when they come to learn to ride a bike they already have a lot of the skills needed.

Have a think about where you would hope to bike/scoot and the traffic.

I say this as somebody living near main roads in Bath/London near a school run.

A balance bike plus toddler is great in a park, but less so on busy roads/junctions. A scooter is easier to stop and not swerve/fall over.