Which pram have you got and would you get it again?

[AutumnCandle]

FTM, totally overwhelmed by all the choice there is on the market for prams.

We live in a town sandwiched between a couple of big cities. Frequently pop places, to the shops etc or to the garden centre. Also have the option of driving to find some nice long walks.

We are going to buy a compact stroller (we know which one) but need a comfortable travel system with decent suspension to see us through the first 6 months- one year.

I don’t want to pay crazy amounts of money, definitely something under £1000. We aren’t bothered about a travel system and will invest in a very safe infant car seat.

It’s more just a pram with carrycot plus parent and world facing seat that we are after.

What did/do you have and would you buy it again or not?

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MNHQ Update

If you’re short on time, we’ve rounded up the best pushchairs mentioned in this thread:

Maxi-Cosi Oxford bundle - £800

UPPAbaby Vista V2 - £600 for the bundle

Babyjogger Citi Mini GT - £310

Joie Versatrax - £300 (similar to the Joie Chrome)

Be sure to check out our best all-terrain prams buyer’s guide as well as our best pushchairs buyer’s guide for a wide range of options – tried and tested by parents, which include those with or without the option of a travel system and strollers with great suspension for undulating terrain.

Happy shopping!
MNHQ

I had a maxi-cosi travel system, with car seat, pram, and pushchair all on the same wheel base. The pushchair could be forward facing, or faced towards me.
I loved the system and would buy it again. I could collapse the wheel base one-handed to lift it into the boot, but it was still sturdy enough for long walks.
The pushchair coped with beaches and rough ground and we used it for nearly 4 years. It was a bit worn out by then so we gave it away, but it was still very usable.

I love love love my Vista. Mine is on its fourth baby and doing just fine, so it’s you only want it short term Id get one second hand well within your budget.

It’s a bit of a beast but I never have any problem on (London) public transport, and it fits a tonne of shopping underneath. Easy to push and seems comfortable for DD.

Babyjogger citi mini GT with the bassinet attachment. Lasted almost 3 years and would recommend it to anyone

I loved my Cameleon, i think it's now obsolete so i would get the fox
(Bugaboo)

Costco were selling the bugaboo chameleon for about £300 inc vat if it was something you were interested in, may be worth checking if they still have it. You could see if you can get adapters too to allow you attach whichever car seat you get to it.

We had a silvercross coast and I wouldn't reccomend it. The bottom basket is fixed so it is just really bulky when folded. It's lovely to push but just not practical when it's so massive. The wayfarer and wave are the same.

I did get an old mamas and papas flip xt2 on marketplace after awhile and I liked that one, it folded quite well. I think they're on to the flip xt3 now. They also offer the ocarro but I don't think that parent faces.

Have you looked at the babyzen yoyo? That could do the baby stage and the compact pram side of it then you could maybe get a second hand mountain buggy or huack for your more heavy duty pram for country walks if you have storage space?

We had a vista initially but had to return it to the person we borrowed it from. Didn’t need the double feature so got a third hand Cruz from marketplace for £150 and put all the fabric in the wash at a launderette. It’s still working brilliantly and would definitely go for either of the Uppababy ones again.

I can still get a Cam on the bugaboo website for £400… idk if this is a good price?

I had a Joie Chrome and loved it, sturdy and not expensive.

Love my uppababy Cruz and would buy again. Might have upgraded to the vista if space had allowed but as we were in a flat and I had a small hatchback when DD was born, a Cruz did the job very well! Still looks like new two years on.

Would second that. Ours is coming to the end but we've had it around 7 years and has served both our kids well. Solid choice. Decent on terrain and not too bulky

Another vote for the uppababy vista if you have a decent size car as it's quite big when folded. We use a much smaller stroller for out and about but the vista is a machine for going for walks which I did daily on mat leave.

@AutumnCandle for my first I had a travel system (mamas and papas occaro). They’re all big, bulky, annoying to store away and put in and out of car/on buses.

My best advice is to get a second hand yoyo or something similar (small and compact) along with a newborn pack. Newborns don’t lie flat for very long (one of mine was a v long baby and was in the main seat by 4 months as he no longer fitted in the bassinet).

You will appreciate something small and easy to store. I have a doona too (a carseat that folds down into a small pram) which has been a game changer for nipping to shops and short trips around town.

The one thing i’ve learnt is that I can’t stand big bulky prams unless you have 2 close together and need a double. Always worth thinking ahead as there are plenty of prams out there where you can always buy another seat and adapters in the future if you have number 2 within a couple of years of this baby.

I've used my Uppababy Vista for seven years and it's still brilliant for my fourth baby. I would buy it again.

We bought into the whole travel system thing and it was a total pain, ended up ditching it in favour of the babyzen yoyo which was AMAZING

I loved my Bugaboo Fox 2. Its so lightweight and nippy (could push 1 handed really easily) but also great on rough terrain. It's also really spacious for baby/toddler. It is quite chunky and in 2 parts for folding but you can remove wheels etc. Would get the Bugaboo Fox 3, Lynx or their new Dragonfly looks fab if I was buying again. I don't like the tiny front wheels on the Chameleon.

I've got the iCandy Lime and would definitely buy again. Have used it for both of my daughters. Easy to use car seat attachment, carrycot and now pushchair which is forward or backward facing and fully reclines with full cover sunshade and rain cover. Also has a built in buggy board so my 4 year old can ride on the back.

Another baby jogger city mini GT vote with the basinet. We are on baby number 2 and it's still going strong (I use it for a lot of walking/baby groups/nursery runs) it's taken a pummeling but the suspension is great it's so sturdy. Plus the one hand fold is great, grab the strap, woosh and it's flat and in your boot in a second. I love the large hood canopy too.

This was the one I got and will be using again for baby no2 from July.. whether its a boy or girl. I loved having my DD in it. Fairly cheap and so easy to put down or up.

Mamas & Papas Ocarro, looks well and is sturdy. My fave thing about it is that it has a bar at the back where my toddler stands and hence no need for a (annoying) buggy board

Bugaboo - didn't last to 3rd child

Bugaboo fox 3 here, I love it. Use it every day still with my 18 month old. We live in a city suburb so walk/public transport almost everywhere. We also have a dog so it’s come on plenty of country walks too! The hood that pulls all the way down is an absolute lifesaver. I stuck with bugaboo for our compact travel pram too, no regrets!

It’s worth every penny.
It will last through multiple children, you can always buy any spares you need, folds up small, easy to push - it’s great.

Got a Mamas & Papas Flip XT2 and it's been great. Still using it over 3 years later and would buy it again. Was lucky to get a discontinued one as the XT3 had just been released (paid £320 for pram, carrycot, carseat adaptors, and cup holder). Really no need to spend a fortune.

Ocarro - I wouldn't buy it again.
Its great that it all folds together, you don't need to remove the seat from the frame to fold it - BUT I find the seat part really difficult to remove if I need to, eg to put the car seat adaptors in. Also it's really bloody heavy. The bassinet was too small and my (albeit long) baby outgrew in weeks, he was almost too big for it at birth.
Friends have the bugaboo and I much prefer the look of it. The bassinet is much roomier. Personally I think I would have gone for an out and about nipper if I started again.

DC are older now and it’s been a few years since we were in the pushchair phase. We had a Babyjogger all terrain and a Babyzen Yoyo (they were very new when we got ours).

For our lifestyle it worked best to have a decent all terrain pushchair and then to complement it with a good compact pushchair for travel, school runs and out shopping etc, rather than one to cover all uses.

The BabyJogger was amazing. I think DC1 could sit in it until he was around 6, and even though it was massive it folded flat and had an east one handed fold.

We had a Maxicosi Cabriofix in the car. The one thing I would have done differently is I wish I’d got the adapters to put the car seat on the Yoyo. When DC2 was a small baby and dropping DC1 at school from the car it would have been much easier. I wouldn’t have used it as a replacement for the newborn kit in the Yoyo, just for the quick outings like school.

And finally it was easy to sell both pushchairs on when we didn’t need them anymore.