AIBU to be nosy and ask what pram you got and why?

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I’m blinded by a million prams/pushchairs/strollers/travel systems and have no idea what to go for.
I’m keen to have something for a newborn that can convert easily, isn’t too much of a pain to put up and down... and aside from that I’m
Blank!
What did you pick, what made you choose it and would you go for it if you had the choice again?

I really, really wanted one of the old fashioned Silver Cross ones - a Kensington or Balmoral. Literally everyone I spoke to convinced me this was not a practical choice for life in zone 1 London in a second floor flat.

So I compromised with a Silver Cross Pioneer. It was sort of practical, in that it can fit a carry cot, a seat or a car seat and can fold up, but 90% of my reason for picking it was aesthetics.

Part of me loves it, not only because it looks gorgeous, but because it manouveres well, is a great piece of engineering, and seems really comfortable for the baby. On the flip side, it weighs an absolute ton, making it hard to get up and down stairs, onto buses, or into taxis (I don't drive). It's also pretty long and wide, which makes getting it around shops and into restaurants a bit of a challenge. I usually walk 40 minutes to work though, and DD will be going to an in-house nursery once my maternity leave is over, so I think it will really come into its own then - it's fab for long strolls.

After a couple of weeks - particularity because an unplanned C-section had meant I couldn't really lift anything - I had to accept it wasn't ideal for every day, so I supplemented it with a Silver Cross Jet (yes, I love the brand, what can I say!). That's the opposite extreme: super lightweight, folds small enough to fit in hand luggage. It's brilliantly practical, but I don't feel it's comfortable enough for longer journeys, especially while DD is tiny. The combination of the two works pretty well though, even if I'm slightly traumatised by our overall pram spend!

I chose the doona buggy. It doubles up as a car seat. I chose it coz I had an emergency c-section and struggled with the weight of the second hand one we had and putting it all together. This just folds down in the click of a button allowing me to take baby out immediately without stressing about lifting anything I shouldn't. It's perfect but it's only practical whilst a baby and not a toddler

I've had a few prams and bought all of them 2nd hand so didn't waste any money just traded or sold for a different one.
Maxi Cosi Mura - too big and bulky, hated it
Phil and Ted sport - good when lo was a bit older, great for walking dogs, going across grass etc, easy to push but bullky to fold for boot of car.
Icandy peach 2 - great to push, good basket, looks great. Adaptors can be bought to turn into a double. The frame is a tad heavy!
Mothercare My3 - loved this pram, light weight, good basket. The bassinet turns into a seat to no faff storing a seat till lo is old enough, no Adaptors either you just pop the carseat or bassinet on and off!

I sold all of them except the icandy which I've kept for dc #2 but I think I would have gone for a mother care journey or orb this time as I loved the my3

A mamas and papas one in green with a leaf print inside the hood thingy. I saw natasha Hamilton from atomic kitten with it in a magazine and I like it so... 🤷🏻‍♀️

1st time- mamas and papas sola because I heard great things about it and it was so light. Loved it!!

2nd time - bugaboo donkey duo as dc1 was still small and we lived In the city and wanted a double that was side by side but would parent face.

Sold both not long ago. Sola for 100 and bugaboo for 500.

BabyJogger City Mini - amazing one handed fold, which was incredibly helpful for me, and it reclined flat so perfect for naps from newborn. Used a Bugaboo Cocoon in it for newborn, as it was otherwise very 'open'.
Heavy to steer, but otherwise great.

Bugaboo Bee+ later as it was very light to steer with a heavy toddler in and sore pregnancy joints.

Icandy peach and I love it. I don’t drive so I like that it’s so easy to push and i never have issues with it on the bus. It’s only down sides are that I wish it had a bigger basket and the sunshade extended further.

We looked at the vista as well and it’s very practical it we preferred the look of the peach.

We also have a gb pockit

The most popular prams in my country are the baby jogger range. I have two myself.

City Select (bought new bc we had department store vouchers, otherwise way cheaper available on marketplace!). The good things are that baby can face you, the basket is massive, it’s a dream to steer and you can get two seats on it in lots of configurations (unlike other prams which force you to put one seat under the other - with this pram, both kids can face each other or see forwards).

However, the city select is a big pram and we don’t actually have two kids yet. So when a city mini popped up on marketplace for a tener, we bought that too and it’s become our car pram. I love that the baby can lie flat, it’s much lighter and you can fold it and lift into the boot (if you have a hatchback at least...) one handed, which is so handy when you have a crying baby on your hip.

I should also add, the city mini can be folded easily for public transport but if you were catching it a lot (or lived in a flat with no place to store it below) I’d go for a smaller, super light pram instead. The city mini is great as an allrounder if you drive and walk mostly, with the odd public transport trip.

Our main criteria was that it needed to last and be convertible from baby to toddler stage, and also be convertible to take a 2nd seat. I didn't want to spend £1k on a pram only to need something else after the baby stage or buy another prom altogether because the original purchase wouldn't adapt to fit 2. Just seemed like such a waste of money.
We opted for a Phil & Teds sport. Very durable and still going strong 6 years later. There's a fair amount of wear and tear, but in terms of value for money I couldn't fault it.

Dd1 I loved the baby jogger city mini - easy fold and a dream to push. Did use a travel system I hated (heavy and huge) and a MacLaren which was ok but didn't seem very comfy for dd1.

However dd2 hated being forward facing so I got the bugaboo bee + and used up until she was 3. The whole time parent facing she loved a chat 😂 lived in a flat and could carry upstairs with sleeping dd in it. Held a decent amount of shopping and could attach a buggy board for dd1.

If your planning on having 2 close together then phil and teds is great. A sport one is bigger but more complex to close. I have a micra so got the phil and ted dot and that fits in with space for 2 shopping bags!! As a single pushchair mama and papa sola is v good (can also get a buggyboard to adapt if needed)

iCandy Peach - no idea why really, the fold is awful, it’s heavy and it’s not great off road despite being huge. Bought a YoYo for our first trip abroad and love it. So easy to fold, get for travelling, you can put it over your shoulder like a bag, the pouch at the back is great for your phone/keys. The iCandy only sees outside the cupboard when it snows and even then it’s not great because it doesn’t have proper tires.

Baby jogger city mini is fab. Can use it from birth but I got the carrycot to use when they were tiny. Can fold it one handed while holding baby and my tall 3.5yo still fits comfortably in it on the rare occasion he uses it.

Uppababy Vista cos it was a Which Best Buy.

The shopping basket is amazing, as are the wheels and you don’t need extra sun or rain covers it’s all included! Oh and the carrycot is made for overnight sleeping so we didn’t even get a Moses basket.

BabyZen Yoyo because it was one of two that would fit through our ultra-narrow door/hall and it was the lightest and we have front steps. It's fairly crap, very low and no room at the bottom for shopping, and ridiculously long DD is outgrowing it rapidly. Mostly use sling/carrier anyway.

We got the Joie Chrome. The folding mechanism is so simple, and it doesn't feel as bulky and heavy as some of the others. Got all the features we wanted eg parent facing, adjustable handles, travel system. It takes up more room in the car boot than I'd ideally like for overnight stays but the big wheels pop off easily and can then slot the frame into the passenger footwell of the car, leaving the car boot free for everything else.

We wanted to get it as a travel system but didn't get the Joie iGemm car seat that was offered as a bundle as there was another also compatible car seat, the Joie iLevel 0+ that has an additional recliner feature that I loved as my parents live further away and means baby gets a more comfortable position than sitting while he's still small.

A bugaboo cameleon because of the extendable (rather than flip) handle for dhs height. I love the way it looks and that you can face it towards you as well as away from you but there isn’t much room in the basket.

Another vote for the uppababy vista bought ex display. It moves and turns well, sturdy, can use bassinet as carry cot, compatible with maxi cos car seat, adjustable handles, can turn seat forward or backward facing, huge basket, fantastic Intergrated sun shade, huge basket and ability for 2nd child seat, still fits 4.5yo at a push!
Downsides

Width, have to remove the back wheels to fit in my car boot( which pop off in 2 seconds), when you told it the front wheel locks automatically come on meaning you then have to remember to unlock. Minor annoyances!

Another for the Uppababy Vista.
As @Crotchgoblins said, it's pretty bulky and I have to remove a wheel to get it in the boot but they pop off in a second (all 4 are super easy to remove if you wanted).

It's easy to open up and fold back down too - so fast!
And is great on different terrains

@Crotchgoblins our front wheels don't lock automatically, that might be a fault on yours. I would find that very irritating!

We don't have the front wheel lock issue either

Uppababy vista. I live in a rural area and it's just very solid, especially the chassis, with chunky wheels and the biggest basket ever. The carrycot is also a decent size too, bigger than the icandy.

If you asked me when the baby was about 9 months if it was the right decision to buy it I probably would have said "yes, it's brilliant, indestructible" etc etc.

Now DS is 2.5 and honestly? That thing was a big old waste of £800. He was in a close caboo or baby carrier a lot until about 6m. The pram got some reasonable usage between 6-12m but then he started walking and by 18m it was getting far less use as he never wanted to go in it. If you live in an urban area, I think you walk everywhere and a good pram is essential.... where I live almost everywhere is either less than 1.5 miles away (DS walks) , or is too far for either of us to walk.

I could have spent 2-300 on a pram and been fine.

I had silver cross balmoral with my first, looked lovely but was huge and hard to go places.

Icandy Peach, lovd that pram. Easy to use, enjoyed pushing it and the bar came up quite high to push as we're tall.

I'm glad I am now passed pram stages, cost a fortune 😳

@newmomof1 @cakesandphotos

Clearly I have a dodgy one! It has irritated me for 5 years!