Prams

[Jer79]

I'm almost 34 weeks and we need to get the pram business sorted. Wondering what everyone else recommends having done the homework? The more I testdrive and read, the less I know! It's going to be a present so we can get a reasonably good one but not sure what that is exactly. I'm not a big Bugaboo or Quinny fan, but quite like the Stokke and the BabyOyster.

Any tips?

We've gone for a Mamas & Papas Sola, we checked out the Which Report and it came very highly in their safety tests, together with the car seat that forms part of the travel system. We didn't bother with the carrycot (as we're having a Summer baby) and the whole system cost about £650.

I've bought the mamas and papas zoom havent used it yet as DD not yet arrived(39wks) but i love it. U can get different colour car seats and it comes with everything and isn't too bulky. A lot of prams u have to buy everything separate whereas this one comes with car seat carry cot rain covers basket etc which makes it quite good value. It's also got a 360 deg turn on it so its not bulky to move around shops etc Have a look on their website. :)

clearly mamas and papas fans. I think mine was around £400 in the sale but think around £600 normally. (a bloody fortune if u ask me) But then again definately saftey first!

I've just bought a silvercross freeway on the linear chassis. It's a parent facing lie flat pram which converts to a parent and outward facing pushchair without the need for a seperate carrycot and seat unit.
It is quite heavy and the frame is pretty large but I really liked it. Also not used it yet as 39weeks at the mo.

as with most things baby related it really depends on what your particular circumstances are. will you be walking a lot, on public transport or in the car? Do you envisage wheeling the baby in the house and leaving it in the pram to sleep or is that not a feasible option? Whatever you do end up getting, if it includes the car seat, make sure you and your DP/DH practise using it and clipping it in and out before baby comes so you aren't standing there like idiots in the hospital car park!

FWIW I have an Icandy Cherry that was great so long as you don;t mind having to remove the body from the chassis to fold it - not a good option if you are on pub. transport. I intend to use it for DC2 some of the time when DS1 is not with me or walking alongside.

Ordered the stokke last week,I liked the iCandy as well. Oyster is fine but much flimsier,however it was on my possibles mainly due to the colours!
Suggest you order soon as some have wait times. Ordered mine at 31 weeks.

I never bought one for my first and am in denial that I might have to 6 months or so after the birth of this one.

I cannot stand them!

So, what pram can you buy for someone who hates them?

What will you be using it for?? Do you walk a lot 'off the beaten track', do you travel a lot in the car etc etc.

We're getting the Jane Slalom Reverse Matrix Light system. It's got a lie flat car seat/pram for long journeys, which later converts to a more upright seat for car/pram for up to 18 months.
Also comes with a reversible pushchair fixing so baby can face you or away from you. Is all terrain as we walk a lot in the nearby forest and the beach, and it has a hand brake as well as foot.
Can't wait to order it this week :)
diddyland.co.uk do it for £491 inc change bag and raincover, but preciouslittleone.co.uk price match less 10% of the difference so got it for £484 :) Worth getting the mattress too if you stop overnight anywhere so you haven't got to take a moses basket or anything.

Silver Cross Surf. Fairly light weight. Manouverable (sp?!). Not at all bulky.

Thanks KLou for your post. I've been looking at Phil n Teds but want to check a few more out. That sounds great. :)

Last time I wanted the Stokke but didn't get it, this time I will get my way I love it!

i have nannies for 10 years and am lucky enough to have used loads and loads and loads of push chairs

a few i have LOVED (but more often not they annoy me or i dont like them, or i even hate them)

For me, the ease of pushing is the key factor... we live a stones throw from national park and i realised i NEED a buggy capable of pushing (well & easily) off road. (nothing more annoying than a buggy thats a nightmare to push)

I have a huge car boot, so that wasnt a factor to worry about.... it also needs to withstand going up and down 2 concrete steps every time we come into our house.. and not fall apart. (I dont trust any other pushchair to manage that regulalry for years and not brake eventually!)

I have chosen a mountain buggy urban. (but one the old ones manufactured in New Zealand (MB moved their factory to china about 2 years ago) where the quality is just fab... they are built like tanks, the easiest to push, and last for several children, STILL in perfect working order, and have life in them.
was hard to source,but i have got a brand new one from the old factory.

The car seat adapter fits ANY group 0 car seat (not just a specific one) and with the carrycot fitted baby can face me for the 1st 6 months.

Unlike most buggies which are only supposed to have children in up to 15kg (some allow 18kg) mountain buggy approve a 30kg child to sit in it... and in 10 years of nannying, myself (or parents) have not managed to break one yet!

This is my 3rd baby and I have had loads of prams!! I am sticking with my current one and just buying the carrycot. I have the mountain buggy swift and I love it, it is so easy to push, hard wearing, folds up simply and i have bought the freerider (like a buggy board and a scooter) for my son who will be nearly 2 when this one is due! I started off with the herqules (not very common) loved it but difficult to push (sprained my wrist a couple of times) then got the phil and ted vibe (have 18 months between my first two) did like it, but partner hated it, got a maxi cosi mura, partner loved it but I didn't so much. Used it for about 3-4 months (still need to sell) then bought my mountain buggy which I will not part with.
Good luck with buying a pram it is an absolute minefield and so personal, depends on what you need it for, if you have a car etc

Like otchayaniye, I'm not bothering. With DD I just used a sling until she could sit up in a pushchair. Much snugglier and more flexible, IMO...

We have the babystyle oyster.......so far all is good and cost a lot less than the quinny and bugaboo. Once the cot is not needed will fold with seat in place and is fairly compact.
Thinking of changing the wheels to improve the ride but thats because we live in a country area....not needed on pavements.

I have an Icandy Apple and really recommend it. One set of wheels and you can click in the MAxiCosi Cabriofix carseat, the buggy seat or a carrycot (the carrycot and carseat adaptors cost exta).

If you drive, having the facility to be able to just move the carseat onto some wheels is invaluable (well, would you like to be woken up from your snooze and moved to another location?!)

We got the Stokke Xplory. We have not used it yet as baby is not born yet so I cannot comment on how good it is in action. But for me, it was extremely important for baby to be high up and able to make eye contact, chat, etc. This was the only buggy on the market that met that need. We also liked how easy it is to lug up and down stairs. DH loves its design, he'll give anyone who'll listen a full demonstration. As my Dad says, if a guy can get that excited over a buggy, it's a good buy. :) Before we bought I stopped random people in the street who had the Stokke to get their views and they luuurved it.

We also looked at the Bugaboo Bee which is super light and seems great for city living but we could not come to grips with how low baby would be. We tried some of the M&Ps strollers but I found them way too hard to collapse etc.

If you go for the Stokke, we ordered from House of Baby online for £599 including free delivery. Much cheaper than what M&P and Mothercare are selling for, and the service from House of Baby was absolutely fantastic.

Mammas and Pappas glide! It's the same as the Sola but comes as a package and works out cheaper! Haven't got it yet but icandy's and stokke's look so showwy offy.

The sola is really light, has adaptors for the car seat so you don't have to push round a heavy travel system and folds up with one hand which i love for getting on the bus etc. It's so light aswell, it's got all the features of a quinny but much nicer looking and cheaper!

We haven't bought one yet but seriously considering an Emmaljunga - a friend has the Edge and she swears by it!
It's a little bulky and has a very classic feel (which I personally like - not too keen on the super modern ones) and I don't drive so will not have to worry about it fitting into car etc.

As someone else said, it really depends on how you'll be using it. I think anyway, since I've never used one and have only just ordered mine! I wanted something small for using on public transport and not taking up all the space in cafes, also easy to fold for pt which meant I wanted a lie flat option not a separate carry cot, fold small enough for a small car boot, large basket for shopping. I wasn't bothered about having a travel system, as the number of times that would be useful for us is very small. Also I wanted adjustable handles and something easy to get up a few steps. Oh and I wanted to be able to switch it to face both ways. I've gone for the Bugaboo Bee which fits all of that.

Wanting something small was the most limiting, loads of prams seem to be absolutely massive! I was looking at them in John lewis this week and I just don't know how people use them in places like restaurants, you wouldn't fit anyone else in!

I really liked the look of the Stokke, but it didn't fit with what we needed at all.

I loved my iCandy Cherry that I had for dd1 (now 3) and was planning to use it for this baby (5months pg), however, I'm expecting twins so will be buying a double. I do hope to use the carrycot bit for one baby with the other in the sling. We also used the carry cot as a moses basket (just bought a standard rocking moses basket stand for it). Really can't praise it enough. The fold and different positions of the main seat are easy and fab. and the main seat also lasts ages as it's pretty spacious.

If you plan on getting a travel system, its well worth checking that the car seat fits well and securely into your car. There are so many variables that even the manufacturers' lists of "this seat fits in these cars" are known to have errors so it really is a good idea to get someone competent in fitting car seats to make sure it will be safe.

what to get is, as has been said, a very personal choice. Things that were important to us included lie-flat (not just nearly flat) for new baby, adult-facing in all modes, ability to handle minor off-road stuff, small enough to fit in car, light. We got a Bugaboo Gecko and it worked pretty well - although as it turned out, DD hated being in the pram and I wound up using a sling a LOT more than I ever did the pram/pushchair

We have a second hand Bugaboo Cameleon that we got on ebay for £300 back in 2009.

It was good as new when we got it (though it had already seen through two children with its previous owner) and is still going strong as strong now.

I know there are often raised eyebrows about Bugaboos and I don't think I would want to pay £900 for one! But for £300 ours has been an absolutely brilliant buy.

Third trimester today wooohooooo!!!
Celebrated by ordering our Jane Slalom R Matrix Light pram/travel set, soooooooo excited now

I have a MUTSY & love it!

www.mutsy.nl/products/4rider/finishings