Procrastinating over travel system - help please!

[politico]

Hi all

DP and I are trying to prepare for our first child and have been struggling for months trying to decide which travel system to get. At 32 weeks, I'm starting to worry that I'm not going to have the energy to traipse around a warehouse full of prams for much longer!

Please can you lovely ladies give me some suggestions / help me whittle down our options? We need something lightweight (live in a first floor flat, no lift) which doesn't cost the earth (preferably below £300).

Our thoughts so far are a Graco Mosaic, Silver Cross, something from Mamas and Papas. We have heard amazing things about bugaboos in terms of being light but we're a bit broke and they seem like a hell of a lot of money. We would like an isofix based car seat as part of the system to slot into the pram / buggy as there is no parking near us and I can't be arsed to schlep for miles carrying the seat / having to transfer the LO from seat to buggy and waking them.

Some of our friends have got cheap ones second hand (irritatingly, they can't remember the brand) but they have had mixed experiences; one £50 second hand pram lasted 3 DCs, another bought one which lasted 3 months. So I'm a bit reluctant not to buy new as we'll hopefully have a second DC.

Thank you in advance!

The trouble is everyone likes different things!
The main thing for you I think is the stairs issue.
I would recommend the Maclaren Techno XLR which is the top of the range Maclaren. It lies completely flat and you can also buy a carrycot for it.

www.mothercare.com/Maclaren-Techno-XLR-Stroller-Champagne/dp/B001NWCES0?ie=UTF8&ref=sr_1_6&nodeId=44333031&sr=1-6&qid=1330460310

Plus Maclarens now have a lifetime guarantee.

Oyster for me and it is suitable with Maxi cosi and other car seats too. It is light -I have a small car and also in a first floor flat...Very reasonable cost too, around £250...I have black chassis but silver available too and you can change its colour with colour packs.

Thanks very much for your suggestions, really appreciate it - will check them both out! Yes, the weight / stairs thing is the main issue, price probably negotiable.

I went for a Maclaren XLR with the car seat and isofix base - I think they are maybe on offer on the Boots website atm, plus you'll get advantage points too. I went for red, and love how it all looks put together - but as my due date isn't til Monday I can't comment on performance yet. Happy shopping!

I also need a lightweight pram system as we live up a huge hill, I've been impressed by the mamas and papas Solar and the iCandy cherry. Both feel really light and easy to push. Whatever oh pick I think you need to do it soon as depending on your choice you may have to wait for delivery. :)

Don't get a silver cross!! I had the 3d and it was rubbish, all the people I know who had them found the carrycot only lasted around 2-3 months, and the pram is bulky and doesn't steer well at all! We are in an upstairs flat with no lift, and as a bit of a pram-aholic best I can suggest for you is either the oyster if you want something parent facing, or baby jogger city mini which is 1 hand fold, and light as a feather. I could carry DS in 1 arm, pram in the other when I had that!

Only other suggestion is to keep pram in the car boot rather than upstairs in flat?

Oh, and try buying a sling eg a moby, it's a life saver for short trips where you can't be bothered lugging the pram up and down stairs!

Thanks very much for those suggestions everyone - right, that's silver cross rejected. We're going to try them all out at some pram centre place this weekend and bite the bullet!

We've bought a Britax B-Smart - baby is still cooking but friends have the same one and really like it. It's not the lightest, though...

I live on the first floor without a lift and I bought a maclaren xlr. I also got the carrycot with it for £238 from kiddisave. I did buy the carseat separately- it's a different colour but i got it from a boots discount store . I haven't done the stairs test but so far it feels light- LO not due until May.

My DB and SIL had the Graco and barely used it, very heavy! I'd hugely recommend a Baby Jogger city mini. My friend was the same as you, first floor flat not wanting to spend a fortune and she loves hers. It folds with one hand and doesn't weigh much so very easy to carry upstairs with baby in one arm, pram in the other. You can get adaptors (about £20?) to put a maxi cosi car seat on. The best thing though is, everyone I know (including me) stopped using the travel system by the time the baby was 9 months-ish because inevitably they are too bulky, and so have gone out and bought an umbrella stroller aswell. Said friend has not had to do this because hers was so lightweight and easily folded to begin with, so a very worthwhile investment! Wish I'd known about them when I was first looking!

Would you consider ditching the travel system idea and buying a good sling? You need something comfy for both you and the baby that you can wear for longer at a time, but you might find you don't have all that much use for a pram if you can get a sling that works well for you. If you do decide to get a buggy later you can choose from a much bigger range that are suitable from 6+ months and pick something up good value 2nd hand. As pp said, many people don't end up using the travel system once they get bigger, and I think that would be even more the case with a flight of stairs to take it up.

The carseat-clip-to-pushchair-base thing is often unnecessary if you have a sling as they fall asleep in the sling so easily that even if you have to wake them up to take them out of the car, they are back asleep in the sling in seconds.

I'd start with a stretchy wrap (the Wrapsody stretch would be my top pick given your due date - it is pricier than the Moby etc but thinner yet more supportive, so more suited to summer) and then maybe add a buckle carrier when she is 6 months or so. It'll still cost considerably less than a travel system. Or something with buckles like a Connecta or Manduca that is suitable from birth if you prefer (not as snuggly for a newborn as a wrap but some people just prefer buckles)

I have loved my bugaboo chameleon which after 2 years of heavy use is still in extremely good condition. If I had known that they wear so well I would have considered buying one second hand. It was fab as a pram or with maxi cosi clipped in. For a toddler it is amazing - so light and steerable. Not selling mine though as DC2 is due and we'll be sticking a board on the back and using it for the next few years.

I definitely want to get a sling too, to potter around the house and get things done as much as anything! Good to know about the sling thickness / warmth etc. We're in Scotland though, I don't reckon warmth is going to be much of an issue. I think there are various sling meets on near me every month, so I'll get along to one of them before LO arrives and have a go.

Looks like the Graco is out too. The idea of a light buggy/system which would do more than the first year really appeals, so the baby jogger sounds ideal! Had a google online and like the look of it. Going to check it at the weekend.

Thanks for all the advice, really really appreciate it!!