How much did you pay for your pram?

[Ladypug]

I know it's a bit of a personal thing but I'm trying to find out how much a typical pram costs and what other people are paying? We've seen some we like at £400, some at £600 and one at £1,000. What were other people happy to pay?

Second hand year old Bee for £250, best money I ever spent. Two and a half years later, she's still riding and sleeping in it.

£200 for a second hand bugaboo cameleon from a friend. It's brilliant, only downside is size for travelling, so bought a maclaren quest for about £150ish new. Also great.

I think bugaboos are v well made so buying second hand is fine. Mine is now 7 or 8 years old and is still gong strong.

My ILs bought us a Baby Style Prestige pram with carrycot and pushchair fitting. I think it was £500 on special.

It's big and unwieldy but I wanted something that would last for all the children we have, had a proper shopping basket, large wheels and a good suspension because we live around a lot of cobbled streets.

It's a pain to collapse - you have to take the two bits apart - but I absolutely love it and think it was worth it. Our babies both slept in it for day naps for the first 4 months and it takes loads of shopping. And the buggy board we've attached to it for DD1 doesn't make the pushchair tip.

Jeez why do people spend so much? (Rhetorical question....)

My buggy was £25. Not a travel system or even a pram but I carried DS in a sling for first 3ish months and then after that he was fine in just a normal pushchair that lies almost flat, not a proper pram. Super easy to fold flat, put in car, bus etc. Cheap as chips. Friends of mine with £500+ travel systems are actually jealous because theirs are bulkier and less convenient but they feel like they've spent too much to just trade it in so are now stuck with it.

BTW, little luxuries like cup holders, accessories etc. can be be bought from Mothercare/online and attached with a universal attachment thingy to any old buggy.

Travel systems where you can click the car seat straight on seem really nice and convenient but it's actually not that good for newborns to be in a car seat any longer then necessary so I personally don't rate them.

Sorry, trying not to be self righteous but I'm just really happy I didn't chuck hundreds of pounds away on a set of fancy wheels to cart a baby around in when he's perfectly happy in a cheaper one

I bought a bugaboo bee second hand in eBay for £215 but I was planning (& willing) to buy it brand new which would have been circa £600 (I wouldn't have bought all the accessories)

Because they have different needs, lives and values from you, Mamushka?

Quite. I'd love to be able to carry the baby in her sling for any length of time, or have bought only the cheap buggy we have for bus journeys, but my body won't let me.

Oh yes, OP: the pushchair fitting for our pram can face both ways, which is a big plus.

That's great for you, Mamushka, but surely you can see how that might not work for everyone?? Some babies don't take to slings, some parents might struggle to find one comfortable enough or might prefer a pram/pushchair so that a baby can be easily transferred between more than one carer. Just because you use a car seat in a travel system, it doesn't necessarily mean you'll be exceeding the max recommended usage per day - it might just be more convenient to transfer a sleeping baby from the car to the buggy for a ten-minute trip round the shops. Not all children sleep well in all kinds of strollers, so some parents might want something with a more comfortable seat and more substantial hood than that offered by a cheap stroller. They might be planning to use it for several kids, and they might have done their research and know that they can get a good resale value once they're done with it.

Any "top price" you set is pretty arbitrary - there's no right or wrong and it's the same with car seats - the best one is the one that fits your child, your budget and your lifestyle.

Mamushka - I don't feel jealous of people with cheaper, less bulky buggies because I live in a very hilly, cobbled town and the suspension in my bugaboo is necessary for DD's comfort.

Also, we have to park a five minute walk from where we live because of traffic restrictions, if DD has fallen asleep in the car seat, it's very handy not to have to get her out to put her in the pram. Putting the car seat straight on means she sleeps longer. I have an umbrella fold buggy for when I go elsewhere but I use the bugaboo locally and it suits us.

Horses for courses and all that.

We spent £100 on a hauk travel system from precious little ones. Not the one I really wanted but we had no money then. But its a really good pushchair specially for the price we paid.

Our inlaws bought us the hauk baby condor travel system because it's the one they liked. I didn't know what I was doing and I just went along with it because I didn't understand why people spent so much time shopping trying them all out but I wish I had!

Get the one that's most practical. Lots of people on here saying they'll have to buy another one as well for various reasons and I am one of those because I can't collapse mine without causing a scene in public and it takes up the entire boot (of my golf) the car seat is really heavy too. Just a couple of things to consider. If there is a next time, I'd prefer not to have to buy another one for any reason.

Good for you Mamushka. I couldn't use a sling as I broke my coccyx in labour. I have the uppababy vista which I love and have so far used daily for 18 months. I also have a maclaren quest (lightweight stroller) which I hate, and which DD hates sitting in.
So if I had the time again, I would 100% spend £700 on the uppababy vista again and not bother with a stroller.
See, everyone is different!

We got the M&P Armadillo Flip XT for around £730 at a baby show. Includes carrycot, car seat and base. We spent a lot of time trying all kinds of prams out, including the far cheaper ones, but liked this one best. It folds one-handed, has a decent size bag underneath, you can clip on the car seat, it's lightweight and nippy and seems pretty sturdy. It should do this baby until he's, what, 3 or so? And then any other DC, taking the price per year per child down further.

No, I don't think you have to spend that amount, and you can get the same sort of functionality at far cheaper prices, but we fell in pram-love and indulged. I do agree the choice is incredibly overwhelming!

£360 for Britax affinity travel system.

We paid £40 for a second hand travel system off ebay. It looked brand new and was excellent. Now she's 9 months old and doesn't need the carrycot part and we bought a different car seat we sold it on and bought a stroller for £100 which should last her til she no longer needs a pram.

Yes, I do understand everyone is different. Some people have money burning a hole in their pockets and others don't...

Sorry, just being provocative. The truth is we could've bought a £1000 pram (which would be exactly 40 times the price of our one) without blowing our budget. But some people can't afford to blow a month's wages on a buggy. I doubt their babies are writhing around in terrible discomfort because their pram wasn't sold at a premium enough price point.

To me it's like buying a designer handbag: the price is disproportionately higher, cheap versions do fulfil the same function, although the designer bag might last longer and have better reselling value. Obviously if it makes people happier then it's a worthwhile investment. But personally I'd rather spend that sort of money elsewhere, e.g a family holiday.

£60 for a second hand iCandy on EBay. It was slightly broken in that the button to collapse it had a habit of falling out. DP fixed it easily enough!

Well the in laws bought ours . No, obviously a lot of people can't (or don't want to) spent that amount of money on a pram. Others do. Like I said, I couldn't physically use a sling and DD hates our stroller, always has. In terms of cost per use I think we've done pretty well out of our uppababy vista and it still looks as good as new for baby number 2, due in July (with the added benefit that I can add a rumble seat for DD). Well worth it in my opinion.

YouMakeMyHeartSmile JESUS CHRIST. You broke your coccyx in labour?

runs off to book elective C-section

about a 1000 on Bugaboo Cameleon. Baby would have been perfectly fine in a cheaper buggy as well, I'm sure, it was mostly bought thinking about the people pushing it. I have tried many and just love how easy the cameleon is to steer and how it works perfectly in both city streets and country roads. Still like new.

Yep, fractured it Skeppers! My advice is not to get lazy and stay on your back (after 48 hours I wasn't bloody moving anywhere!). DC2 is due in July and I'm going for a water birth as I can't possibly lie flat on my back in a birthing pool