Pram experiences and recommendations

[TryingForBabyFirstTime]

After some extensive research I've narrowed our pram choice down the following, still quite substantial, list. Does anyone have experience/would recommend any of these?

Bugaboo lynx/fox/cub
Occarro
Uppababy cruz/vista
Icandy peach
Silver cross pioneer/reef
Joei versatrax
Ickle bubba stomp luxe /v4
Venicci tinum

Factors of consideration:
We want something with sturdy enough wheels for woodland/bridleway walks etc but not too heavy and cumbersome for taking on public transport and around the local high street

Want something that folds as easily and compactly as possible given the style we're looking at. We don't have a car so that's not a consideration but for storing in our quite small hallway.

Doesn't need to be a travel system as no car.

Would like a large storage basket underneath and a good canopy for shielding baby from sun.

Parent and world facing seating.

Thanks for any thoughts 😊

I have the occarro. It does feel really good quality and lovely to push but it is very heavy!

I had Ickle Bubba Moon and absolutely loved it. So light and easy to fold in small space. I have Oyster 3 now which is more practical for my toddler and I hate how heavy and bulky it is to fold (otherwise fab).

I've just looked back at the weight on this one and it is very heavy!

Ooh I've not look at the Moon will check that out!

What did you think of the wheels on the Moon for going over more rocky/uneven paths?

I would say none of those prams are really suitable for woodland walks as they all have small front wheels.

Generally your looking at three wheelers that have equal size large wheels.
For example mountain buggy, baby jogger, Thule.

Mountain buggy swift or baby jogger get are the smallest in there range but still have large wheels. We have a swift and I use in woods and snow fine, but get the mountain urban if you want full thick snow use

I have an uppababy vista v2 and love it! The basket is huge, it pushes really nicely, the bassinet is nice and high so you don’t have to bend down and it is really high quality. Has built in sun shade and air flow in the bassinet and folds down super easily with one hand. It does have quite a wide wheel base but the pros of it outweigh this. It can also double up if you have another child.

Honestly I don’t think one pram can properly handle woodland walks yet also fold small in your hallway and still be nippy on public transport. I would get something compact for town, like the Cruz (friends have it and it looks really good) and then get a sling for woodland walks.

From your list specifically I can confirm the icandy peach is crap- surprisingly bulky for town use yet still hard to push on rough terrain or snow as teeny front wheels and no tires, 2 piece fold is a pain especially if you plan to store it in the hallway and the seat was weirdly tiny so outgrown very quickly. Absolutely not worth the money.

For my dgd my dd had a Bebecar really lovely bassinet with airflow etc large hood the chassis had quite big wheels & sprung so beautiful to push also had the pushchair which clipped on easily to the pram chassis could be rear/forward facing & used the same hood as the bassinet, fitted ok on a London bus as the handle could be pushed down & in, had a really roomy basket
it did fold but was reasonably large but they managed in a small one bedroom flat.

Have you been for a ‘consultation’ chat at any pram stores? I found Mamas&Papas and John Lewis both great at going through the features of each of the prams.

Sturdy for woodland walks and lightweight/easy to fold/compact are generally at opposite ends of a continuum. You would be unlikely to find any pushchair that handles both groups of tasks effectively. It's not just the size of wheels (although you need bigger wheels for off-roading), it's also the sturdiness of the chassis to handle all the bumping and banging around, and, potentially, suspension and a good braking system.

We ended up with two pushchairs, the Jane Trider tank that had big wheels and a bassinet for when DS was tiny, and a little umbrella buggy for when he was over 6 months and could sit up. That was before we ultimately needed a double buggy when DD turned up, at which point we got the Joie Aire Twin Buggy, and now we just use the tank for going to the woods or beach with DD.

Not the Joie, I have it, I like it but even on light gravel I don’t think it performs well, it’s larger than I’d like folded. After 8 months is a bit rickety already. It doesn’t get heavy use just a dog walk 4 or 5 days a week, occasional school pick up and drop off (more likely to use the sling though) and once every few weeks for a day in town.
I would choose something else if I could.

Thank you, I think this is definitely one of the front runners

I wasn't sold on the icandy so think I'll remove that from the list!

Oh I'll have a look at this, thanks!

We have an appt booked in a couple of weeks 🤗

Avoid the silver Cross. Very unwieldy and poor off road. I replaced mine within 4 months of use.

We have the nuna triv which folds up easily and is compact. Wheels arent huge so isn't good for woodland walks but we just use a carrier for that instead.

I have a Uppababy Vista and I love it, it's so robust - I'm pregnant with my second and it's still looking good for use for them too.

Meant to add I got the Vista because we live near countryside and lots of cobbles and the under basket is massive. I don't know what I'm comparing to but it isn't that light weight but it does fold down well. I had a flat we used to keep it in when baby.
I would say go to John Lewis and take a few for a go around the shop, you can lift them and see how easy they are to put up and down and lift.
I also have a silver cross Pop for when they are a bit older. Again I got this for the wheels as really chunky and we also go on holiday places in UK with cobbles and different terrains that skinny wheels wouldn't work so well with.

Bugaboo fox here and we love it. It does really well on bridleway paths etc. Ours has done many dog walks on uneven ground and no complaints. It folds reasonably easily but I wouldn’t say it was compact (particularly the bassinet). As pp mentioned, you might struggle for compact and off road!

Thanks everyone for your insights :)

Agreed

Look at the Baby Jogger City Mini GT/GT2.

I’ve gone for the venicci tinum upline. It’s really sturdy with good suspension, folds down easily and I didn’t find it too heavy when playing around with it in the shop. The basket isn’t the biggest though!

I've had multiple Uppababy Vistas (and 7 other prams before those)
I've taken the uppababy on a lot of walks round the countryside and it's handled every terrain (except sand which no pram can do great with)
You can't find a pram with a bigger basket, I've fit a whole food shop in there many times
The seat is a lot bigger than some other prams (my 7 year old could still fit in it!)
The sun canapy is really handy and UV safe
Can get loads of handy accessories with it
Rain cover is easy and not confusing to put on
It folds with the seat part attached when it's forward facing
I just love them, I can't bare to part with my last one 🤣