(plane) travel and choice of stroller

[StuckOnARollercoaster]

Now DD is 3.5 months we are starting to think about travel - and will probably be doing a fair bit of it by plane to see my mum who lives overseas.
So we need a lightweight stroller, compact fold for small hire cars, but can withstand the abuse it will get being thrown around by ground crew.
Would welcome advice from anyone that's been in a similar position.

Is lie-flat essential - as she is so young, am also thinking comfier naps when we are stuck in an airport with inevitable flight delays?

Poland is very cold - so do we get an aftermarket footmuff? How does that work when folding up the pram to put in hold or will we have to fold it into our hand luggage?

Would you buy cheap, knowing you might need to replace often or does it pay to get a more expensive/quality/sturdier stroller?

Do we need umbrella fold or not?

At the moment she parent faces - but are all strollers a fixed forward facing type of affair? Am guessing that if you want both forward and parent facing options you are then into the heavier/expensive buggy category?

sorry its a lot of questions, but hopefully you can give me some useful pointers on what I should be thinking about

I would go for an umbrella-fold, as that's more likely to be kept on the plane rather than sent to the hold. Which means to get it back sooner.

I wouldn't worry about folding with the footmuff etc, as those things can go in your luggage. Keep it minimal for the flight.

Don't worry either about lie-flat, get one that simply reclines. But also get a sling that both of you can wear and can swap around easily (ring-slings or that sort of style are good for this). Baby can sleep, feed, sit up and look around in a sling, and it covers the delayed/missing buggy scenario.

We have a maclaren xlr, bought it for dc1 for travelling and it looks the same and is just as good 4 years later after many plane journeys for dc2.

As pp said any accessories can be taken off. We did try two cheaper fold buggies before this but they both broke quite quickly.

We went abroad on a plane when DS2 was 3mo. We got a lie flat Maclaren Quest which is an umbrella fold. They simply can't support themselves to sit in a stroller which doesn't lie flat at that age. It was fabulous, he napped in it during the day, it survived the flight both ways and when DS1 got tired we put DS2 in the sling and let DS1 ride in the stroller.

We thought about a cheaper stroller but decided it was false economy as once DS2 is 18mo or so we'll use the Maclaren as the main pushchair. They are all forward facing but the Quest has a clear window in the back of the hood so you can see the baby through it.

We didn't take the footmuff on holiday as it was hot but we had a generic one for the old Maclaren and it folded up with it attached. When I went to Poland it was a heatwave, 32 degrees!

Hope this helps.

Look into the zapp xtra. The new one folds with the seat unit attached and folds down really small.
I have the normal zapp which is really easy to push with one hand and ds is comfy enough in it, but doesn't recline. The footmuffs are really cosy, more like a sleeping bag.

The bugaboo bee. Can attach the car seat at this age to save carrying if you need that also.

Don't rely on buggy for airport tbh. You won't get it when you land, and can't use on escalators so often easier to check in pram and car seat with luggage and use sling at airport

I went with the cheapest stroller possible, most expensive sling option! Very light, small stroller which I don't care about means the crew can throw it around and crush it and I don't care. I got the Ergo carrier which means I can run for planes, carry DD when she is asleep/grumpy, have hands free for passports and she is not down on the floor in the crowds/queues so she is much happier. She is now almost three and this has worked for some time.

We have a babyjogger city mini and it's bloody brilliant. Withstood tons of travel, nothing that can get broken off by rough handling, very lightweight and the one handed fold is a thing of genius. You can also pick them up second hand very cheap.

One of our criteria was also a big sunshade/hood and the BJCM one is massive. It also fits into tiny cars and the wheels pop off very easily to save a little extra space.

We have the travel bag for it too which given that it's our main pram is a good investment. Bonus that you can fit most infant car seats onto it too.

Having said all that....we don't use the buggy at the airport much either and it's our main pram (if you exclude the tractor coach built silver cross). We have a selection of slings for the airport/walking up and down the plane on long haul flights and they're well worth the investment.

I'm bit confused now - I have seen that people have their pram to the gate, then they leave them at the bottom of the steps when they get on the plane and pick up from there. That's what i'd like to do - does that mean it has to be an umbrella fold, because any other fold and you have to check it in with your bags?

It depends on the airline you're flying with whether they'll do that, and on how many buggies there are etc. Sometimes we've been lucky and had it back, sometimes not. You can almost always take your buggy to the plane but it's 50/50 IME whether it comes back to you.

ps already have my nice big 3 wheeler/travel system for home but its large and heavy so just looking for a travelling pram.
I do use a moby sling and will always take it but I must have an unusual baby in that she doesn't really like to sleep in it - likes to move and stretch out in her sleep so won't stay asleep for long in the sling... hence wanting a pram for in the airport. I travel so often I want to be comfy for the regular flight delays - fortunately still bf so at least I don't have to worry about food - just how to ensure DD can still have her sleeps

the 50/50 doesn't sound good!
didn't realise that prams were such a problem for airlines
it will almost always be Ryanair we'll use to see mum - that's not going to be good is it?

Well if you can get the pram to the gate you've got it pre-flight for sleeps and then it's fingers crossed you get it back or stick her in the Moby (you'll want something more substantial in a couple of months) to get to baggage reclaim.

Ryanair are actually better than some big arlines. Large jets always go to the skygates so it's difficult to get you the pram pram unless it's on a locker in the aircraft itself. Cheapie airlines which dump you on the tarmac just put the buggies in on top in the hold and then take them out and fling them down by the gate.

Basically you will be able to take to gate but at other end more like 20/80 chance of getting back off plane ( ie not good chance). The main problem is the passport controls you need to pass through are small so not super convinent.

Personally if your main travel is to your mums via Ryanair ( who often charge for prams as extra). I would just order a basic pram via amazon. Poland and get delivered to her house or get her to buy a small one for you. Then leave it in Poland. The sling will be far easier as you can travel alone with baby attached and pulling suitcase if needed. This works up to toddler age with back carry slings. Then you will just have to fly and will have pram for use there. Poland is only 2 hr flight so if you don't get to airport too early it's only a few hours from leaving house to arriving in Poland.

I'm assuming you will take baby travel changing mat with you so use this on floor / chair at airport if you want to let baby have a stretch out

Thanks - lots of things to mull over now that I hadn't considered.
Funny how I'd imagined that at this age very easy and portable to travel but now I'm getting down to practicalities I'm probably overthinking and overplanning it all!

I flew with Ryan air in August and we took our pushchair ( a cheap mamas and papas umbrella fold stroller) right to the plane. We then had to fold it and leave it by the door. When we got off the plane the pushchair was right at the bottom of the stairs waiting for us. Id imagine that's the same for all their flights so I wouldn't worry about needing a sling or to carry baby

I would go for an umbrella stroller (Maclaren are the best if you can afford that) or a baby jogger city mini as your second buggy.

Perhaps go to John Lewis / mothercare / kiddo are etc and try some out?

With a younger baby (ie your 3.5 month old) I think lie flat is v handy for naps etc. Maclaren do plenty of lie flat ones and BJCM lies flat.

Neither face parent ... Don't think it's an issue for the "holiday buggy"

I've always taken the buggy to the gate of the plane before boarding. I have very rarely got it back before the carousel - not a major issue, just you need to carry the baby. If you're on your own a carrier is handy. If you're travelling as part of a couple I'd say handy but not essential if you only have one baby. I now have a baby and a toddler and I now do have a carrier as when I recently travelled alone I needed to have my hands free to carry bags/ hold toddler's hand.

Some people swear by big bags to protect the buggy in I've never had one myself and my buggies / car seats have never come to any harm as yet touch wood (been on lots of flights).

Check car seat in as well. All the best!

And I would say at 3.5 months they are VERYportable and easy to travel with so get plenty of trips in before she starts to crawl!!

In my experience, I would say its 99% chance that any pushchairs will end up at baggage reclaim. Only on one flight did I get the pushchair back at the steps (not in the UK) and on the other the pushchair was put in the cabin (long haul). Trying to carry an older baby, plus changing bag, coats etc is hard hard work off the plane, through baggage reclaim and to wait for the pushchair.

I would invest in a Babyzen YoYo - perhaps even the new 0+ YoYo if the timings are right which parent faces, if you fly regularly. Yes its expensive but it will be worth every penny to have it with you in the overhead locker on the plane. Plus I would then take a flat folding pushchair like a Baby Jogger City Mini which will slide on top of your baggage in any car if the YoYo isnt substantial enough for your holidays.

The Petite Star Njoy Bubble does parent face if you are considering an umbrella fold, but I would be taking a City Mini on the next flight I do! When its folded flat theres nothing that can be knocked off or easily damaged.

I flew with Ryanair last week, we took our travelling pushchair (Nuna Pepp) and left it at the bottom of the steps. Both legs of the journey it came back on the baggage reclaim carousel, not at the steps. I travelled with my DH so not a problem carrying the baby plus bags, if you were travelling on your own you would probably need a sling until you got your buggy back. It was a great pushchair for travelling though, it was our first trip abroad. Got chatting to a lady with a Bugaboo Bee and she was impressed with how easily and small the Nuna folded!