Newborn pram advice please!

[EsseKey]

Hello everyone!
I am starting to navigate this world of pram shopping for the first time, I bet most of you know how hard it is!
I would reaaaally appreciate some first hand opinions/experiences and practical tips... Although I know that it is also a very personal choice based on many factors such as lifestyle, budget, storage space at home etc.

So here my initial thoughts on what I would like to find:

• something I can use from birth for as long as possible
• I have limited storage, so I am debating if I want the separate carrycot for the newborn months, or find a nice 2 in 1 (seat that becomes a bassinet) so that I don't need to buy 2 items. What would be the downside of a similar 2 in 1 option?
• option to maintain the seat parent facing
• we will likely be travelling by plane with the newborn (before 6 months old). I don't care for something EXTREMELY compact (i.e. I don't want to take it inside the plane cabin) but I don't want anything too bulky either.
• I would appreciate something not too expensive but I don't have at this point a set budget limit - I will spend more, if it's worthy!

I still have plenty of time (due in Jan) but I would like to have a clear idea on what to buy in advance, to avoid any last minute stressful and rushed shopping. So thanks in advance to anyone who is willing to share their opinions and suggestions! Literally anything is welcome 😊

if you did get one that had a separate carrycot you could sell it once you finished using it if space is limited.

With dd my husband picked the travel system it was a Graco I hated it for a newborn because it never had a carrycot attachment.

When I feel pregnant with ds I knew I wanted something with a carrycot. We went for a Stokke xplory which I loved. I sold on the carrycot when we finished using it.

Now I'm pregnant again and My friend gave me a brand new Phil and Ted Dot but I'm not sure I like it because it's only got 3 wheels I tried pushing it with no baby and I'm not a fan prefer 4 wheels.

From experience, stay away from mothercare pushchairs, they are terrible to steer! I'd go to a baby shop and actually walk around the shop with a few they have on display and see what feels right to you, some look amazing, but are terrible when you try them.
I'd say it's 6 and 2 3s on whether to get a 2 in 1 or separate seats, again, personal choice and every pram is different.

On the subject of traveling, if you go on Amazon, you can buy bags for your pushchair to go in in the plane hold, means you can keep the rain cover, foot muff etc, in the pushchair without worry it's going to get lost, and also provides a little bit extra protection.

Good luck with your search and congratulations on baby!!!

@lillylemons thanks!! :) is it easy to sell the carrycot? In your opinion, is it worth having one for the newborn months?

I didn't have a carrycot for my first baby, I just went for a pushchair with a parent facing seat unit that lies flat. What I find these days is that a lot of pushchairs with carrycots, the pushchair seat part is moulded so that you can't tilt it totally flat any more once it's converted, only tip it back and forwards so your toddler is napping in a sitting position with their legs in the air. I don't love it! Because I had the lie flat seat, I honestly never missed the carrycot. I bought a nice padded footmuff for the buggy so it was all cocoony and safe.

They don't make the model I had for DS1 any more but it was a Maxi Cosi one. I still really rate Maxi Cosi pushchairs and think they are really underrated. If you can find a shop that has them in stock to try any out I'd recommend it.

I had a carrycot for DC2 and he only fitted in it for about 2 months and since then it's just taken up space until we need it again for DC3!

I think you will find you can only sell the carrycot on separately to the pram if you buy a really popular brand like UppaBaby or Bugaboo. If you go for a less well known brand or one where the carrycot only comes as a set then you'll probably struggle to find anyone who wants it separately.

If you're planning to travel with your pushchair I'd recommend researching the sturdiness/longevity of it. There is a great channel on YouTube called The Stroller Workshop where they explore topics like this.

You will find with any from-birth pushchair where you can swap a carrycot on and off the seat the seat units tend to be small, so you may not get the use out of them long term. There are some models with bigger seat units. ABC Design have some although I think they're harder to find in the UK.

@BertieBotts thank you so much for your useful advice! I am struggling to find 100% lie-flat prams that I could use with newborn, any suggestion? Or maybe I am just not looking at the right specs...
Is the cocoons bit generally brand-specific or can I buy it separate/from a different brand?

I will definitely check out that Youtube channel!

Any suggestion on physical shops to go have a look at the prams? Maybe one that has different brands...?

Thanks a lot again!!!

I have the Joie versatrax which I think ticks most, if not all of your boxes and I really like it. It folds one handed and is compact compared to a lot of others I looked at. It was £300 when I bought it and you can then buy extras like the carrycot and baby carrier/car seat which clip on to the frame.

I didn't bother with the carrycot as the pushchair itself lies flat... and I was due at the start of summer. I might have felt differently with a winter baby as I think the carrycots are good for protecting from the elements and keeping newborns warm. Also can be good as doubling up as a Moses basket which a lot of people seem to do. As others have said too you can always sell it on.

I had a maxi Cosi with a carry cot as we used it for downstairs naps instead of a separate moses basket and liked the fact we could have used it for overnight sleeping if we'd needed to (we have family that's a bit far for a day trip but isn't holiday distance away either).

I think it's a good marker for how much I liked it in that I've just bought a new mattress for it to use with imminent baby!

As for choosing it I went to John Lewis to have a look and a brief push round (bought online as was on the train, sorry JL) and couldn't see why my maxi Cosi was any worse than the ones that were twice the price. We use it for DD too, the only regret I have in some ways is that I didn't get one that converts to being suitable for two kids from the very start as that would have been useful now but other than that I still really like it and will use the carrycot again even though it has a from birth seat (with their cocoon), I never felt 100% confident using that tbh.

Thanks!!! @WineInTheBlood @8dpwoah

Does the carrycot normally fold flat once you are not using it anymore? I guess that having one that can be used also for overnight sleep would be a nice solution for the travelling during the first months! If the baby doesn't outgrow it immediately, my partner is very tall I hope the baby doesn't take it from him, at least at the beginning 😂
Not sure about all the trouble of the checking it in at the airport though...

We had a baby jogger city mini which lies flat so you can use it from birth without needing a carry cot (although you can get one, we never did). Can add adapters to take a car seat also if you need to. It folds flat so doesn't take up much space.

It goes flat, ish, the sides collapse down so with the bas, the rim and the hood flat it does go down to I'd say about 10cm high. Never travelled with it other than in the car, it got shoved longways behind the driver seat if I remember rightly (it is quite long though).

DD was small so we got the full 6 months out of it luckily, I think I'd have been happy enough with her in the lie-flat chair from a few months but was determined to get the use out of the carrycot 😂

@JC12345 thanks! I will have a look at that one too!
@8dpwoah well 10cm I guess it9not too bad if I need to store it away when baby has outgrown it!
Ah yes I think I would be the same, use it until I can fit the baby in there, to make the most of this purchase 😂

We have a Babyzen YoYo used from birth with the newborn pack not the carrycot. It folds down to one tiny airline approved carry on size so it’s perfect for travel. It doesn’t parent face once you swap to the 6+ month seat but that was fine for us- lots of our friends also have a YoYo and I’ve never heard of a baby objecting to facing forwards. We also have an icandy Peach but it hardly gets used because it’s just too bulky to be convenient and both of mine hated the carrycot as newborns and screamed blue murder. They were very happy in the YoYo newborn nest though, maybe they felt more secure as they were strapped in IDK. If you want a slightly larger option, a friend of mine just got an Uppababy Cruz and there’s a snug seat which means you can use it from newborn without the need to buy the carrycot and it looks great!

We have the Joolz Day 3 which we love because we are both tall.

It’s expensive though!

I've recently bought a Maxi Cosi Zelia for my 2nd child. I am still pregnant so I can't comment yet on how it is to use, however what made me purchase is that it is a 2in1. So the carrycot becomes the stroller seat & vice versa & it can all be folded together rather than having to separate to put in car etc. Will be from birth until approx 3.5 years. With my first child we had an iCandy which we found way to bulky, fantastic pram but just too big, especially for our car. We paid £299 for the maxi cosi & you can also attach the car seat (which we had from first child).
Having received it recently & put all together, I am really pleased with it. It's exactly what we wanted & for the price it is really good value. It's definitely not as fancy as say the Icandy, but that's to be expected with the big price difference.
Only thing I will say about the size is, when the pram is up, it is quite wide, but it has a huge shopping basket at bottom.

Oh Thanks everyone, I really appreciate you taking the time to write here!!!, 🥰

@lee12345 i have seen the Zelia, indeed it looks a good option since it converts to a bassinet, but there aren't many out there that do the same thing so i was wondering what's the downside of it! Apparently not as wide when used as a seat, and baby's legs not extended when seat reclined for naps? Anyway, everything has pro and cons I guess... When are you due? It would be great to hear your impressions once you start using it 😊

@LakeShoreD that would be awful, to buy a carrycot and then having a baby who hates being in there 😥 but glad you loved the yoyo, I have heard great reviews from many people! Maybe a good option as a travel only pram, if only it weren't so expensive 😬

If I could go back in time I'd get the Quail - it's made by the company who do the Egg strollers. It's lie flat so ok for newborns and you can get a newborn insert

There isn't really any spec stating whether or not a pushchair is suitable from birth without carrycot. it's just something you have to look at. Of course the shop staff will always say you need q carrycot because they want to make a sale.

I just looked at the recline mechanism - whether it really laid totally flat with a hinge in the middle or whether it's a moulded bucket seat that tips back and forth. When you've looked at a few you'll see the difference.

I had the maxi Cosi specific footmuff for the loola up with DS1 but for DS2 I just had a generic footmuff which worked fine. I just chose one which seemed to sort of enclose the baby.

Lovely Thanks again everyone for your replies! Everyone has been incredibly helpful!

@WineInTheBlood I had a look at the versatrax and indeed it seems to tick a lot of boxes! I hadn't come across this one before at all! I hope I can go have a look at it in person soon (and other as well ofc 😬)

If anyone also has sone specific oversea travelling-with-newborn tips, in relation to the choice of pram but not only, feel free to leave them here 😁