Double Pushchair - Any Suggestions?

[Tigerlion]

Looking for a double pushchair for baby to be born in October and DS who will be 14 months then. Would like something that folds easily for the car. Should I be looking for a side-by-side one or for a back and front one? Would also like to hear of any that you DO NOT recommend so I know what to not look for!

Hi, my big piece of advice, and I say this on every thread involving double pushchairs, is don't buy new unless you're having twins, as you just won't get the use out of it. Buy second hand - they hold their value really well and you'll get back what you paid for it if you sell it on.

I had a Graco side by side, and although my Graco travel system was a pile of dog poo, the double was fabulous. It fitted through nearly every shop door (apart from one that a wheelchair wouldn't go through either) and went up kerbs much easier than my mate's back and front one. Folded well too - and went in the back of my mum's Fiesta, albeit on its side and with the parcel shelf taken out. Went in a Focus, Mondeo and Escort with no probs.

I've got a side by side umbrella fold buggy that fits through every doorway I've tried. It also folds down to not too much bigger than a normal stroller.

With the age gap that you've got I would say that a side by side would be better as the front to back ones don't have a very high back support on the front seat and also don't recline much. If your DS is likely to fall asleep in the buggy then in a side by side one he could lie right back.

Also front to back ones are really long and don't fit into some lifts.

Having said that, the 3 wheeled side by side ones are really wide and a friend with one can't fit through a lot of doors that my buggy does.

Overall, I'd say, go with a reasonable second hand one - MacLaren Twin Traveller comes with footmuffs etc - off ebay!

id say first look at your lifestyle. do you walk a lot? or do you drive everywhere?
ddo you want ease of pushing? or ease of heaving in or out of a car? a pushchair that folds into a small size and is lightweight as well will not be as easy to push as a sturdier one that doesnt become quite so compact.
im afraid i disagree about buying second hand. you may not use it for long, but the time that you do use it for, a double is an absolute essential. buying brand new means you have the warranty etc and if bought from places like mothercare, they will give you a loan in case you need to send it back for any reason.

i had the three wheeled double urban detour. probably the biggest around, but i could push it single handed with two kids in it. include going round corners with one hand.

heavy to get innto and out of car, but it also meant that for joourney's of a mile, id just walk as it was quicker than getting the buggy in and out of the car. though i did have the advantage of being able to push it into the garage at home.
hleld its value, and i sold it on for almost 65% of what i paid for it.

and it does go into most places, including buses.

I have a Mothercare tandem (I forget the name but it is similar to a Graco) and it is extremely heavy to get in the car boot, but having said that it does fold easy and is very manoevreable despite its size. Both seats lie back and the rear one goes totally flat for a newborn. Both seats have sun canopy /hoods, but I tend to leave the one off the toddler seat unless weather dictates. It cost me £30 off ebay and was in very good condition, so I agree with the second hand thing. It has been used for a 3 year old and a baby who is now 5 months.

The only drawback to this buggy is its weight when lifting into the boot.

How about the Phil & Ted E3 Explorer - is a bit more pricey. Can be used as a single or a double.

My dd1 was 16 months when dd2 was born in Feb. Absolutely love it, and takes up a lot less room than 'traditional' doubles.

I know this isnt what you are asking but Ive just discovered something and its helping me with children of a similar age to yours.

As I posted earlier I have a Mothercare version of a Graco Stadium Double buggy which I bought second hand. I have just bought a Graco Mirage Travel System off the same lady. This consists of a car seat and a lightweight lie back buggy. What is really good about this is THE CAR SEAT FITS ON THE DOUBLE BUGGY TOO!!! (Huge revelation to me). So I have a car seat that I can use for the baby on the double when I am taking them both out, but for when DGS is at nursery, I can use the lightweight buggy for her. This will also come in when DGS is too big for the double and its not needed.

Maybe this is something to bear in mind. Would it be important to you if your double buggy fitted your car seat?

id go with second hand..i only got new as it was sale and the 'out of production' shop floor model...very cheap!
try something lik this though, but remember to swap sides every few days.
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I would avoid the tandem (front and back) models as they are really heavy going at kerbs and the child in the back seat gets a really raw deal with their view !

I went with a graco duosport which was great for the early days and then when eldest was big enough, we got a buggy board. The Duosport was very light, easy to manage and quite narrow so it was easy to get in and out of doorways and shops.

I agree NinaPoppy - I have had a side by side and a front/back tandom for my son and nephew (4 months apart) and it was a nightmare. My son, as the youngest and smallest sat in the back and hated it coz he couldn't see and it was the heaviest most awkward thing to push and it was impossible to get into the boot of my car. I had a side by side Graco and loved it, and the boys loved being sat next to each other - they kept each other amused and it led to much more peaceful excursions.

I've had lots, ds was born when dd 3 was two, and I also have twins :

emmaljunga - very expensive, heavy and takes up fair bit of boot space, also very wide and won't always fit through doors. But this is still my fav, as it is really comfortable, lovely to push and reclines fully to sleep.

jane powertwin - I think this is the best tandem as it doesn't seem too long. Folds do3wn fairly compact too. Only prob is the front seat doesn't recline very much, and with a tandem the baby in the back can't see out, which is why I also have the pram.

we2 combi - really nice, quiet easy to push, very lightweight goes through most doorways. Lots of handy pockets, folds down really small. But, all the joints qand plastic seem to make it weak and I smashed the bumper bar on mine, and it felt flimsey.

maclaren twin traveller - hated this. Too heavy, horrible to push, very narrow seats. Only used it twice then sold it on.

graco duosport - Liked this one too, very lightweight, folds small, reasonably cheap too. Seemed robust enough. This lasted me until dd was old enough to walk.

cossatto duolite - I liekd this, but the seats were small, and the dt in the back couldn't see out, so we didn't keep this neither. The back made a nice coocon for a newborn tho, and might be ideal for different aged siblings.

Ds1 was 19mths when Ds2 was born.
i bought a pram with a bolt on toddler seat on top which was great (from e bay just type toddler seat when searching pushchair section to see sort of thing I mean.)
Now I have taken toddler seat off and i am using a Litaf seat to go, which is a buggy board type thing.

also had a cheap mothercare side by side umbrella fold for when i was taking car, but this was heavy to push, and slightly wide for some doors.

Would def try to find second hand because you will prob only get 12 -18 mths use out of it.