Double buggy with lie flat option?

[toddlerhip]

Hi, ds1 will be 26mo when ds2 arrives & i'm looking for a double buggy with a lieflat option.

We've been lent a 2nd hand jane powertwin to try (150.00), but at 6feet i have to stoop ever so slightly to use it, also it tipped over on a kerb with ds1 in it and when i locked the front wheel it was hard to steer. Also feels quite heavy to lift though maneouverable in town. I missed somewhere to store toddler drinks even though the seller had clipped on drinks holders (too small for our cup). And i found the shopper quite small too.

I looked at Phil and Teds in John lewis but kept banging my feet against it when i walked.

Are these my best option or can anyone recommend anything else?

Should we wait til after the birth (due in 4 weeks)?

I was wondering if we'd get away with our stokke xplory which has been great for 3 years and swap the baby into a sling when the toddler gets tired...? Only problem is if i have another c-section, but then i figure i wont be going out much at first anyway. I would have tried a buggyboard for the stokke but the handle means there's nowhere for the toddlers head to go!

How long does a toddler tend to need a buggy for?

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Hello!

We've noticed this thread is quite old and some of the product recommendations are a little out of date. We've spent weeks speaking to parents and testing out double buggies. Read our double buggy reviews for a list of the best products on the market - as recommended by you.

Hope this helps!
MNHQ

I had this issue as my first was 19months when second was born. I didn't want my baby in the 'posting box' set up of the Phil and Ted's ('precious mummy' syndrome, I know!) so we bought a First Wheels double buggy. You can have a lie flat carrycot on one side and an adjustable seat on the other; both face either way. In my view, it was the best of the bunch, however....

When baby came along, I found it too much of a hassle to take the huge buggy out and I used a 'Hug-a-bub' sling for baby and a single buggy for older child. I had a c-section but was soon up and around and found the baby was high enough up in this sling not to bother my tummy. That sling is fab and SOOOOO much better than any of the Baby Bjorn types.

I rarely used the First wheels in the first six months! After which time I wish I'd just held off and bought a Phil and Ted's as once the baby was older, lying flat wasn't an issue!!

Happy choosing, x

Just saw your last question...

My son is four and still needs an occasional buggy ride!

Instep Nipper lies flat, is one of the lightest doubles around and we love, love, love ours. We ahve twins though, so don't know how they fare with a tiny and an older child.

We bought an out n about 360. DS1 was 17 months old when DS2 came along. It's really easy to steer and lies flat. However, it doesn't fold down very small so it's a bit of a pain to get in and out of the boot.

I would say that we only used it regularly for the first six months or so and then we switched to a buggy board which my eldest loves. I wish I hadn't spent so much on a double now.

We always take the sling so that DS1 can go in the pushchair if he's tired.

How about getting another single pushchair to use with the buggy board in case of section?

DS1 is now 2y 6m and I couldn't tell you the last time he actually sat in the buggy. He absolutely loves the buggy board (he calls it his skate board!)

HTH

I like the option of having a buggy till LO is 3.5, but I guess it depends how far you're walking.

I LOVE our out and about nipper and it lies pretty flat. There's a newborn support that's nice for the early weeks. I had it for a newborn and 21 month old and almost 10 months on I'm using it 3-5 times a week (generally for the school run at 3pm when I have to wake both my girls so my 2.5 year old is too grotty to walk!).

We got our nipper for around £20 on ebay...it's the fixed wheel one but that's really fine. As bristols says(hi girl!) it is bulky in the boot but mine generally stays in the garage so that's OK. I have a buggy board for my lovely mamas and papas pram but I really don't like it. The sling/buggy combo's OK but I'm really glad I have doubles options...I actually have a maclaren twin too and that's much better for the back of the car, but it's really really heavy to push compared to the nipper.

Hi Tassissss!! How are you? Another girl, I see. How's it all going now?

Sorry for hijack.

I think it really does depend on what you need the 'wheels' for. I don't have to do school runs so we only use it for short journeys to and from play group/doctors/library etc all of which are very local.

I don't venture into town on my own with them (wuss!) so when we do that, we take one single buggy each if DS1 will need it.

(I am a bit of a pushchair whore)

Hey bristols, I'm going to find our Sept 06 thread and bump it...catch you there!!

ooh good

Thank you for the hug a bub suggestion laura. We had a babybjorn which we hardly used. Both ds1 and i were quite ill in first 2 months and it was several weeks before i could manage him in a sling - also he was an 11.5lber - he was never keen on the babybjorn.

We are out and about every day but he usually wants the buggy for part of the trip - or i put him in it.

I'll look into the nipper, outnabout and First Wheels this weekend- do you think they're suitable for 6 footers without stooping?

We do have a cheap folding single buggy for the car as the only drawback to the stokke is it's quite heavy to take apart. I do like the idea of a single buggy with buggyboard - i think ds1 would love it, but our buggy isn't suitable for a newborn so we'd have to buy a third buggy but i guess we'd be doing that anyway in buying a double.

I think we might wait til after the birth and see how we manage with sling / buggy / buggyboard. Though I suspect we will probably like the double option too as we walk in town a lot, in which case we'll look for one second hand.

Thanks for all your ideas!

Another vote for the out n about nipper here.

It's a really manoeuverable double side by side that gets through lots of spaces BUT it doesn't fold down particularly small.

DD1 was 2 (just) when DD2 was born and wouldn't cooperate with a buggy board. She's now almost 3 and I rarely use the double.

I did also use a close baby carrier an awful lot when DD1 was small and I couldn't be bothered with the double.

Got a P&T had a section a week ago and its so light to push that I can push it already. DD 28 months and goes to preschool so I didn't want a side by side which would be empty. Out n about seats bucket shaped and DD loves being upright plus seats a bit narrow but it seemed very easy to push.

DH 6ft and finds P&T very easy to push - we have the new model the Dash.

I'm pretty much 6 foot but the nipper is fine.

Toddlerhip - where abouts in the country are you? Am thinking of selling our 360!

middle of scotland bristols.

Has anyone had any problems with the nipper tipping over cos that's the problem i had testing the jane powertwin which is another 3-wheeler?

Also on the hunt for a double in a few months. I liked the look of the nipper but the seats were very 'reclined' even when fully upright, sort of v-shaped rather than L-shaped (iyswim)

DD went berserk when I sat her in it. Anyone else have this problem? Are the older models the same?

First wheels has an adjustable handle so you can have it higher if you're taller. But I'm a shorty and my partner's 5ft 10" so couldn't say for sure on the 6" question. Guessing it would be fine....

But I think you're right to wait until baby is born...

we were ;ent graco stadium duo i think it is called, toddler in front and baby can lie flat at the back. pretty easy to steer when yo get used to it. Check out some charity shops etc and you might get a bargain to try out for a bit.

Tried the city mini today and was very impressed. The fabric, hood, foldability, peekaboos, sitting / lying positions and weight were all good and the storage wasnt bad either: 2 huge pouches as well as the shopper.

Only thing i prefered about first wheels was that the children face you, but you have to detach everything to fold it from what i can see. Also forgot to ask what replaces the carrycot when baby grows out of it. Forgot to check adjustable handle.

I stooped a bit with the nipper and though it's lighter than the city mini, CM would be my first choice so far...It seems to be quite new so i'm not sure how many second hands there will be around. ALso not sure about a side by side or even whether it wd fit through our door. Although very maneouverable steering a side by side does feel a bit like a tank. I like that the children are next to each other though.

I tried the Japanese combi - amazing foldability! You just shake it and it unfolds! But like the nipper i was stooping a fraction with it.

our teutonia comes as a double, think it's called the team alu. it has an adjustable handle and is great for dp who is well over 6ft! and wee me! the seats can face both ways and ours is very stable. also the seats are v upright when up and lie totally flat too(you can get a carrycot which clips in). they take about 6 weeks as they're made to order. think kiddicare have them at the minute for 399, which is good. we bought ours from germany but the euro was a bit better then. hth.

Mountain Buggy?? I got mine from Ebay as DS1 will be 2.8 when DS2 arrives. We have also bought the carrycot for it too.

They both sounds really good and the mountain buggy seems ultra narrow without compromising on seat size. How do you find the weight and foldability with these? Are there any drawbacks you've noticed?

I'm not using it yet, but it folds really easily. Its heavy though.

There are loads of posts/threads about the MB in the archives. It is very well thought of and will hold its second hand value well. Mine was a bargain at £200 including the carrycot.

We have the Leebruss ABC Zoom. Advantages are it has a carrycot which is big and comfy for baby, the seats can face the parent or each other or face forward and are easy to change direction, it steers fairly easily, even when heavily loaded and the handle is adjustable, plus it is only standard buggy width so no issues with doors. Disadvantages are that it doesn't fold down small (seat units just come off but don't fold down & the chassis is still pretty huge) so its no good for public transport or in a small car and the basket underneath is not too easily accessible and obviously as its not double width it is very long so you have to practise manoeuvering it.

There is another double buggy which is a similar concept but much shorter and (I think) can be transformed into a single, but I can't for the life of me remember what it was called or find it online at the moment (& I'm heading off to bed before ds wants yet another feed, so I'll see if I can remember in the morning!)