Double pram dilemma

[janegoodland]

Anyone got any recommendations for a double pram? New baby arriving in April and will have a 2 year that I'll need to restrain as well so need to get a double pram I guess.

Cheers, Jane

[snowboarder]

Do you use the bus or car a lot? Is width an issue? Do you want parent facing for either child? Preference for tandem or side by side?

SO many options!

[The Nappy Lady]

Snowboarder - you are 'The Buggy Lady' LOL No doubt about it. I see a future career!

Xx

[Fuschia]

I was about to post the same, NL!

[BeccaL]

So was I - whenever there's a "buggy" question, I feel like posting: Just pm Snowboarder - she knows...

[canadianlisa]

I will be watching this with interest as am in the same boat. My girl will be 2.7 so am not looking to spend too much as am hoping that by the summer she will be keener on walking. I need something small enough for public transport and not over fussed about parent facing. Would prefer something that doesn't cost too much and that we can travel with. Any ideas?? I have a Bee now which I love. Has anyone tried a Joovy Caboose? Thanks

Lisa

[amydown]

My Phil and Teds promenade is getting delivered next week. Shall report back after a test drive with our 2yr3m old and newborn.

[crystal7]

Canaidanandlisa I have a 2.8yr gap between my 2 and got a phil and teds explorers. It's not great in lots of ways but seemed to be the best option for an older toddler who will want to hop in and out. Main attraction is that it works as a single too as my toddler isn't always with me. Also they have good resale value- I'm hoping to ditch mine in a year. Plus can be bought fairly cheaply on here.

[oimissus]

what about a buggy board? Or sling for newborn? Definitely if you use public transport, any massive pram, be it side by side or tandem, is a pain.

[crystal7]

p&t ok on public transport though I wouldn't attempt at busy times. I use a sling and a Maclaren sometimes but it's hard work because it can be tricky to bend down and see you toddler. One thing about the p and t that I've found really good is that for the first few months every time we went out baby would sleep in the cocoon and I could play with toddler.

[janegoodland]

Thanks for thoughts....So many things to consider hence the dilemma...think I'd prefer inline one, not regular bus user, don't want to spend a fortune as hoping toddler will walk more in due course. P&t seems like the obvious choice but wondered if there's other similar alternatives? Any idea Snowboarder????

[Otta]

Sling and stroller definitely easiest with a newborn and a toddler.

We have P&T Sport, which we're happy with, and it's fine on buses. Absolute nightmare for stairs though.

[canadianlisa]

Yes I am thinking more and more that I will try the sling and buggy option to begin with and see how we go. I would prefer not to get a P and T if possible due to space issues as well as the fact that I live on a big hill and then have to haul it up a few stairs to get in the house as well as get it on and off buses. Maybe a buggy board as well. It is hard as at the moment my little girl is v. slow / reluctant walker, also we live on a busy road which makes me nervous.

I like the look of the sidewalk baby mini city jogger, have you seen that Jane? It's not crazy expensive and quite compact and looks nice. Am still considering it.

[janegoodland]

Haven't seen that one so will check it out, thanks.....sling and single pram may well turn out to be the easiest option at the beginning before forking out for a double.

[snowboarder]

OK, so, the thing about phil and teds is you can get second hand ones really easily, they are pretty good for a newborn and toddler, and for an older baby who doesn't need to recline much and toddler. They are not great if your baby is big and outgrows the lie flat/cocoon early. And they are weighted such that they are pretty heavy (in comparison with side by sides) to lift up kerbs etc. They are fine if you really think your toddler will walk mostly, but even so they are hard work when baby is 4-7/8m, in my opinion. There are other tandems - there is the Britax B Dual (not tried it, seems quite good value, have heard bad reports about the seat units not being very supportive), the Icandys (crazy expensive and small seats), the Baby Jogger City Select (super hard to lift up kerbs with toddler in front), and the new promenade (looks good but about ?700 I think), to name a few of the mainstream ones. Mountain Buggy do a version similar to the phil and teds but it seems to have all the same issues (maybe worse?).

If you're not using the bus and have room in your house side by sides are great in terms of comfort and you don't compromise in terms of seating - both children can lie flat or sit upright - hurrah! But they are wide and have a more limited life, obviously. The baby jogger sidewalk is kiddycare's inferior version of the baby jogger city mini. Just really check widths, I have the Mountain Buggy duet and it is the ONLY side by side that will fit in my house, and at 63cm wide is actually narrower overall than the inline britax bdual. And as an aside I fit on the bus fine with the duet, and another buggy can fit too.

Basically there probably is no perfect solution. I had a phil and teds and my baby hated the cocoon and the back seat, so I then got the mountain buggy to see us through our double days. My age gap is smaller than yours though (22m) so I have needed a double for longer. My toddler is now 2yr10m and I can see him walking/buggy boarding/scooting more and more, especially as the weather gets better, but I have certainly needed a double both for just getting to the park and putting toddler somewhere safe when dealing with baby. Also whilst I love slings I hate wearing one and pushing a buggy/dealing with a stroppy toddler on a scooter/buying/sitting having a coffee, so that solution didn't ever work for me.

Hope that helps!

[janegoodland]

Thanks snowboarder - you are the buggy guru!

[amydown]

We received our Phil and Teds Promenade today for our newborn and 2-year old - am impressed! Like Snowboarder says, no perfect pram but this one will do the trick for us I think.

My main problem with the older style P&T was that I found it difficult to get it up onto pavements, etc as I'm quite small and the handle bar just wasn't the right height for me. The promenade has a curved handle that extends very long and this seems to make it easy to push it onto pavements.

Width wise, it appears similar to Chameleon (can't remember how the measurements actually compared) and it feels light and easy to push.

Another big plus is that you don't need a seperate newborn kit as both seats can be converted to carrycots easily.

Finally, there is a lot more leg room for toddler in the bottom seat compared with the older model. Our 2-year old boy already struggles with lack of legroom in the bottom room in an older P&T model.

Haven't been on the bus with it yet but given its width which is the same as older P&T models, I think that should be fine.

So far so good! I think Peppermint store in Battersea now has a display model.

[amydown]

I've had a couple of PM's about the Promenade. If anyone wants to have a look/ try it but can't easily get to a store, I'm happy for you to test out ours. Please send me a PM.

Amy