Which double buggy?

QueenFeeBee

Hello
I was lucky enough to get a double buggy (stadium style) from freecycle - but we had also bought a phil and teds.
The stadium version is fab for shopping - loads of space underneath - the baby can recline in at least 2 positions - the toddler in just one (recling and upright). I had to have a tandem as I wouldnt have fit the side by side through my front door (I dont live in a particularly old or unusual house!!). The phil and teds is only used as an off-road buggy - great for farm visits or a muddy park. However when the baby under 6 months they are confined to a sort of cacoon - which is OK when they are very young but a bit harsh otherwise - they can see virtually nothing. My daughter is almost 7 months and now goes in the chair underneath rather than the cacoon - but it is fixed and cannot recline so her head lolls forward quite a bit which is annoying - also I'm not convinced about whether when she is older he hands could trail into the wheels..?? There isnt a lot of room for shopping either. However I know people do seem to rave about these - not sure why though!!!
Ive seen a nice mclaren tandem -a friend down the road had it - and it was hardly any bigger than a single buggy and seemed really good.
Good luck
QFB

lisred

Hi

I had the same dilemma 9 months ago. 12 months between my last 2. I bought a side by side 3 wheeler. It came with a carrycot which fitted one side and you could put the seat bit on afterwards. I read all the reviews, did my research, went to see it in the mothercare, thought it was going to be great. Parted with £380! Took it for a test drive (before i had baby) on a Saturday in MerryHill shopping centre, to see how it handled in shops and fitted in the car etc......Bloody nightmare! I couldn't get around clothes stands or down aisles and then i could barely lift it, after almost dismantling the thing to put it down, to get it the Zafira, which it filled the boot space of! I took it back to Mothercare the following weekend for a full refund.

I bought instead a Graco Quattro Tour Duo off Ebay from the USA. It's fantastic. It's the newer model of the stadium duo that's popular over here. It looks great, the rear seat is higher and also drops down flat for when baby is small, it's all enclosed and looks like a little nest when they're in it, so cute. The front seat has 3 positions. It comes with 2 hoods, the front one is detachable, removable washable seat pad/covers. The basket underneath is huge and drops down so you can get your shopping out easier plus there's also a smaller basket under the front seat. It folds down with 1 hand, no awkward clip or catches. It's not too heavy, managable anyway and it fits in the car no problems and i found if i take off the 2 front wheels (quick release) then it fits in the boot lengthways too, ie. i still have half of the boot space left for a weekly food shop for 5. We also took it to centre parcs, in the boot with all our food and clothes etc with 2 adults, 1 teenager and 2 car seats containing babies in the car. It all fitted....just.

You can buy them now from Argos for £259.99 but you can get them from ebay.com , not .co.uk, for $189.99 plus shipping which is about £96 plus shipping. I think we paid around £25 shipping and asked the seller to mark it as a gift with a low value, price of shipping i think, so we didn't have to pay duty or import tax or whatever it is.

It really is a great pushchair. I've had mine 9 months now and haven't had a single problem with it. My now 21 month old climbs all over it and it still looks great.

Got to be honest as soon as baby could go in the front i move him there because it is easier to steer with the lighter one in the front. And because it's American it has 6 cup holders!!!! Great for all the stuff you're going to need.

Hope this has helped, sorry it's an essay but i really do recommend it to anyone who stops and asks me about it, and they do frequently.

Good look with the new arrival. And yes it was hard but it gets easier, i promise.

Lisa

davidh71

Hi,

We also have the Jane powertwin pro and are very happy with it. It is very easy to manouver and isn't that big when folded for a tandem buggy (though we do have a big boot in our car I guess!). We had 11 months between our 2 and must have looked at just about every twin and tandem on the market!

We went for the Jane despite it being one of the most expensive (on a par with Phil and Teds I think) and have never once regretted buying it.

MERFE

Hi I had 15 months between mine and thought I needed a double buggy, I loved the tandems so got one of those but in reality my son was very heavy and big and grew so fast I struggled to get him in and out of it and although I probably shouldnt have I prefered to carry him in a sling and push DD in her old Maclearn. Then at about 4 months we got a side by side which was brilliant and well used for about a year. I didnt have any problems getting around shops with either type just getting baby in and out the tandem. I too think some side by sides look narrow but mine seemed to fit nicely they were in the mothercare one. I know someone who uses the phil and ted for her twins and they look so cute in it but this is whilst they are tiny I really couldnt see it lasting till they no longer need a pushchair whereas a side by side would.