Are expensive strollers really worth it?

trojas

We've been looking at strollers like there's no tomorrow (I had no idea this would be so time consuming and overwhelming). My DH has his heart set on a Britax travel system (B-Agile). On the other hand, there is a Safety 1st travel system for half the cost which looks very similar.

I know that in the end it comes down to personal choice and what we could afford, but it seems irrational to pay so much more. 

Is it really worth it? Thoughts and opinions welcome.

megann831

I've been through alot of strollers, but I use them alot.  I never had a travel system because I've never heard good things about them.  I've used a snap and go and cheap umbrella, which are ok for the mall or something, my city mini is alot better but still not great outside, my BOB ($300+) is the best baby gear investment I've made by far.  Its the only stroller  that goes outside well

FemShep

It really depends on how often you're going to use the stroller, where, etc.  In general, with strollers for DD I've found there is a difference in quality based on price (usually).  But if you use the stroller just to go to the mall every other week, you probably won't care.  If you're walking outside every day on all kinds of surfaces, on th other hand, get the best stroller you can afford.

shannm

I agree with PP.  It depends on your use.  I think travel systems are a waste.  I would just pick out a good car seat and get a snap and go.  This will serve you well for nearly a year in places with good asphalt and inside venues.  Later, you can switch to a good umbrella like a Maclaren.

If you go outside a lot on trails and unpaved/poorly paved paths or old sidewalks, then I would look into a good jogging stroller or something similar.  This is where your money would be well spent. 

04TerpBride

Almost never used our travel system, but I know many others that used theirs a bunch.  I just found it so bulky that as soon as the baby was ready I had him in an umbrella stroller.  Once the second came along, I used our sit and stand to hold the baby seat.  I think you can find some great strollers on craigslist for hardly anything.  My friend found a sit and stand nicer than mine on freecycle for free (and a double jogging stroller!).  I did, however, spend a good chunk of money to get a Phil and Teds and have gotten a ton of use out of it.  I think maybe for your first you may want to be a little conservative with price until you figure out what your style is.

Daisy22

I have a double bob and a city select. Both were worth every penny and have held up so well over the last 18 months. I'm so glad I have one that is a single or double which is great since I'm having my 3rd. I wish the city select had been out when I had DS1 b/c then I would have never had to buy another stroller again.

carolinaem

Depends on how you plan to use it and I think on your family plans as well.  If you plan on having another kid soon, a travel system is a total waste of money.  If you plan on walking a ton or running a travel system is a total waste of money.  Getting a more expensive travel system without the option to convert to a double or air filled tires would fall into the same category in my opinion.

crlacey

I would agree that it depends on your expectations for the stroller. We used our travel system for 3 or 4 walks a day on sidewalks with DD for a good 4 or 5 months. (We had a very active boxer pup that needed lots of activity to behave.) Then we used just the stroller portion for those same walks for the next year. So it served us well. For DS, we didn't use a travel system since we also had DD to worry about. So I often wore him in a carrier to keep my hands free.

With this little one, I did buy a travel system again since I now have 3 kids to keep track of at the grocery store and on daily walks. DD will be 9 and in charge of stroller duty so I can keep an eye on DS who is an active 6. In fact, since DD will be on stroller duty, we let her have the final pick of our top choices.

We had an Evenflo the first time around which held up well and this time we have a Graco which I expect nothing but good from. As for Safety 1st, that was the smaller stroller we purchased for DD when she was about 18 months old and we just finally threw it away last year. It had been to Disney 5 times, multiple zoos and museums and countless nightly walks on sidewalks.

If you need a stroller for non-paved surfaces, I agree that a travel system is not something you want. Or if you have a small cargo area in your vehicle, you might want to find a compact travel system or a snap and go. I personally like the option of having a stroller rather than the snap and go since we have to spend money on either one. It makes me feel like I'm getting more for the money spent.

Christina_Diane

I am a FTM, so take my advice with a grain of salt, but I think so. The plastic strollers that usually come with travel systems look so cheap and bulky that they have to be replaced with every kid. We went with the Britax B-Ready because it is sturdy, durable, and will accommodate multiple kids. I think the ROI will match the upfront cost because we won't have to buy another stroller, besides a little umbrella stroller for traveling. 

StrawberryAlarmClock

We recently bought the Baby Jogger City Mini due to its amazingly positive reviews on here and on Amazon.  It's probably middle of the road price-wise. The stroller itself was $250 and I spend another $100 for parent & child trays, rain cover & cooler for a trip we're taking to Disney. 

Can I just say the second I popped that thing out of the box, I was in love with it.  DS (who hates to be confined and won't sit in a stroller or shopping cart more than 15 minutes) actually asks for it!

Here's a pic of him trying to figure out how to give a "thumbs up" for his new stroller.

 

 

DinabethL

We got one that was around $150 travel system. Obviously we haven't used it yet, but the stroller folds up nicely. I am happy with the choice.

MrsJerseyJets

We saw a major difference.  We spent a decent amount on our main stroller for me DD, we got an Inglesina Zippy.  We also got a cheap Graco one that we figured would be a quick stroller, lighter, and just handy to have.  Needless to say, even my husband HATES the cheap one, you feel the difference in the ride, the movement of it, etc.  It's rougher, tips easy, etc....and is just flimsier overall.  It's fine for a quick trip to the mall, but even then we find ourselves taking the Zippy.  So we decided to sell our 2nd barely used stroller since it doesn't even compare to our main one.

This time, we are looking at doubles and will probably go with the City Mini double or GT version (leaning toward the GT as long as it fits in my trunk).  We already went to check them out, and DH really wanted to make sure it was made well since he now has a comparison to work off of.  But really it depends on your needs!   

mrs+harlow

We went with the baby Jogger City Mini and I love it...as does my husband. The travel systems were just too heavy and bulky for me, since i will be taking LO on airplanes a lot to visit the grandparents.

Capt Jen

I don't have any experience with strollers yet, but we plan on getting the B-Agile/B-Safe combo.  We felt the ease of folding the stroller and size was the selling features for us.

My SIL has the Baby Trend combo, and they RARELY use the stroller at all.  I'm not sure if it's b/c they don't like it or just don't have a need for it yet (their daughter is 8 months old).  For the most part, they carry her around in the car seat, which they claim to love.

BrunetteMomma84

We decided (after tons of research and multiple trips to the stores) on the UppaBaby Vista. It was definitely an investment, but I see it as we will only need the 1 stroller. (The infant car seat snaps into it, it comes with a bassinet and a toddler seat. You can add a rumble seat in addition or a standing board down the line with more children.)

If you get a jogging stroller $400+ (and don't plan to jog that often) you still need a snap-n-go $80+, and a decent umbrella stroller $150+.

After all of that, you might as well just go with the Britax B Ready or something similar. 

katcarls

It's definitely worth it to get the Britax set over the Safety 1st.  The quality is way better and you'll be so much happier with the stroller.  I'm typically not a fan of travel systems but the Britax one is a great option.

ColesMommy0606

We have the Uppababy Vista, I think it's the 2010. We use it for walks, the zoo, museums, the park, etc. We used our Snap & Go for over a year because we bought the Graco SnugRide35 and our son fit it it until over the age of 1 (my son has always been in the 75th-90th percentile for height & weight). We recently bought a CHEAP umbrella stroller for a cruise, it worked out fine since space was so limited. I have since give the umbrella stroller to my parents for their house. We have already bought the Rumble seat for baby #2 and have used it a couple of times with our niece. I'm sure things have changed from the 2010 model to now but I wasn't overly impressed with the amount of space between the rumble seat and the regular seat though. We have the car seat adapter so I plan on using that with our DD and putting our DS in the back/rumble seat. That should work for a while since we are re-using our SnugRide35 with DD. Otherwise, I love the stroller, it came with a bassinet + bug shield, a regular seat + rain shield + bug shield. The extra seat was $99 and I believe the car seat adapter was another $99.  

DCsara

We never bought a travel system either. Just had a Graco carseat with a cheap snap n go frame which we used for the first year or so (DD was tiny and used the infant carseat for 14 months).  We also have a Coombi lightweight stroller which has been awesome and we still put DD in it when she falls asleep in the car so she can continue her nap--it was around $100 bucks and is very much like an umbrella stroller except more durable, folds smaller, reclines so you can use it with a smaller baby, etc. We still use this all the time. For what it's worth though we live in the suburbs so most of our stroller use is on fairly easy terrain or inside stores.

crlacey

BrunetteMomma84:

We decided (after tons of research and multiple trips to the stores) on the UppaBaby Vista. It was definitely an investment, but I see it as we will only need the 1 stroller. (The infant car seat snaps into it, it comes with a bassinet and a toddler seat. You can add a rumble seat in addition or a standing board down the line with more children.)

If you get a jogging stroller $400+ (and don't plan to jog that often) you still need a snap-n-go $80+, and a decent umbrella stroller $150+.

After all of that, you might as well just go with the Britax B Ready or something similar. 

 

I'm glad you found an option that works for your family. And if you are looking at spending that kind of money for multiple strollers than maybe you are correct that one do it all stroller is better. For us, I found that with each kid and their different stages I had different needs in a stroller as they grew and was glad that I never spent too much on any one stroller. Plus I could never imagine spending over $100 for an umbrella style stroller. We got one that goes up to 50 lbs for a trip last year and it was just under $50 for a great stroller that we liked better than the expensive ones.

geauxfrogs

StrawberryAlarmClock:

We recently bought the Baby Jogger City Mini due to its amazingly positive reviews on here and on Amazon.  It's probably middle of the road price-wise. The stroller itself was $250 and I spend another $100 for parent & child trays, rain cover & cooler for a trip we're taking to Disney. 

Can I just say the second I popped that thing out of the box, I was in love with it.  DS (who hates to be confined and won't sit in a stroller or shopping cart more than 15 minutes) actually asks for it!

Here's a pic of him trying to figure out how to give a "thumbs up" for his new stroller.

 

 

 

Everyone I know who has this stroller (which is quite a few people) are completely in love with it. We're planning on getting one after baby is out of the snap and go.

kjem182

I've always wanted a Bugaboo, but they are really pricey.  So I spent months trying to find something else that would work, until I finally thought to look on Craigslist.  I found a Bugaboo Frog-few years old-for $200, all accessories included.  We love the way it feels when pushing it.  The shocks feel great, there's lots of room for our bag below, and it's simple to use.  I can't say I looked much at lower end strollers because I just always wanted this one, but we do love it.  We're getting an infant seat, but it won't adapt to the stroller.  We'll either carry the baby in a sling or move him from the car seat to the stroller if we're out and about.  We did go back and forth on that issue for a while-is it worth waking him up?-but the stroller won out.

wakko

StrawberryAlarmClock:

We recently bought the Baby Jogger City Mini due to its amazingly positive reviews on here and on Amazon.  It's probably middle of the road price-wise. The stroller itself was $250 and I spend another $100 for parent & child trays, rain cover & cooler for a trip we're taking to Disney. 

Can I just say the second I popped that thing out of the box, I was in love with it.  DS (who hates to be confined and won't sit in a stroller or shopping cart more than 15 minutes) actually asks for it!

Here's a pic of him trying to figure out how to give a "thumbs up" for his new stroller.

 

 

I second this city mini stroller (I even have the same color).  It's not crazy expensive, but it's held up well for 2 1/2 years, and I have no doubt that it will last through kid #2.  And it's great for lots of outside terrain, not just malls.