Travel System or Stroller with Carseat holder

cjschmit · December 2012

I am torn between purchasing a travel system (stroller with car seat the attaches to it) and a separate carseat with one of those carseat holder strollers that can be used with any carseat. I've heard pros and cons of both. That the travel systems are more bulky and heavy, but are a better value.

Also, we are planning on getting pregnant with our second child when the first is around a year old (of course, plans could change! , so I will at that point need something for an infant and toddler.

Any thoughts? Does anyone have experience with either?

Thank you!

SunAndRain · December 2012

Strollers are something you use everyday. This is one piece of gear I would invest in.

I skipped the full size stroller all together and went for ease of operation, travel friendly, and convenience.

So we have a bob jogging stroller, a Chico sng, and now an uppababy glux which is a very lightweight travel stroller that reclines for dd's maximum comfort.

Obviously the bob is big and bulky but it serves its purpose to keep me active. For errands the uppababy rocks

orangecurls · December 2012

I would definitely look at the britax b safe car seat and either the b agile or b ready stroller. B agile is a really great single and the b ready turns into a double with the addition of a second seat. Both of these strollers are also travel systems with the b safe car seat.

sthomas1222 · December 2012

We went with the Grace Fastaction fold travel system. We played with a bunch but based on price, it's really light, easily maneuverable, and omj does it live up to the "factaction fold" part! I really don't feel it's bulky at all but I am comparing it to the hand-me-down crazy heavy and bulky one my sister gave me.

gimmietimmies · December 2012

Two thumbs down to the travel system. Go for a stroller you love that's either infant friendly or works with an infant car seat. Pick the stroller out first, most are compatible with the common brands.

Pp, I believe you mean you have a Graco Fastaction Fold.

kateraid · December 2012

I have the uppababy vista and love it. It's comparable with some car seats too. Plan on getting the g-luxe this spring for amusement parks/travel etc.

penguingrrl · December 2012

Anyone I know who had a travel system stroller ended up replacing it by the time their child was a year old. They're bulky and generally have terribly made wheels, so they're awful to push.

Since you plan to have 2 under 2 I would invest is a good stroller that converts from single to double. I have a Phil and Ted's classic, which was the first stroller that did this, but now there are a ton on the market and they're great. Most (possibly all) have carseat adaptors but can also be used from newborn on up without a carseat (they lie flat for a newborn), so if your kid hates the carseat (mine both did) you don't have to use the carseat to use the stroller.

freezorburn · December 2012

We started out with a Chicco Cortina travel system and car seat that I got on consignment. The carseat is good, easy to use. Hated the stroller. It was like driving a boat, and it wasn't very portable at all -- we had a station wagon and it didn't even fit in the trunk, we had to also fold down one side of the back seat -- this also meant we couldn't put the carseat in the middle of the backseat.

I traded this in for a new Chicco Keyfit carseat, so got a fresh expiration date (the used one only had about a year left on it) and the Keyfit Caddy when DS was 3 months old. We were getting ready to move so we figured we wouldn't need a whole lot of stroller in the short term.

Once settled in to our new place, we spent some time thinking about what we really wanted in a stroller. We don't have as much space as we did before so ease and compactness of fold was important. We also wanted all-terrain wheels since we are in the park with our dog a lot. And after our experience with the Cortina stroller, we really really wanted something that could fit in the trunk of a small car (we sold our cars and are now doing Zipcar).

We ended up getting the City Mini GT. We can get a car seat adaptor if we want, but DS is now big enough that he is more comfortable outside of his car seat. If we have a 2nd baby we will probably spring for a bassinet attachment for the stroller, since we do a lot more walking with the stroller and we don't use the carseat much.

I think there is a BJ City Stroller that is a double or converts to a double so that could be an option ... we probably won't look to have our 2nd until DS is at least 2, and at that point I might wear the infant while pushing DS in the stroller. There is also an optional glider board that a toddler can ride for short trips, so we might do that. We'll just have to see what works.

etude de la vie · December 2012

If you plan to have more kids (3 years or less apart) go with a single that can convert to a double.

We have baby jogger city select. It can be a single, double, car seat+toddler seat, single + glider board for quick trips with a toddler and no matter what configuration both kids can see and no one is sitting on the ground with their feet in the stroller basket (like Phil and teds or Britax)

we had a travel system with DD... It was horrible and junk. I personally feel you get what you pay for and highly suggest you go to a baby store and try a few out. Also baby gizmo on YouTube does amazing stroller reviews and outs kids of every age so you can see if it will grow with your family.

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Travel System or Stroller with Carseat holder

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