Buying a pram is the most expensive investment for most parents preparing for their new arrival. It’s also the item that’s going to get the most use. Why then is it such a complicated process?

Hubby and I pretty much made up our minds about which pram we wanted before we set foot in a shop. I even managed to ‘test drive’ a few models. Yet what should have been an easy verification process before we handed over the credit card still managed to take us the better part of 3 hours over 2 separate visits to John Lewis.

One thing I’m sure of is that standing in a shop with no ideas about which pram you want will be totally overwhelming to your pregnant self. I’d highly recommend doing your preliminary research from the comfort of your sofa. There are just so many options to choose from.

In order to make the process easier, I asked my friends to answer a series of questions about the prams they used. I’ve put their responses together in this post. I can’t promise that it will make it easier to order the pram you want, but it will help you assess the options from a real life parent perspective.

I’ve interspersed my own thoughts along the way, based on my test drives, or things I’ve picked up from speaking to the very helpful staff at John Lewis, Cheadle. I don’t think we’d have got through it without them!

 

Featured prams

 

1. Mamas and Papas Sola² – Currently £529.

Jump in post to this pram

 

2. Quinny Buzz – £689.99.

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3. 4baby Travel System – Currently £179.95.

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4. Silver Cross Linear Freeway – £560.

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5. Jane

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6. Britax BOB Revolution – Currently £399.99.

Jump in post to this pram

 

7. Uppababy Vista – £699.95.

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8. Bugaboo Cameleon / Bugaboo Bee – £469.10.

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9. Bugaboo Cameleon – approx £899.

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10.  Jools Day – Approx £600.

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Questions asked

I asked everyone to answer the following 8 questions, based on the factors that would influence my purchasing decision:

1. Which pram did you buy?
2. What was your main reason for choosing the pram that you did?
3. How long did you use the pram for?
4. What are the best features about your pram?
5. Are there any things about it that you find annoying?
6. Does your pram fold up easily to fit in your car?
7. Does your pram have an adjustable height handle?
8. With the benefit of hindsight, would you choose something different and if so, why?

 

Responses

 

Mummy CB – Mother of 3 year old and 6 month old

1. Pram: Mamas and Papas Sola² – Currently £529.
2. Reason for choice: We liked the design (4 wheels on the chassis, aesthetically we preferred that to the 3 wheel version). It was within the price range we were happy with. Had good reviews and the store were happy for us to take it to the car to check it for before buying so good customer service too.
3. Length of use: We used it for about 18 months with our first, then switched to a buggy. Currently using it with our second.
4. Best features: Good size carry cot, folds easily, is light weight, fits into my boot (a VW Polo) without having to remove wheels etc. I like that the pushchair seat can face either toward me or out so my baby can see what’s going on. I can also steer and push it one handed so I can hold my 3 year old’s hand too.
5. Annoying features: I haven’t found anything annoying with it.
6. Fold / fit in boot: Yes.
7. Adjustable handle height: Yes. Handle fully folds in which I’ve found useful when putting the car seat into the chassis and can be lifted higher too.
8. The benefit of hindsight: We’ve been happy with our choice and as we’re now using it with our second I would say we wouldn’t choose differently.

My thoughts: I took this pram for a test drive. I’ve seen how easily it collapses and goes back together, which was very appealing to me. It also fit in to my car (a Hyundai i20) with the parcel shelf taken out (which seems to be pretty standard for smaller cars). The only problem I had with it was that adjusting the handle height moved it closer to the pram because of the way it tips up. This meant that I kicked the wheels as I pushed it and made it uncomfortable for my tall build.

 

 

Mummy MZ – Mother of 5 year old and 2 year old

1. Pram: Quinny Buzz – £689.99.
2. Reason for choice: I bought it as I liked how it looked and was reasonably priced. Also as it is a travel system.
3. Length of use: I only used for 9-10 months with with my youngest and only 7 months with my eldest.
4. Best features: It was easy to steer and looked nice.
5. Annoying features: The shopping basket is too small and because of the design it is difficult to put bags over the handle bars. The air inflated tyres punctured easily so after this happened to me I paid for the inner tubes to be filled with anti puncture goo.
6. Fold / fit in boot: No – Only fits in a decent sized car boot. Have to take the seat off before folding down so time consuming and fiddly. (As opposed to my Maclaren XLR buggy (currently £240) which can be folded up or down with one hand!
7. Adjustable height handle: I can’t quite remember but I think it did have adjustable handles.
8. The benefit of hindsight: I would have chosen something different if I had my time again. The pram is wide and heavy. Only fits in a decent sized car boot and having to take the seat off to fold it down was not easy. I’ve been much happier with the Maclaren XLR, which can be folded up or down with one hand.

 

Mummy CH – Mother of 4 year old

1. Pram: 4baby Travel System – Currently £179.95.
2. Reason for choice: Size – we needed something that would fold to go in a VW Beetle boot – a challenge! Then price – very reasonable for this type and also in a local shop where we could get hands on to check size and ease of use. We wanted a travel system so we could fit the car seat into the pushchair for extending sleeps! We also liked idea of having pram top to put baby down for flat naps but this was often an expensive extra with other brands.
3. Length of use: We used it till our son was 12months but would have used longer if the wheels had not been stolen. We moved to an easy to fold Maclaren at this point. We would definitely have needed to swap to this by 18 months anyway as our son was too tall for the pram.
4. Best features: It was very easy to fold and easy to click car seat or pram top into. It came with everything like foot muff and rain cover that was often an extra and it was quite neat and simple looking. My husband liked the fact it was just plain black and not obviously aimed at a woman.
5. Annoying features: The pushchair top always felt a bit more awkward somehow. The straps didn’t seem to sit right. I’d have liked a funky pattern or emblem!
6. Fold / fit in boot: Yes
7. Adjustable height handle: Yes. There is quite a height difference between my husband and me. We definitely needed it at different heights.
8. The benefit of hindsight: I don’t think I would have chosen anything different as it really worked well for the time we had it. We didn’t use the pushchair bit for that long although that could have been improved slightly. We used the pram top for him to sleep in overnight a few times when he was still little so that extra feature balanced it out for me and meant I overall really liked it.

 

Mummy ST-L – Mother of 2 year old and 10 month old (buyer of 3 prams!)

1. Pram: Silver Cross Linear Freeway – £560.
2. Reason for choice: Sturdy and grows with the child and has a matching car seat which clips on to the pram. Reliable and good quality make.
3. Length of use: With our eldest we used it until about 8-9 months because it adapts in to a pushchair.
4. Best features: I took it on pavements, woods and the beach. The basket is good size and overall it’s a good and sturdy pram.
5. Annoying features: It wasn’t the lightest with everything attached.
6. Fold / fit in boot: It folds easily. but took up a fair bit of space in the boot when using the carry cot.
7. Adjustable height handle: Yes.
8. The benefit of hindsight: We bought it second hand so I’m more than happy with it. We only used it with our youngest for a few weeks as by then we had the double buggy or she was in the carrier.

Daddy JT-L says, “The Silver Cross was by far the best for new borns to sitting up age. Our youngest would have been in it much longer if we didn’t have an older child!”

1. Pram: The double buggy is a Jane but I can’t remember the model. Also bought second hand.
2. Reason for choice: Handles really well. Not too heavy. Picked it over the Phil and Teds because we weren’t that keen on one child having limited visibility. This one allows the child at the back to lie flat which is great for young babies and toddlers alike when sleeping. Front seat also reclines but not fully.
3. Length of use: We are still in this pram.
4. Best features: Good round town and off road because it has inflatable tyres. With one child being in front of the other it also means you can fit through normal size doors. The basket fits a good size nappy bag in.
5. Annoying features: The rain cover is rubbish. I don’t know if it’s just ours but it is rubbish. The pram gets a bit of a wobble on the front wheel but this seems to be an issue with Jane prams. The hoods start to touch the child’s head when they are a bit taller.
6. Fold / fit in boot: –
7. Adjustable height handle: Yes.
8. The benefit of hindsight: We would buy it again.

Daddy JT-L says, “The rain cover on the Jane works but seems to be a poor fit, or it’s our lack of patience or both!”

1. Pram: Our third pram is a Britax BOB Revolution – Currently £399.99. It was quite expensive and not suitable for new borns.
2. Reason for choice: Built for off road and running.
3. Length of use: –
4. Best features: Handles really well and not too heavy. I haven’t done that many miles with it but it’s easy enough to manoeuvre. It has inflatable tyres and the ability to swap between city mode (wheel swivels) and off road (wheel locks straight). The weather cover fits like a glove. Very good sun shade and a window so you can see the baby/child when hood up.
5. Annoying features: The only gripe is that it doesn’t sit fully upright which is an issue when your child wants to have a good nosy round. Also, the hoods start to touch the child’s head when they are a bit taller.
6. Fold / fit in boot: Yes. It opens with one hand, which is awesome when you have a baby in the other.
7. Adjustable handle height: Yes.
8. The benefit of hindsight: Also got this second hand, although unused. I wouldn’t pay full price because I don’t run enough. But it really is good on and off road. Just a shame it doesn’t have a fully upright option.

Daddy JT-L says, “My opinion is that the 3 bike wheel styles prams give a nicer ride for the kids and the manoeuvrability is better. You can also get this style that also doubles up as a bike trailer! I don’t think these are any good for new borns? But then I never looked at them for that.”

 

Daddy RD-B – Father of 2 year old

1. Pram: Uppababy Vista – £699.95.
2. Reason for choice: Very good reviews and once we tried it out was very light and easy to use, especially liked the large basket.
3. Length of use: The pram is suitable until the baby is about 3 I think.
4. Best features: Large basket. Easy to put up and down.
5. Annoying features: We did have to return the pram as the basket broke, more down to us overloading it than anything else.
6. Fold / fit in boot: Yes, very easy once you got the knack. although we had a VW Golf and a Passat so both have big boots.
7. Adjustable handle height: Yes.
8. The benefit of hindsight: No. Happy with the Uppababy. Very good off road style wheels, works pretty well on the beach and at the park.

My thoughts: We looked at this in John Lewis on the shop assistant’s recommendation. It was very easy to take the carry cot off the chassis with one hand – bonus, and the handle adjusted to a good height for both of us. The pram had a product safety warning about babies chewing off the material from the handle, which put us off.

A passing mum recommended the Uppababy Cruz, saying that she loved the large basket and how easy the pram is to manoeuvre.

 

Mummy SL – Mother of 2 year old

1. Pram: Bugaboo Cameleon – approx £899. We were also given an old Bugaboo Bee (£469.10) by a colleague.
2. Reason for choice: User reviews, John Lewis staff recommended. We had used a Bugaboo (Bee) when looking after a friend’s child and thought it was nice. Had features like carry cot, adjustable handle, parent facing seat, large wheels, and reversible handle.
3. Length of use: Still in use at 2 years. We used the Bee for nursery and flights, as we didn’t care if it got banged around and also it folds easily and more compactly than the Cameleon.
4. Best features: Cameleon has large back wheels, very handy for getting on and off trains and buses and bumping up and down stairs.  With car seat attachments the Cabriofix attached right to the buggy frame so that was handy in the first 12 months. Carrycot has solid bottom and sturdy sides, which was better than the Bugaboo Bee softsided cocoon (I think they might have changed this now)
5. Annoying features: The Cameleon comes apart and the frame folds but the seat doesn’t. Not so bad if you’re just using the car seat but if you’re using the normal seat or carry cot then this is bulky.
6. Fold / fit in boot: The Bee as mentioned folds up easily and fairly flat, much better for going on planes and car boots than the Cameleon.
7. Adjustable handle height: Yes, both the Cameleon and the Bee have adjustable height handles, which have been good for us at 5’7” and 6’1”.
8. The benefit of hindsight: No, I like both of them. We have 6 steps up to the house and the Cameleon was a lifesaver with it’s big wheels. It meant we could tip the buggy back and bounce it up the stairs relatively easily. This is not possible with the Bee or a buggy with smaller wheels.

Mummy SL says – “If you can go to the Baby Show, you can get show deals sometimes, we got a display model which saved us a couple of hundred quid.”

 

Mummy KH – Mother of 7 month old

1. Pram: Bugaboo Cameleon special edition (navy blue with cream quilted lining) – approx £899.
2. Reason for choice: Husband got involved and decided (in the way that a man chooses a car) that it was a great machine with semi off-road capability and would be the perfect car, ahem, pram for us. I agreed and then chose the colours which are of course changeable should I require a new paint job (genius) for future babies.
3. Length of use: Still going, but used the bassinet for 5 months and now using the seat.
4. Best features: Manoeuvrability, looks, set-up options, easy to put up and down (once you know how).
5. Annoying features: Not yet.
6. Fold / fit in boot: Yes, but then I don’t have to actually fold it to fit in my current car.
7. Adjustable handle height: Yes
8. The benefit of hindsight: Definitely not.

Daddy MH says, “All the celebs have it and it looks sexy.”

My thoughts: I had to take the wheels off this pram to fit it in to my boot. I liked the handle height but the size was a deal breaker so we didn’t look at it any further.

 

Mummy LF – Mother of 14 month old

1. Pram: Jools Day – Approx £600.
2. Reason for choice: Lightweight, easy to manoeuvre, comes in different colours, easy to fit attachments, comfy, will last a long time as can use it until 3 – 4.
3. Length of use: Can use it from birth until 3 – 4 so still using it.
4. Best features: See number 2&3
5. Annoying features: None – although we lost the padded strap things and they don’t have any at the moment in my colour. It would be helpful if they sold spares but they don’t.
6. Fold / fit in boot: If a pram can fit in to a Toyota Aygo then it’s a winner alright as my boot space is tiny!
7. Adjustable handle height: Yes
8. The benefit of hindsight: None whatsoever.

My thoughts: I’ve road tested this pram. It was comfortable to push, even up steep hills in Buxton since I’ve been pregnant. It comes apart easily and fits in my car if I take the parcel shelf out. I think it would fit anyway if I took the wheels off, which is super quick but an extra faff. I have seen my friend take this pram out and about everywhere without any difficulties.

 

 

Mummy KG – Mother of 1 year old says, “My suggestion for prams is to check out the baby and toddler fair that’s held fairly regularly at Event City (there are always discounted tickets on MCR Confidential) It’s a good opportunity to try out and compare/contrast all the top brands and also, if you order there, you generally get a 10-20% fair discount. We did it for both the initial travel system and the next phase car seat and felt with both we’d made an informed choice and got a bit of a bargain!”

 

Our pram

Based on my experience of the Joolz Day, we have chosen the Joolz Geo. It folds with the pushchair attached so I am hoping it will be even easier than the Day but the main reason was that it offers the option to convert to a double pram if we have another child. It was Which? pram of the year 2015, which has helped me to feel confident in our choice. It’s not a cheap option though, and the extras including the rain cover, foot muff, and even the car seat attachments cost more.

As for the ordering process, unless you’re dead set on customising it, I’d recommend getting a shop involved. The website is almost impossible to navigate and was nearly enough to make us go for something different. Thank goodness for John Lewis Cheadle!

 

If you have experience of a different pram that you think might be useful for new parents embarking on this process, it would be great if you could answer my questions in the comments below!

 

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