Best stroller for city living?

[nolagirl501]

My sister-in-law is expecting her first baby in June. I've offered to give her our Chicco Cortina Travel system that we used for my son (born April 2008).

However, it sticks in the back of my mind that there are certain strollers best engineered to navigate the sidewalks and other tricky terrain of the city. My stroller was used for walks in suburbia and at the mall, and I wonder if she would be better served by using a different model?

Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! :)

[arivecchi]

Probably. It seems like most city dwellers end up with two strollers - an air tire stroller that can handle rough sidewalks, parks, dirt and an umbrella-type stroller for small city stores/restaurants, public transportation and travel. I think your stroller is a good one for the suburbs but probably not quite appropriate for the city. What city does she live in? Where would she end up using the stroller? That might help us give you specific recs.

[nolagirl501]

My brother and sister-in-law live in Philadelphia. They don't have a yard to speak of, so they will probably be taking stroller walks to the park, as well as the more traditional uses -- such as malls, restaurants, etc.

Thanks for any and all suggestions!

[PGTB]

My brother and sister-in-law live in Philadelphia. They don't have a yard to speak of, so they will probably be taking stroller walks to the park, as well as the more traditional uses -- such as malls, restaurants, etc.

Thanks for any and all suggestions!

If there are lots of brick sidewalks where she is, she would need a stroller with good suspension and larger wheels. Strollers with plastic wheels won't work that well especially with a newborn. I am not so sure the chicco travel system would be what I would consider a great urban stroller and I tend to agree that she might be happier with something else. However, like PP pointed out, you may want to have more than one stroller in the city - one for walks/errands walking distance from your house and another one for travel, frequent car use and public transport use.

You may want to know how often she would need to travel with the stroller, how often she would use the car, what storage she has for the strollers, does she consider reversible seat a necessary feature or not, will she use the bassinet, and most importantly what the budget is. Are you planning to buy the stroller for her or are you just looking to give her suggestions?

[PGTB]

City-friendly walking strollers fall into two major categories IMO.

1) Bugaboo style full featured strollers that have 4 wheels (two front wheels are usually smaller for maneuverability), come with the bassinet, can have car seat adapters. Examples are Bugaboo, Uppababy Vista, Icoo Targo, Teutonia, Mutsy 4-rider and others.

2) Jogging type strollers with 3 wheels. They tend to have air tires (which would work great on all sorts of terrain). some are more all-terrain, others are lighter for urban use. Jogging type strollers also can accommodate bassinets for newborns and car seats on their frames, these would have to be purchased separately.

The main difference between the two IMO, is the fact that the seating options for the stroller seat are more limited with jogging type strollers. Jogging type stroller seats don't reverse to either face the parent or forward, so they are not going to meet the needs of parents who consider facing a baby while strolling a crucial feature. Both types of strollers tend to be on heavier side and have bulkier folds (e.g. not very travel friendly or frequent car use friendly).

In the more lightweight and easier to fold travel stroller category following are very popular: Maclaren umbrella strollers, BJCM (baby jogger city mini), some peg Perego models like SI or P3, Inglezina Zippy, UppaBaby G-lite, Quinny Zapp, etc.

If she doesn't need rearfacing seat option then I recommend looking at Micralite Toro - it's a lightweight stroller (19-20lb) that folds in one piece and stands when folded, has air tires on the back and suspension to navigate rougher sidewalks, has a bassinet option and car seat adapter option. Some users claim that they find it easy to use on stairs. But again, it's not the most compact fold IMO for very frequent car use and maybe a problem on some public transport. If you don't care about rear-facing seat it's a great candidate for all-in-one (or one and only) urban stroller. The new version due sometime in Spring also has improved handles for taller people.

[arivecchi]

Agree with most of what PP has said. The only thing I want to mention is that AT jogging-type strollers (Valcos, Baby Jogger, Mountain Buggies) last longer than Bug and Vista-type strollers because they accomodate taller children.

[jenny]

I worked in center city Philadelphia and I saw a lot of jogging strollers and a lot of air tire strollers like the bugaboo and quinny but I also saw a lot of maclarens.

A lot of the streets in Philly are pretty rough, so I would invest in an air-tire stroller if I were your sister. She's going to need something that will push through the snow.

That said, I know my co-worker carried her newborn around in a beco butterfly a lot and then used her Icoo Targo to take her daughter to daycare.

[Karinyc]

Another great stroller option that doesn't get mentioned a lot (and would be good for an urban environment) is the Mountain Buggy, specifically the new Swift.
http://www.joggingstroller.com/mountain-buggy-swift-stroller.pro

There's an additional carrycot and the car seat adapter will be out soon. I also think there was a nice review on Strollerqueen's blog. Although pricey, it has a great reputation and high weight limit. They were very popular in the city (until the Bugs took over).

[strollerqueen]

Another great stroller option that doesn't get mentioned a lot (and would be good for an urban environment) is the Mountain Buggy, specifically the new Swift.
http://www.joggingstroller.com/mountain-buggy-swift-stroller.pro

There's an additional carrycot and the car seat adapter will be out soon. I also think there was a nice review on Strollerqueen's blog. Although pricey, it has a great reputation and high weight limit. They were very popular in the city (until the Bugs took over).

LOVE the Swift! :thumbsup: I only had the NZ ones, though, not the new China ones. They have some nice features, I hope the quality remains the same.