Picture of the Week: What Stroller Do I Take To Europe?

I get lots of reader questions about the best travel gear for young kids. My kids are still young enough (1 and 2 1/2 in this picture) that it is important to let them both rest when we're exploring a new town.

I find a double stroller difficult to use in most cities, and it seems like a double would be especially difficult to haul up and down stairs in old buildings or subways. Instead, we use a sturdy single stroller. Our Maclaren Techno took some serious abuse and kept going until British Airways finally lost it on our flight to Barcelona. We have a new one now, and expect that it will last until everyone in our family has grown out of it.

Little D rides in the Ergo Baby Carrier when she's not in the stroller. The Ergo lets me carry her on the front (cuddly) or on the back (most ergonomic) and even now, at 19 months, I can walk long distances with her on my back. Best of all, she sleeps well in the carrier, especially when we pull up the little hood that's designed to support her head.

Related Links:
Maclaren Techno
Ergo Baby Carrier

Filed Under: family-travel-gear

11 comments | Posted on May 21, 2008 | Save to del.icio.us

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Comments

  1. Susannah

    May 21, 2008 at 4:25 a.m.

    May I ask how much Little D weighs at 19 months? I have a 19-month-old, too, who weighs 30 lbs. We're going on a hiking-intensive trip to Montana later this summer as well as a city weekend-type trip and I've been wondering if my Kelty frame pack will be too heavy. Any thoughts or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

    BTW, love your blog. Thank you.

  2. Debbie

    May 21, 2008 at 10:36 p.m.

    Susannah,

    D is pretty light, especially considering that she eats as much as me some days! I'd say she's in the mid 20's. We use our frame backpack to carry 3 yr old E on hikes here in Seattle, and it is comfortable (I still carry D in the Ergo).

    Can you do a trial run with the Kelty around town before you go?

    Debbie

  3. Misha

    http://www.mishadavidcy.blogspot.com/
    April 6, 2009 at 1:03 p.m.

    I was wanting to know what you thought of the Phil and Ted. I have a 3 yo and a 4 mo old. I want to go to Europe next year with them and I figured it would be nice to have the choice of stacking them in a stroller yet not using a typical double stroller.

  4. Julianne Reiser

    December 14, 2009 at 2:26 p.m.

    I use a Phil & Ted Vibe here in Los Angeles on a daily basis. I have a 3 yo and a 1 yo. We bought the Vibe when my second was about 3 months old.

    Pros: It can go through a normal doorway. Pretty much has the profile of a standard stroller, so you can get through most stores easily enough. The double kit can be moved to clip onto the front of the stroller allowing the main seat to be moved to a full flat position for nap time. Padded seat inserts are easily removed and fully washable.

    Cons: Quality issues. In less than a year we've had to replace 2 inner-tubes. Note that this is not easy and ended up taking the tires to a friend with bike repair knowledge. The seat in front is beginning to fray. Since we're out of warranty I believe we'll end up at a shoe repair place to have the seat sewn up. When tires are unevenly inflated the front wheel wobbles. If the heavier child is in the back seat and you have a heavy diaper bag clipped onto the handle bar, the front wheel wobbles. This may sound innocent enough but let me assure you that it can be quite maddening.

    Roundup: The Vibe has been a blessing and a curse at the same time. I would not buy another one but I'm glad it's lasted us as long as it has.

  5. Siobhan Peterson

    http://www.comfykids.eu/
    February 10, 2010 at 5:04 a.m.

    Phil & Ted! I can't praise this stroller enough. I have had mine for almost 5 years now and although the color is begining to fade it is still in perfect condition. It was even strong enough for my 10 year old niece last year...she was visiting and became very ill and we needed to get her to the doctor's office urgently.

    However, I personally did not like the Vibe model when I upgraded (I switched back). It looks very sleek but there are issues with the front wheel wobbling (I believe there is a fix-it kit for this now) and the stroller is 1 inch too wide to fit on the older trams and trains here in Germany ... the other models fit easily through the doors.

  6. Eleanor Post

    March 12, 2010 at 7:29 p.m.

    Hi, Debbie, your site is phenomena! Thank you! Our kids are 2.5 and 4, and we usually take an umbrella stroller and a sitnstroll for flights. We're headed to LA and San Diego next week, though, and we'll need something where both kids can rest as we tour the cities. At 30 lbs., the two year old is too heavy for the baby-carrier, so despite your concerns about traveling with a double stroller, do you have any that you can recommend that are easy for airports? The only double we have is a BOB Ironman jogger, which I think would be way too cumbersome for the airport, though I'd love to have it to go running in CA. What do you think? Thanks!

  7. Debbie

    March 14, 2010 at 10:21 p.m.

    Eleanor,

    We are facing exactly this same dilemma for our trip to Turkey next month. While we rarely use the stroller at home anymore, I know that there will be times on this trip when we want to cover a lot of ground quickly and with a minimum of discomfort.

    We sometimes have D sit on E's lap in the Maclaren, but that's hard to do for very long (and certainly the kids can't nap that way)

    Right now, I'm debating between the Phil and Ted's double and the idea of just buying a second single since it would give us the ability to split up easily.

  8. Kendra

    May 6, 2011 at 8:14 p.m.

    Hi Debbie,

    We're planning way in advance for a stay in Amsterdam. Not a vacation, but work so we will be there for two months (we travel with work spending six weeks to two months in a location, typically a major U.S. or EU city). Our babies will be 18 months and 5 months. For such a long stay would you still recommend a stroller and carrier?

    Thanks so much!

  9. Debbie

    May 7, 2011 at 8:30 a.m.

    Kendra,

    I think for a long stay, you should use what you would be comfortable with at home. Personally, I would use a stroller and carrier.

  10. Catherine

    July 6, 2011 at 9:52 p.m.

    Hi Debbie,

    I have just stumbled onto your fabulous blog whilst looking for advice about strollers.

    We are taking our 2 1/2 year old and 15 month old to: London, NY, Vancouver, Hong Kong and Phuket. I think we need our heads read!

    Anyway, we have Phil and Ted's double, and a McLaren umbrella. I am debating whether to take the p and t or use the mclaren and buy a baby carrier (just read your post and I have to say the idea is appealing to me).

    My littlest one is not terribly heavy, but I wonder about sleep? Not sure if a child of 15 months would sleep in a carrier or not. Also, the P and T would allow for us to leave them both napping if they fell asleep in it, whereas I can't see how this would work with the carrier.

    We took the Mclaren last time we went to Europe and I must say it was a bit of a struggle in places like Paris, LOndon, Madrid etc. Am terrified of attempting the subway in NY or busy HK with a DOUBLE!!

    What do you think? Any ideas/comments greatly appreciated!

  11. Dea F.

    July 14, 2011 at 6:32 p.m.

    I am interested to hear if any of you have used a Baby Jogger City Mini while in Europe? We love ours stateside...it's lightweight, great wheels for all sorts of terrain and lays almost flat for our son to sleep in. It folds great for a stroller of its kind. But I'm worried that it's just a little to big. Do any of you have any feedback?

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