Advice on a Double Stroller for a Baby and a Toddler

My son and daughter are 20 mos. apart. We tried the Graco and Evenflo with carseat adapter and it was like pushing a sled! I highly suggest
Bob Revolution Dualie
Mountain Buggy (great for taller and older children): or the Valco dualie.
The Valco can be converted to a triple or quad, depending on how many more babies are on the way. Plus it is best to test drive which stroller YOU like. I would suggest going to www.joggermom.com. It is owned by a mother of 4 kids (one plus triplets), she knows everything about strollers and she will let you test drive the strollers to see which one works best for you!! Good luck!

The Joovy worked well for us. My 3 year old didn't always need to sit but when he did, he liked the little bench in the back. It didn't take up as much room as a double stroller which was nice.

It depends what features you're looking for, but I LOVE my Bumbleride Indie Twin. It compares to a BOB. It rolls wonderfully and turns on a dime, comes with the carseat adapter bar, had independent sun canopies, and wonderful customer service.
If you are looking for something light and compact, it's not for you though. It takes up 2/3 of the back of my Murano.
I have a 19mo and 3 month old and I use it all the time... just to run errands or to rollerblade with the kids. The swivel wheels will lock straight for jogging (or in my case rollerblading). There are lots of spots to put toys, snacks, purse... I only wish the company made a parent console for drinks--there is a pocket I put my water bottles and sippy cups, and there is a detachable side cup holder but I don't bother with it b/c it will only fit through most doors w/o the cup holder attached to the side.

My daughter was the same age when I had my son. At first I bought a cheap double jogger from Babies R us. A little while later I purchased the BOB Revolution Duallie. I've had it for maybe 3 years now - it's the only stroller I ever needed. LOVE it! It fits through all doors, has a front wheel you can lock or swivel. You can get an infant car seat adapter. I can't say enough good things about it. I ran with mine a lot, but you don't need to be a jogger. It's great for day trips, I even take it to the beach to haul all our stuff. My kids are now 4 and 6, I still take it to Disneyland, Legoland, if we are walking to school, etc..

I highly recommend www.joggermom.com. Kelly is a Mom of triplets - she knows her strollers! Her work at home business is in So. Cal.

Best wishes whatever you decide!
M.

I like my sit n stand that I got at a consignment shop. Though now that my baby is a year and not in the infant seat attached to the stroller it is not a comfortable seat for him to sleep in. I think they have a newer version with a removable back seat that looks more comfortable. I was told to not get the Joovy version (which is more expensive) because the back seat doesn't lock in place. I saw one at Babies r' us and the back seat slid back and forth on the bar. The sit n stand doesn't have that problem though it is a better stroller for awake kids than sleeping kids (at least the older version).

My husband and I bought the Graco Quattro Tour Duo and it has worked well for us so far. We have a 2-year old and 2.5 month baby. We like the front-back design of the stroller (good for narrow sidewalks and going through doors more easily), the set of four cupholders, zippered pouch near the handles, and sturdy frame (better than the Graco Duo Glider) -- makes it a bit heavy, but I'm petite and can still manage to load/unload it from our van. Congrats and good luck!

I have the Graco double stroller and the Sit and Stand stroller. The Graco was good when my older two were younger because it was comfortable when they got tired, which really only happened at Sea World and the Zoo. We recently got the Sit and Stand when I had my third child 4 months ago. I would reccomend that one. It's easier to manage and turn and easier to lift into a car. The older child can also sit, she doesn't have to stand. I've even been able to have my 5 yr. old stand, my 3 yr. old sit and my infant ride in the carseat part. My kids also like the idea of being able to jump off and on easily. We like it:)

I bought the Zooper first and it was unsafe and aweful. Then I bought the City jogger AWESOME! Great for everything. Good Luck

I also love my Bob Revolution Duallie. My kids were 2.5 and newborn when we bought ours. They are now 4 and 2. For the first year of my daughters life we used the Duallie for our everyday stroller since my son still liked to be in a stroller. But now at the Big Boy age of 4, he likes to walk most of the time so we mostly use our single Bob Revolution (which we bought when he was 1 years old). If he gets tired, he just sits on the front foot part of the stroller. We still use our Duallie for family walks, jogs, and hikes.

I would go to a store like USA Baby where they have a large selection of double strollers and test drive them all before buying.

FYI:

My best friend has had 3 double strollers and the only one she likes is her Combi. She also has a Peg Perego Duette, which she hates and a Joovy Sit N Stand which is moderately likes. But she wishes she had my Bob Revolution Duallie. She LOVES it! But her DH said she can't get one until she sells the other 2 double strollers.

The Bob just glides over everything! We've taken ours camping, to the beach, and to the amusement parks. It's great! We load up our Bob with all of our beach stuff and DH pushes it over the sand with little effort.

LOVE IT!

If you do decide to get the Bob, wait for the sales at REI.COM. Normally the Duallie is about $525, plus another $40 for the infant carseat adapter, plus another $30 for the drink/keys handlebar console. I bought our single Revolution over Labor Day weekend (normally $350, I got ours for $299, including the handle bar console). I bought our Duallie over Memorial Day weekend for $425, plus $20 for the handlebar console. Just sign up at REI.com for email notifications. You can then order your Bob online, and then have it free shipped to your local REI store. They will also assemble it for you(there are only a few things that need to be put on the Bob) and demonstrate how it all works for free. So far this is place for the best deal on the Bobs.

If you are interested in a used Bob at a good price, try craigslist.com. I have seen several gently used and a few new in box Duallies on there, but they go FAST!

I highly recommend trying them out first (with a child or two in it). There are side by sides and tandems, I suggest you decide that first. They are SO different. I had a side by side (Combi Twin Savvy) and LOVED it. My sis in law has the Graco duo glider and likes it. I hate pushing hers. It feels like you are driving a boat. It is very difficult on narrow winding paths as it is hard to steer. A side by side however wont fit in between the racks at most department stores. But they do fit thru almost every door nowadays. The other thing to consider is how heavy the stroller is and how it folds and how it fits in your trunk. While prego with twins I tried out the duo glider and tried to fold it and lift it up as if to put in a trunk, that sealed its fate for me! Too heavy, too hard to fold, too big! Lightweight/ease of folding are the most important features in a stroller for me.

I have done a lot of research and have used many of the popular double strollers and these are the best on the market, depending on what you are looking for:
BOB double jogger
City Mini double jogger
Joovy ultralight caboose (it's a sit and stand)
Maclaren Twin Techno double umbrella strooler

Hope that this narrows the search for you. I did not choose to go with a jogger so I have the joovy and maclaren and love them both so far!

We just got the joovy caboose ultralite, and i could not say enough great things about how wonderful it is. We have a 3yo and newborn. Our infant carrier fits wonderfully. Our three year old loves to sit on the back seat, where there is a three point harness seatbelt if needed. She also loves to stand and look out "like a princess" (so cute, she feels like such a big girl, which is very nice). There is plenty of storage underneath and it comes with a parent console, holds two drinks, keys, cell phone, ect. One of the most important features for me was how light it is, only weighs like 14lbs or so, and it folds up relatively small, fits in my SUV easily. It pushes so nicely, and maneuvers easily- overall a wonderful double stroller.

Bob Revolution Dualie. Very easy to maneuver and can use for everything... you don't have to have multiple strollers for the different uses.

PHIL AND TED
it is compact and maneuvers well

If I can add a question and a comment to this.
I have a 2 & 3year old. I had always wanted the Contours Options Tandem Stroller i liked that it could be turned to face each other and me. But when I tried my son in it when he was 2 he was already too long to sit in it.
Does anyone know of a sit and stand that has a light back so the older child can actually rest and has a canopy to cover the older child? Or if there is a double stroller that will fit a 3 year old nicely? Also under $200 on both?

I have a three 1/2 year old and a 6 month old and love my Peg Perego Twin. It's light-weight, easy to open and fold up. Both lids can lay all the way down...easy to manuver. Definitely recommend.

-M

before my newborn was born in november, we bought the joovy caboose ultralite. my older child loved riding around in it. when the newborn was born, it was great because we could put he infant car seat in it (confirm if your infant car seat will fit in there). we still take the kiddies in the stroller with and without the infant car seat while the older child rides in the back, stands up to look at the baby, sits in the back, its great. there's pockets and cup holders for mom/babies. it is just a bit hard to push in dirt and grass, but not so bad. it is easy to lift and store in my SUV easily and i'm not big and strong mom. i am seriously thinking of getting the bob dual stroller soon so we can go hiking, etc.

I have a newborn and a 2-year-old and I have a double stroller I have yet to really use. When I do use a stroller, I use the single and stick baby in a wrap-style carrier with 2yo in the stroller or 2yo walks and little one is in the stroller.

I have the Chicco twin stroller, and it's pretty nice while not blasting an arm and a leg for something like a phil and ted or even McLaren. Most of the in-line strollers are REALLY heavy but easy to fold and unfold. The chicco is lightweight and a little difficult to set up. Lots of features though.

Check out any stroller by phil and ted. I have the sport one, and I love it. I have a 4 yr old, an almoat 2 yr old and an almost 3 month old, You can make it for one or two kids and if you are planning on having any more kids it would work out great. If you go to www.babybungalow.com you can get free shipping on it, but if you go to the phil and ted web site there is more things to chose from. I love it, and so do my kids. I hope you fine what you need.

J.,
We went with The Phil & Teds double jogger and love it. The 2nd seat is removable so you always have the option to use it as a single when you toddler grows out of it. I'ts lightweight, but pricey.. It will accommodate only certain kind if infant carriers and you need to purchase an adapter. My only suggestion is that you purchase a compact air-pump for the tires, somehow mine are always in need of air. Good luck and cograts on the new baby.

Phil & Ted, try getting the Vibe. I have the sport, but the second seat has to get detached for it to fold. That is not a problem with the Vibe.

Hello,

My first 2 kids were 15 months apart and we received the Graco duo glider as a gift, so of course we kept it and used everyday. It was a great stroller and very comfortable for the kids and big enough to hold all of our stuff. It does seem long, but you get used to it. I am strong for a girl and had no problem folding it and putting it in my car. My third came along 23 months after the second and I was ready for a new double stroller as we had USED the first so much. Cost was an issue and I new I wanted a front and back stroller with room to carry all of our extra things. I decided to go for the Grace Quattro Tour Duo Stroller...about $100 more then the duo glider. I thought it would be easier to push, looked a little cooler, and still could hold all my extra stuff. If I were to buy another Graco, I would get the duo glider. Lighter, easier to get in and out of the car, and I think it was easier to push if I remember correctly. Not worth the extra $100 bucks. Good luck!!

You absolutely have to splurge on the BOB Duallie. Lightweight, compact, smooth ride. So worth the extra cash. You have to buy a carseat adapter for an extra $50(?). Again, well worth it. I take my girls everywhere in it. Literally. You can "test drive" them at REI in Encinitas. Check it out!

The "BOB" Duallie...it has an adapter for your infant car seat until the child is able to sit up on their own. It's the easiest manuevering stroller there is. It costs a little more but we will have it for years! Good luck!

I recommend the City Mini Double with the infant car seat bar. It is super light compared to some of the other doubles. Also it is soooooooo easy to fold!! Love it