My first post here. I'm going to Paris and London this month with my mom and my 2,5yrs daughter. I have a Baby Jogger City Elite. And I'm wondering whether it will be suitable for Paris/London? Or do I need to get a smaller umbrella stroller? If taking metro/subway a hassle we will take cab/bus. Any advice will me much appreciated, thanks. I've travelled to both those cities three times with my wife and daughter, the most recent was March this year. The most valuable lesson we learned - unless your stroller is extremely well protected, lightweight and easy to handle, I suggest you leave it at home. The first time we took a rather expensive stroller and whilst it was something we thought was good for our daughter, it was bulky, impractical and added burden each time we had to relocate cities. On top of all this, the scratches and dents on the stroller taught us a valuable lesson on what to expect in terms of wear and tear, plus airport ground staff. For the second and third trips, we bought a fully collapsible lightweight stroller with a full zip bag, at a cheap price.
This way, it was more practical, and we weren't overly concerned if it suffered any fatal damage - just dispose A lightweight collapsable umbrella stroller is best. I live in London and have a Maclaren umbrella stroller. I find bus travel fairly easy due to the light weight and compact size of my pram but of course you are restricted by the number of prams you can fit on a bus (two smallo r one large). Using the underground is also fairly easy as long as you are confidant with going up and down escalators with your pram and carrying it up and down stairs; some stations have lifts from platform to street level which is shown on the underground map by a wheelchair symble. Check out the Transport for London website for map and other info: As for tourest sights, most places have to be wheelchair friendly, which also makes them pram friendly, and will often have lifts and ramps to all areas. However, when it comes to tour buses, you will probably have to fold your pram. Some museums, galleries and other sights can store your stroller in their cloak room while you are there to make it easier as lifts tend to be few and far between in some.
I haven't been to Paris with my pram, but I have been to other European cities and have found it easy enough to get around with my pram. Over all, from looking at pictures of the stroller you have, I would advise buying a cheap, light weight umbrella stroller so as to make it easier to get around but if you decided to bring your current stroller you will still be able to get around but it might be a bit more of a hassle. I would also agree with the previous comment that your stroller is likely to get scratched and dented by the airline, so a small stroller which can fit in to a bag would be better. I hope this info helps, and i hope you all enjoy your visit to London! Love, love, love my Maclaren. It traveled around the world with us. Also had a cheap ($20US) umbrella stroller that we often used, especially when we had two little kids. Our philosophy was if it was stolen or broke along the way, no biggie, as we didn't have much invested. That umbrella stroller kept going and going and going.
I think I even sold it at a garage sale for $20 :-) I travelled around Paris with a double side by side stroller. I had a 20 mnth old and 3 1/2 year old. I found the streets of Paris and most of the shops able to accomodate this. The only problem I struck was getting through the barriers at the underground stations. But saying this it was never a major problem as there was always a gate at the side that could be opened to allow a stroller of my size through. I speak no French but the Parisians were ALWAYS quick to help when they saw a child was involved. I would roll up to destination and think "what will I do now?" and without fail someone would be opening a gate for me or tapping me on the shoulder and pointing me in the right direction. Just an extra point, there are sandpits everywhere in Paris. If the kids got grumpy we would stop at a sandpit. I had been to Paris before (pre children) and never knew there is even one at the foot of the Effiel Tower!I have a baby jogger elite and am thinking of going to Paris.
Did you face any issues? I have a 4 and 6 year old and that is why an umbrella stroller is not an option but having just came back from Tokyo, the stroller really saved our backs (imagine having to carry a 4 and 6 year old that you can't expect to walk the whole day). They would need a more heavy duty one. I don't understand why the umbrella stroller is not an option. Does your jogger elite have two seats? See if you can get a cover for it, though that may not exist. We have an UppaBaby full size stroller, and also an UppaBaby umbrella stroller (forgot their actual model names). Anyway, we have a cover for the umbrella stroller I but don't think one exists for the full-size. At any rate, the metro shouldn't be a problem, as long as you don't go at rush hour. Except that your stroller is heavy. Also, if you're flying non-stop, even though I recommend the cover, the flight shouldn't damage your stroller, assuming you're gate-checking it. I would not check in a stroller without a cover on a flight where I had to change planes.
Our kids are too big for an umbrella stroller and it is too hard to maneuver. They could walk but I suspect we will be taking turns to carry them once in a while which I am not a fan off since they are really too heavy and I would be beat out as well. Taking breaks are fine but it can be a little pricey too having to sit in cafes every 2 or 3 hours. I understand your reasoning, but I fear the carting around (city to city and flights) of the solid pram, is going to outweigh the convenience. I also understand your cost concern of frequent stops at cafes, but the offset is IF your pram is damaged in transit, the cost goes out the window. I just don't want anyone suffering the same fate as my wife's Bugaboo on our first ever trip. An alternative we found on our second trip was to make our daughter walk, but planned our outings to go back and forth from the hotel, and not go out in one long stretch. I agree with Rantipole, that you shouldn't have too much problem with the Metro, if you survived Tokyo ok.
I'm from Tokyo and find some of the stations particularly pram unfriendly. And I 100% agree about not checking in your stroller without a cover. To clarify: if you are *gate checking* your stroller right before you step on the plane, and there is no change of planes in your itinerary, I actually think your stroller will be fine without a cover. But if it's going to be checked and manhandled between planes, then I wouldn't want to do it without a cover. But if it made it to Tokyo, then whatever you did then will probably work again... hopefully. It might be worth doing some research on the Paris forum on where you can buy a low-cost sturdier-than-umbrella strollers, just in case. visa/ border control child of different surname -experiences Best Place For Family Vacation in May Quart bag of liquids in a diaper bag? Snowy place in Europe Advice for 6 month travel with 11 and 15 year old Single mum going to Bali.Aug 2017 for 3/4 weeks for family Single Parents, Tell Me Your Airbnb Experience Please!