When choosing a travel pram, it’s essential to consider your child’s age, your lifestyle, and your specific needs.
In this comparison, we’ve rounded up the most popular travel prams in Australia and compared various aspects including suitability, features, capacity and storage, size and weight, wheels and suspension, capsule compatibility, and warranty, to help you find the perfect travel pram for your family.
The six travel prams we’re comparing are the Bugaboo Butterfly, Redsbaby Skip 2, Babyzen Yoyo 2, Baby Jogger City Tour 2, Mountain Buggy Nano, and Babybee Miles. Let’s dive in.
Our top picks
Redsbaby Skip 2
The Redsbaby Skip 2 is suitable from birth without additional accessories, making it a great choice for parents with newborns. It offers a 3-year warranty and features 4-wheel suspension, enhancing comfort on rough terrain. Its key limitation is the lack of capsule compatibility.
Check out this helpful comparison table on the Redsbaby website to see how the Skip 2 compares to other Redsbaby prams.
Bugaboo Butterfly
The Bugaboo Butterfly stands out with its large under-seat basket capacity (8 kg), making it ideal for parents who need to carry many items. It also offers the longest warranty period (4 years) and features 4-wheel suspension for a smoother ride on uneven surfaces. However, it requires additional accessories for newborns.
Babyzen Yoyo 2
The Babyzen Yoyo 2 is a top pick for frequent travellers due to its lightweight design (6.2 kg) and compact folded size. It can accommodate two children with the YOYO connect accessory, making it suitable for families with two children of different ages. However, it requires additional accessories for newborns.
Baby Jogger City Tour 2
This pram is suitable for newborns with a near-flat seat recline or optional bassinet. It is also compatible with the Baby Jogger City GO Baby Capsule, offering a seamless transition from car to stroller. It features a 2-wheel suspension system in contrast to the Skip and Butterfly above which have 4-wheel suspension.
Mountain Buggy Nano
Weighing only 6 kg, the Mountain Buggy Nano is another excellent choice for travellers. It’s suitable from birth and can accommodate a toddler board for two children. It offers the most flexibility in car seat compatibility, working with most leading brands. However, its 2-wheel suspension might be less smooth on uneven surfaces.
Suitability
When considering suitability, factors such as age range, bassinet options, and adaptability for children of different ages are all important to consider.
The Redsbaby Skip 2, Mountain Buggy Nano, and Babybee Miles stand out for their suitability from birth with fully-flat or near-flat recline options. The Baby Jogger City Tour 2 also accommodates newborns with a near-flat seat recline or optional bassinet.
The Bugaboo Butterfly and Babyzen Yoyo 2 require additional accessories for newborns.
Only the Babyzen Yoyo 2 and Mountain Buggy Nano offer the possibility of accommodating two children of different ages. The Babyzen Yoyo 2 requires the YOYO connect accessory, while the Mountain Buggy Nano allows for a toddler board.
This feature may be important for parents who have children with a small age gap or plan to expand their family soon.
Important Features
As parents, we know that the little details can make all the difference. Here’s a breakdown of the essential features that can help you decide which travel pram is right for you.
All prams, except the Bugaboo Butterfly and Redsbaby Skip 2, claim one-handed folding, although keep in mind that not all users of these prams find the single-handed fold feasible. Regardless, an easy folding mechanism is essential for parents who are regularly folding and unfolding their pram.
While none of the prams on our list have seats that can face both inwards and outwards (all face forwards only), all prams feature a 5-point harness for safety and an extendable sun canopy for sun protection.
Ventilation is essential for keeping your baby cool and comfortable during hot weather, with most prams on our list providing this feature.
When it comes to fabric care, machine-washable fabrics are a significant advantage. The Bugaboo Butterfly, Babyzen Yoyo 2, and Babybee Miles offer this feature while the others require hand washing.
And finally, all prams are suitable for air travel, but it’s essential to check with specific airlines for the exact cabin luggage restrictions.
Capacity and Storage
When it comes to storage, the Babybee Miles and Bugaboo Butterfly offer the highest pram seat capacity at 22 kg, while the other prams range from 20 kg to 20.5 kg.
The Bugaboo Butterfly has the largest under-seat basket capacity at 8 kg, with the other prams ranging from 5 kg to 7 kg. A larger storage capacity is helpful for parents who need to carry many items during outings.
Size and Weight
In terms of size and weight, the Babyzen Yoyo 2 and Mountain Buggy Nano are the lightest options, at 6.2 kg and 6 kg respectively.
The Babyzen Yoyo 2 offers the smallest folded size of all prams, while the Babybee Miles has the largest. Compact and lightweight prams are essential for parents who want to use the pram for travel, have a small boot space, or have limited storage space at home.
Handlebar height is another important factor to consider when choosing a travel pram, as it can greatly impact the comfort of the person pushing the stroller. Unfortunately, none of the prams in our comparison have adjustable handlebars, which may be a drawback for some parents.
In terms of fixed handlebar heights, the Babybee Miles has the tallest handlebar at 105 cm, followed by the Babyzen Yoyo 2 at 106 cm. The Bugaboo Butterfly and Mountain Buggy Nano have similar handlebar heights of 102.4 cm and 100 cm, respectively.
The Redsbaby Skip 2 and Baby Jogger City Tour 2 both have a fixed handlebar height of 100 cm.
Wheels and Suspension
The Bugaboo Butterfly, Redsbaby Skip 2, and Babybee Miles feature 4-wheel suspension for a smoother ride, while the Baby Jogger City Tour 2 and Mountain Buggy Nano have 2-wheel suspension.
A smooth suspension system is important for parents who often navigate bumpy terrain or uneven surfaces.
RELATED: Babyzen Yoyo vs Baby Jogger City Tour
Capsule Compatibility
Car seat compatibility is an essential feature for many parents as it allows for a seamless transition from car to stroller.
The Bugaboo Butterfly is compatible with the Bugaboo Turtle by Nuna car seat, while the Babyzen Yoyo 2 can accommodate the Maxi Cosi Mico Plus with the use of adaptors. The Baby Jogger City Tour 2 is compatible with the Baby Jogger City GO Baby Capsule, but adaptors are sold separately.
The Mountain Buggy Nano offers the most flexibility in terms of car seat compatibility, as it can work with most leading car seat brands. Unfortunately, the Redsbaby Skip 2 and Babybee Miles do not offer capsule compatibility.
Parents who frequently travel by car and need the convenience of a travel system should consider prams with capsule compatibility.
Warranty
Warranty periods for these travel prams vary, providing different levels of protection and assurance for parents.
The Bugaboo Butterfly offers the longest warranty period of 4 years when you register the product, giving parents peace of mind for an extended period. The Redsbaby Skip 2 and Babybee Miles offer a 3-year warranty upon product registration, ensuring that any issues that arise within this timeframe will be covered.
The Babyzen Yoyo 2 offers a 2-year international warranty, while both the Baby Jogger City Tour 2 and Mountain Buggy Nano come with a 2-year warranty when registered, providing a standard level of protection against manufacturing defects.
RELATED: Mountain Buggy Nano vs Redsbaby Skip
Conclusion
Each pram has its unique features and benefits. Based on our analysis, the following broad recommendations can be made:
- For parents with newborns: The Redsbaby Skip 2, Mountain Buggy Nano, and Babybee Miles are suitable from birth without additional accessories.
- For parents with two children of different ages: The Babyzen Yoyo 2 with the YOYO connect accessory and the Mountain Buggy Nano with a toddler board are recommended.
- For frequent travelers: The Babyzen Yoyo 2 and Mountain Buggy Nano are the lightest options and suitable for air travel.
- For parents needing ample storage: The Bugaboo Butterfly offers the largest underseat basket capacity.
- For parents seeking a smooth ride: The Bugaboo Butterfly, Redsbaby Skip 2, and Babybee Miles feature 4-wheel suspension for better shock absorption on uneven surfaces.
Consider the factors that matter most to you, such as suitability from birth, compatibility with car seats, and warranty length, to make the best choice for your family.
