Maxi-Cosi - Zelia 3

I love my Maxi-Cosi!! I have the Zelia Max. My fave feature is that the seat can be put into bassinet mode when the baby is younger (I surprisingly used this mode up to 5 months!, it was perfect for naps). I found that it was so helpful being able to transform the seat to different modes depending on what I need.

I got a second hand maxicosi zelia because it fits in the back of my car and I did not want to spend ~£1000+ on a pram. It's done multiple ~15km hikes through trails and woodlands and it is still going strong 7 months in.

We used the Maxi Cosi Zelia Max for like ten months and then the airline broke it during a flight, so we got a Baby Jogger City Mini to avoid having to check it, and now that it's snowy again we got a used Graco Jogger. We would be back to our Maxi Cosi if it hadn't been broken :/

I really wanted to avoid two strollers, and in the end we ended up with a Baby Jogger City Tour 2 for flying and for summer, and a Graco Click Connect that I got on Facebook marketplace for like 40 dollars. I found that heavier strollers can usually be found for pretty cheap online, most people want to get rid of them ASAP once they have no use for them anymore since they take up so much space! We initially had the Maxi Cosi Zelia Max which was amazing, it had a great bassinet function, it fit the car seat, and it was really easy to fold once it was in front facing mode, it was so sturdy and so light, but an airline broke it in a flight :') now I'm only taking my much cheaper City Tour on planes.

It really does depend how much money you want to spend! I will be using my pushchair that I had with my girls. I bought a mix cosi one for them. All the attachments as in car seat, main seat and bassinet. Folds up pretty small and was a joy to push. Was considering buying a new one but I have washed everything and it still looks brand new. I just couldn't justify the cost of the higher brand ones and apart from the name I don't really see what extra you get. My husband drives but I do not. I will be using my pushchair daily and it will be kept in the house. I pushed my friends silver cross the other week and I actually hated the feeling of it and found it felt too light! I am like you though and I will be buying most things secondhand. It's worth just having a look at second hand ones still. A lot of people get obsessed with pushchairs so you can find ones that have hardly been used. The warranty isn't really important as unless it breaks from a bit on wind the manufacturer will probably say it was user error!

If you decide to go the full crib route, definitely consider Ikea Sniglar. Very sturdy, minimalistic, excellent materials/no toxic paint and the cheapest crib you will likely find from a reputable source. Unfortunately it doesn’t have storage but you’ll save so much money you invest in something like a dresser instead possibly. We lowered the crib recently and it also converts to a toddler bed. In terms of Canadian brands, r/buycanadian has some good previous posts! Dorel is a Canadian company which owns Maxi Cosi, Safety First and Cosco. Could consider their stroller/car seat? I personally have maxi cosi Zelia and the Mico seat but I’m not super fond of the stroller - it takes some getting used to and needs two hands to collapse and is bulky.

One thing I would say is you may hear a lot of hype about the vista, but we really disliked it and ended up selling it on, it was a huge waste of money. Its heavy and incredibly bulky, and very unpleasant to use as a double, especially with a toddler and a baby. We do a lot of walking and it was honestly the absolute worst to try to walk with especially on even a slight hill with 2 kids. Its all style no substance. If budget is unlimited you might actually want to have different prams for different uses. WE had the maxi cosi zelia for our first but again found that bulky. We bought a redsbaby skip for travel and ended up loving it so much it became our daily use pram. So light and compact and easy to get around with. For a double after we ditched the vista we got the valco baby slim twin which is much lighter than the vista and only like 2cm wider so actually way easier to manouvre. It also folds up really small in a car boot which becomes important when you have multiple kids and need to drive more things around. The kids also love being able to see each other and hold hands. These two prams combined cost way less than the vista but were much more practical.

I went with the maxicosi zelia ( which includes the car seat ) as well as the bassinet which adjusts to a toddler seat. It has great storage, the seat / bassinet adjusts to face parent or outside. I believe it also came with a rain cover as well. I didn't use it for daily walks in the winter/snow however the times it was used, I had no complaints with how it navigated.

We went with the Maxi Cosi Zelia 2 at the time. It was great because the stroller has multiple adjustments as well as the car seat attachment, the car seat itself and the car base. Around 2yrs I considered an umbrella stroller but never got around to it. We only recently stopped using the Maxi for long outings earlier this year and she's 3. As long as you get a full sized stroller and not something compact like the Doona you should be fine. Also keep in mind where you live city/suburban/countryside, if you even travel on foot often, are you always in a car, are you one kid and wait or aiming for back to back, etc.

I’ve got the Cruz and I’ve used a friend’s Zelda. It’s night and day. The Zelia’s wheels are not as good and the stroller is prone to issues like clicking and rattling. It also just feels cheaper I’ll be honest. If you’re in a city, all uppababy items are easily available on marketplace. You can also purchase parts from them if any one part of the stroller needs replacing. You could always buy the stroller new and get the bassinet for 50 bucks on fb marketplace. You use it for a very short time and u like the stroller there aren’t many parts that could theoretically be damaged.

I was team Uppababy for the longest time and was ready to shell out 2k+ for a stroller, car seat, and bassinet - don’t get me wrong they are GORGEOUS…but a few weeks ago I was just like…am I seriously considering this?! My husband was more than happy to still get one and just wanted me to be happy, but I just couldn’t justify the total costs and would much rather spend money on other things. We ended up going with the Maxi Cosi Zelia travel system, and we are SO happy with it right now! Easy to set up, the car seat and stroller is light, we’ve tested it outside and it rides smooth…and it was $900 for everything! I wouldn’t let the reviews totally change your mind if it’s still one you’re considering.