UPPAbaby - Cruz V2

Nah, uppababy cruz is perfect. We have the V2 and travel the world with it as well, with 3 kids now and the skateboard. The first one started having issues from overuse so we bought a 2nd hand one as well.

The Cruz V2 is a bit more affordable than the Vista V3. It's the one we've got and it's great! Handles like a dream. One of my sisters has a Graco and the other an Evenflo and they complain so much about them, especially after trying out mine. But they're also in the state of mind that they don't want to buy ANOTHER stroller when technically they've got a decent one already. Get the one that you want, that you can afford, for the lifestyle you want to have with baby. If you're not going to use it a whole lot, a more affordable option or more travel friendly option would be great! If you're going to walk up to a grocery store and want a basket that can hold 50lbs, get the Uppababy.

Seconding not getting the bassinet new! There are a million on fb marketplace for like $50. My baby hated it and we used it three times. Also have the UB Cruz V2 and it’s good for city living imo

Second hand is the way to go. Also, you’re going to use the travel stroller 99% of the time if you live in a city. Full sized strollers are just too hard to navigate. I bought a UB Cruz and a Minu and the Minu is always our go-to.

It’s my time to shine. I have spent an enormous amount of time researching strollers. I walk a lot with my baby, and we are out and about everyday. I have bought and sold several, and my final conclusion is: there is no such thing as the perfect stroller. There isn’t one stroller that does everything. What has worked for us is having one workhorse of a stroller for around the neighbourhood, and a lighter one for keeping in the car. Here are my recommendations: *Baby Jogger City Mini GT or GT2* This stroller is almost perfect for every situation. We were given a used GT and I love it so much. I bought a bassinet for it second hand, and bought the car seat adapter for our car seat. I took all of the fabric off of it so it was the the frame and it was so easy to transport in the car. It has big rubber wheels, so it’s great on gravel. There is one caveat: it does not do parent facing. My guy has outgrown the bassinet/car seat but is not quite ready for world facing. So the City Mini GT is now waiting for him to get a bit bigger. I can’t wait to use it again. If it had a reversible seat it would be the perfect stroller for every situation. *Uppababy Cruz V2* I bought a second hand one from marketplace to bridge the gap until he is world facing in the city mini. It’s a solid stroller, and easy to get in and out of the car. I don’t think it’s worth the price new, especially after using the City Mini. It doesn’t handle as well and the tires aren’t as beefy. I don’t love it on gravel, but it’s great for shopping and strolling around town. I also bought a second hand three-wheel Peg Pérego Book Scout to use as our neighbourhood workhorse until he’s ready for the City Mini again. It is a BEAST of a stroller and I love love love it EXCEPT the fold is huge and it’s heavy. So it stays at home. It handles like a dream and the tires are huge, plus it has a reversible seat. It’s at least 10 years old and I’m the third owner, so I can vouch for the quality of Peg Pérego products. Conclusions: Three-wheel strollers handle extremely well. I prefer them to four-wheel strollers. If you can find a three-wheel stroller with a reversible seat, that is your best option. There aren’t many out there. Strollers with reversible seats and beefy tires are bulky and heavy, so they are better for keeping at home. The City Mini is absolutely incredible and would be my choice except for the months in between the bassinet and world facing readiness.

I had someone recommend 2 strollers and I thought they were out of their mind. I fought it and got the Nuna trvl and Pipa. I loved it. However, baby LOVED going on long walks. Not necessarily great in the Nuna combo, but now I know the new version (lx) flat. I still debate though because it’s not as smooth as a ride and truly designed for quick errands and airport travel (which it works great for). So at about 2 months I started looking for a bigger stroller because of the long walks. I went with the Cruz V2 and got the car seat attachment (through Nuna - NOT UB) for it. I thought, “wtf am I doing?! This is ridiculous!! I hate that I’m spending this money on this if we don’t use it that often.” This sucker is now my everyday. I really only use the Nuna when we travel for the weekends because we need more trunk space or airport travel. The UB is way sturdier, handles more of my day-to-day bs (I’m rough with stuff), steers nicely, isn’t too heavy (but does take up a considerable amount of space & some airlines do not allow you to gate check it), and the basket is FREAKING GREAT. I’ve really put it to the test with weight capacity. Moral of the story: my friend was right. If you can afford it, go for 2. One light for travel and one for everyday use. As for the car seat, having a true infant one has been great so I don’t wake up my LO when napping. For the most part, we don’t stop our days for napping. The LO is either strapped to us or in the car seat if we’re on the go. The infant seat allows our LO to continue sleeping without being disturbed. With that said, the LO is now getting heavier (7 months) and we just bought the chicco 360 zip. We’re excited to use it come August, maybe? I’m literally waiting until she reaches the height/weight limit of the Nuna Pipa before switching. That’s how much we like the convenience of the infant seat. Chicco usually has 20% off sales. I think they’re having one now for Father’s Day.

Honestly, I had a friend sit me down because I had a similar wishlist and she told me sometimes it’s best to have 2 strollers - one for the quick trips (easy fold, pavement/sidewalks), and one for the longer trips (a little bigger, trails with grass/dirt/or minor roughness, etc.). I didn’t listen to her and went solely for the Nuna Trvl. I wish I did listen to her now that baby is here. I ended up buying myself (instead of putting it on my registry) the Uppababy Cruz V2. I love this stroller more than the Trvl. It handles more of my day-to-day bs and feels sturdier. It’s great in grass and for quick trips with the car seat attachment. If I was to do it differently, I’d either put both strollers on my registry or go with the Nuna Triv because it seems to be the middle between the two.

We have the Uppababy Cruz v2. I love it and think it's a perfect balance between lightweight enough for quick/casual outings but substantial enough for longer adventures. I'm sure there are lighter/smaller options but having used it for a while now, I would say that personally, the extra pound of weight is worth it for the in-between situations where a smaller stroller might mean I'd have to carry an extra bag, if that makes sense. The suspension and handling are great - noticeably better than the Chicco someone bought us without asking (lol). I can load it into the car one handed while carrying the baby if needed, but I usually just do it in a separate trip because why juggle 2 things at once if I don't have to (especially when one of them is a baby)? Imo that would hold true for any newborn-compatible stroller, not just the Uppababy. One thing to know, they say it's a one handed fold but you do need two hands to unlock it in order to fold it (the folding step is one handed). I initially thought that was inconvenient until someone pointed out it was probably a safety feature (harder to accidentally fold, e.g., while baby is still in it) which makes sense to me. I see secondhand ones listed on FB marketplace relatively frequently (we live in a major city), but we got ours from an "open box" sale so it was new but not full price.

Since the v3 Cruz is coming out you may be able to get a deal on the v2. That happened with the vista v2 when they phased that out. Also if you buy new you get the extended warranty and I heard uppababy is good with that kind of stuff. I have the Cruz and so far it’s good. I do feel like the buckle is a little difficult at times and sometimes the brake sticks but overall it’s good. I live in the suburbs and haven’t really had to take it anywhere yet other than my neighborhood so I can’t provide insight on how it is to take it in and out of the car but the suspension is descent. My neighborhood is a lot of hills and it’s good for that. I also have a minu v3 but I haven’t used it yet. I bought that for travel when the time comes but that one has a decent size basket which is what appealed to me.

Lots of great strollers out there for all budgets, but if you don't really have a budget id say look at Uppababy, Nuna, bugaboo, and Silver Cross for anything involving strollers/ carseats. The nuna pipa RX is very very popular and seems to rank as 1 of the best for various reasons. Theres a few of different Pipa versions though, so be sure to look at Nunas website to look at differences. Other popular infant carseats besides Nuna consist of models from Uppababy, Chicco, cybex. I won't go into all of them here. Your going to have to jump down the rabbit hole lol Strollers all come down to what exactly you want out of your stroller. What terrain your in, suspension, wheels, ease of use, and of course adjustable handle bar. Many of the top brands already have most of these things so it's kinda hard to mess up. The differences are there, but aren't super big. It all comes down to nitpicking with stroller A being slightly better in suspension (or whatever your looking at) than Stroller B. However stroller B has a bigger under basket than Stroller A, etc etc etc. Definitely look at those brands i listed for strollers if your budget isn't much of an issue, and start comparing some models they show on the websites. Personally though my top 3 picks i had in mind after doing all my research was between Nuna Mixx Next, Uppababy Cruz v2, and the Silver Cross Reef. We ended up choosing the Mixx Next since we already made the decision to choose the Pipa. Getting a nuna stroller seemed like a no brainer, and the suspension is probably the best overall against the competition, and i love the skydrape for the infant seat. Uppababy has a very strong solid steel frame (nunas seems flimsy but its not. Its simply the suspension doing its thing), a larger under basket than the Mixx next. Silver Cross strollers seem to be in a league of their own but they are VERY expensive, and the main reason I decided against choosing it. They are known for officially making the strollers/prams for the royal family. They got deep history and the strollers are known for being very high quality (hence the price). I never got to test 1 in person, but im sure it glides just as good as the Nuna and Uppababy.

So then disregard the comments suggesting the Uppababy Minu. We went with the uppababy cruz and while I do like it to be honest we could have been just as good with something cheaper. I was definitely a bit sucked into the brand hype which seems to be moving from uppabbay to nuna. I know people that are happy with the Maxi Cosi Zelia which is a lot cheaper but gives a similar style and I also know people that are happy with graco and evenflo ones. If you can try them out in person that can be helpful. Another way to save money with the travel system is invest in the stroller but get a cheaper carseat. All carseats pass the same safety tests and the infant bucket seat is only used for like 8months on average but the stroller will be used much longer. To use ones from different brands you typically need an adapter which is just a piece of plastic that you clip on first. Just make sure the adapter you need exists before buying the carseat.