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.

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.

I think the biggest thing I didn’t know was that my kid would want to face me instead of look outward. She would just cry and get overwhelmed. Still likes seeing me at 18 months. I originally got a Minu V2 bc I wanted just one stroller, but that only faces out. Got a used free Cruz V2 which can face out or in. It is the perfect everyday stroller, much more manageable size than Vista and even though it is big for travel we take it bc kid is more comfortable in it than the minu. Also Uppababy is great if you need new parts/customer service/refurb. The free used Cruz needed some parts replaced and it was really easy with Uppababy bc you can just order any part from any model pretty much.

I love my Cruz because we do walk A LOT around the neighborhood. 2-3 hours a day. It was so helpful in the winter when we had to navigate some rough icy terrain. It fits well between isles in the stores, I can push it with one hand. The only thing I didn’t like it was the way you can only change the way baby is facing and how it takes up all my car trunk.

Ahh we love our Cruz. Our car seat is Uppa baby and we got a bassinet attachment off marketplace so everything is compatible and easy to click in and out without attachments. We are suburban, but walk frequently and find that the basket is a game changer. On warmer days our dog can fit in the basket if she gets tired, or if we walk to the farmer’s market I can load that up with produce etc. I also take the stroller grocery shopping and can fit a hand cart underneath to keep the stroller clean from leaks or spills. I’ve literally done BJ’s trips with only the stroller and fit everything we needed under there! My only regret so far is a bottle warmer. Our LO will take her milk however she can get it so a warmer was unnecessary.

I second this based on research - except the Minu isn’t infant ready so I went with the Cruz v2

I hated the Uppababy. Big, bulky, and a pain to fold/store. Look into the Nuna Mixx. I'm not familiar with Evenflo stroller.