Can the Phil and Ted Strollers accomodate an infant and toddler at once?

Question

We have friends who need help finding a stroller that can hold a newborn and a 2-year-old at the same time.

We found the Phil and Ted Navigator, and dot, which seem to have endless setup options with the bassonet add-on, but I cant seems to see any that allow for a newborn to lie flat with a toddler on board (toddler sitting, not on a clip on scooter or the like).

Does anyone know if those models can do that? If not, are there other "stacker-style" ones that can? (They can't use a side-by-side like the bugaboo donkey for some reason).

Answer 1

I have a Phil and Ted's and yes you can have a newborn lying flat with a toddler sitting, you do that by moving the second seat above the main seat and then dropping the main seat flat. You'll want the carry cot, it makes getting a newborn in and out much easier.

The Phil and Ted's a good product, it's built well and pretty easy to handle considering you have 2 kids on it. The only thing is that the baby will outgrow the folded down part before they're six months old, and you may not end up using it that much. Most people ditch the P&T for a stroller and buggy board at some point. If you buy one new chances are you'll feel you spent a lot of money without getting full use out of it. I'd suggest you buy a used one in good condition if you can instead of buying new. Use it for a few months and then sell it on, they hold their value very well if you take care of them.

Answer 2

I fully agree with the post above. I have a fairly average sized baby girl, and at 4 weeks, she was getting her knees and sleepsuits scratched on the bottom of the top seat (it also has a strip of very unhelpful velcro placed there, which makes matters worse), and at 11 weeks, she doesn't fit into at all, and screams blue murder if ever I try to put her in it, as the top seat is making it impossible for her to bend her legs (any baby s natural sleeping position), as it cuts into them.
I also complained to P&T, and got the exact same response as the one above.

My advice would be to get a double pushchair (OutnAbout Nippers is good and good value), hold on with a single and a babycarrier, or if you can afford it, go for another kind of inline like the Babyjogger Cityselect. Or, buy a P&T, but accept you will only be able to use it once your little one is about 6 months old!

Answer 3

Simple fact is P&T Navigator does not work with newborn and toddler. A normal size baby of 8 lb could not fit in the drop down main seat in a cocoon as there is not enough room. The response we got from P&T's was laughable (see below). Holding on to it until both can be in seats, but the lack of design is almost as shocking as their insouciant attitude to the problem - a 12cm gap for a baby is not a compromise solution, as they suggest, but simply a massive design flaw when the toddler seat could easily sit higher. Not fit for newborns. Fact.

In regards to your concerns regarding the Navigator and the use of the buggy in the newborn/toddler mode, while as with any inline buggy there may be an element of compromise, this should not effect the usability of the product. The newborn area when using in the newborn mode is compact, and while it does not offer excess room for little kicking legs, it does leave approx 12cm clearance at the shallowest point between the lay flat seat and the second seat with toddler weight in the double kit.