Stroller Reviews for Travel with Baby…
According to my husband, the UPPAbaby Vista
is the best stroller in the world. And while it’s not the cheapest stroller out there, if you can convince my husband that something (especially a stroller!) is worth every penny, then it must be good. He’s still singing our Vista’s praises ever since I offloaded our Peg on Craigslist and brought home the UPPAbaby. Our Uppa was our most-traveled stroller, and while it’s not perfect for travel, it was certainly a great ride for us. Remarkably, it is not that much more expensive than it was over 10 years ago.
**note** my husband is 6’7″, and the UPPAbaby was the only stroller that he could push with total ease. The extendable handle and rounded axle really helped with this**
The UPPAbaby Vista’s First Trip…
Our UPPAbaby’s first trip was to Florida. Our son was 6mos., and still riding in his infant car seat. Luckily, our Peg Perego Primo Viaggio car seat could be used without the base. So we were able to bring that along with no issues, as well as our Uppa.
With the seat facing forward, you are able to fold the UPPAbaby Vista in one piece (a huge bonus over the Bugaboo, in my opinion), but since we also had the car seat adapter
for the Vista frame, what we did was leave the adapter attached to the car seat, and brought the stroller seat along in the basket. The basket for the Vista is massive, so we were able to fit not only the stroller’s seat in it, but also our daughter’s light booster seat, and the diaper bag. Luckily, both flights weren’t full and we were flying Southwest, so we were able to gate-check the complete folded stroller, and brought Bub on board in his car seat (with adapter attached – made no difference in installing the seat).
UPPAbaby Assistance with Travel Damage
Our flight home (and this first trip with the Vista) was our only snag with this stroller. The foot bar of the seat was broken, likely because a baggage handler used that part to lift the stroller. We couldn’t fix it, (duct tape worked as a quickie repair) and since we waited longer than four hours to report it, we weren’t able to be reimbursed from Southwest.
Enter UPPAbaby’s great customer assistance. Their Canadian distributor replaced the frame, and also sent along new wheels when I asked for suggestions to de-squeak them. Our wheels had been squeaking on the Vista for a while, and brand new wheels did the trick! You can purchase a travel bag
for the UPPAbaby Vista, but I thought the expense wasn’t worth the number of times we’d use it, so I didn’t bother.
Future Travel with Our UPPAbaby Vista
Of course, I didn’t want the seat frame to be damaged again on subsequent trips. Luckily, it wasn’t. What I did since was raise the foot bar once folded at the gate check. Then I placed the stroller on its side. That made it easier for the baggage handler to grab it from the side bars, and made the foot bar an awkward choice for a handle. I knew I was taking a chance, but after five return trips since, the Vista traveled like a champ.
And we LOVED this stroller. Our son had amazing naps in it! Our last trip to Disney he had unprecedented 3hr naps every day in it. He slept through lots of fun. But! We had fabulous long days out at the parks when we were fully prepared to leave and come back.
It’s big, and it’s about 24lbs, so some airlines like American won’t let you gate check it, but our son was very, very comfortable in it. And it’s so easy to push and handled steep curbs and cobblestones with ease. It’s too big to wheel into most restaurants, but for patios it was great as we pushed it right up to the table. Ours got little ragged. The basket was replaced twice but UPPAbaby’s service was always super fast, and great.
*edited to add:
On another trip we had an issue with the frame of our UPPAbaby Vista and, upon our return, Uppababy sent a replacement straight away. We can’t say enough about how much we loved our Uppa and their awesome customer service.
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We love our Uppa for all the same reasons! I agree, though, the weight is not ideal for travel, but the basket more than makes up for it. Good to know about the wheels – ours are super squeaky.
I am looking at getting this stroller but I travel a lot. I found this article which is great except I generally travel American. So I researched some more. This is what I found on American’s site concerning collapsible strollers over 20lbs. It said they must be checked but are “Exempt from baggage charges when accompanying a child or infant who is traveling”.
Hi Rachel!
Life is so much easier when you are able to gate check your stroller. If you do get the Vista and are flying American a lot, seriously I’d probably buy a lighter stroller for travel. And I wouldn’t check my stroller with the baggage unless I did shell out for the travel bag – gate checking seems a little less tough on your possessions!
Would love to hear what you decide to get!
Hi! I am traveling to Aruba with my 8 month old and our Uppa Babty Vista and our Peg perego infant carrier. Thanks so much for the tips to bring the car seat, adapter, and stoller seat all in one!!! I am hoping to be able to gate check the stroller AND car seat as she will be an infant in arms… We are flying Air Tran one way and Delta the other way. Do oyu knwo if these Ariline allow you to gate check and how many items? Also, did you get any kidn of gate check protector bag or no?
Thanks!
Hi Lindsey! Give the airlines a shout to get their policies straight from them. I did not use gate check bags, but in hindsight I wish I’d protected the car seat. If you decide to get the Vista travel bag, any damage will be covered by UPPAbaby but our seat frame damage wouldn’t have cost much to replace though they ended up Irving us a new seat frame anyway. Good luck and have a great trip!
I am flying soon and the first leg of my flight is via AA. I also have a Vista (love it). We have a 14 hour lay over in Helsinki, and will need our stroller. I called AA and they said that there was no limit. We could gate check 2.
We shall see if we hit a problem at the check-in.
Fingers are crossed for you, Mark!
i am going for outside and very far away travelling,so i am just looking this kind of stroller that we can easily take it when travelling.i must buy this stroller.
How did you replace the basket? I can’t find any info on that. I love this stroller, but our mesh ripped on one side
Hi Christy! I contacted the manufacturer and notified them about the rip–I think I took a picture of it and also sent them a copy of our receipt. They sent us a new one in the mail. Good luck!
Maybe bc I’m reading this on my phone? But I can’t tell when this entry is from :-/ I’m curious which model Vista/how recent yr positive customer service was/whether they’re likely to still be so accomodating now that they dominate the market…
Hi Jaya!
Ours was the 2010 model — they were still very popular but not quite the market dominator they are today. But maybe they continue to dominate because they have excellent customer service?
Thank you for creating this site and posting specifically about the Vista. We are traveling today and trying to decide whether to take it or our (not cheap) umbrella stroller. For the purposes of this trip we are going umbrella, but you’ve helped me to see just how easy it will be to take the Uppa when the time comes. And we don’t have a travel bag (yet).
Have a great trip, Kristin!
Hi, I Just had the exact same piece (the leg portion) break off while traveling today. I was wondering who you contact in Canada for replacement parts? I can’t seem to find any contact other than the American office.
Thanks!
Hi Lydia!
The distributor of UPPAbaby in Canada is 5514km. Try contacting them at [email protected] – good luck!
Just curious if you mentioned the damage occurred while traveling? I would have thought they’d enforce having a travel bag to cover damages. I’m glad to hear they didn’t.
Did you ever book a seat for your infant and use the carseat on the airplane as a child restraint?
I’ve used a car seat on Southwest and Porter airlines. If you book a seat for a child under 2 years old, you MUST use an airline-approved car seat.
When you said you lifted the foot bar up did you mean so it’s straight and not folded? Sorry just trying to figure out the best way to travel with the Vista! Thank you in advance!
When the stroller was folded flat, if you didn’t consciously flatten the foot bar it would stick up and was sometimes used as a handle to pick up the (folded) stroller. I just made sure to flatten it from then on and didn’t have any further issues. Good luck with your travels!
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I am considering purchasing this stroller, but I frequently travel. This article is excellent, except that I typically travel in the United States. I conducted additional research. I did not utilize gate check bags, but I regret not protecting the car seat.
I’m thinking about buying this stroller, but I travel a lot. This review is great, except it’s mostly about traveling in the United States. I looked into it more. I didn’t use special bags to check at the gate, but now I wish I had protected the car seat.
It sounds like the UPPAbaby Vista was a stellar choice for your family’s travels! From its adaptability with car seats to its sturdy build, it seems like it handled various trips, including flights and theme parks, impressively well.
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We are traveling today and trying to decide whether to take it or our (not cheap) umbrella stroller. For the purposes of this trip we are going umbrella, but you’ve helped me to see just how easy it will be to take the Uppa when the time comes. eSIM USA
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