Travelling with 2 under 2 - Phil & Teds Verve Review

We were quite happy with our double stroller. It suited us just fine for home life and we had very little complaint besides just how big it was. Our double stroller was sturdy, comfortable and easy to collapse but it was huge and restricted our social activity. We knew that it wouldn't make the cut for a trip to New York from the UK - the stroller was good but it just wasn't going to be compatible with a busy city, airports and trains. We decided before having children that we wouldn't let them slow life down too much and we have stuck to that promise. Our son isn't yet 2 years old and will have flown 16 times by the time he does. Our daughter had just turned 4 months and it was to be her first international travel experience... we just needed a new double stroller. After much research and deliberation we opted for the Phil and Teds Verve.

The Phil & Teds Verve is an all terrain sporty stroller that can be adjusted to carry 1 or 2 children. Unlike many double strollers, it seats one child underneath the seat of the other child as opposed to being side by side or one in front of the other. This means that unlike most double strollers, it is reasonably sized and easy to manoeuvre. The Verve has an adjustable handle that suited both my wife at 5'2" and me at 5'11". That same adjustable handle also houses the main brake at a simple push of the button (no more fumbling around with your feet looking for the brake). It features front suspension with 2 foam filled suspension wheels leading the way and 2 air filled tyres at the back making it perfect for all terrain and very smooth to handle. It also looks great with a brushed aluminium, curved chassis that will turn heads - it suits my modern taste down to the ground.

I could go on and quote spec and features to you, but you can find all you need to know on their website and the truth is, we bought a Verve for a reason. We bought it specifically to make flying from the UK to the USA and back and our 3 weeks there in New Jersey and New York more enjoyable. We were not disappointed. The stroller handled airport crowds with ease and was small enough when folded to pass through the regular x-ray machine on the conveyor belt with the rest of our hand luggage. We didn't struggle at train stations and were able to make journeys to, from and within New York City without ever needing to collapse the stroller. The same can be said for our shopping and dining experiences. The seating was comfortable enough for both of our children to ride and sleep in safely and the sleeping bags that fit nicely into the seats kept both little ones nice and toasty on even the coldest city days.

Pro's

• Comfort for children (the seats are huge with multiple levels of recline)
• Bumper Bar
• All terrain suspension and wheels
• Easy Fold
• Looks great
• Safety (5 point harness in the seats keeps little ones strapped in safe and comfortable)
• Brake located on handlebar
• Size (For a double stroller it's small and not much different in size to a single)

Con's

• Heavy (Not to push, but to lift when folded)
• Little storage space when used as a double (loads if only 1 child of course)
• Child underneath doesn't have much of a view (our youngest occasionally got fussy)

Overall we were really pleased with this stroller and it did exactly what we wanted it to do. It looks great and is ideal for parents of 2 young children. It is easy to manoeuvre, comfortable for the rider and folds compactly without having to remove the second seat. We were admittedly a little nervous about this trip. It was our first time flying with both children, it wasn't a short journey and we were visiting one of the busiest places in the world for 3 weeks... all with 2 children, both under the age of 2. I would be lying if I told you the Phil & Teds Verve didn't make life a heck of a lot easier for us. We felt more confident with this stroller than our other doubles and that allowed us to make the most of our time away.

Disclosure - All photo's and opinions are my own and honest. I was not asked to review the stroller and purchased it independently. However, Phil & Teds UK did gift me one sleeping bag accessory in exchange for me publishing this blog post.