Before we had James, we lived in a brownstone in the city that had stairs. We loved the apartment but it a) wasn’t the most baby friendly place and b) trying to navigate how to get up and down the stairs with a stroller, dog and maybe groceries or diapers seemed like a nightmare. Ultimately we ended up moving to a place nearby that made more sense for our growing family and moved in right before James arrived. However, we spent a lot of time researching how to navigate stairs with a stroller. This came in handy when the first few months of living in our new place, the elevator continuously broke and I ended up hoofing it up and down two flights of stairs with a stroller anyway. Plus, city living gets you pretty good at stair-lugging — they’re everywhere — museums, subways, friends places, restaurants, you name it. So despite my best efforts at avoiding the whole ordeal, I had to figure out how to get up and down stairs with a stroller.
Whether or not you live in a place with stairs, if you have children, at some point, you’ll likely need to figure out how to get up and down stairs with a stroller. So I thought I’d put together a post with my top tips for getting up and down stairs with a stroller.
If you know you’re going to be dealing with stairs on the reg, invest in a good baby carrier.
I often found wearing James to be much easier than dealing with the stroller and stairs, small aisles, snow etc. Plus, he tended to sleep better (or sometimes only) that way. If you’re nervous about carrying the baby down the stairs in the stroller, the carrier also comes in handy. You can strap the baby to you, leaving both hands free to carry the stroller down the stairs. I would only recommend this though if you feel safe and able to carry both without falling, of course. We loved the Baby Bjorn, and it felt extra sturdy for when you’re carrying the baby and other things like groceries or bags.
Carry one at a time.
Do not risk your or your baby’s safety to save time or a trip up and down the stairs. Your baby is far safer in its crib or pack n’ play while you carry the stroller up or down the stairs. It’s a pain to make two trips, but think of it as helping to shed the baby weight minus the gym. Don’t you love my math?
Invest in a super lightweight stroller you can carry up and down the stairs.
If you know you’re going to be making regular trips up and down the stairs with a stroller, I highly recommend getting a super lightweight stroller. There’s no way around it, the big convertible strollers like UppaBaby and Bugaboo etc are great, but they are big and heavy.There are plenty of lightweight options now that fold up and are easy to carry so you can either a) fold it up, sling over your shoulder or back and carry the baby in your arms or b) grab the sides and carry it up with the baby in it without killing your back. The YoYo is a popular option and one our friends in a fourth floor walkup used. We have it and use often for travel and it’s great and you can fold it up and carry it over your shoulder while you carry the baby in your arms or a carrier. It also navigates easy and is very light compared to most strolelers. People who have to hoof it up and down stairs or travel a lot also love the GB Pocket stroller, which is also super travel friendly and seems perfect for walk-up apartment living — it folds up super small.
Go one step at a time.
If you’re going down the stairs, you want to go forward. Put the stroller on its back wheels and ease it down one stair at a time — the front wheel shouldn’t touch the ground until you get to the bottom of the stairs. If you’re going up, you want to go front wheels first with the back off the ground. Again, I would only do this if you feel safe and if you only have a few, not super steep stairs, like the four stairs going up to your Brownstone type deal. For going up the stairs, lift the folded stroller (with your child inside) with one hand on the handle and the other on the opposite bottom of the stroller, and carefully carry it one step at a time. For going down the stairs, it’s often safer to have someone help you by holding the stroller from the front while you control the descent. Alternatively, you can carefully lower the stroller one step at a time, ensuring that the front wheels are securely on the step before moving to the next one.
HERVE LE SAUX says
Hello !
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Please ask if you want to learn more about it!
Best regards