Photograph: Nena Farrell
Best Budget Travel Stroller
Delta Children Icon Travel Stroller
| WIRED | TIRED |
|---|---|
| Affordable. Lightweight. Easy to fold and unfold. TSA approved. Comes with a cupholder. | Pretty short stroller compared to our other picks. Cupholder is easy to knock off in the trunk. |
The Delta Children Icon doesn’t look like much, but I found myself quickly impressed with everything it offered for such a good price. The seat has nice padding and feel to it, and it has a belly bar that you can easily grab when folded. The frame is compact, but still tall enough for my taller kiddo. It comes with a cupholder, though it’s a small size that I prefer to use only for my toddler’s water bottle, and I often knock it off the stroller frame when sticking it into my trunk, which is annoying. At 15.6 pounds, it’s a little heavier than some of our other picks, but lighter than the above Bugaboo and still easy to carry. It’s got a great fold and can sit standing up, too. Plus, unlike the Bugaboo, you can carry this one with the belly bar. The storage basket is just big enough for my backpack-style diaper bag.
Delta Children says the stroller is TSA approved to fit in overhead compartments, and the dimensions of the stroller (10.9 x 16.5 x 23.6 inches) make it a little slimmer than the Bugaboo above, though still a little larger than your standard carry-on size. You’ll want to check your airline’s rules about strollers even with this small size, though. It doesn’t have any infant car seat adapters or compatibility, which is a bummer. The other bummer is that this stroller is short—I’m 5’4″ and if I wear tall shoes, I find myself lightly bending to push this stroller.
15.6 pounds.
★ For taller parents: The Ergobaby Metro+ ($299) reminds me a lot of the Delta Children Icon, but it has an adjustable handlebar, so it’s a better choice for taller parents. (It’s rare to find an adjustable handlebar on travel strollers at all!) It’s also car seat compatible, so it’s better if you want to use it earlier, and the seat is a little larger also so your kid might fit into it longer than other affordable strollers. While it has a sturdier frame than the Icon, it doesn’t fold or unfold as easily as the Icon or my other picks, nor is it as easy to carry. But if you’re really tall, you might be happy to deal with those issues for a much easier reach.