Mountain Buggy Urban Jungle Stroller Review

buggy_urban_jungle1 Mountain Buggy Urban Jungle is an all-terrain full size stroller that is designed for active parents who like to spend time outdoors. Take it to the park trails, beach, or uneven sidewalk, it can tackle any rough terrain. You can even do some light jogging with it. The air-filled tires and rear-wheel suspension provide a very comfortable and smooth ride for a child. For shorter and taller parents there is an adjustable handle bar with a run away strap. This sleek and stylish buggy has plenty of storage for your diaper bag and smaller items like keys and phone. A roomy seat can hold a child from birth and up to 55 lbs. The stroller weighs 24 lbs which is an average weigh for an all-terrain stroller.

Although you can put a newborn right into the seat, there is also an option of turning it into a travel system by using a car seat or a pram by replacing the seat with a carrycot/bassinet. Want to face your child? Well, you can zip off the seat and replace it with a smaller seat called ‘face-to-face’ parent facing seat (available for purchase). This face-to-face seat can hold a child up to 20 lbs.

I gave this stroller 4.5 stars out of 5 because of the medium size canopy, the extra material on the seat, and medium size basket. I am all about large canopies, so I took some points off for that. I also wish there was a cup holder instead of a bottle holder. This stroller is not cheap. The lowest price I found for the 2013 model is $440 on Amazon. The previous model without new upgrades is sold for only $399. Since the price difference is so small, I would go with the new model.

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Pros

-Large canopy. The canopy is a good size and it also has a dark mesh sunvisor that provides additional sun protection. This should be enough to shield your child from the sun. The canopy is attached to the back of the seat and does not have a ‘floating canopy’ option. It has a large peekaboo window with a noisy velcro (would love to see a magnetic closure).

-Adjustable handle bar. It goes from 31″ up to 44″ from the ground.

-Run away strap. There is a short run-away strap attached to the bumper bar to prevent stroller for running away from you. Although Urban Jungle is designed more for tough terrain than for jogging, you can still take it for a light jog. If you a hardcore jogger, Mountain Buggy Terrain model will probably will work better for you.

-Bottle holder. INCLUDED! There is no plastic cup holder that we are used to seen on strollers, but there is a bottle holder on the side that is made out of durable fabric.

-Roomy seat. The seat can accommodate a child from birth and up to 55 lbs. It is 14″ wide and 23″ from the bottom of the seat to the top of the canopy. Although the height of the canopy is not that high, you can move the canopy higher on the frame giving your taller child more head room. It has a very deep recline that is adjusted by a strap system. It goes almost to a flat position to accommodate a newborn. The only thing I don’t like, is the canopy material getting all out of place when you bring the seat back up. You have to tuck it behind the seat every time. The seat is made out of durable water repellent fabric that is very easy to remove.

-5 point harness. The harness is padded and adjustable with a hard-to-undo buckle. For 2013, it has been updated to a new tailfree harness with no excess straps.

-Bumper bar. INCLUDED! It is removable and swing away. In 2013, it has been improved for easier ins and outs.

-Medium size basket. The basket will probably only fit your medium size diaper bag. It is not large and not deep, but is easily accessible. The good news is that it has two mesh pockets on the sides and a zipper pocket in the back for smaller items. This stroller is very sturdy, so if you run out of space in your basket, just strap the shopping bags to the handle bar (I probably should’t be recommending it. LOL). BTW, there is a high weight limit of 11 lbs for the basket. My little yorkie Porsha who weighs 11 lbs, fits right in! Just kidding, I wouldn’t put her there.

-Wheels. It has three 12″ air-filled tires that can handle any terrain. The front wheel is 360 degree swivel wheel that can be locked straight for more stability. The rear wheels can be easily removed for more compact storage. I also want to mention that a lot of parents complained about tires wearing off too quickly.

-Parking brake. It has a one-foot brake that locks both of the rear wheels. It’s NOT flip-flop friendly and will definitely scratch your shoes.

-Suspension system. It has a rear-wheel suspension system that together with air-filled tires provide a smooth ride.

-Easy fold. You will need both hands to fold this one. To fold it, lift two latches located in the front of the stroller while lifting the front of the seat and the stroller will fold. In 2013 it has been updated and now has an automatic lock. Before, you had to use a strap to secure it in place. The Urban Jungle is VERY bulky. The folded dimensions are 41″L x 12″H x 25″W.

Cons

-Seat adjustment. When you bring the seat back after reclining it, all the canopy fabric gets stuck in front of the seat around your child’s head. You will need to tuck the fabric behind the seat manually. Very envying.

-Bulky. Like many all-terrain strollers with large wheels, Urban Jungle is very bulky. It also has that inconvenience fold that doesn’t really fold the seat in half like most of the strollers, but rather folds the leg rest wit the front wheel. This makes it even bulkier.

Video Review

Baby Gizmo has a good video review that you should watch. It doesn’t cover the 2013 updates, but they were really minor except for an automatic lock. Note: The Urban Jungle has rear-wheel suspension and not all-wheel suspension as they say in the video. Also, the handle bar goes from 31″ up to 44″ and the seat can accommodate a child up to 55 lbs.

Updates for 2013

In 2013, the Urban Jungle came out with some updates.

Bumper bar. Improved swing away bumper bar for easy ins and outs.
New colors. For 2013 there are three colors: black, chili, and flint.
Automatic lock. This is the most important upgrade to the 2013 model. Before, there was a strap that you had to manually lock to keep the stroller in place.
New harness. The harness is tailfree with no excess straps.
Seat fabric. New seat fabric can be quickly zip on and off the frame making it very convenient to clean.
Weight limit. Before, the weight limit was 77 lbs. For 2013, the weight limit is only 55 lbs.

Specs

Stroller weight: 24 lbs (with the seat)
Weight limit: 55 lbs
Folded dimensions: 41″L x 12″H x 25″W
Handle bar height: 31″– 44″
Seat to canopy height: 25″
Wheels: 12″
Overall length: 49″
Overall width: 25″

Warranty

Mountain Buggy has 1 year warranty from the date of purchase. Here is more information on the warranty.

Available colors

For 2013 Mountain Buggy Urban Jungle is available in 3 colors: black, chili, and flint. They promised to release more colors later this year. All of the strollers come with an aluminum frame.

buggy_urban_jungle2

Comparison Chart

If you want to see how Urban Jungle compares to other Mountain Buggy strollers, take a look at this comparison chart (click compare button on the page).

Accessories

The Urban Jungle has following accessories available: carrycot, foot muff, car seat adapter, travel bag, storm cover, sun cover ($51), sunhood, pouch, parasol, carry-on bag ($15), seat liner ($70), cup holder($13), travel bag ($100), bottle holder, tire pump, umbrella/parasol ($35), rider board ($100)

Where to buy it

My favorite place to buy strollers and a lot of other baby items is Amazon. It usually has the lowest prices, free shipping, free returns and no sales tax. How great is that? You can get Mountain Buggy Urban Jungle in one of the three beautiful colors for $410 on Amazon + FREE shipping/FREE returns and NO sales tax. This is a great price since it’s sold for $499 on most other sites. If you want o save even more money, you can get a previous model for about $399.