Some could say that while I was planning my recent Euro summer adventures with a one-year-old in tow, I was running off delusional optimism.
I imagined myself galavanting around Europe with an Aperol Spritz in one hand while effortlessly pushing my blissfully sleeping child in her pram in the other. But for that fantasy to stand any chance of becoming reality, I knew we needed a bloody good travel pram.
Anyone who has travelled Europe knows you’re clocking up 20,000+ steps a day over uneven cobblestones and dirt roads, constantly on missions across train platforms, airports and ferry terminals, and you’re forever carrying 10,000 things at once.
So you need a pram that can handle the terrain, carries enough gear for a full day out, and is comfortable enough for your child to nap so you don’t have to waste precious holiday hours in your hotel room.
Enter the Bugaboo Butterfly 2 Plus.
Bugaboo’s original Butterfly was already the golden child of travel parents, but the newly released Butterfly 2 Plus ($82) was built to claim the crown thanks to a full 170-degree lay-flat recline, upgraded suspension, and bigger wheels.
Naturally, after putting it through absolute hell across European airports, cramped trains, and brutal cobblestones, I know I owed you guys a full review. So here it goes!
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The one-second fold (and the TSA test)
Let’s start with the feature parents actually care about: the fold. Even without a pram, navigating airport security with a toddler while balancing multiple bags and peeling off your shoes under the glare of a 50-person queue is exhausting. Add a clunky, multi-step stroller fold to that equation and you are asking to shorten your lifespan. After over 10 flights in a single month, I can confirm the Butterfly 2 Plus folds down in literally one second, with one hand.
You press the handlebar button, slide it, and the whole frame collapses into a neat, self-standing package. At 7.3kg, it’s light enough to sling over your shoulder using the integrated carry strap or toss into a security bin without missing a beat.
Depending on the airline, it meets standard IATA cabin baggage guidelines, so you can slide it straight into the overhead locker. We usually opted to gate-check ours because we had enough carry-on luggage to wrangle as it was, but having the option was key.
Pro tip: Grab the optional Bugaboo Transport Bag. Packing the pram into the backpack case added an extra layer of protection against rough baggage handling and made lugging it around terminals a breeze.
The lay-flat recline was the MVP of our trip
The biggest upgrade from the original Butterfly to the 2 Plus model is the 170-degree lay-flat seat paired with the newly padded headrest extension. On older travel prams, “reclining” meant your kid was tilted back at an awkward 45-degree angle where their head flopped sideways every time you hit a curb.
The 2 Plus drops almost entirely flat. Combined with the extended UPF 50+ sun canopy, our daughter was able to sleep peacefully on the go — meaning we almost never had to interrupt our day to head back for hotel naps. Because it reclines flat, it’s also officially suitable for newborns right out of the box, which means you don’t need to haul a bulky bassinet attachment halfway across the world. Huge win!
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Cobblestone streets
European roads were clearly not designed with stroller wheels in mind. Thankfully, Bugaboo bumped up the wheel sizes on the Butterfly 2 series and built in full wheel suspension. Did it glide over 500-year-old uneven stone like a hovercraft? No — no travel pram on earth can fully defeat old-world European paving. But from the streets of Greece to the hills of Portugal and the canal paths of Amsterdam, it handled the terrain surprisingly well. The front wheels didn’t get jammed in street grates, and our toddler didn’t look like she was getting brain-rattled every time we went on an all-important bakery run.
The under-seat basket was a gift
Most compact travel strollers feature a storage basket that holds approximately one drink bottle and a spare nappy. The Butterfly 2 Plus gives you an 8kg under-seat basket alongside a back-of-seat storage pocket. We managed to cram in everything required for a full day out: a nappy bag, toys, drink bottles, snacks, my handbag, and usually a paper bag full of pastries. It’s also deep enough that gear doesn’t fly out when you’re popping up over steep curbs or dodging European traffic.
The Downside: Is There Any Catch?
Look, no travel gear is 100 per cent flawless, and I haven’t tested every single competitor on the market to say this is definitively the only option. But by the time we landed back home, my partner and I both agreed it was completely worth the investment for the way we travel.
The fact that it survived a month-long European summer across flights, trains, ferries, and relentless cobblestones without missing a beat sold us. The main sticking point for most will be the price tag. At $829, it is a serious expense to tack onto an already pricey trip, plus you’ll likely want to shell out extra for accessories like the Transport Bag or a bumper bar.
But if you’re also going to use it in your day to day life when you get home (which we will be as we own a Suzuki Jimny and space is tight!) it’s worth saving the extra cash to put towards it.
The Final Verdict
If you’re only taking a quick weekend road trip down the coast once a year, you probably don’t need to drop over $800 on a dedicated travel pram. But if you are tackling long-haul flights, multi-stop European itineraries, or just want a ridiculously compact everyday stroller that leaves plenty of room in your car boot, the Bugaboo Butterfly 2 Plus is worth every cent. It eliminated half our travel stress — and you can’t put a price tag on keeping your sanity intact on the other side of the world.
Rating: 4.5 / 5 Aperol Spritzes! Yamas!
