Go-Go Babyz Kidz Travelmate
by Go-Go Babyz
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List Price: Our Price: $79.95 You Save: $9.05 (10%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: Baby Product See more product details |
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Baby Products Reviews of Go-Go Babyz Kidz Travelmate
Customer Review: Solves some problems, but creates its own
Summary: 3 Stars
We travel a lot with our son and hauling his stroller around plus the Britax car seat in the airport would be real pain. Having read the reviews I still wanted to give the gogo a whirl. It attachs easily and my son loved being in his own seat; nice and comfy. Moving around was fine although in crowded areas we took him out - way too many ppl not paying attention to leave him so low on the ground.
First problem came at the X-ray - Wont fit because of the additional height of the handle. Off it came. Second problem was the plane itself. We were on a 757 and I knew the seat itself was too wide so I picked it up and took it down the aisle. - this was tough because the aisle are is so tight and the extra weight means that you have to be careful not to wack a passenger in the head with it. Third problem was the plane seat itself. I figured that I could leave the gogo attached - no not really. With this jet (laung haul) the headrests protuded out such that the handle would force the set forward. The results was that the chair was upright and not reclined. I realized this was not ideal on a 7 hour flight so took the gogo off which was a pain. Lastly all the pain of doing the same as we got off the plane.
I love the idea of the gogo but unless your expectations are low this isn't really worth the money or hassle. If the manufacturers could make the handle retract more into the base it would solve both the X-ray problem and the plane seat headrests. We will try it again on a shorter flight and see how it goes. One note to add is that our return leg was easier since they had a bigger x-ray but not all airports have these.
Customer Review: Booooo!!! Not for Recaro Young Sport
Summary: 1 Stars
We have a Recaro Young Sport seat and the ORIGINAL Go-Go Kidz accommodated this car seat. Yes, we had to unscrew the rings, but it wasn't a big deal for us (the important part is that we had our car seat with us instead of checking it in as baggage). We bought the new version of the Go-Go Kidz for my second child and realized that it no longer fits the Recaro Young Sport. The company does not even sell the accessories to accommodate the Young Sport. At least with the rings and screws, they were made out of metal which we knew is durable, unlike the newer models with the fabric strap. Think about it, which would you prefer to secure a car seat: metal rings or a fabric strap? What would you do if your strap broke on a trip, especially in the airport, and knowing that replacement parts are only sold through the company? Thus far, I wonder how many people needed to replace their straps?
I used to tell everyone who had travel plans that they HAVE to buy the Go-Go Kidz travel mate, but now that the company stopped accommodating OUR needs, I will not recommend this product to anyone anymore. Too BAD!!!! In addition, there are so many typos on their website. Maybe they need to invest on hiring an editor.
For those of you who check in your car seat as baggage, you may reconsider doing this. The worst thing that can happen after the flight is to get to the baggage claim and your child's car seat isn't there. Nothing worse than starting your trip on a bad note. To avoid dragging a car seat into the plane, we have always checked in our car seat at the gate. At least we know it is on the same plane as us.
Customer Review: Solo airline travel with twins made possible!
Summary: 5 Stars
My wife and I have 16 month old twins and own two of the newer model Travelmates (QRKIDZ). We fly frequently and the Travelmates have made airline travel so much easier! Use of the Travelmates has also made it possible for my wife to fly solo with our boys, which would otherwise be nearly impossible for her to do. This alone makes these worth the price. Here is her review of the Travelmate:
I did a lot of research on the Travelmate and compatible car seats (as well as widths of airplane aisles). The width of most airplane aisles is 17", and with my Graco ComfortSport car seats (17" wide), it's possible to simultaneously wheel my boys down the aisle in their seats while attached to the Travelmates. I can then easily remove the Travelmate from their seats and stow them. Anytime I go through security with my twins it's a bit chaotic, but from my experience the Travelmates are more of a help than a hindrance. The Travelmates easily detach from the car seats, or in some cases I can leave them attached to the seats and just remove the wheels. Wheeling around my boys obviously requires both hands, but as long as I just carry a backpack I can maneuver airports and airplane aisles with no problems. When first using the Travelmate I did experience some difficulty with a wheel falling off, but later discovered I did not attach it properly. I also found it a bit tricky to attach to the car seat, but after subsequent use I've become much more efficient. I recommend several test runs prior to use, especially with attaching the Travelmate to a car seat. Pricey yes, but I think the Travelmate is worth every penny.
Customer Review: Review on an updated model of the travelmate
Summary: 3 Stars
I've found the reviews on amazon very helpful, so I'm trying to help out a little myself. I just picked up a brand new one of these and tried it out. Don't worry about the bad reviews on the "knobs...the new model does not have any. It has ONE strap with a snowboard binding (like the one in this picture: Lamar MX150 08 Men's Hard Snowboard Bindings - Black). All you do is slip the strap through the carseat (where the seatbelt would go) and then "click-click" ratchet it tight and you're done. Very easy to install, very easy to remove (using the quick release lever).
Why did I rate it a three? The wheels mount to a metal rod (axle) that slips through the bottom of the travelmate. With the wheels off, the rod would easily slide right out and could be considered as a "dangerous weapon" making it hard to bring it on the plane. Also, because of the length of the axle, it flexes with a little bit of weight. My two year old (skinny kid) causes the wheels to "bow out" as the axle flexes. I assume that what happens next is the wheels fall off as described in some reviews. After a few runs up and down the hallway, the wheels are already making noise and seizing up. I'm not sure how they'll weather through many airports.
So, what am I doing? Home Depot has big thick nylon straps (like for cargo tiedown). I strapped my brittax car seat to my rolling carry on and it seems to work just fine. I have more faith in those wheels than I do in the wheels on this new "gadget."
Home Depot tie down straps = $6
Travelmate = $80-90
You decide.
Customer Review: Such a nice product to own for travel
Summary: 5 Stars
2/2011
We just got back from our trip to Orlando with our 4 yr old and 2 yr old. Having these wheels made travel through the airport a breeze. They are easy to strap onto my Britax Marathon and my daughter was comfy in her seat. We wheeled her up to security. She did have to be carried through the metal detector but I had no issues when I asked them to hand wand my seat and not send it through the scanner. (in Orlando they have a scanner big enough to send it through on the belt face down).
We strapped her back in and were off to the gate. At boarding I removed and gate checked my wheels and carried my car seat onto the plane. Strapped it into a window seat, strapped my daughter in and she fell asleep on the plane, how divine.
Once we arrived I strapped the gate checked wheels back on and off we went.
If you plan to buy your child a seat and want to use your carseat, this product is a good investment. I was leary of purchasing because I felt the cost was steep, but they were definitely worth it.
Upon our return to Philly my husband left me at baggage claim with both children and our 4 big pieces of luggage while he went to long term parking to get the car. I was able to strap the four pieces of luggage together wheel out two in my left hand while I pushed two foward with my right and drag the car seat containing my daughter across the bus lanes and over to the van. (my 4 yr old held onto a suitcase).
It just made the whole travel portion of our trip so much easier.