The Roma Capsule has been created as a super-compact and convenient travel stroller, weighing in at a tiny 4.9kg, folding small enough to go in the overhead locker on most airlines, and coming with a handy travel bag, insect net and raincover included so you're ready for everything! We asked mum Heidi to take it on holiday to Spain this summer, when she was 'flying solo' with her 2-year-old daughter but travelling with a friend and her own toddler. Here's what she made of it on their sun, sea and sand break...
Quick Summary: Overall, the Capsule was a super-lightweight stroller that we both loved. It was a life-saver at the airport and has the added bonus of being able to go in the overhead lockers. I loved how easy the stroller was to fold and unfold.
I was super-excited to open the small box that arrived. I couldn’t believe a stroller could fit into it and how light it was to carry! Travelling to Spain, I needed to take a large suitcase in addition to my rucksack and changing bag so, as you can imagine, I was already short of hands. Luckily my ‘clingy’ daughter loved the stroller and was happy to go in it when I needed her to. I used the Capsule as cabin luggage, too, which meant I had it easily accessible as soon as the plane landed. Again, much needed when travelling alone. We had paid for speedy boarding, which meant there were no issues with spaces above our seats in the overhead lockers. However, being on a low-budget airline, I imagine this could have been an issue if we hadn’t boarded early.
So what did I love about this stroller? There was plenty! The ease of folding and unfolding (with one hand when needed, too); the clever handle that develops once it’s folded, making it super-easy to carry or link on your arm; the soft, detachable bumper bar (which becomes the handle); good shade cover; easy 5-point harness and comfy padding; good footrest position for your child; easy-to-use brakes; good ventilation in the fabric; fits as hand luggage and light enough to put in overhead lockers on my own; light enough to push daughter in it one-handed when going to the beach and hands are full; could fold it away in the villa to make more space; compact, which made travelling with two toddlers much easier for car boot space (we had a small Audi 3-door in Spain with two strollers!); adequate for beach use (sometimes if the sand was deep I dragged it backwards but that was no big issue); handy travel bag; good raincover if you needed it… the list goes on!
There were a few negatives for me: No lying position for naps (we ended up taking my friend’s spare stroller for naps and evening use); the basket could have been larger; not really able to add extra weight to the pushchair for holding bags.
Overall, the Capsule was a super-lightweight stroller that we both loved. It was a life-saver at the airport and has the added bonus of being able to go in the overhead lockers. I loved how easy the stroller was to fold and unfold. I received endless comments from fellow passengers about how amazed they were by the size of it when folded.
It was a shame that it didn’t have a lying-down position for naps but that was the only real negative with it. Some children would probably be okay with the semi-recline position for naps but my daughter needed it lower. The basket was adequate but for a mum that over-packs daily, my beach bag was far bigger than could fit in easily. Having said that, the positives far outweighed the few minus-points and I would definitely recommend the Capsule as a travel stroller.
