The Best Stroller for Kids With a Bigger Age Gap? This Is Exactly What I Was Looking For
I was so excited when our stroller arrived.
I have an older child and a baby on the way, and I quickly discovered something while researching strollers:
There really isn't that much designed specifically for families with a larger age gap.
A traditional double stroller seemed like more seating than my older child would need most of the time.
A single stroller wouldn't give me anywhere for my bigger kid to ride when those little legs inevitably get tired.
And a standing board alone didn't feel like enough. If we're out for a long day and my older child is tired, I want an actual place to sit, too.
Then I found the Austlen Entourage with the Sit + Stand.
This was exactly what I had been looking for.
My Older Child Doesn't Need a Stroller Seat. Until They Do.
That's the funny thing about having a bigger age gap.
My older child wants to be on the run much more than in a stroller. 🤣
Most of the time, that's great.
But "I don't need a stroller anymore" can change pretty quickly when you're at the airport, zoo, theme park, shopping all day or simply farther from the car than those bigger little legs feel like walking.
I didn't want to push around an empty traditional second seat all day just in case.
But I also didn't want my only backup option to be a standing board.
The Entourage Sit + Stand gives us both.
There's an integrated Platform Rider for standing and a real Jump Seat for sitting, and the entire Sit + Stand is rated up to 75 pounds.
So my older child can walk.
Hop on and stand.
Sit down.
Get off again.
Then repeat that process approximately 47 times.
That feels much more realistic for this stage of our family.
I Tested Both Infant Car Seat Positions
One of the things I researched before ordering was where I wanted the infant car seat.
I actually ordered both car seat adapters because I wasn't sure which position I would prefer.
Initially, I worried that having the baby up front might feel too far away.
So I tested it.
And surprisingly, the front infant car seat position is the one I prefer.
The big reason is that it doesn't interfere with the Sit + Stand.
My older child still has access to the rear Jump Seat and Platform Rider while baby rides up front.
I'm 5'6", and if I push the handlebar all the way up and forward, I can position myself a little closer and reach the infant car seat.
If I have the stroller fully extended and need more direct access to baby, of course I may need to walk around to the side.
But realistically?
My older child prefers to be running around most of the time anyway.
That means I won't necessarily need the stroller fully extended every minute we're out, especially during the relatively brief stage when our baby is still riding in the infant carrier.
I love that I get to decide what configuration works rather than having one seating arrangement dictate how we use the stroller.
It Actually Glides
Then I pushed it.
And wow.
You can immediately tell the difference.
The best comparison I can make is driving a luxury vehicle.
That's what pushing this stroller feels like.
It's just so smooth.
I had watched reviews and YouTube videos showing how easily all the moving parts worked, and I wondered whether it would actually feel that effortless in person.
It does.
The stroller expands and retracts easily. The different components move the way I expected them to. And the push feels incredibly smooth.
When you're a mom on the go and functioning with one hand approximately 95% of the time, that matters.
The Best Stroller for Storage Might Be the One That Changes Size
The other thing I love is that I don't have to choose between having a huge stroller and having huge storage.
The Entourage changes size depending on what I need.
If my older child is walking and I don't need all the extra room, I can retract the frame.
If my older child wants to ride, I can expand it.
If I'm carrying a ton of stuff, I can create more room for that, too.
And there is a lot of room for stuff.
The Entourage is rated for up to 200 pounds of kids + cargo.
I also added the Cargo Bag because apparently I am fully committed to never carrying anything myself again.
For errands, shopping, airports and family trips, I can already see how useful that's going to be.
That's why I think the best stroller for storage isn't necessarily the stroller with the biggest fixed basket.
For me, it's the stroller that can actually change based on whether today's priority is kids, cargo or both.
Newborn Now, Bigger Kid Now... And Completely Different Needs Later
This is probably what excites me most.
Our stroller needs aren't going to stay the same.
For our newborn, I can use the infant car seat with the appropriate adapter.
But I don't have to use an infant car seat.
The Entourage Primary Seat is rated from birth all the way to 65 pounds, and it has a bassinet built directly into the seat. It reclines flat and encloses for those newborn days without requiring us to buy and store a completely separate bassinet.
Meanwhile, our older child can use the Sit + Stand.
If our needs change and we ever want two traditional stroller seats instead, the Sit + Stand can be removed and the optional Second Seat can take its place.
And eventually, when our younger child is the only one who needs to ride?
We can remove the rear seating and retract the stroller again.
That's why the phrase best single to double to Sit and Stand stroller actually means something to me.
It's not about having the greatest possible number of configurations printed on a product page.
It's about whether those configurations match the stages my actual children will go through.
How Different Stroller Options Compare for a Bigger Age Gap
I looked at a lot of options before choosing.
And with a bigger age gap, I don't think the real comparison is only between different double strollers.
I was really deciding between several different approaches: a single-to-double stroller, a premium single stroller, a stroller wagon or something that could bridge those categories as my kids' needs change.
Here's how I think about them now:
| Feature | Austlen Entourage 2.0 + Sit + Stand | UPPAbaby Vista V3 + PiggyBack | UPPAbaby Cruz V3 | WonderFold W2 Luxe |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Single → double → Sit + Stand | Single → double + standing board | Primarily single stroller + optional standing board | 2-seat stroller wagon |
| Newborn option | Built-in bassinet mode, or compatible infant car seat with adapter | Separate Bassinet/SnugSeat or compatible infant car seat | Separate Bassinet/SnugSeat or compatible infant car seat | Compatible infant car seat with separate adapter |
| Separate bassinet required for lie-flat newborn use? | No — built into Primary Seat | Yes, for bassinet configuration | Yes, for bassinet configuration | No traditional built-in stroller bassinet or lie-flat option |
| Traditional main-seat longevity | Birth to 65 lbs | 3 months to 50 lbs without newborn accessory | Birth to 50 lbs under current U.S. manual guidance | Wagon seating rather than traditional stroller main seat |
| Bigger-child riding option | Sit + Stand: real Jump Seat + integrated Platform Rider | PiggyBack standing board | PiggyBack standing board | Wagon seat |
| Older child can sit AND stand? | Yes | Standing board only | Standing board only | Seated wagon riding |
| Published older-child/rider capacity | 75 lbs Sit + Stand | 55 lbs PiggyBack | PiggyBack available | W2 seating limits vary by seat/accessory configuration |
| Published stroller storage | 70-lb lower basket + 30-lb included Market Tote | 30-lb basket | 30-lb basket | Wagon interior + rear storage |
| Best travel consideration for us | Huge cargo capacity; older child can sit/stand/walk; expands/retracts; Sit + Stand stays attached when folded; optional Travel Bag | Traditional stroller that can add a second seat or standing board; optional Travel Bag | Smaller single-stroller footprint; one-step fold; optional Travel Bag | Lots of space for kids/gear, but larger wagon-style package |
| What happens as our older child wants to walk more? | Retract stroller; Sit + Stand remains available when needed | PiggyBack can ride along for standing | Remains a single stroller with optional standing board | Still pushing a wagon |
That last row is a big one for me.
A wagon can be fantastic when you regularly need to transport multiple seated kids and lots of gear.
A single-only stroller can be fantastic when you know one child will be the primary rider.
And the Vista is a very capable traditional single-to-double.
But our situation falls somewhere in between all of those.
I have a baby who absolutely needs a stroller and a bigger kid who sometimes does.
I don't want to push two traditional seats when I don't need them.
I don't want to push a wagon when my older child is running alongside me.
And I don't want to be stuck with standing as my only option when that same older child gets exhausted.
That's the problem the Entourage solves for us.
And It Folds With the Sit + Stand Still Attached
This deserves its own section.
Because all that versatility wouldn't feel nearly as impressive if I had to disassemble everything every time we got back to the car.
The Sit + Stand stays attached when the Entourage folds.
So does the optional Second Seat if we're using that configuration instead.
I'm not removing a rider board, finding somewhere for a jump seat, folding the stroller and then playing stroller Tetris with all the pieces.
The Entourage folds to 33.5"L × 24.5"W × 19"H with its wheels and fenders attached.
For something that gives us this many different ways to use it, I think that's pretty amazing.
Why It's the Best Fit for Our Bigger Age Gap
Here's what makes the Entourage our best single to double to Sit and Stand stroller, best stroller for kids with a bigger age gap and best stroller for storage:
- A real Sit AND Stand option, with a Jump Seat for sitting and integrated Platform Rider for standing
- 75-lb Sit + Stand capacity, giving our bigger child years of potential riding use
- Primary Seat rated from birth to 65 lbs, so our baby can use the stroller directly from the newborn stage through the bigger-kid years
- Built-in bassinet mode, eliminating another separate newborn piece to buy, transport and eventually store
- Infant car seat flexibility, including front and rear adapter positions depending on our configuration
- Front infant car seat positioning that preserves the Sit + Stand, which is the configuration I personally prefer after testing both
- 70-lb lower storage basket + 30-lb included Market Tote, giving us up to 100 pounds of dedicated cargo capacity
- 200-lb total kids + cargo capacity, leaving serious room for children and everything we bring along
- Expandable and retractable patented frame, so I can change the stroller's size depending on who's riding and how much we're carrying
- Second Seat option, giving us a traditional double if our needs ever call for one
- Sit + Stand and Second Seat can remain attached when folding, so versatility doesn't mean constantly disassembling the stroller
- Smooth, easy one-handed maneuvering, which matters when I'm almost always doing something else with the other hand
A Stroller That Can Change for Years
I think that's ultimately what I was searching for.
Not just a stroller for a newborn.
Not just something for my bigger kid.
Not just the biggest storage basket I could find.
And not something that works beautifully for one year and then doesn't make sense for us anymore.
I wanted something that could change.
Right now, that means baby in an infant car seat up front and my older child free to walk, stand or sit behind.
Soon, maybe we'll use the built-in bassinet or traditional Primary Seat more.
Some outings may call for the stroller to be fully expanded.
Others won't.
Eventually, my older child won't need a ride at all, and we'll retract the Entourage and keep using it for the younger one.
That's a lot of different stages for one stroller.
And after assembling it, testing every moving part, trying both car seat positions and finally pushing it myself, I understand why all those reviews got me so excited.
It feels like the luxury stroller of my dreams.
Smooth. Thoughtful. Ridiculously versatile.
And most importantly, it feels like a stroller that was actually designed for families like ours, where a bigger age gap means our kids need very different things at exactly the same time.
I can't wait to see where we take it.
Image provided by customer is for illustrative purposes. To read their review and other customer reviews, click here.