Specially designed for hiking, this super safe padded child carrier with a 5 point harness seat is as comfortable for you as it is for your baby

Hello again! I haven’t posted in a while, mostly because we’ve been out and about in the mountains with the kids most weekends thanks to the newest member of our gang – the Deuter child carrier. Actually also thanks to the incredible autumn and very mild winter we’ve enjoyed so far here in Andalucia.

The end of the summer coincided with our youngest growing out of /getting too heavy for her Baby Bjorn carrier so we decided it was time to move to the next level.

We did our research and this carrier seemed to be screaming out at us, it ticked all the boxes, yet we dithered. For a start it was damn pricey at $299 and at 3.45kg seemed pretty heavy. We read reviews and more reviews – this one definitely seemed to be the one, so we took the plunge. And I am hugely relieved to report that all those gushing parents on Amazon weren’t wrong.

The Deuter really is an impressive piece of kit. It has gone through a few different versions so all the corners have been knocked off. The model we have – the Kid Comfort III – is the most up to date and here’s the three main reasons why I love it:

1. It’s super safe.

This carrier is precision made with a really strong frame (which accounts for the 3.45kg). Baby sits in a sturdy seat secured with a 5 point harness belt with wide straps. Everything feels very safe, stable and locked in to place.

2. It’s comfortable for baby.

Our little girl just wouldn’t be happy to sit in a simple carrier for long – she’d get bored, uncomfortable and fidgety. Even with this one she doesn’t want to get in initially. The rest of us are standing around on our feet and she wants to be with us and not isolated in a carrier, but once she’s in she realises she’s still part of the fun. First off, the seat is set very high so she has a really good view – it is like she’s sitting up on a throne, lord of all she surveys. And there’s lots of wiggling room if she wants to look around from side to side. The seat is cushioned, straps are padded and breathable and there’s good support for her legs. She can really comfortably fall asleep as well thanks to the plush chin pad which thankfully is removable and washable as she tends to dribble on it. And I don’t have to worry about her head hanging out of the pack as she is supported all the way around.

3. It’s comfortable for me.

The heavily padded back paneling keeps the load off my back better than any other pack I have ever tried, allowing airflow which helps to keep me cool.
The shoulder and hip straps are wide, padded and comfortable and everything is easily adjustable. This means you can get it really close to your body and supported so the weight is distributed throughout your body and kept off your shoulders.

The ‘easily adjustable’ bit is pretty important for us as my husband and I are different heights. When out on a hike we don’t want to spend ages every time we swap over fiddling with straps and making adjustments. The Deuter has a really simple velcro tab on the back panel which allows you to easily slide the whole shoulder strap part to a different position.

See photos of our first hike with the Deuter last autumn.

Other features I like:

Fabric is very breathable. You can have the straps right next to your skin and you’re not going to feel damp and sticky.

Hydration-system compatible. Although we haven’t used this yet, there’s a platypus/bladder compartment which will come in very handy in the warmer months.

Sun/rain roof. This feature really makes life a lot easier with a small child. It’s nice and sturdy and pulls out to give your child total protection so you don’t have to worry about them pulling their sun hat off or have to lather on quite as much sun cream.

Kickstand. You pull this stand out so you can place the carrier down easily. This is handy if your child is asleep and you don’t want to disturb them while you take a break yourself.

Lots of pockets. Essential for nappies, wipes, snacks and also “human stuff” (as my 6 year old calls it) like car keys, phone, wallet etc. There’s some at the back and more at the sides for easy access.

Mirror. It’s a pretty basic mirror, you’re not going to be applying lipstick with this thing, but it’s handy to have just for checking what’s going on back there.

Rain canopy. It covers the whole pack and folds away compactly – can be zipped away in one of the back pockets.

Vitals

Dimensions: 88 x 38 x 34 (H x W x D) cm
Weight: 10 lbs / 3.45kg
Volume: 20 litres
Colour: Black/stone
Price: $299
Maximum weight: 48.5 lbs / 22 kg

View the DEUTER CHILD CARRIER ON AMAZON

Read more on the DEUTER web site

Worth the dollars?

I would say yes, definitely!
If you want to get out hiking with small children then you need something, right? You could save a few bucks and go for a second rate one but if
1. It doesn’t feel safe,
2. It’s not totally comfortable,
3. Your child doesn’t like it, or
4. It makes you feel hot and sweaty, well…
then it’s just going to be thrown in the corner of the wardrobe. Any of those four key requirements not being met is a deal breaker.

I admit we felt like we were taking a gamble when we bought this – how much would we actually use it? Would our little girl take to it? Was it a bit heavy? It’s one thing trying it on in a gear shop, quite another when it contains a 20lb child on rough terrain for a 4 hour walk.

But once we broke the ice with it we haven’t stopped using it. It’s in our trunk now more often than the buggy. Our little girl loves getting carried around like the Queen of Sheba in her ‘babycar’ and it’s made getting out on proper hikes doable for us again.
I would highly recommend this child carrier!

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