
I wish I'd known about this travel bed before I jumped on the Pack n Play bandwagon. Luckily I got a used PnP so not much money wasted. Too bad the Baby Bjorn Travel Crib Light (BBTCL) doesn't have a changing table add-on, or it'd have (nearly) everything.
This is a great "little" travel crib compared to the PnP - 11lbs compared to 30lbs. In planning a 3-wk trip by myself with my child, stroller, car seat, luggage, carry on, and diaper bag, I knew I couldn't afford the space and weight that a PnP would take, so I went for the BBTCL. Here is my impression:
PROS:
-it sets up like a dream; I didn't even look at the directions and was able to set up and take down in no time by myself.
-feels sturdy and safe for my wiggly, crawling 8-mo-old (time will tell if that rings true for an older, standing child).
-mattress is cushy and feels like it's comfortable for a child.
-my standard crib sheets fit this well (esp. the ones that are slightly tighter on the crib mattress) - so DON'T FALL INTO THE TRAP OF BUYING THE $40 BBTCL-SPECIFIC CRIB SHEET! - try out your own sheets first; I don't have to use any fasteners to keep the regular sheet tight enough in the BBTCL, and the mattress pushes down into the bottom of the travel crib well enough to keep the sheets tight.
-easy to just toss in the car, not heavy.
CONS:
-this will *definitely* not fit in standard-sized luggage. I've had to search around for luggage that will fit this bed, and it doesn't leave much room for packing clothes and essentials for a trip. However, I will make it work since I don't want to deal with 2 suitcases and don't want to pay the ridiculous airline fees for extra luggage.
-This will not work as a carry on, for several reasons. 1) The total dimensions are 46.5", 1.5" over the limit set by (some) airlines for carry-ons. 2) There is NO shoulder strap. This is by far the biggest flaw and a huge oversight by Baby Bjorn. This makes it more cumbersome to carry while carrying my child and makes it nearly impossible to carry long distances with anything else in your arms. It only has 2 handles, barely big enough to fit through up to your elbow and still carry it comfortably.
-The mattress sits on the floor. This isn't typically a problem, however we used it camping this past weekend and found that it gave no good insulation between the cold ground and the mattress (like a PnP would), and the mattress got very cold. I would recommend getting a camping air mat or layers of something to put under the entire bed if you are using this for camping in colder areas.
Overall, I think the price is a little high. I would like to see it around $150-175 and no higher. But, it seems to be a good purchase so far and I am so relieved to not have to carry a PnP on all our flights. This is a good investment and I'd recommend it over a PnP any day.Get more detail about
Baby Bjorn Travel Crib Light.