Baby Jogger City Mini GT Double Review by Best Buggy

If we simply say that the Baby Jogger City Mini GT Double is probably the best all round side by side twin pushchair for price, functionality, features, fold, handling, seat size, hood size, push and more. Therefore we present this fabulous pushchair with 5 Best Buggy stars for being excellent!

Is that enough of a review for our readers???!!

Probably not! But if you read no further, believe us the Baby Jogger City Mini GT Double is a brilliant, fabulous, great, all round double pushchair!

At this point, we should say that although we have had a whole host of brands of pushchairs at Best Buggy HQ, we have had almost all the Baby Jogger range of pushchairs in our personal collection at some point. We had already had the Baby Jogger City Mini and the Baby Jogger City Elite double pushchairs, and knew that the City Mini GT should in theory be the perfect mix of the two – and we were not disappointed.

First Impressions

The Baby Jogger City Mini GT Double has huge similarities with the other Baby Jogger double pushchairs. If you are new to Baby Joggers then this post comparing the City Mini, City Mini GT and City Elite, would be a good starting point to explain the differences. Much of what we will say about the City Mini GT Double will also apply to the double versions of the City Mini and Elite pushchairs too.

The biggest selling point of the City Mini GT Double is the easy fold – simply pull on two handles in the centre of the seats and the pushchair folds instantly and then autolocks. Opening is almost as easy. Undo the lock and then flick the pushchair open. There’s no flappy bits, no extra moves to do, or things to alter. The City Mini GT Double is as easy as a pushchair comes. The City Mini GT Double is also very flat when folded especially with the wheels popped off (which takes seconds) so its a great pushchair to slide on the top of a packed boot.

Our first impressions of the Baby Jogger City Mini GT Double were that the seat and footrest area are huge – they look considerably larger than the City Mini, and this is borne out once the children are put in the seat units. The one flaw of the City Mini GT Double is that the hood rims are relatively low and they mask the very tall seat behind. However, this is only an issue with an older child – our tall 4 year old still fits under the hood rim, and most children of her height will no longer need a seat in a pushchair.

The seat of the Baby Jogger City Mini GT is well padded – more than the City Mini, but not as much as the very comfortable Elite.
The GT in the pushchair name comes from the small ‘forever air’ non puncture GT wheels. These are slightly bigger than the City Mini wheels and are designed to cope with mild all terrain – parks, rough ground etc. These wheels really do make the City Mini GT Double great to push – it just glides along!
The City Mini GT also has an adjustable handlebar, and an easy to use handbrake. Personally having an adjustable handlebar on a double pushchair can make a big difference to the comfort of the person pushing the buggy. I found the fixed higher handlebar of the City Mini Double caused my back to ache; therefore the GT ‘s adjustable handlebar really makes a big difference and is a major selling point for me.

Child Comfort, Seat Recline and Harness

The Baby Jogger City Mini GT seats are huge – really tall and deep, with a good leg length and space for bigger feet than the City Mini. As stated, the seat is more padded than the City Mini seat. For younger babies, we love that there’s plenty of depth between the crotch strap and the edge of the seat, for newborns to have their legs supported on the seat. The City Mini GT double seat recline is a toggle recline – this means that the seat can be reclined to any angle required, including a lie flat position, which makes the seat suitable for a newborn without needing a carrycot. However one, or two compact carrycots can be added to the City Mini GT Double making it a cosy twin pram option for twins, or a newborn parent facing / older child facing outwards option for siblings. The toggle recline is easy to release to lie flat, however it does take two hands and a nudge of a shoulder to pull the seat upright again. However compared to other side by side double pushchairs which have a zip recline, the toggle is much simpler than undoing / doing up 8 zips to get twins fully reclined!!

The rear of the City Mini GT Double seats are covered with mesh. These allow ventilation and for a child to stay cool when reclined in summer. However, they also have storm covers for wet or cold weather which can be unrolled and fastened with velcro tabs. On the City Mini GT Double, these storm covers are attached to the pushchair seats rather than the hoods (as on the City Mini).

The Baby Joggger City Mini GT harnesses have five height settings which are easy to alter by simply clipping on and off at shoulder level. The harnesses themselves are HUGE and can easily accommodate an older child with a thick winter coat on. However the adjustability means that the harnesses can also be tightened up for a newborn baby. Although the harness height is easy to alter, the harness straps take a little more undoing and doing up. However the harnesses are linked round the back of the pushchair thus only one side really needs adjusting, rather than both sides.

The harness buckle is easier than many to undo. We know some children who can undo the buckle, but my nearly 5 year hasn’t worked it out yet. It is an easy buckle for grandparents to undo though. The buckle is also fairly low down on the child’s crotch, which also can make it easier for children to slip their arms out of the shoulder straps. However, Master BB is a bit of a Houdini, BUT as yet he’s not managed to slip his arms out of a Baby Jogger pushchair.

Hoods

The Baby Jogger hoods are famed for their huge size and good coverage. The Baby Jogger City Mini GT Double hoods are no exception. The hoods offer great protection from hot sun or light rain. The hoods are lovely and dark inside for naps. There are two plastic covered peekaboo windows on top of the hood should you wish to look at your child. These peekaboo window fastenings are held with velcro which is a little noisy when checking on a sleeping child. However the window covers roll up very neatly if they need keeping open.

The one criticism generally about the City Mini GT (single and double) is that the rim of the hoods are low at the front. As we said at the start of this review, although the rim may look low, in reality this is unlikely to ever be an issue unless you have a very tall child, or the pushchair is needed for an older child, as our photos of the children show. The issue is very easily resolved by opening the hood one notch.

The hoods are separate which means one can be removed to add on a carrycot. Having independent hoods also means a baby can nap in the relative dark, whilst their sibling enjoys the sunshine.

Handlebar and Handling

The Baby Jogger City Mini GT Double handlebar is a continuous unbroken length which makes it comfortable for parents who like to push a pushchair one handed. There is no central bar in the way! The handlebar is covered in textured rubber which is good to hold. We never worry as much about damaging a rubber handlebar when folding or storing, as we do when a handlebar is foam covered.

There are an amazing 11 handle height settings – there should be a position to suit everyone! Having an adjustable handle on a double pushchair for me is vital. As stated the higher fixed handlebar of the City Mini Double used to make my back hurt to push and we were forced to sell it. Even though we were pushing heavier children than when we had the City Mini Double, and we like to push one handed, we had no issues at all with the City Mini GT. We attribute this to being able to adjust the handle, so that it was in the correct position for each of us.

Our Baby Jogger City Mini GT was fully loaded with two older children, however it was absolutely fine to push. We took it on several outings, but taking it shopping was the most challenging. Weaving the double pushchair in and out of tight aisles, into the small baby changing room, turning it around display stands etc. The City Mini GT double handled everything we asked of it well. We took the City Mini GT off road as well onto rough and bumpy terrain and grass, and it was great. We wouldn’t have taken the GT Double to do serious off road or the beach, but it will handle most every day surfaces.

Wheels, Brake and Suspension

The Baby Jogger City Mini GT Double has small 8.5″ forever air wheels at the front and back. The front wheels are lockable swivel wheels. All 4 wheels can be very easily popped off for storage or to fit into a car boot. There is front suspension on the City Mini GT Double which was perfectly fine, but we did find ourselves longing for the fabulous bouncy suspension of the Elite double!

The City Mini GT Double has a handbrake. It is clearly labelled and is very easy to simply flick on and off to engage or disengage the brake. The handbrake is incredibly useful to have. It is especially useful when both seats are reclined, or should you need to add on a stroller board behind the pushchair. There is one disadvantage and that is that there are occasions where the pushchair may be in a confined space such as a lift, with you on the opposite side, and you can’t always reach the brake easily round the other side. It would be useful if there was a brake lever on both sides on this double pushchair.

Storage, Raincover and Accessories

The Baby Jogger City Mini GT Double has lots of storage! There is a HUGE storage basket which runs the full width of the pushchair. There is access through the back and the sides. The basket is deep and secure. There is no fear of anything falling out. On the rear of the seats are two large mesh pockets. These are great for storing small bits and pieces in.

There is a raincover for the City Mini GT Double, however it is an additional accessory. We haven’t tried it out as the huge hoods combined with a blanket was enough to keep our children protected from light rain. We understand that the UK raincovers have recently been altered to allow good access to the side handbrake when it is raining.

There is a double bumper bar for the City Mini GT Double which is an extra accessory. However there are no snack trays for the double pushchair. Baby Jogger used to make child consoles which velroed onto the bumper bar to give a child a place to put a drink, snack or toys. However we believe these have now been discontinued although some may still be found.

Travel System and Carrycot

The Baby Jogger City Mini GT can take one or two compact carrycots. The fabric can be left in situ or can be removed if two carrycots are required to form a great looking twin pram. It is not possible to remove the fabric for just one carrycot. The hood(s) need removing to fit the carrycot(s) onto the pushchair. The carrycot plugs into the bumper bar accessory socket on the outer side, and then it fits into a flatter central socket in the middle of the pushchair. The carrycot comes with the necessary brackets / adaptors, but they will be a different one for each side of the carrycot to fit the two different sockets.

There is no travel system option for the Baby Jogger City Mini GT Double pushchair here in the UK at the present time. There is however in the US.

Fold / Unfold

The fold / unfold of the Baby Jogger City Mini GT Double is really what sells this pushchair to many people. To fold the pushchair, simply grab the two handles in the centre of the seat pads and pull. The pushchair folds into your hands ready for carrying. If you hold the pushchair high enough then nothing should touch the floor when folding, therefore the handle shouldnt get damaged. The only downside to the fold could be that the fabric is left on the outside, but the Baby Joggers are easy to remove the fabric and machine wash from time to time. Its never been an issue for us.

The Baby Jogger City Mini GT Double has got a closure catch. However in reality the hood fabric more often than not gets in the way of this latching in. It is easy to move the hood fabric should this happen, but otherwise, the pushchair doesnt open easily or flap when carrying, and having no storage latch makes it easier to reopen!
To reopen simply undo the storage latch and flick the pushchair open and upright. Easy!

There are also two red straps underneath the pushchair seat, above the basket. These are safety straps. These should ideally be poppered onto the side of the chassis before each use (and thus released before folding), however we are the first ones to put our hands up and say we often forget to do these up and we apologise if they aren’t done up in our photos.

The fold / unfold does make a big difference with a double pushchair. Double pushchairs are all either heavy beasts, or are bulky or have lots of pieces. The Baby Jogger City Mini GT Double is on the middle to heavy side, but to be able to simply flick the pushchair open, or close it so easily, makes the use of the GT much easier than most double pushchairs. Theres no clips to do up, no footrests to realign, no velcro to do up. Its simple and easy.

As the link at the start of this review shows, the Baby Jogger City Mini, City Mini GT and Elite ALL have very similar chassis’ sizes. It is the same with the double versions of these three pushchairs. The wheels are what make the biggest difference to the fold and open size of all of these. The City Mini GT when folded and the wheels removed, is incredibly slim. One of the slimmest, flattest double pushchairs there is. As we said at the start. the 4 wheels pop off very easily and then the City Mini GT Double is a great pushchair to simply slide on top of a packed boot for easy removal at service station stops or at your destination.

In Conclusion

We have spent many many years looking at and using double pushchairs. For us the Baby Jogger City Mini GT Double ticks every box we have for a great side by side double pushchair.  The City Mini is an excellent double, but the addition of the GT wheels, handbrake and adjustable handlebar along with the much bigger and longer seats, makes the Baby Jogger City Mini GT Double even better. It has great harness and seat adjustability to suit a newborn baby or a tall 3 year old. We love the huge hoods, massive basket, mesh storage pockets, and peekaboo windows  too. Above all the Baby Jogger City Mini GT Double is very easy to open and fold; is great to push and is easy to manoeuvre.
Forward facing, side by side double pushchairs really dont come any better than the Baby Jogger City Mini GT Double!

With many thanks to Kooltrade for their help.