A great alternative to the Baby Bjorn

FINALLY I have found a carrier that has a good balance of features, comfort, and price. The Infantino EuroRider is essentially a knock-off of the popular Baby Bjorn front carrier and while it isn’t perfect, it is a great alternative at less than half the price.

Comfort: The Infantino EuroRider gets 5 stars for comfort. With wide padded straps like the Baby Bjorn and an adjustable “slider” that allows you to correctly position the location where the straps criss-cross on your back, I found this carrier to be every bit as comfortable as the Baby Bjorn. The straps are also very easy to adjust from the front while wearing, for a comfortable fit.

Easy in/out: Side latches unhook to easily get your baby in and out, which is great for removing sleeping babies. This was a requirement for me in a carrier. However, one thing that I found to be a minor inconvenience is that there is a velcro fastener on each side AND two sets of clips on top of that -- one set directly over the velcro (perhaps to reinforce it?) and the other set higher up above the armholes to keep the head support secure. It seems overkill with too many fasteners. The clips are sturdy, so the velcro just seems like an unnecessary and time-consuming nuisance. Note: If the side entry feature is important to you, beware of inadvertently picking up the similar CozyRider, which is much cheaper at only $15. I made this mistake because the carrier looks almost the same and the packaging is identical. It’s basically the same carrier except that it does NOT have the side entry feature.

Faces in/out: The Infantino EuroRider, like most front carriers, can face either in or out. This leads to my only real criticism of this carrier. Like the Baby Bjorn, the back of the carrier stays up for head support in the face in position and folds down so baby can see out when facing out. However, I have found that on the EuroRider it doesn't want to stay down very well. It tends to pop up in my son’s face when he's facing out if I’m not paying attention. I am seriously thinking of buying some velcro that I can attach to keep it down better. I think this little “fix” will make this carrier just about perfect. In the face out position, baby’s arms can go through the armholes for smaller babies, or above the armholes for larger babies. In theory this should allow the carrier to accommodate a larger range of sizes. I haven’t tried my son with his arms above the armholes, so I can’t comment on how well that particular feature works.

Open interior: Again like the Bjorn, the EuroRider has an open interior, meaning that baby is lying directly against you with no barrier in between. This is great for bonding, especially when baby is facing in, but beware because this closeness comes at the expense of NO protection from drool and spit-up.

Price: With features and comfort similar to the Baby Bjorn, the Infantino EuroRider is a bargain at $35, compared to $79 for the Bjorn.

This carrier is appropriate for babies 8-26 pounds and at least 21” long. It is machine washable.

Overall this carrier gets high marks for price and comfort, despite a couple of minor inconveniences. Plus, my son is happy in it, which is all a mom can ask for.