Foldable car seat for travel

I have finally found a travel-friendly children’s car seat – mifold grab and go booster seats – a true foldable car seat for travels. We have tested them for the last three months in three different countries and half a dozen different cars, and I must say they are a life-changer for us as a travelling family.

Up until now, kid’s car seats have always been a big headache for us while travelling. They are very expensive to rent from car hire companies, – you generally can’t pay for them in advance and we have been let down by non-availability when picking a car up. On the other hand, it goes against the grain to buy new on every trip, and how do you do that anyway when you land in an airport and you need them the moment you pick the car up?  However, because they have always been too big to pack, we have alternately both bought and rented.

Different car booster seats

I made a count, and in the first nine years of our girls’ life, we have purchased 30 car seats! It sounds ridiculous, but it’s true. Probably it’s hard to believe, but in the UK at least, it’s cheaper to buy a new car seat and throw it away than rent it for more than a couple of days from a car-hire company.  We were considering buying a Trunki Boostapack booster seat but then girls would have to have Trunki as their main backpack/hand luggage which would narrow the luggage options while flying.

During the last three trips – in UK, Iceland and Italy we have used the same mifold booster seats, because they were so small and portable it wasn’t a problem to pack them into hand luggage. Packing normal car seats in hold-luggage is a big space-taker and if you are unlucky enough for the airline to lose your hold-baggage, you can be stranded without your seats at the critical moment.

mifold foldable car seat and regular car booster seat The Smallest Booster Seat – mifold

When folded it is 25cm x 12cm x 4cm, and weighs about 0,7 kg. It’s small and light enough for my girls carry alongside teddy bears and assorted treasures in their own carry-on bags.

How safe is mifold?

mifold is recognized as compliant with applicable safety standards in Europe, the USA and Canada and other countries who use their standards (full list of applicable standards below). The high back booster seats are claimed to be safer, but when travelling, we weren’t using them anyway due to their size.

Comparing mifold with other booster cushions, it’s the same or better regarding safety. the lap belt guides have three width positions, and the Quick-Clip for the shoulder strap allows accurate adjustment for children of all heights.  While using other car booster seats the shoulder belt may be positioned incorrectly touching the child’s face or neck.  That happens to Tania a lot, so for her at least, these mifold seats have the advantage of better belt positioning on her shoulder.

Who can use grab and go travel booster seat?

mifold grab and go seats are designed for kids aged 4-12, and/or weighing between 15-36kg and up to 150cm in height. I don’t know if i would be happy to use it with kids aged 4 unless a child is already quite tall. Tania is currently around 120 cm and I feel that’s good minimum height to use mifold with car seat belts.

How easy is to clean mifold folding booster seat?

It’s very easy. You can clean it by wiping with warm soapy water. You can also buy an optional designer carry bag to keep the seat protected while not using it.

Small portable booster seat  –  Is it comfortable?

I don’t know: ask my children. But joking apart, we have done 4 and 5-hour trips without any complaint in UK, Italy and Iceland. They are also convenient to use, the girls (nine years old) can clip themselves reliably without help, once very simple initial adjustments are made for the first-time use in the particular car.

booster car seat for travelling kids
mifold booster seat worked great when we needed to fold one seat in order to fit our skis in a car

During our recent ski trip, its small size was especially useful as it comfortably worked on the middle cushion with part of the back seat folded forward to accommodate the skis.

Best small booster seat for travelling families – conclusion

We have been using mifold for 3 months and since we have had them, we have dumped our other booster seats.

I find that for us mifold is a game changer. Its small, its portable and its safe. It makes travelling easier and less stressful. If you don’t travel as much like us you can still consider buying to use as for kids on the go, carpooling, uber etc.

The Specs

 

The Specs
Suitable for children from: 15kg
Weight: 0.75kg
Dimensions: 25cm x 12cm x 4cm
price: click here
Mifold is allowed for use in countries that recognize EU R44.4 / US FMVSS 213 / CA RRR for Europe, USA and Canada respectively.  New stricter rules against booster cushions in general for children under 22kg were introduced in 2018 the UK, however, we understand that mifold are still acceptable here for children over15kg, as are all other booster cushions designed under the previous legislation.
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We were given our mifold seats for the purpose of an unbiased review — our policy is only to review products we genuinely like and find useful.  We have rejected review offers from companies who do not meet these criteria.

 

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