EDITOR’S NOTE
The Chicco FastAsleep Playard with napper and changer (and the FastAsleep GO) has sadly been discontinued. If you like the quick, pop-open setup and the lightweight, modern mesh design, then the new Chicco Alfa Lite Lightweight Playard is your best bet. The Chicco Alfa does not have a napper or a changer, but it does feature a tiny 12.5-pound weight and a zippered access panel on the side (no more acrobatic bending to get baby out!). But if you are looking for a similar playard with a bassinet and changing table, you have to check out the 4moms Breeze Plus Portable Playard, which will get you all the features of the Chicco FastAsleep, and then some!
I love all things Chicco. So I may be a bit biased here. BUT, they have won over my love because they continue to innovate the heck out of baby products and make parents’ lives easier. What’s not to love? The newest in their groundbreaking innovation is the Chicco FastAsleep Playard which includes a newborn sleeper (or bassinet) and a changing table to make a 3-in-1 solution.
The issue with most bassinets and Pack and Plays is that they are heavy and cumbersome to put up and take back down. And forget actually carrying them around to different places, such as grandma’s or the babysitters – it’s a pain in the neck. The Chicco FastAsleep Playard is the opposite of cumbersome – it sets up in a jiffy, is comfortable, and very portable.
You have a baby shower and feel mostly prepared for parenthood. I had a crib, sleep basket, and a Pack and Play, but none of these seemed to be a good option at the time. I ended up using a bassinet-type Pack and Play for the first few months of my child’s life since I wanted him close to me, and I used the bassinet as a diaper changing station. The Chicco FastAsleep Playard promises to be a great solution for parents who need a playard, changing table, and newborn sleeper all in one.
Awesome Features of the Chicco FastAsleep Playard (regular version):
- Pop up set up – this looks amazing!
- Zip and wash fabrics – as in the entire thing is basically washable
- Full-size sleeping area for babies up to 30 lbs
- Portable and lightweight – weighs 31 lbs
- Includes carry bag for Playard and a separate carry bag for the changer/napper
- Multi-use – Playard, bassinet, changing table
- Dimensions:Assembled Dimensions: 25″ x 38″ x 33″Folded Dimensions: 25″ x 15″ x 22″
Pop Up Set Up
This is an awesome feature that is sure to swoon many parents. I remember well the days of trying to take down or put up a stubborn Pack and Play. There was making sure all the legs unfolded uniformly and none got stuck or else the Pack and Play wouldn’t click into the locked position (or unlock – even worse!). In a word – cumbersome. Forget all of that nonsense. This literally pops open and sets up by itself. Check out how easy it is in the video below:
Easy Cleaning – Zip & Wash
The Chicco FastAsleep Playard has something which no other playard in the U.S. market has – a fabric cover that can be entirely removed by a zipper. I could really just end this review right here. Who hasn’t had smudged baby food or spit up all over the mesh of a playard and spent way too much time washing it? Those days are gone. The mattress pad removes for easy washing, as well. The baby changing station has a soft, washable plastic covering for easy mess clean-up.
Full-Size Sleeping Area
Even though the Chicco FastAsleep Playard folds into a very small portable solution with ease, it still has the same size sleeping area as a standard playard/napper (38″ x 26″). The sleeping surface is cushy and comfortable for the baby and will accommodate babies up to 30 lbs. The padded mattress also has a zip-and-wash cover. Chicco never disappoints me with the comfort of its surfaces – whether it’s a car seat, bassinet, etc.
Multiple Uses: Playard, Bassinet, Changing Table
Bassinet: A bassinet is either a stand-alone small bed for an infant or can come attached to a playard. These are only used during the first 2-3 months of life (or about 15 lbs) before the baby can roll over. A bassinet allows for easy access of the baby to be picked up during the night by mom (or dad). The Chicco FastAsleep Playard features a built-in newborn sleeper for an all-in-one solution.
This is handy because many parents buy a standalone bassinet to have next to their bed and having one attached to the pack and play negates the need for that.
Changing Table: Many parents purchase a standard changing table, thinking that they will use it often. This may be true when you are in the child’s room. However, as a busy parent of a newborn, you are on the go all the time, and moving the baby into one room all day will get tiring.
Not to mention when there are multiple stories in a house, which is what happened to me for the first two boys. The crib and official changing table were upstairs in his room, but we spent the entire day downstairs. Having a pack and play with a built-in changing table downstairs made diaper changes very convenient.
This playard doubles as a changing table, which covers the entire top of the playard (as opposed to just half of it in some other brands), ensuring your little one won’t roll into the playard or off of it easily. To me, this is a huge plus.
Playard: Playards (also called Pack and Plays) have taken the baby world by storm in the last few years. Everyone should have one. Because they fold up, they are a portable solution for today’s parents. They are ideal for traveling with baby or to corral a sleepy child who is fighting sleep. It’s also handy even just to have an extra baby station in a different part of the house.
See this 3-in-1 playard in action in the video below:
Easability
(That’s a word, right?) It should be.
With baby products, we have to remember that we are dealing with sleep-deprived mamas here. The bassinet and mattress pad detaches, and the legs of the playard fold up with one click. The Chicco FastAsleep Playard actually turns the frame into a rectangle, not a block-style like most playards, which then folds in half again to be stowed away.
The changing table folds in half, for ease of transportation but also to reveal a bassinet with luxurious padding on one side, covering half the size of the playard (see more in the video below).
The playard is stored in one bag while the newborn/changing table insert is stored in a separate bag. This is helpful when traveling in case you only need one of them and not both, you can leave the other one at home.
Features of the Chicco FastAsleep GO Playard:
- Pop up set up
- Zip and wash fabrics – as in the entire thing is basically washable
- Full-size sleeping area for babies up to 30 lbs
- Portable and lightweight – weighs 20 lbs
- Includes carry bag for travel
- Dimensions:Assembled Dimensions: 25″ x 38″ x 28.5″Folded Dimensions: 25″ x 9″ x 22″
The main difference between the Chicco FastAsleep GO Playard and the original is that the GO does not include the bassinet and changing table attachment.
You might like the GO version because:
- It’s great for traveling and when you need an easy to set up a sleeping solution quickly.
- It’s lighter than the original (20 lbs vs 31 lbs).
The GO version is not for you if:
- You need the newborn sleeper (bassinet) and changing table attachment. The Chicco FastAsleep GO does NOT include this attachment.
Newborn Sleeping Options
A new parent has a lot of options for baby to sleep, and each baby and family will have their own preferences. Here are some of the options:
Bassinet: A bassinet is a smaller, shorter-sided crib for an infant to sleep in. A baby can sleep in a bassinet typically only for a few months, and these can be attached to the top of a playard or be stand-alone.
Co-sleeper: This is a type of bassinet that attaches to the side of the parents’ bed. Many parents like this solution because the baby is close by, but still has its own independent sleeping space.
Sleeping Basket: Also called a Moses basket, these sleepers may have handles and are essentially small bassinets that can be transported easily. They are usually not much larger than the size of the baby. A Moses basket would normally be kept close by a parent’s bed for easy access to baby during the night.
Boxes: Many parents choose sleep boxes as their sleeping solution. A sleep box is essentially a padded box-like structure that can be placed on a bed, surface, or floor for infants. Sleeping boxes are not too common in the US, but many hospitals give them away to help reduce SIDS and unsafe co-sleeping.
Crib: A crib is a larger, fully-sided, stand-alone bed for an infant through toddler. Most cribs allow the bed to raise higher or lower, as well as the railings can be removed. A crib is a semi-permanent sleeping solution that typically will be converted into a toddler bed later on.
Playard: Playards (also called Pack and Plays) are smaller, portable cribs that are framed with a small mattress pad. Some playard mattresses raise and lower, and most fold up for easy transportation. They may have a changing table or bassinet on the top half of the playard. Most have mesh fabric so that baby can play in it but be confined to a space (hence the Pack and Play concept).
