Pine Ridge Front Loading Stair Bunk Bed from Hayneedle The stairs on this set are not only functional for climbing – they also act as storage drawers. $979.99
--Really like the 'storage steps' on this one.

There's one option here that's less than almost $900. That's it. I'm starting to feel really disenfranchised from the AT websites.

Good point, Carrie H. For me, this post fails to grasp one of the main reasons why people (like me) buy bunk beds; they are a practical way of accommodating two kids in one room when money's an issue. These are the sorts of bunk beds that Ricky from Silver Spoons might have gotten for sleepovers.

I agree with the above posters about price. Also, those Ikea bunks look kind of prison-y.

I see here on some photos that the lower bed is significantly wider than the upper one Why ? I don't see the point in that. For me bunk beds as "space savers", and a wider lower bed is not really in that area...

Maybe the lower bunk is a double so that two kids can share it? Then you get three kids packed into the space that one normally would occupy, which would be a good thing for a lot of families (see above comments).

My son had an earlier version of the IKEA bunk. It creaked a LOT---all that metal against metal.

I have been trying to get on the bunk bed bandwagon since I have four kids and a three bedroom house. But...I just can't. I don't like them. They feel cheap no matter if they cost thousands of dollars or hundreds. They just have no appeal for me.

But since I know many people do love them and find a need for them, great article!

Now how about an article on other options for beds in a multi-kids room?

Seems like a DIY or local carpenter would be more feasible than most of these options, at least for most folks.

My childhood bunk was purchased from a quality furniture store's yearly clearance sale. A lower end option is a local unfinished furniture store/small chain like the Mill Stores.
http://www.millstores.com/categorydetail.cfm?cattype=1&catcode=108C&sku=19-BD70

You can find a nice variety of loft and bunk beds by doing a Google search for "loft bed". Many wood models in the $200 - $400 price range.

We went with the ikea norddal, which is much nicer than the metal one shown. It can also be assembled into two twin beds, so provides for more flexibility down the road. For the money, it is a nice solid bunk bed.

Love our kid's maxtrix low loft bed. When her brother is a little older we plan to bunk it with an additional bed. Love the modularity, sturdiness (best that we saw for the price), and the fact that we didn't have to buy the entire thing at once!!!

As for price, we saved a ton by buying it from an online dealer (sendmetomyroom.com) to assemble ourselves. Bunk beds and any solid kids furniture that will actually hold up are quite pricey. You kind of just have to suck it up. Or buy the tromso.

I would assume a full bed on the bottom is either for a older child who may want a bigger bed, a parent who is sick of being crammed into a twin bed with a kid who was trouble sleeping through the night or an ideal spot for story time before bed for a parent and two little kids. It's still saves space over two twin beds on the ground.

Where are the triple bunks? Only kidding. Because we need to fit three kids into a room that only has room for one twin bed, we're having a carpenter build a triple-high bunk bed. It may look somewhat like the scoop one, but we haven't finalized the design yet.

On the recommendation of another AT reader from a previous, similar post, we ordered a twin-over-twin Mission-style bunk bed from Mom's Bunk House:
http://www.momsbunkhouse.com/furniture/bunk-beds-2.html
It was about $399, which seemed pretty reasonable, given that it could also be separated into two twin beds. We haven't put it together yet, so I can't vouch for the quality, but it seemed like a nice middle ground between Ikea and Land of Nod...you can also find similarly-priced wooden bunk beds at Overstock...

The Uffizi Bunk Bed from Spacify is a dream bunk bed. It is so stylish!!! But.. it is quite expensive..

Not everyone is putting two kids into a room because of "money issues". I think of it more of a space issue. We don't need or want a larger space and my boys are excited about sharing a room.

I love the bedspreads!*

My kids really like their bunk bed, and it's great in our condo since there's not a lot of space in the second bedroom. We can also put a foam mattress under the bottom bunk to pull out for when the kids have a sleepover. The list is great, but we're Canadian. We like shopping on these sites.

Ikea -
http://www.ikea.com/ca/en/catalog/categories/departments/bedroom/19039/

GoWFB.ca -
http://www.gowfb.ca/Kids-Furniture-Kids-Bunk-Beds-c-581_771.php?cPath=581_771

http://www.parksfurniture.com/c/Bunk%20Bed.php

Splitty-
I know this is an old thread, but I was wondering if you have any feedback on the quality of the bed you ordered? I am interested in one from this site, but don't really have a point of reference on the quality aspect.

thanks!
Liz