()My impressions of this vehicle were positive the moment I took the vehicle out of the box, and the more I looked at the vehicle the more impressed I became.This mobile home has lots of features and bright colors, perfect for toddlers and younger children.The vehicle has a couple of minor issues that may present challenges for younger toddlers.
The vehicle does require some minor assembly.The luggage rack needs attached to the top of the vehicle using three Phillips head screws.Another Phillips head screw goes into the bottom of the vehicle into the driver's seat.Note that the screw on the bottom goes into the seat at an angle.As with the luggage rack on top, the intent of the screw on the bottom is to hold the front portion to the rest of the mobile home.A ladder attaches to the side of the mobile home via a series of snaps.As with the screws on the top and bottom, the ladder is yet another mechanism that holds the front part of the mobile home to the rest of the mobile home.While this paragraph is lengthy, it only takes minutes to assemble the four screws and the ladder.
Now comes the fun stuff.The driver's compartment has a steering wheel that turns.The dashboard is all one piece and one color, but it has various controls and a navigation system formed as part of the dashboard.The driver's seat has a seatbelt, though it is an integral part of the seat.
Aft of the driver's compartment is a kitchen with a sink, refrigerator, and microwave.The kitchen includes colorful elements molded into the kitchen, such as utensils, towel, oven mitt, and range.The kitchen also includes an open window.While the refrigerator and microwave doors close reasonably easily, the microwave I found slightly difficult to open.I can imagine the door might be a challenge for some children.The refrigerator door seems to open more easily.
The back end of the mobile home has a couch and fold down portion that appears to have a "carpet" molded into it.The fold down portion opens to reveal a full-sized bed for the parents.The back end also has a bathroom with a toilet that has a lid that lifts, a sink, and a mirror.The outside wall of the bathroom has a pivoting portion that reveals a showerhead, molded into the pivoting portion, along with a control, also molded into the pivoting portion.On the top of the back portion is a lid that lifts to reveal a child's bed and an arched window.As with the kitchen area, the walls and lids have many decorations that are colorful and fun to see.
Several separate items are included with this set.The picnic table provides a place to put two plates of food, one of which has a hot dog and a salad, the other of which has a hamburger and fries.A thin plastic mat that looks like a beach with water surrounding it is part of this set.The thin mat had many wrinkles, but placing it between two large, heavy books or under anything flat and heavy should take the wrinkles out within a few hours.Two lounge chairs are perfect for sitting on the beach.A plastic sand castle is perfect accompaniment to the beach.A "Loving Family Calendar" is also included.The "calendar" does have spaces to add dates, but the primary purpose of the "calendar" seems to be as an advertisement for other "Loving Family" toys.
The mobile home closes up to take the family home.Naturally, the wheels roll.The first time I tried closing the home it seemed a little difficult to engage the mechanism.After closing the home several times, it seemed to close more easily.I think a younger toddler might have some difficulty closing the home at first, until the mechanism wears a little.
We have been a big fan of Fisher-Price toys for decades.We purchased them for our children, and now we are buying them for our grandchildren.The toys have proven to be durable and enjoyable.While some of the features of this mobile home might be slightly difficult for toddlers to use initially, with time, wear and practice I think those features will become easier to use.The only thing missing from this set is a family to go into it!
Enjoy!
()I wasn't sure what my 3-year-old granddaughter would think of this.As far as I know, she doesn't really know what an RV or camper is, and since she already has a deluxe Loving Family dollhouse, I thought the mobile home might rank a poor second.
It turns out the opposite is true.She immediately peopled it with some of her Loving Family dolls (be warned, there are no play figures included) and has continued to play with it every day for nearly a month now.I wasn't too impressed with the small beach-scene mat, but she likes it and makes up stories about the things the people are doing at the beach, even insisting that I help one of the baby dolls use the duck float that's actually only a picture on the mat.She loves to open up the sleeping areas and put everyone to bed, and as a recent graduate of potty training herself, insists that everyone use the realistic bathroom before bed; the lift-up toilet lid was a hit, but she did comment that she wished the toilet had a flush handle, her favorite potty feature.
I thought this might make a nice accompaniment to her Loving Family dollhouse, but she actually plays with the RV more often and has heavily accessorized it with things from the dollhouse.She really enjoys the Loving Family line of toys, and although it tends to be pricey, it's sturdy, creative, and makes a nice ongoing collectible for gift-giving.
I'm looking forward to taking my granddaughter and the mobile home to the real beach to play next summer!
December 2012:Just thought I'd come back to mention that the mobile home continues to be one of my granddaughter's favorite toys a year later and is played with almost daily.This toy has really captured her imagination.I found her a vintage Fisher Price pop-up camper, which she likes because it's like her family's camper, but the Beach Vacation Mobile Home continues to be the solid favorite.
Buy Fisher-Price Loving Family Beach Vacation Mobile Home Now
()The already chock full Loving Family doll "series" just got chock fuller with this latest addition.Some of the other add on playsets to the LF doll house made me scratch my head and wonder what kid would want that, but this camper is pretty awesome (and fun).All three of my kids (6, 4 and 1) play with this, probably more than any other LF item besides the house itself.
The only real drawback is that there are no "action" items on this...would have been nice to add head lights that work, or a horn, or even a lamp that works inside (but thankfully not another radio...the one in the minivan drives me crazy!).
Construction is similar to the rest of the series, which is not great (esp. the minivan, whose doors fall off very easily), but it does seem slightly better constructed than the van.
The fold-upbeds are cool, and the bed on top is a nice touch too.
PROS:
Very nice addition to the LF set
Seems a little more sturdy than the questionable minivan
Nice variety inside with plenty of different rooms, and cool little items to discover like the built in shower.
CONS:
No light or sound items (lights or a horn would have been cool)
General complaint about LF stuff...it's slightly too small IMO...just a tiny increase in size of all the items would make this set perfect!
Doors don't open (maybe they learned their lesson from the van after so much negative feedback, but come on, the doors should open!Just make them a little sturdier than the van doors)
Overall, I can easily recommend this camper to any kid that has Loving Family dolls and/or houses.
4/5
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Bought this so my kids age 4 and 6 would stop fighting over the FP Loving Family mini-van. It takes some time to assemble, but is not difficult. It has a lot of nice details and allow the kids to take the dollhouse family on a road trip, an experience they are quite familiar with. It's fun to hear them re-enact memories from our own visit to the beach. This vehicle does not have any doors prone to popping off like the mini van, so that's a plus.
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()My family loves Fisher-Price Loving Family toys!When this Amazon Vine review product arrived I was disappointed at first because it didn't have the instruction sheet and assembly was a little trickyI managed to eventually get it all put together but then noticed two chips in the picnic table.That is kind of unusual as most Loving Family toys are totally well built.
I called the 800 number and talked to customer service.They were quick and efficient and what they chose to do totally exceeded my expectations.I did have to find numbers on the box and she guided me patiently as I found the appropriate numbers.She made special note of the suggestion I made regarding the product line and was a joy to work with.I have no qualms about doing business in the future with Fisher-Price and their products.
Now about the product.This is a cute camper.Past large well used motor homes often have missing doors, windows and issues.This one is smaller, sturdier and has cute pop out beds and looks pretty darn rugged.The picnic table and chairs don't seemquite as strong as some of the other accessories in this iine.I'm looking forward to lots of great play time with outstanding product by an outstanding company.
This item was a waste of money. It is made of pure cardboard. I could have made it myself and saved my money. The legs dont hold up. I was very upset when I received this product. Do not buy it.
