The Playmobil Fairies Academy- 71030- Review

Reviewed by Deborah Banasko

I got my own first Playmobil set in the 1980’s so my children were always going to be encouraged to love it as much as I did. It is one of those quality trusted brands that is an easy Christmas buy as there are so many options for children of all tastes.

However, I don’t think my children were quite prepared for the magnificence of this Playmobil Fairies Academy review; it is very difficult to do this toy justice, but I will endeavour to do my best. The reviewers are my 11 year-old daughter, my boys aged 8 and 4, plus the 42 year-old big-kid which is myself.

I need to stress that this isn’t just a toy for girls, as I refuse to believe that fairies are a toy that we don’t buy for boys. My boys loved this! The characters are so unique, and you feel that they have their own personalities, so whilst my children played it was very obvious which character each child would choose. We have some of the other Fairy-themed Playmobil already but this set is far less cutesy pink, and a bit darker almost. I think a good description would be that it’s just cool and more accessible to a wider range of personalities of children, and it takes a different approach to fairies.

The box depicts exactly what is in the pack, so in addition to the main building you have the gorgeous characters. There are four Ayuma fairy characters in total plus 3 main animals. These are the Forest Fairy Leavi, the Knight Fairy Josy, the Bat fairy Noxana and the Academy Principal Luyana. Each of the three student fairies has its’ own soul animal, and these are an owl, snake and bear. The attention to detail and the originality in these models is fantastic, we especially liked the extremely long spikey red and black snake, the beautiful owl and the armoury and saddle on the bear. The bear even opens and closes its mouth!

Please note that you will require two 1.5V micro batteries to power the light module, which has three light effects.

The building element is great for those older children who like to help mum and dad, although being 410 pieces does mean that it isn’t easy. It took me perhaps two hours for the main build plus another 45 minutes for the more decorative parts so you may want to consider building the set prior to presenting it to your child if this were to be a gift for Christmas morning. The instructions are great to follow, but it is very fiddly with many small pieces so be prepared.

The building itself is comprised of side steps leading up to a beautiful cream and blue house which has a small upper floor used as the observatory, complete with telescope. The front garden area leads over a bridge to an additional garden with a decorative seating area and wishing well. Below this lies the magical crystal which, when pressed, will light up. Press it again and it flashes through a range of colours until you switch it off. This crystal is really impressive in size, and the children loved it.

The colours of the build are greys, greens, purples and cream; gone are the baby pinks of traditional fairy sets, yet it is so beautiful with the cascading waterfalls, rooted trees and flower embellishments but with a darker edge to it. The main point to appreciate is that this set is big! It blew us all away with the size and detail and has a Japanese feel to it.

The features which appealed to us especially were the traps set for any intruders. Pull the rock outside the main building to open up a secret trapdoor which falls into the dungeon below. Slide the panel on the bridge to open yet another trapdoor and send the enemy tumbling downwards. Pull another rock aside to cause a rock fall to deter the enemy. There is also a tree which can be pulled side to side, although we were unsure what purpose this served.
The hinged steps leading up to the house can be pulled to open the lower dungeon up like a door, revealing an additional play space which my boys loved.

Then you have the smaller details; writing quills, a magnifying glass, so many flowers and hanging plants. Birds, a frog, butterflies, a lectern, spell book and potion-themed accessories. These are the typical quality you expect from this brand.

The Fairies’ Academy is where fairies learn to develop skills and powers, with the magical crystal located below the academy to supply the energy to the Fairy world. In terms of play opportunities, we had the expected game of Fairies learning to cast spells and use their magic, as well as helping people and animals. However, the additional fun features allowed the children to experience and capture intruders using the telescope, trapdoors and rock falls. The crystal is a huge part of this set, so intruders stealing or damaging the crystal was another favourite.  Naturally the animals played a part in the battles as they add different skills and powers.  This toy is not a “home” set so there is no sleeping or living area as such, but the kids created their own under the waterfalls.

I would have liked to see some sort of goblin or intruder gang included in the set to really extend the play options as we had to use some of our own toys for this element and I feel that this should be a complete set given the price-point. I also feel that some sort of sound accompaniment would have been a great addition.

I would agree with the recommended age range of 7 to 12 due to the difficulty of the build, and an older child would get much more from this than a younger child. Having said that, my 4.5 year-old loved playing with this but he is one for imaginative play due to having older siblings, and I would probably wait a couple of years before buying something of this complexity for him alone.

Playmobil come in a range of price-points, and this is naturally at the higher end at £189.99. This can be justified by the size, the detail and the “wow” factor-features such as the light crystal. The quality is excellent, and I can certainly see where the money has gone. The characters have exquisite detail, the animals are unique and embellished far than those you may receive in the lower priced sets.

I still don’t feel that I would quite pay £189.99 for the set without the addition of the intruders I suggested and due to the build being a little bit fiddly, so I would deduct half a point on this basis. This is still one fantastic toy and a Christmas Day showstopper.

Playmobil have truly outdone themselves with this toy, as it takes Fairies to a different level. If you want to wow the children on Christmas Day, then this toy certainly follows the brief. I would award the Playmobil Fairies Academy 4.5 stars out of 5.

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

RRP: £189.99

You can purchase The Playmobil Fairies Academy from Playmobil here.