Going Big with Wiltopia – Animal Care Station

We have had the pleasure to look at a number of Playmobil sets over the past two years, but none have come close to the magnitude of the Wiltopia Animal Care Station. With over 350 pieces, getting this set together took a lot of time – in fact, Playmobil even warns parents that assembling the set could take up to 90 minutes! But is all the effort worth it? Is there enough to do in the Animal Care Station to warrant the high price and long build time? Let’s take a look!

Out of the Box

There is a lot to process when you open the Animal Care Station, but Playmobil does something here that isn’t that common with most of their sets. There are numbered bags inside the box, and a much more extensive instruction booklet than normal. Playmobil, unlike other companies, was never a company to add long, drawn-out build instruction manuals in their boxes. That wasn’t the case with this Wiltopia set – the booklet is quite long, and you instantly can see why this might take 90 minutes to build.

For the record, it took me exactly 60 minutes to complete, but it is worth noting that I have been building a TON of Playmobil over the past two weeks, so my understanding of how the system works might have helped shave off some time. The sheer number of pieces might sound really overwhelming, but I did notice quickly that a LOT of the pieces are things I would consider accessories, as opposed to items that actually needed to be assembled. There are a handful of grooming tools – brushes, scissors, etc – as well as food, baskets, bins, lamps, animals, etc. That shouldn’t minimize the build, however, as it still is the biggest set I’ve ever put together.

Is it Worth It?

Listen, the price here is steep, but for the money you are paying, you are also getting a lot of really cool items. I love when Playmobil includes animals with their products, and there are a number to excited about in this set, including a fancy little parrot! There are also a number of people to play as too, so if you are buying this set for multiple children, there will be little argument as they work around the Animal Care Station. There is so much room that even a few sets of hands can mingle inside the house with ease. It’s a REALLy great set for play, inspiring imagination with the multitude of great accessories that the characters can use.

Wiltopia also aims to be educational, and that is something else I really appreciated. Each set you purchase comes with a collectible card that provides information about and animal included in your set. For the Animal Care Station, this was the South American Tapir. The card not only displays the animal name and a picture, but also shows you where the animal is from, how long it is, how much it weighs, and how fast it can move. There is also a QR code on the back of the card that can be scanned to provide even more information about the world we live in.

Wiltopia sets are also made from 80% sustainable materials. For a company that puts out as much plastic as Playmobil does, I think this move towards using sustainable materials is so important, and one I hope they extend to the wider world of Playmobil!

It’s not all great here, however. If there is one thing I can nitpick about with this set, it’s definitely the supports below the house. These supports easily come off the base, and can be frustrating to deal with when trying to move the house from A to B. It’s perhaps a minor annoyance, but an annoyance none-the-less.

Conclusion

This is an exceptional set, and one I’m really happy to own. You will pay a premium for this experience, but there is so much packed inside the box that it makes a great purchase regardless. If you have multiple Playmobil fans in the home, and there is a love of animals, the Animal Care Station is an easy recommendation from us!