At a glance:
The Playmobil 123 Pirate ship with Firing Water Cannon can float on water and fires water from its functional cannon. The set includes a Captain and his first mate. As the ship sets sail on high sea adventures, a parrot guards the treasure.
Would you recommend this to other mums?
Louise: The ship is one of the most solid of its type. The only downfall I have is the bird needs a home and the connecting parts such as the flag could be a little more secure when clipped in. The design is brilliant with bright colours. The ability for it to float is great as it seems as though it is too heavy to float initially.
Emma: I would definitely recommend this product. It is extremely well made, as is all the Playmobil 123 products I've come across. It's small enough for little hands to pick it up and take it anywhere but the ship is big enough to for you to play with the pirates inside it. The two pirates, parrot and treasure make for lovely role play. One of the big plus points of this product is that it can go in the bath. My daughter loved taking it for a splash and the pirate ship actually floats.
Emily: I would recommend the pirate ship to other mums. I like that I can leave my daughter to play with it knowing she couldn't swallow any of the bits or that she couldn't potentially break the product. It appears to be made of really strong plastic which is essential with a toddler. The colourful ship is really inviting to my toddler and she has even been taking the little pirate to bed with her!
How did this product make your life easier?
Gemma: This is a useful toy for bathtime and water playtime. My toddler enjoyed playing with the pirate ship especially the water cannon feature. Bathtime, in particular, is made easier as the pirate ship helps to keep my toddler entertained during hair wash time which is rather challenging at present. Overall a nice product.
Sammi: This product doesn't really impact my life as a mum. It is a pirate ship toy and my son enjoyed playing with it. In that respect, it made things easier because I could give him the toy to sit down and play with. However, it was not enough to entertain him for that long. It isn't overly interactive. As it is just one big ship and then some smaller accessories it didn't appeal to him as much as something like a car which had wheels and he could move.
Would you choose this product to win?
Chloe: I think overall it’s a lovely product and for the price, you can’t really go wrong. It inspires the imaginations of little ones which is incredibly important. It is a shame that it doesn’t do anything other than squirt water from the cannon and it does not float that well. The small parts can very easily go missing. I’m not sure if I’d choose this product above all others. Although it is enjoyable, it is also slightly lacklustre and loses its appeal very quickly as there is not a huge amount of things that can be done with it.
Anouska: When compared to other bath toys, this is definitely one of my son's favourites. Playmobil has made bath time an easy, stress-free activity for us now! It has outlived many other bath toys we had which have fallen apart quickly and had to be thrown out due to mould growing on them! This is far more hygienic.
Catherine: I do not think I would choose this product above all others on the market. It is a great product but it doesn't float particularly well. It sinks and overbalances quite a lot. This makes it difficult for it to be used for its main purpose. My daughter ignored the main part of it after a short while because it was hard for her to play with. The quality is great and I think this does stand out. There are aspects that are great but I do not think it should win due to the issue with it staying afloat.
What changes would you make to this product?
Leanne: I would make it so the characters clipped in place. This means when the boat is carried they stay in place and do not fall out/get lost. Apart from that, we were extremely pleased with the product and would definitely recommend it. We are happy with how it works and how compact it is. We would not let the above point prevent us from buying it but it would just make life easier. I would buy this as a gift for friends.
Louise: There are two things I would change. I would create a home for the bird so it could be on the boat somewhere. I would make the clips a bit tighter for the flag so that it doesn't come off so easily. Apart from those, the toy is a very enjoyable piece of kit and is going to be enjoyed by my daughter for a number of years.
Emma: When using the pirate ship in the bath it floats nicely. However, because the sides are a bit lower at the front and back it does let on water quite easily and then it will capsize. We found if we had just a small amount of water in the bath playing with it was more successful.