Playmobil Advent Calendars 2011

Playmobil Advent calendars feature real Playmobil toys - one item a day for the 24 days in December before Christmas. These are good items too, including figures and resulting in a good collection of quality Playmobil. Note that there are more than 24 individual pieces, on some days you get multiple small pieces. 

A lot of people prefer a calendar with toys to a chocolate or candy calendar - they don't want their kids to have sugary treats every day. 

The 2011 Playmobil calendars each have a cardboard scene that you set up before you start revealing the toys. The toys are then placed on the scene to build it up, helping to create excitement towards Christmas. 

Some people pack their Playmobil advent calendars away after Christmas and reuse them in future years. This is a fun traditional to have and works well with the Christmas-themed calendars such as this year's Christmas Post Office. 

Others add the Playmobil to their toy collections after Christmas and treat the toys as an additional Christmas gift. This approach works well with the calendars that don't have a specific holiday theme like this year's Dinosaur Expedition and Emperor's Knights Tournament. You actually get quite a lot of Playmobil for your money in each set and this is proper quality Playmobil. You might as well let your kids play with it rather than have it sat in the attic all year. 

Now we'll look at the three official Playmobil Advent Calendars announced for the US market in 2011. (Note that some of these calendars have previously been available in Europe.)

In the Playmobil Christmas Post Office you get to build up a lovely Christmas preparation scene. Santa and the elves are packing the sleigh ready for Christmas Eve. 

Contents

Figures: Santa, Elf x 2, Angel
Other Large Pieces: Reindeer, Post Office Counter, Christmas Tree, Red Post Box

And a cat and dog, lots of toys and decorations and accessories. 

The Story

One of things we love about Playmobil is the lovely stories they build around their toys. Here's their desciption:

In the detailed Christmas Post Office advent calendar, the cute little angel is passing the children's letters on to Father Christmas. He is looking after the requests personally. Two Christmas elves are loading the reindeer sled for the next delivery. The red postbox is already full of letters again - will they have everything ready in time?

That should get you in the mood for Christmas!

I'm tempted by this one. I do like the idea of having a specifically Christmas-themed calendar that becomes a family tradition and comes out every year

 The Dinosaur Expedition calendar features a scene with palentologists and dinosaurs and their remains. Maybe they travelled back in time? Or maybe it's the future when dinosaurs have been cloned! We don't know but you can have great fun coming up with ideas and building up the scene over 24 days. 

Contents

Figures: 2 Paleontologists
Dinosaurs: Velociraptor, dinosaur skeleton, hatchling and egg, nest with two eggs
Other large items: Motorbike, scenery 

And lots of small creatures and palentology accessories. 

Note that smaller items are grouped so on some days you get related pieces. 

The Story

The Dinosaur Expedition story from Playmobil:

Two explorers make a sensational discovery in the Dinosaur Expedition advent calendar. Besides the fully intact dinosaur skeleton, they come across a dinosaur baby in an egg. Care needs to be taken, however, as the mother is guarding her baby and the two eggs in the nest.

My boys are dinosaur mad so the Dinosaur Expedition is an obvious choice. But there is some overlap with the other dinosaur Playmobil sets that we own. We already have a dinosaur skeleton and some paleontologists. On the other hand, I have two boys and they would certainly play with the extra pieces. Definitely a strong contender for our Christmas 2011. 

The Emperor's Knights Tournament is part of the Playmobil medieval knights range. This calendar includes everything you need to stage a grand jousting tournament between to brave knights, presided over by the Emperor and his gorgeous owl. 

Contents

Figures: 2 brave knights, king, prince
Other large pieces: 2 (brave) horses, throne, barrier, owl on perch

This set is also packed with royal costume accessories, swords, shields and armor.  

The Story

The official story behind the tournament from Playmobil:

Exciting knight battles are ensured in the Emperor Knights Tournament advent calendar. The brave Lion knight is facing his challenger, the perilous looking Falcon knight. The king is giving the sign for the start of the fight. Who will win? 

We go and watch jousting tournaments every summer. The boys like to dress up as knights and have jousting tournaments in the living room on their hobby horses! Yes, medieval knights are very popular in our house too. And personally, I really want that owl.

The 3 Advent Calendars above are the official sets for the US market for 2011. But you can still buy other Playmobil Advent Calendars. There have been some very cool sets in the past including Dragon Knights, Pony Ranch and the gorgeous Xmas in the Forest. 

More Playmobil Advent Calendars

Lego Star Wars Advent Calendar
Don't miss the new Lego Star Wars Advent Calendar for 2011.