Playmobil City Life Bin Lorry

PLAYMOBIL GARBAGE TRUCK: Move over tractors, Bam Bam has a new favourite vehicle. Thanks to our friends at Playmobil, it is the bin lorry. The City Life range of playsets includes a huge number of vehicles and structures from daily life. These include playgrounds, schools and school buses along with a selection of urban buildings like petrol stations. We have been given a bin lorry to test out.

It may not sound particularly glamorous or exciting, but WOAH BOY does Bam Bam like it. We’ve got a selection of wheelie bins, some rubbish (including fish skeletons, cans and bottles) and two hard-working bin men. And they have their lorry. Oh, the lorry. It has got a flashing light in the front, the cabin opens, the rear section tips and lifts. You can attach the bins and use a simple lever to tip the rubbish into the lorry. Quite frankly, it is a source of endless fun and fascination.

What to expect

This set is the same excellent quality that you would expect from Playmobil (you can read about my lifelong love of the stuff on my last review.) Everything works beautifully with little hands. I admit that we have refrained from adding the stickers to the set just yet because she loves to pick and peel. The bin man can hold his radio and the bin. The bins and the dumpster attach easily to the lorry to be lifted and emptied. The truck itself is robust and can roll a fair distance with a hefty push from the young ‘un.

This set will stay with us for years, as I imagine the stories that accompany it will become more complex and detailed. At the moment “in, on, out” is the main narrative, but that works very well for us. Thursdays are now the focus of great excitement in our household. On Thursdays, our real live bin men visit. Bammers watches the bins being collected and emptied in just the same way as with her toy. And there is much rejoicing.

Urban Life

Since time immemorial children have played with toys that reflect the world around them. This is just another example of that. It is a phenomenal hit in our house. The pieces can be easily stored inside the body of the lorry making it quick and easy to put away. It will become the basis for conversations about recycling and waste, along with useful exercises about sorting rubbish (or sorting and categorizing anything really). Of course, it is effortless to combine it with other Playmobil sets. Who knew that the humble Playmobil garbage truck could bring so much joy?

Thank you to Playmobil who sent us this set for review purposes. Bam Bam’s love of the bin lorry is unrelated to the complimentary nature of the toy.