This is the most spectacular girls' toy I've ever personally experienced. Every morning it puts a huge smile not just on my kid's face, on mine too! Let me preface this by saying I am an anal, super-picky mom who prefers Grimm's (made in Germany), Camden Rose's (made in the USA), and Plan Toys' (made in Thailand) solid wood toys, hand-carved kitchen play sets etc. and Green Toys' (made in the USA) BPA/phthalate-free recycled plastic toys. I have also seen the whole gamut of solid wood, artisanal dollhouses. So initially I was hesitant to buy this dollhouse, which is made partly from MDF and plastic, though it also features solid wood. But boy have I been impressed by this Kidkraft castle. Took hubby about 4hrs to build it, he was meticulous and took his time, at some points deploying his power drill. All but one of the pieces fit as they were supposed to; the upper staircase took a bit of wrangling but was screwed into place just fine and looks fantastic. The instructions were clear enough and none were missing. The end result, a 5ft tall castle with a strikingly photogenic clock tower attic, is sturdy, gorgeous, and magical beyond both my and our kid's wildest dreams for a Disney dollhouse. No problems with the attic doors, which appear to have been recently redesigned (?) with better support so that they don't break off the hinges, unlike the earlier version of the attic doors photographed in some of the earlier reviews here. However, in an abundance of caution, I've instructed our kid never to snap the attic doors shut so that we leave them easier to open each time. No issue of flimsy staircases either; the lower staircase can get detached from its ledge if you play VERY roughly with it but why would you play THAT roughly with it? And no biggie, just clip it back on and it stays on quite firmly. This dollhouse fits all the Disney Classic Dolls as well as Barbies. It has fueled hours and hours of nonstop imaginative narrative. The painted details in each room and even on the exterior sides of the castle are so plentiful and well-illustrated that you and your kid could easily lose yourselves into another world. The plexiglass skylight over the attic is a particularly nice, "high-end" architectural touch if you will. Props to KidKraft for staying away from most shades of pink -- glad to see a predominantly NON-pink dollhouse for once! I highly recommend it to any doll/ dollhouse/ Disney lover, whether young or young-at-heart. There's always room for improvement, though. My design suggestions to KidKraft: (1) Make the balcony railing outside the master bedroom higher and therefore much more realistic. That way dolls leaning over the balcony railing won't fall off. It's odd that the balcony railing is so low, given the expected 11"-12" dolls occupying this castle. (2) Add a staircase or elevator from the 3rd floor to the attic floor. The attic, with its skylight, is such a magical space that it deserves an equally magical access point like a staircase spiraling up from the 3rd floor balcony. (3) The green "tile" floor of the kitchen is an odd color & materials choice and looks out of place. Strongly suggest changing to a cobblestone floor look or even a hardwood floor look, in keeping with medieval castle interiors. (4) How about adding a full partition wall with a doorway between the kitchen and bathroom, to enhance the realism of a private bathroom especially since there's a bathtub? (5) Please make some more medieval castle-inspired furniture to fill up the interiors. Would have loved to see a formal dining table & chair set for example. A dollhouse this spectacular deserves more plentiful accessories and furniture.
