Lego 41055: Cinderella’s Romantic Castle / Disney Princess

This is the biggie from the first wave of Disney Princess sets. We had held off getting this one…quite honestly because of the price point. But then Grandpa came to visit. I think you know where this goes.

Zoey jumped at the opportunity to get the castle. Within the Disney Princess line, this is the most impressive set by far. It’s not only the biggest and has the most pieces, but it also has the highest playability factor. The castle is filled with little nooks and crannies, and it’s rife with opportunities for imaginative play once assembled.

Plus, it’s an absolute must if you’re constructing a LEGO Disneyland.

Specs: 646 pieces; 5 bags; 2 sticker sheets; 3 base plates; ~205 steps over 147 pages (2 books); all told, it took the 5yo Roarbot about 5 hours to assemble everything.

First up, in Bag 1, are the “accessories” to the castle. There’s a little swing and a table and chairs beneath a small tree. Plus, there’s Cinderella, her prince, a cat, and a dog. Our two biggest complaints about this set are also right here, in the first bag.

LEGO trees are notoriously fragile. The snap in half with the slightest breeze. So it should come as no surprise that the trees here come apart very easily. The round brown pieces that make up the trunk have a hole through the center, so it really wouldn’t be that hard to supply a rod that spears through the trunk to provide support. (We recently put together another set that had exactly that.)

Also, at this price point (MSRP is $69.99), why only two minifigures/mini-dolls? This is our biggest complaint with both of the “girl-friendly” lines. They’re very light on the minifigures. By contrast, we recently picked up a Star Wars set for about the same price that came with 8 minifigures! In terms of playability, the kids would rather have more minifigs than fiddly little (non-brick) pieces.

Both Friends and Disney Princess sets have tons of flowers, hairbrushes, heart decorations, etc. Give us more pieces we can use to build and fewer pieces whose sole purpose is to sit inside a teeny drawer or treasure chest.

Despite those (relatively minor) complaints, this is really a great set. It’s not as big as the pictures on the box might want you to believe, but what LEGO set is?

Like I said, there are lots of little rooms and nooks and crannies to play with here. The first floor has a living room with couch and fireplace, a library, and a bathroom. The second floor has a bedroom and balcony. Up in the tower is a “secret” room with a treasure chest inside and above that—at the tippy top of the tower—is the cat’s bed. Who knows how it’s supposed to get up there.

The library bookcase (lower right picture, below) also swings out to reveal a hidden compartment and key (for the secret tower room)! If only it led to the Batcave.

Verdict? A great set that both kids love. It’s a challenging build with high playability, despite being a little fragile (especially the tower). Not surprisingly, it pairs wonderfully with Cinderella’s Dream Carriage. Now we just have to get to work on the rest of Fantasyland.