Customer Reviews

Step2 Naturally Playful Playhouse Climber & Swing Extension

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

If you're looking at plastic sets in this price range, stop looking: this is the best there is.

Set up wasn't too bad, took 2 of us maybe a couple hours (tops). As another reviewer said, the boxes are huge - couldn't close the tailgate in our SUV, but they did fit (somewhat angled) in our minivan.

The play options are perfect for our 2 year old. The slide isn't too short (as many of the Little Tikes options were), it accomodates a toddler bucket swing (though it does not come with one), and saves us from buying a seperate playhouse as well.

The plastic is very sturdy (much wider/thicker than the competition's) and the 'naturally playful' color option means it doesn't 'scream' from the backyard. It blends quite nicely.

We expect to get several more years out of this one, and then to recover some of our cost by reselling it at a local consignment sale. VERY worth our outlay!

UPDATE 11/29/2010: More than 5 years later, and it's still going strong! My kids mostly use it for the swings now, and they are beginning to get a bit 'small' for them (don't swing high enough, etc) - but they are 4.5yo and almost 8yo now. I would never have guessed that it would last us this long. It has faded a bit from the sun, but evenly (not patchy) and the colors are still pleasing overall. We definitely feel like we've gotten our money's worth out of it!

We just got this swingset for our 18 month old son. It was really easy to put together. Only took us about 15 minutes for the climber part. The slide is a nice size for all ages. Our some wasn't too small for it and I think he will like it for a long time. Can't say too much more about it since we just got it, but so far we have been really impressed.

FYI. The cartons are huge. We took both of our cars (an SUV and a stationwagon) and they wouldn't fit in either car. We had to borrow a neighbors truck to haul it.

WE recently bought this for our 2 yr old son as a bday present.I thought it was the perfect combo between a playhouse and swingset. First off the box it comes in is huge so it had to be taken out of the box to fit into my car (large SUV). When we got it home... it was a little complicated to put together. We got it together finally only to find out our son was too tall to fit in the house under the platform. He is only 2 and not incredibly tall for his age. Also he barely fit down the slide.. it is very narrow. We ended up having to take it apart and return it. I don't know how a 3 yr old would ever fit in the playhouse section.

Most of what I would say has been covered already - I rate it 5 out of 5 stars for comparable toys. Very sturdy construction and looks good in earth tones rather than kiddie colors.

One warning: Nooks and crannies for wasps to hide in. This would be an issue for any play structure though.

The one trick is getting the slide in when assembling. I have had to put it together a few times (relocating it from basement to backyard, back to basement)

The trick is to NOT have the three burgundy pieces in - you only have the two sides and the deck - you then can squeeze the bottoms of the two big pieces together. If you push so that the two side pieces are parallel, the slide pretty much drops into place. When you release the bottoms, the tops close together and trap the slide.

Another way is to tilt the tower away from the slide - this allows the slide to slip in - you need to tilt it at least 30 degrees from vertical.

If you've found this review helpful, please let me know!

I like the Naturally Playful colors. I appreciate the colors blending in with my house and yard and not standing out like a clown house.

This product is very well designed for pieces fitting together - the slide being the one tricky part. I highly recommend laying the structure on its side or its back (for the slide) at various parts of the building process. It took me 1.5 hours in the dark with my mother-in-law. I recommend using a ratchet instead of the accompanying plastic tool. And a note to not put the very top piece on until you have attached the swing extension.

I think the cost is a bit high, but it is within the price range of other similar products.

This product is targeted for the younger end of its advertised spectrum. My 22 month old just adores it! The "secret playhouse" should be considered a secret hide-out as opposed to a house, but crawling in and out of it is part of the fun for my daughter.

This is perferct for toddlers. Very Durable. Very Safe It has faded some. The Big pain is when you move it...if the slide pops out is is impossible to get back in.We have had this swing set for about 5 years. My girls are 6 & 8 they say they are to small for it.."Its for a baby". I wish for the money I paid for this one I would of gotten a wood set or rainbow. My girls have played many more hours on the cheap walmart (...) one at grandparents house.Adults cant fit in swing(NO I'M NOT FAT EITHER).So I am donating ours to Church.
Perfect for short term ...kids out grow it fast.

I recently purchased this item via the internet (it was on sale, over $100 off!). My husband and his brother put the swingset together in roughly two hours. I had never seen the item in person before, just a picture on the internet! The swingset is attractive and goes well with landscaping. However, there are a few things that I do not like about the swingset. The main thing is the play house underneath the slide. It is very small. It would probably be okay for a 1 1/2 or 2 year old child but my 3 year old barely fits underneath and rarely uses the playhouse. I have put a small chair inside so that she can go inside and sit because standing is not an option. Also, my 3 year old had some problems with sliding down the slide. I recommend that you take a sheet of wax paper and rub it over the slide (it works). It is also recommended that two holes are dug, cement poured and swingset stakes be planted inside of the cement. If not, you will notice that frequent swinging will bring up the stakes. My daughter does love the swings and yesterday I purchased a toddler swing by Step 2 for my six month old daughter so that she can enjoy the swingset as well. My 3 year old also loves the slide and loves to climb on the tower above the play house. All in all, I do like this product but I would recommend seeing it in person before purchasing it.

We just got this set for our 2 year old and she just loves it. It only took my husband less than 2 hours to put it together, I helped a little. It doesn't take up alot of room yet you still get 2 swings, a slide and a playhouse. I also like the fact that the slide is off the ground so when she slides down it she (almost always) lands on her feet. We had to take it out of the box to get it in our mini van. The instructions aren't that great but you can figure out what needs to go where.

This prodcut is a godd beginning swing set for smaller children. We bought this for our 18 mos. old to bridget he gap to a larger swing set a few years down the line. He loves it! He is still a little small to do everything by himself but it is the perfect size for him.

The colors look good, and are not the usual circus colors that most sets like these are. The playhouse is a good size, the deck and slide are a great size for our son, and two swings means that he can swing with a friend. He will grow into this set nicely.

There are some downsides to this set. First, it comes intwo HUGE boxes. I would suggest taking everything out of the boxes, this will help get it into one vehicle. I got all but the two biggest parts into my PT Cruiser. The other two parts I was able to strap down easy enough to my roof. If I would not have taken it out of the boxes I would have never been able to get it home by myself. My second problem was with assembly. I read the reviews, and a couple mention that it took them a couple hours and that they wish they would have done this or done that differently. I of course said "What are they talking about I can have this together in no time." Let me jsut say it took me 2 hours and I was glad no one was around to hear me complain about how horrible the instructions are. They are pictures, virtually no words. Some of the pictures are not very clear and easily understood. The BIG problem with the instructions was that I put the playhouse together first, completed it and started the extension. Big mistake. To get the swing on I had to take apart a portion of the playhouse that I had just put together. Very frustrating to say the least.

All in all I think this is a good beginning set, just don't expect it to entertain older kids (3+). I would recommend the set, not the assembly, so if you can afford it and know someone brave enough to put it together for a price, then it would be worth every penny for assembly.

We just bought and set-up today, so we haven't really given the product a FULL test drive. But, so far we are very pleased. We have a 2.5 year old and a 1 year old, and I think this play set is going to work great. I did a lot of comparison shopping and for the money, it seems like a good deal. This product was a 2nd choice for me behind the Little Tikes Playcenter Playgound, but for the savings (Step2 is $400 cheaper--retail), I talked myself out of the more expensive one.

The set-up was surprisingly easy (1 hour, maybe) with 2 adults and the little one running off with smaller parts. It seems durable, secure, and safe. I wish the part the swings hang from could be made out of different material (other than metal) as we live at the beach and know we will be replacing it after the salt air corrodes it. The only other undesirable feature is that the slide surface is fairly course. I'm thinking the point is to keep kids from sliding too fast (safely issue), but personally I would have liked a very smooth surface. Since we live where we do (Central FL), my girls will be sliding down in bathing suits which I imagine will get pretty snagged up from the rough surface. Otherwise, it will be fine when wearing shorts/pants. I like the colors very much (the naturally playful series is newer and slightly different) and it looks very nice in the yard. I also like how low the swings are in the lowest setting as my 2.5 year-old was able to put herself in the seat for the first time ever.