Author's product rating: 
| Advantages: |
Entertaining & Fun (for all kids), Encourages Crawling & Cruising, Colourful, Versatile, 2 music modes, teaches dexterity, grows with child, multiple activities, ball holder |
| Disadvantages: |
Space requirements, volume, music is on the annoying side - only three songs, doesn't fold, potential safety hazard, heavy, batteries run out quickly |
| Recommend to potential buyers: |
yes |
Christopher has been rolling around, army crawling and attempting to get more and more mobile every day. His interest in his Entertainer has been dwindling, as he didn't want to be contained in it for more than a few minutes at a time. Christopher’s Granny saw the Fisher Price Crawl 'n Cruise Playground in Toys r Us and after seeing Christopher pull himself up on her sofa and bop around to some music whilst holding their remote control and changing channels, she thought it would make a good gift for him.
** ASSEMBLY **
This gym comes in no fewer than 16 parts, which must be connected, mostly with screws. My husband put it together in no time at all. No sighing, frustrated sounds or crumpled paper, either. Directions were clear and parts were easily identifiable. It took him almost 30 mins to do so using an electric screwdriver.
This toy also requires 3 AA size batteries, which are not included. The battery cover is sealed with a Phillips head screw. WE have found we need to change batteries frequently.
** SIZE **
This toy once assembled is about the same size as a stationary entertainer, it takes up about the same room as our Entertainer did both in height and diameter. In a nutshell, that’s pretty big. Expect to give up a nice portion of your living area because the toy itself is about 2 feet wide, by 2 feet high and needs room around it on all sides for cruising purposes. Because of its size it is somewhat heavy. The bulk is an advantage in that the toy provides excellent support for babies to pull up and stand.
** WHAT IT HAS **
- 6 colourful, textured balls
- ball storage "trays" under centre ball chute
- 2 side ball chutes and one middle chute (with a "trick" door)
- face with a spinning nose
- plastic ball that attaches
- movable "arm" that if down can be used for crawlers and if up can be used for "walkers"
- triggered sound effects
- moving, colourful lights
** CONFIGURATIONS **
The Crawl 'n Cruise Playground is designed to "grow" with your child through these developmental milestones with 3 stages of play using 2 different configurations. How you set it up will depend on if your child is a crawler/beginning cruiser Stage 1 and Stage 2 or a confident cruiser/walker (Stage 2 and Stage 3). It’s easy to switch between configurations because the yellow ring folds up and snaps into place.
The power switch has three modes: OFF, CRAWL (which is set on motion sensors so that when your child moves the music
starts) and CRUISE (this allows your child to manually control when the music plays by activating one of several toys around the top ring)
** STAGE 1: CRAWL 'N PLAY **
In this stage the playground looks sort of like a stationary entertainer without the seat. The intention is for your child to crawl under the yellow arch and into the centre of the toy itself.
While the Crawl 'n Cruise Playground is "large" in comparison to other indoor toys its not mammoth. The inside area of the toy is actually quite cosy for a crawler or young toddler. The archway is a bit low, Christopher has plenty of clearance crawling under, but should he sit or kneel up he will bump his head on the plastic arch.
There are stationary toys inside of the Crawl 'n Cruise Playground to encourage Christopher to crawl inside. There are six lights on the
activity ring: two green, and one each of orange, red, blue, and purple. On the left side is a big oval spinning mirror; Christopher loves to look at his reflection as well as spinning it around. In the centre there is a great big bright blue happy face, which has a spinning red & white ball for a nose. On the right side there is an inflatable clear ball with some other coloured balls inside of it. While the mirror and spinning nose are "fun" this inflatable ball is the toy, which interests Christopher the most. Its lightweight, fun to pull, punch, bat at, etc etc.
Next turn the switch on your Crawl 'n Cruise Playground to ON and to CRAWL mode, an optical sensor is activated on the bottom of the activity ring so that the music and lights will start when Christopher crawls inside. The sensor is a little too sensitive in my opinion, and any motion will cause the toy to cycle randomly among the three songs, making a skipping sound. Batting at the inflatable ball triggers the sensor as well. The music leaves a bit to be desired. Christopher loves the Baby Play zone Stand-Up Ball Blast, which has excellent, fun, techno type music effects. Unlike other musical Fisher Price toys, we have a jazzed up version of Pop goes the weasel and If you're happy and you know it. They play over and over, triggered by any simple movement of the sensor. The sensor is also light sensitive and if your child's clothing is similar to your carpeting it may "confuse" the sensor. I have also found that the sensor does not work as well in lower lighting situations and in the evening where there is a lack of daylight. Also, if you have pets, you may want to make sure you shut it off before going to bed so you aren't frightened out of your wits in the middle of the night when your dog/cat walks past it.
** STAGE 2: PULL UP 'N CRUISE **
With the yellow arch still in the down position and the switch remaining in the CRAWL mode, the Crawl 'n Cruise Playground can also be enjoyed by cruisers of all stages. This Playground is made of a sturdy plastic and is heavily weighted so that your child can use it to pull to standing position on. This toy will not tip over and has no sharp edges or corners.
The shape of the Crawl 'n Cruise Playground being almost round like a doughnut makes this toy twice as much fun. Christopher can play with it from either the centre of the "doughnut" or along the outside. From either position there is plenty for him to grab onto, reach for, which encourages him to move around and get mobile. Along the top are toys geared towards the young toddlers. On the left, a lime green dial, which resembles a rotary dial phone, and an orange roller wheel that is mounted vertically. Both of these toys are hooked into the light/music show and will activate flashing lights and start the play of slightly annoying music. The faster the wheel and dial are turned, the faster the music plays. So, if you ever wondered what Pop Goes the Weasel on speed sounded like - here is your chance, lol. Where is the volume control on this? Sorry to tell you, only one volume level - Loud!
And last, but not least, the best part of the Crawl 'n Cruise Playground in Cruise mode... BALLS. The top side of the yellow archway is shaped like a slide and there are 2 drop holes which balls can slide down into, one on each side. In the centre, between the dial and roller wheel, there is also a ball chute, for even more ball play. The Ball chute is set up so you set the ball in and then turn a dial to make the ball drop, lights flash, and music to play. Whichever way the ball enters, the ball will travel around the sides and eventually exit through one of the small holes on the lower bottom side front of the unit. This makes for a great game of "now you see it, now you don't. So, Christopher will be "chasing" balls around in no time - pulling himself up, dropping the ball, only to repeat the cycle. I get tired watching, but this is fun for little ones and great exercise too! This part is just plain cool, lots of fun. Fisher Price was smart enough this time around, to include ball storage for all 6 balls in the lowest section of the Crawl 'n Cruise Playground. Unfortunately, you can’t purchase additional balls, or replacement balls.
** STAGE 3: STAND 'N BOP **
When your child can walk, Crawl 'n Cruise Playground changes yet again. This stage is intended for the child who is confident cruising or able to walk. To convert the Crawl 'n Cruise Playground from CRAWL mode to CRUISE, simply by pressing a latch on each side of the activity ring, you can raise half of the ring so that it is in a vertical position. The inflatable ball can then be repositioned so that it hangs from the top of this arch, where baby can stand and bat at it confidently, in addition to participating in any of the other activities that I've already mentioned.
In this mode, the function of the Crawl 'n Cruise Playground is similar, but the configuration is more friendly towards a child who is in the vertical position already. In this configuration, you lose the ability to use the yellow archway as a slide for the balls, but still have the funky ball chute and 2 other drop zones on the side of the unit. By moving the inflatable ball into the new position, you have essentially changed the location of the sensor into centre stage, plus it looks sort of like a disco ball. When in the "up" position it stands around 30 inches or so at the highest point.
** A FEW MINOR DRAWBACKS **
I have discovered a design problem with this toy. First, the arch has only 26" of clearance. I suspect that most babies of standing age are taller than 26" and will therefore hit their heads on the arch. The tethered ball hanging down seems to discourage walking under the arch, but then what is the point of having the side of the toy open up if babies aren't supposed to walk in?
Turning the power switch to "crawling mode" turns on the automatic sensor. You must remember to turn the power off when you're done playing, because the sensor is triggered by changes in lighting and by contrast in colour. If you mistakenly leave the power on, a change in lighting may cause the music to play at the most inopportune time, such as when your little one is sleeping. In addition, the sensor will not work well in a dimly lit room or if Christopher is wearing the same colour clothing as your flooring.
The Crawl 'n Cruise Playground is just a bit cramped on the inside. There isn't a lot of room, for instance, to go from a crawling position to a sitting position without Christopher banging his head. If he falls while standing inside the product, another bump is inevitable. While I wouldn't necessarily want this toy to be larger (it just clears the doorway now), it is important to know that close supervision is necessary, especially for those whose skills are just emerging.
Though not prohibitive, the music is a little loud and is right at ear level for a child who is sitting, or crawling inside the toy. Volume adjustment is, unfortunately, not possible. Songs are a bit too short, you just get grooving and they are over.
This would be fantastic for trips to Grandma and Grandpa's, but it eats up space in the car, wish it folded.
The buttons which activate the inflatable ball are protrusions and can be annoying if not a little dangerous. The button on the arch points straight down when the toy is in crawl mode, Christopher has to negotiate around it when crawling inside the gym.
** STOCKISTS **
I have seen the playground in
Mothercare, Argos, Toys R Us and all other major stores Fisher price stockists for the price of £45.
** THE BOTTOM LINE **
This toy has quickly become a favourite with Christopher. I can't tell you how many times I've looked at him and said, "Let's go play Crawl 'n Cruise!" The look of sheer joy on his face due to his newfound independence (he sure loves standing) coupled with the fact that it can entertain him for hours on end makes it a product that I now can't imagine being without. Really, that's it. This is a fantastic toy to occupy your child for a while and we love it. It is expensive so I would recommend you search out a second hand one.
A definite recommendation from our son and us!
Thank you for reading! :-)
Display pictures
The crawl n cruise playground |
