By Amanda Gurall
I recently had the pleasure of attending a preview of the fall launch for Journey Girls, a series of 18″ dolls produced and sold by Toys “R” Us. Five years ago they created this line of dolls and have since expended form four to seven different dolls to choose from. Each doll has her own backstory with varied interests but they all come together to travel the world, each year bringing them to a new country. Since Toys R Us is no longer in business, you can still find them on Amazon!
This fall the collection features Italy and all of the dolls have cute new outfits to travel in. None of them are specifically Italian (except one that says “ciao”), but all of them are true to the doll’s character and my daughter really loved the clothes. The dolls are a bit older looking than some 18″ dolls which is nice if your child wants to act out the story of the girls traveling on their own all over the world as my daughter did.
There are new outfits to buy separate from the dolls and I was happy with the quality at the price point. The dolls retail for $39.99 and the clothes average $16.99 and include shoes and accessories. They also sell furniture, a wheelchair/crutch pack and lots of new sets like a school, birthday celebration and a pet grooming set also due out this fall.
There is some educational value in the doll’s backstory and packaging which will hopefully inspire kids to do their own research and learn more about Italy. An example of this is the description of the doll my daughter picked out, Kelsey.
“Adventure seeker Kelsey will challenge herself by taking on the best hiking trails and exploring marine life within Italy’s 4,000-plus miles of coastline!”
I am a big believer in always trying to expand my children’s world view and to learn about new places and cultures so I appreciate this aspect of the series which sets it apart from the other 18″ doll series.
My eight year old daughter has two other dolls this size and her Journey Girl Kelsey fit right in with them, the clothes are mostly interchangeable with other dolls although the Journey dolls have thinner legs and smaller feet so some pants and shoes may not work on bigger dolls. Kelsey is able to stand in her shoes which was great. I think the rooted lashes and hair are nice and easy to maintain and her vinyl has good coloring and weight to it, adding to the durability over time. The collection is adorable and I am happy about the quality so i definitely recommend the Journey Girl collection to anyone who loves playing with or collecting dolls!
The age recommendation is 6 and up. There’s several exclusive to Amazon dolls now — find Journey Girls and accessories on Amazon.
This post contains affiliate links, we get a small percentage of your purchase price and you do not end up paying more.
Leave a Reply