The Melissa and Doug Folding Princess Castle is a great toy for Xmas 2008!

This well-made, wooden castle features hand-painted accents, removable turrets, balconies and a flag. It folds easily for storage and at only 16 lbs, is highly portable. There's even a working drawbridge! Your little princess will have hours of fun dreaming up royal adventures! 

Just follow this simple checklist to see if the folding princess castle is right for you:

* Do you have a daughter, granddaughter, niece? * Does this special little girl like princesses? * Does this little girl like dollhouses?

If you answered yes, then there's no better-suited toy for your special princess to play with this Christmas 2008.

The princess castle is made from natural wood with  screened flowery decorations. We buy all wood toys from Melissa and Doug's company because of their quality construction, non-toxic paint and materials, and excellent prices.

The Melissa and Doug Princess Castle has dimensions of 18" x 15" x 26" (Including the flag) and expands to 3 feet long when unfolded. The princess castle is larger than my daughter's dollhouse.

The roof and turrets of the folding princess castle are pink accented with gold, a very nice and touch. The quality is excellent, as are all Melissa & Doug items. Don't hesitate to buy this one - your little girl will love it. Once you see how beautiful and well-made it is, how big it is, and how your daughter can have a castle to rival that of any boy's knight castle, it's well worth it.

The flag on the folding princess castle is held on by a magnet, which does make sense since if it had been glued on it could easily be broken off. However, the flag can be lost easily. Being able to take it off easily lets my kids act out "capture the flag" storyline. I just have to move heaven and earth to find it when misplaced.

It's actually bigger than my son's castle, and he's soemtimes jealous! My kids play with theirs together and the hours of imagination and cooperative play with all the different story lines (his knights and her princesses) is just endless.

Continuing their long tradition of making quality toys for boys and girls, the Melissa and Doug Folding Princess Castle is a winner. Made of thick, quality wood, non-toxic paint, and expertly designed to fold and unfold, this toy is a sure hit for Christmas 2008.

The Melissa and Doug princess castle is colored pink, gold, and a bit of purple. It gives a professional and elegant appearance, which befits a castle. It’s high quality because it is obviously well made, as are many of the Melissa & Doug toys. Few details were left unaddressed in the making of the folding princess castle While its detailed design gives the appearance that the folding princess castle requires extensive set up, it’s actually a simple matter of unfolding it and adding on a few movable parts.

Because it is a folding castle you can remove it from the box and unfold it, without having to put pieces together. Then just place the turrets and towers and you're all set to play.

And at 16 pounds, you're not going to throw your back out lifting or transporting it. The flag on the folding princess castle is held on by a magnet, which does make sense since if it had been glued on it could easily be broken off. However, the flag can get lost, so watch out.

Some of the other changeable and moveable items on the Melissa and Doug Folding Princess Castle are Movable towers, dungeon, door and turrets. The castle is well equipped with wide balconies, a substantial courtyard, arched walkways, true flying buttresses, a fully functional drawbridge, a king or queen's flag, multiple staircases, and the entire princess castle can be opened to reveal a large courtyard play place.

It seems unlikely that you're going to find an high quality, well-made toy such as this one on the market for under $80. Because the Melissa and Doug Princess Castle combines two favorite playtime stories for girls, (princess role play and doll house play) it's a sure hit and a winning gift for Christmas 2008.

It's likely that the Melissa and Doug company will wins awards for their quality children's toys, and the folding princess castle is another feather in their cap. In the day and age of foreign toys painted with toxic materials and made with toxic plastics, it's both refreshing, patriotic and inspiring to see American toy makers reclaim their place in the toy world.

 You simply can't go wrong with the Melissa and Doug Folding Princess Castle. Imagine your daughter, granddaughter, or niece's reaction when they unwrap both a treasured and well-made dollhouse AND a princess castle. Your money will be very well spent this holiday season.