Review: 42673 Family Holiday Beach Resort
Posted by MeganL,
After going for a ride in 42659 Friendship Road-trip Travel Car, and taking a cruise in 42664 Travel Boat Adventure, we finally learn where all the Friends were headed to! Their apparent destination is 42673 Family Holiday Beach Resort. It's very fitting that the Friends vacation together! This is the largest set in this wave.
Sometimes, I wonder whether LEGO designers have seed part challenges, with results becoming LEGO sets on occasion. In 42673, we see a new use for a roller coaster rail, in what might be the first use of the part other than its original intended purpose.
Summary
42673 Family Holiday Beach Resort, 1,140 pieces.
£119.99 / $129.99 / €129.99 | 10.5p / 11.4c / 11.4c per piece.
Buy at LEGO.com »
A fun play set with a beachy theme
- Six minidolls
- New wheelchair piece
- Novel use of roller coaster rails
- Plenty of resort activities
- A little on the expensive side
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
Inside the perfect box there are 12 numbered bags, 1 unnumbered bag containing four roller coaster rails, two slide pieces and three larger plates, and an instruction package with six instruction books and a sticker sheet. I don't think the sticker sheet is excessive for a set of this size, especially since a good portion of them seem to be upholstery.
Minidolls
There are six minidolls included in this set. First is Aron, who gets around in a minidoll wheelchair that's present here in a new colour. I like his very colourful shirt, and he's recently visited the ice cream shop at the resort, as he has an enormous ice cream.
Sage also comes with an accessory - a metal detector! According to the set description, Nova is here with her family on holiday, and Sage is her sister. They have the same colour hair, and I think that Nova has had a similar smirk on her face before. Sage's hair piece is seen in this colour for the first time. I love the Farrah Fawcett type styling! (I'm thinking that reference dates me!)
The other minidolls don't have accessories, but are interesting nonetheless. First there's Liann, who is wearing the swim goggles that drives my camera crazy, dressed for the resort with a fun asymmetric top with palm leaf detailing. Mischa is the resort manager, so identified with a discreet brass name badge and professional khaki shorts. Next up is Christopher, who we meet here for the first time. Between his long hair and soul patch, I initially thought he was a surfing instructor at the resort, but apparently he's Nova's dad. I can see why his children have a penchant for longer hair.
Finally, there's Nova who is wearing a fun hoodie that we've seen before of a very long sausage dog. It makes me wonder where Pickle is - I guess this isn't a pet friendly resort!
There are animals in this set - one is a dolphin, and the other is hiding, which we'll see in the following pictures.
The completed model
There's a small side build of two floating loungers. An umbrella is there but doesn't provide much shade, but more importantly, there are two tropical drinks on board for the Friends to enjoy.
The floating loungers are also equipped with a slide, though I imagine getting up from a seated position to get to the slide would considerably endanger the stability of the whole craft. But I'm sure it's fun!
The resort is quite expansive, and it's clear there are plenty of things for the vacationers to enjoy.
Starting on the left side of the resort, there's a dock (maybe where the vacationers arrive?), and an expansive beach.
The bucket and spade aren't just typical beach accessories, there's also a spot available to place a minidoll to "bury" them in the sand. Also in the area is a rock that can be lifted up to find some change underneath - Sage's work with the metal detector will pay off (literally!).
A shower is next to the dock so that the vacationers coming out of the water can rinse off before heading to the rest of the resort.
It's right next to the equipment rental shop, where holiday-goers can get surfboards and snorkel fins.
The main entrance of the resort has a very casual check in counter that doesn't take up much of room. That's understandable, though - most of the area is taken up with sun loungers (non-floating, this time) which is a much more important use of the space. You can see some of the details of the resort room past the open doorway. Apparently, dolphins are a common sight here as they're prominently featured in the resort's logo above the door.
The Friends might have to roust out some usurpers of those loungers.
(Note: lounge-usurping sloths not included in this set.)
The right side of the resort prominently features the slide, which can be accessed by a ladder that has steps carved in a rock. The top of the slide sits perched atop a waterfall.
Found here is another sea faring animal - this time a crab, though it's the first time I've seen one in a set this year that hasn't snagged an ice lolly. Perhaps that's something that's upcoming - after all, the ice cream shop is not far away.
Taking a closer look at this section, we get a close up of the waterfall. When the Friends tire of water-based activities, they can always spend some time at the firepit, which has a roaring fire going.
The hut next to the waterfall has shutter doors that lead to - what else? - the obligatory Friends bathroom in this set.
Turning our attention to the back of the model, we find that there's a little surprise behind some greenery behind the waterfall. What a cute little turtle! We see here that there's soon to be two.
It's a little surprising that for an entire resort, there's only one bathroom, but at least there's one. It has all the necessities, and I like the sticker used to show a mirror with a shell frame.
Behind the ice cream stand there's a cooler with additional ice cream, along with an ice cream scoop for serving.
The main accommodation of the resort looks like a very swanky suite on two levels. There's room for three to spend the night - probably Nova and her family. I guess Aron and Liann are left to fend for themselves. I'm sure sleeping on the beach will be great!
The top floor just has two beds, but with some tulips to provide a bit of additional colour.
The ground floor of the suite has a bed, a side table with sunscreen and a plant, and a nice mosaic throw rug in the centre.
The other side of the suite shows a fancy lounging chair, a pineapple, some chocolate, and two more refreshing tropical drinks for the guests.
As always, snacks and drinks attract visitors.
(Note: tropical drink sipping sloth not included in the set.)
Like the ice cream stand, the rear of the rental shop has all the accessories needed for the active Friends. Paddles, fins and helmets can all be found here. This picture also shows how the roller coaster tracks are used as a frame for the resort, covered in rock plate pieces. I think it's effective in giving a thatched roof look.
Overall thoughts
This is the first resort that I remember in the Friends world. There have been hotels, and water parks, but nothing quite like this. There's plenty to do with the floating lounger, the water slide, a waterfall, beachcombing (and metal detecting), and more. I like that there's a good population of Friends at the resort, even if there aren't enough beds for all the guests! This was a complaint quite frequently in the early years of Friends sets, as there were very few minidolls in the larger sets. I think six is a good number for a set this size. I also like the inclusion of a character in a wheelchair in a vacation location - another good check for diversity for the Friends team.
This set checks all the boxes of what you'd expect to see in a large Friends set - cute animals, a slide, some food pieces, some small moving functions, and of course, a bathroom. The use of roller coaster rail pieces for the framing of the resort is novel and quite effective with the rock pieces as thatching.
There are some interesting parts and recolours in this set, a parts list can be found here.
As with many Friends sets this year, I think this is a little on the pricy side. It's fun, gives lots of play value, but I think would be a much better investment if it was around $20 less.
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10 comments on this article
I feel like in some way this is an evolved version of Paradisa, and I can’t decide if I love it or not, it has all the trappings of paradise and leisure, but nontraditional Lego figures, maybe if they were regular figures it would lock me in as a devoted fan, because who doesn’t want to go for a tropical stroll on the beach while sipping a piña colada?
What do you think guys? Is this the modern Paradisa? Or fundamentally something else?
'It's fun, gives lots of play value, but I think would be a much better investment if it was around $20 less.'
Just as well it's already £50 off (42%) at Amazon!
Currently at 42% off on Amazon, much better price
This is one set where I do see quite a lot of stuff, but is it all that interesting to build for kids?
Looking at my niece, who ahs had a number of Friends sets, I just know she would never finish this.
No dolphin
If you use 4 identical stickers printing seems a good choise
Oh no, they let Nova near the animals again! D:
@WizardOfOss said:
"This is one set where I do see quite a lot of stuff, but is it all that interesting to build for kids?
Looking at my niece, who ahs had a number of Friends sets, I just know she would never finish this."
Can't speak to your niece in particular, but the build of this is fairly modular, with various sections (the hotel, beachfront, dock, corner stalls, spa and slide) built separately and then attached together. Breaking up builds like that (so that you can build part of the set and immediately play with it instead of having to wait until the whole thing is done) tends to be a pretty good way to ensure that even kids with shorter attention spans can stay motivated and entertained throughout.
I really like this one! I saw it built out and displayed in my local Lego store and I knew I had to obtain. The resort building reminds me of the Poly at WDW. Friends- especially this set - do a great job of offering an immersive play experience. It is expensive but a discount locks in this being one of my favorite sets of the year for Friends. Nice and expansive review per usual! Now looking forward to the 2026 wave...
Yeah the price seems weird. Feels like 100$ set.
STill its a great playset, that has everything you need for this setting.