Hitting the road this spring? Toy Insider’s Chief Toy Officer Laurie Schacht stopped by Cityline to show off the best new toys of the spring and summer to keep kids entertained on long road trips. For more on the items featured in this segment, check out the product notes below, and for the complete rundown of the best toys of the spring and summer, be sure to check our complete Toy Insider Spring and Summer Gift Guide.
MAKE AND GIVE MINI HEART BOWLS (ANN WILLIAMS GROUP)
- Small on size but big on sparkle, these 3 bowls made of glitter and glue are iridescently irresistible.
- Make fie sparkly heart-shaped bowls that feature glitter and an encouraging word or emoji.
- Everything you need to make each set of these trendy mini bowls is right in the box.
- Easy and fun to make! Start with the molds, and paint on each layer, wait until dry, and then paint on the next layer.
- The mini-heart bowls come with special messages to put into the bowl, so you can make and share them.
- When finished, your iridescent and glitter bowls will be ready to hold your tiny keepsakes!
- Age: 7+
- MSRP: $14.99
- Available:
HAIRDORABLES COLLECTIBLES SERIES 2 AND HAIRDORABLES PETS SERIES 1 (JUST PLAY)
- The girl squad with “Big Hair Don’t Care” attitudes are back for Series 2, now with ALL NEW styles and NEW Color Reveal accessories!
- Just pull, peel, and reveal 11 SURPRISES that unwrap the personality and passion of the Hairdorables girl hidden inside – the fashions, hairstyles and accessories all show her unique style and talent!
- Each doll is based on one of the 12 iconic girls from the Hairdorables YouTube videos, and these BFFs live up to the “Hairdorables” name with a variety of unique luxe hairstyles in vibrant colors!
- Collect all 26 Hairdorables new dolls (including 1 rare and 1 ULTRA-rare).
- Meet the newest members of the Hairdorables #SQUAD! The Hairdorables Pets are just about the cutest fur-friends you’ve ever seen!
- Lovable, loyal, and with lots of “Big Hair Don’t Care” style, the Hairdorables Pets express their unique personalities!
- Each pet comes with their own brush, so girls can style their Hairdorables Pet’s hair, just like their Hairdorables Dolls!
- Each pet includes 2 accessories, 2 stickers, one brush, one adoption card, and one collector list.
- There are 24 amazingly adorable pets to collect across Series 1 (including 1 ULTRA-rare).
- Pull, peel, and reveal 8 surprises inside!
- Each package includes Hairdorables pet, 2 accessories, 2 stickers, one brush, one adoption card, and one collector list.
- Age: 3+
- MSRP: CAD $17.97 (dolls), CAD $9.97 (Pets)
- Available: Walmart Canada, Toys R Us, and Amazon
- Kids can discover all that’s inside of a Cutetito burrito by unrolling to reveal their new soft pet and everything about it!
- Cutetitos come in 12 possible collectible styles including a variety of puppitos, catitos, slothitos, pigitos, bunnitos, bearitos and monkitos!
- Each Cutetito has a personality “Hot Spot” that you discover when you unwrap it—it could be mild, medium, hot or super spicy.
- The pet collector card will tell you everything you need to know about your Cutetito, including their “Hot Spot”, birthday, species, name, and favorite quotito.
- Packaged in a mystery bag, Cutetitos are 7.5-inch stuffed animals wrapped in a soft, plush burrito blanket that includes a pet collector card.
- Ages: 6+
- MSRP: CAD $14.99
- Available: Walmart Canada and Toys R Us
PEPPA PIG’S LIGHTS & SOUNDS FAMILY FUN CAR (JAZWARES)
- Peppa Pig and her family love to have fun together, so watch as they drive away for a fun-filled day in their Lights & Sounds Family Fun Car!
- Peppa’s car has all kinds of cool features. Press the trunk of the car and see it zip away with its headlights on.
- Watch it bobble to the beat of Peppa-inspired tunes. And the best part—it also plays iconic phrases from the show! This whimsical car includes Peppa and Daddy Pig figures, plus it fits two additional characters.
- Includes exclusive Peppa and Daddy Pig figures and car has enough space for four Peppa Pig characters.
- Press the trunk button and watch the car go with headlights on, music and iconic phrases from the show, and a fun bobbling movement.
- Age: 2+
- MSRP: CAD $39.97
- Available: Walmart Canada, most retailers
- This self-stabilizing RC robot is the latest in innovative, motorized technology and runs mesmerizingly on dual spinning rings.
- Watch it spin, tumble, and flip over a full 360 degrees!
- Two speed settings allow you to drive in regular mode, or blast-off into turbo mode.
- Create your own clever stunts with the first robot from HEXBUG with rechargeable batteries to keep the fun going!
- Age: 8+
- MSRP: CAD $32.99
- Available: All major retailers
DETECTIVE PIKACHU 8-INCH PLUSH WITH & WITHOUT SOUND (WICKED COOL TOYS)
- Cuddle with the crime-solving Detective Pikachu and his exclusive cast!
- Fans of all ages will assign themselves to the case and want to add this exclusive line-up to their collection!
- The special movie plush line features 4 great Pokémon figures including Ludicolo, Psyduck and Snubbull!
- Innovative sensor technology gives unique interactivity; the more you play with Ludicolo, Psyduck and Snubbull, the more varied their responses will become with 2-4 different sounds in each!
- The Detective Pikachu special movie plush is ready to search for clues as every fan’s favorite crime fighting partner!
- Age: 4+
- MSRP: CAD $19-97-$26.99
- Available: TRU CA, Walmart CA
HATCHIMALS MERMALS (SPIN MASTER)
- Splash into fun with Hatchimals CollEGGtibles Mermal Magic!
- Hatch shimmery seashell-shaped eggs and discover Mermal Magic characters who change color when you dive them underwater!
- To start hatching, hold your egg in the palm of your hand. Rub the purple heart until it turns pink, then gently press down to crack the shell and meet your new friend – then discover their secret surprise!
- Dip your Hatchimal in warm water to see them change color!
- With over 80 characters to discover, you could add Mermals (half-Hatchimal, half- mermaid), and characters from Sunshine Surf, Mischief Marsh and Racing River to your collection.
- Also available as: CollEGGtibles with nests, carrying cases, and playsets.
- Age: 5+
- MSRP: CAD $4.99-1-pack, $7.99-2-pack with nest, $14.99-4-pack and bonus, $19.99-6-pack shell
- Available: Mastermind, Toys R Us, Amazon.ca
ICE CREAM SHOP SAND BUCKET (PLAYMOBIL)
- Scoop up the fun with the Ice Cream Shop Sand Bucket.
- Serve pretend tasty treats with the included ice cream scoop and various molds, perfect for building ice cream cones out of sand.
- Then, place the ice cream seller behind the freezer counter, at the bottom front of the sand bucket, to sell all the delicious snacks to passersby.
- Kids can also use the bucket with sieve to either build sand castles or sift through the sand in search shells and other fun stuff.
- When playtime is over, store all the pieces inside the bucket and use the sieve as a lid.
- The bucket has a capacity of about 1.5 gallons.
- The set includes two figures, a bucket, a sieve, an ice cream spoon, two ice cream cones, two ice cream scoops, and one waffle mold.
- Age: 2+
- MSRP: $24.99 CAD
- Available: TRU Canada
PJ MASKS LEARNING WATCH (VTECH)
- Put on the watch and save the day with the PJ Masks Super Catboy Learning Watch.
- Pretend to transform into Catboy and play four exciting games that explore shapes and early math skills while trying to defeat Romeo, Luna Girl and the Ninjalinos.
- The watch also includes the voices of PJ Masks and nine different PJ Masks clock faces.
- An alarm clock with three alarm tones, timer, stopwatch and cuckoo clock add to the experience. It’s time to be a hero!
- Age: 3-6
- MSRP: $19.99 CAD
- Available: TRU Canada, Amazon CA, Walmart CA
PRETTY PIXELS STARTER KIT (BANDAI)
- Pretty Pixels Eraser Maker is a premium activity that allows girls to make their own beautifully designed erasers from scratch to collect, use and share with friends.
- Each starter kit comes with enough eraser material to make up to 10 creative erasers!
- There are four different themes: Animals, Sweets, Fruits and Fashion.
- Age: 8+
- MSRP: $19.99 CAD
- Available: Toys R Us
FEISTY PETS 10-INCH PLUSH (JAZWARES)
- She’s soft and cute, but she’ll turn on you if you squeeze her!
- Feisty Pets are soft and cute, but they’re feisty!
- Features a unique, interactive plush design.
- Squeeze the back of the head to change expression from cute to fur-ociously funny.
- Ages: 6+
- MSRP: $19.99
- Available: Target, Walmart, Gamestop
