This was another of the many characterised Dora the Explorer toys to find its way under our Christmas tree last year. As an avid Dora fan I knew that my daughter would absolutely love this. Upon looking for a Dora backpack I came across many different styles but the sturdiness of this particular backpack caught my eye and I there for decided to purchase this; Dora the Explorer talking backpack.


The main appeal for this particular toy is that it replicates the very popular backpack which Dora the Explorer uses on the television programme Dora the Explorer. Also just like the one Dora has, this toy backpack is a talking one and uses many of the phrases used in the show.


The backpack is purple in colour and is made from a very thick and sturdy plastic. It also has a rather chunky lid which is secured shut using a little clasp. The inside of the backpack has less room than you would presume; this again is because of the chunkiness of the plastic. There is however enough room to store a few little things inside.


The front of the backpack is decorated with a face; it has eyes, a mouth and eyebrows. This is in the same design as the backpack off Dora the Explorer and it is designed in a way that you can immediately tell what it is. We have bought some Dora toys and my daughter couldn't even tell it was Dora! We have no issues like that with this backpack however; she knew immediately what it was.


One of the only problems with this backpack is that you can't actually use it as a backpack. The straps that you would use to put over your shoulders with a normal backpack aren't here and in replacement there is a small handle at the top. In all fairness I knew when buying it that this was the case but my daughter did ask questions as to why she couldn't put it on her back like Dora does.


As I previously mentioned this is a talking backpack, the talking aspect is activated when pressing the mouth which is very conveniently a hidden button used to activate the speech. There isn't an overly large variety of phrases however the order of when they are said change every time so trying to count them proved a difficult task. I can definitely say that there aren't more than 10 all together with one of them being the very popular backpack song which is sung on the show. Other phrases include; "Hi you" and "are you ready for an adventure today? Let's get packed and go!" The voice of the phrases are very similar to that of the backpack from the show giving it more of an authentic feel. There is no volume button to turn the sound up or down but the sounds come out at a very nice level, not being too quiet but again not overly loud either. There is an on off button underneath the backpack and this is to control the sound aspect.


The backpack also comes with a couple of small accessories all of which have previously been used in the backpack on the show, these include; a small plastic hair brush, a friendship bracelet, a telephone and the map. The map was for me the major disappointment of the backpack as it is my daughter's favourite thing. This one however is very poorly made and is cardboard. I would have expected something a little better as there is a compartment on the side of the backpack for the map to go like it does on the show, this one however is not designed to roll up to fit inside this compartment. I thought it was a very silly design. The other accessories are ok but again are rather tatty.


All in all this is an ok toy and my daughter absolutely loves it. She has took it on many adventures (in the garden and to the park) and it has really helped with her imagination. She is frequently acting out scenes from the show and she creates obstacles that we have to overcome on our adventures. She uses the map to see where we have to go and she loves to pretend to call me on her pretend phone. This is a very frequently played with toy and is, in my opinion one of the best Dora toys that we own.


The backpack costs around the £20 mark but my daughter has played with it so much that I would definitely say that it is worth it. As it is plastic it is easy to maintain and clean, as we play with it outside frequently it does get dirty but I quick wipe with a wet cloth and it is looking shiny and new. My daughter has also dropped this outside several times but because the plastic is so chunky and sturdy it doesn't break or even scratch. There is an age recommendation of 3+ but as there are no small pieces I would suggest that it could also be enjoyed by younger children. The backpack requires 3 AA batteries but it does come with some already in it and we, as of yet, have not needed to change ours.


I would definitely recommend this toy, as a Dora fan it is one of my daughters favourites and I have found it to be well made and of good quality which is rare for such a character toy. It's not the cheapest price for what it is but it's guaranteed to get a lot of play.