Review: 60328 Beach Lifeguard Station
Posted by CapnRex101,
Alongside the obligatory selection of Police and Fire Brigade sets, the latest LEGO City wave also features certain subjects consistently associated with Heartlake City! These include 60328 Beach Lifeguard Station, which exhibits brilliant colour and impressive detail.
However, perhaps even more appealing are the various unusual elements which are present. They were definitely my primary motivation for purchasing this set, including some uncommon or exclusive minifigures parts, alongside the delightful ice cream costume. Exciting elements may not guarantee an enjoyable set though.
Summary
60328 Beach Lifeguard Station, 211 pieces.
£24.99 / $39.99 / €29.99 | 11.8p/19.0c/14.2c per piece.
Buy at LEGO.com »
An attractive model, greatly improved by several exclusive minifigures and exciting parts.
- Balanced focus between lifeguard tower, beach and vehicles
- Beautiful seaside colours
- Excellent parts selection
- Fun minifigures and animals
- Unnecessary road plates
- Expensive in North America
Minifigures
Lifeguards have appeared fairly frequently across the City, Friends and Collectable Minifigures themes, but the latest such minifigure is unique. This unkempt hairstyle seems appropriate for stereotypical lifeguards and I like the character's stubble too. The new torso features a pair of whistles and the dual-moulded legs look perfect, improving upon the lifeguard in 60153 People Pack - Fun at the Beach.
However, the lifeguard is undoubtedly overshadowed by the ice cream vendor, whose dual-moulded costume looks wonderful. The texture across the cone is excellent, although I think bright green was an unusual colour choice for the ice cream. The costume is also available in 60314 Ice Cream Truck Police Chase, featuring dark pink and dark azure colours.
I would rather have seen more traditional white or reddish brown colours, but the vibrancy is welcome. The head underneath displays a sweating face, but includes no second expression. Both minifigures include fitting accessories, as the lifeguard carries an orange floatation device and wears a helmet, while the ice cream vendor comes with a spoon.
Two visitors to the beach are provided too, also featuring some interesting elements. The older minifigure sports a colourful bathing costume decorated with avocados, while the child's torso returns from 40473 Water Park and displays a cartoonish jellyfish! These dual-moulded short legs look superb and I like the double-sided head as well.
The adult minifigure also includes an excellent double-sided head and detailed hair pieces are supplied for both characters. Both have appeared previously, but they are definitely not among the most common designs, which is welcome. A printed mobile phone, a litter picker and a dark tan chopstick element, introduced this year, accompany these minifigures.
The Completed Model
Beaches have appeared in LEGO City before, although usually alongside coastguard vehicles and buildings. This model instead resembles several found in the Friends theme, focusing on leisure. The titular lifeguard station occupies just a small section of the whole footprint, which measures 22cm from the edge of the beach to the back of the lifeguard tower.
The beach is relatively small, but provides ample space for a sun lounger, a rubbish bin and some wildlife. The turtle nest is particularly impressive and contains four eggs, nestled in the sand. I love the use of dark tan and medium nougat parts here, representing overturned sand where a turtle has excavated a hole on the beach to protect her eggs!
Fortunately, an adorable turtle is included. This dual-moulded creature was introduced with the Sea Rescuer Collectable Minifigure, but appears with unique reddish brown and tan colours on this occasion. The set also contains a red crab, which is far more common. The palm tree looks reasonable too, featuring large fronds and a realistic curved trunk, but no coconuts.
New road plates were introduced to LEGO City last year, primarily comprising large dark bluish grey panels. They are sometimes effective and narrow roadways are found on certain beaches, but I think they should have been excluded to enlarge the beach. However, the road is perfectly positioned for the quad bike and there is room for surfboards, paddles and life jackets alongside the lifeguard tower.
The quad bike is extremely reminiscent of past designs, but makes excellent use of the bullbar element and features lovely red and flame yellowish orange colours. The large tyres look nice and I like the curved mudguards, which commonly appear on quad bikes. As normal, there is space for one minifigure and clips available for two accessories, including the aforementioned orange float.
The elevated lifeguard station also features a flame yellowish orange and red colour scheme, alongside white pieces. The striped design looks great and I like the railing in particular, since the stripes continue. A pair of binoculars and a yellow life ring are secured here, with speakers on the roof for addressing beachgoers. These look superb, but I dislike the open doorway.
As anticipated, the interior is simply furnished with a printed control monitor, a map of the LEGO City beachfront and a microphone. The latter feature is splendid, corresponding with the rooftop speaker system. However, there was easily enough space for an opening door, so I would have appreciated that addition.
LEGO created a new bicycle element for street vending carts during 2019, which has become quite popular between the City and Friends ranges. This ice cream cart is simple, but I like the bright colours and stickers on either side, displaying LEGO ice cream cones. The actual cones are attached above, with chocolate and vanilla flavours.
Spare ice cream elements are included, so those could be stored in the box on the front. This vehicle also incorporates a printed cash register and the vendor minifigure can sit comfortably on the bicycle, even when sporting his elaborate ice cream costume! There are no empty clips for the character's spoon, but you could easily rearrange the accessories.
Overall
60328 Beach Lifeguard Station contains a surprising array of exclusive elements and they are very satisfying, including new minifigure parts and the updated turtle. I was initially concerned that those pieces would be the only appealing aspect of this set, but have been proven wrong! In fact, this model includes delightful detail and its focus upon leisure and nature is appreciated, matching 60326 Picnic in the Park.
The road plates were probably unnecessary though, particularly since they doubtless account for a substantial part of the £24.99, $39.99 or €29.99 price. Nevertheless, I think the European prices represent fair value, while the US price seems rather expensive. The set remains worthy of consideration though, albeit only following a discount in some regions.
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58 comments on this article
the turtle is a necessity. seems like a nice set otherwise but i'll probably just wait a bit and get the turtle on bricklink!
I really like the large variety of interesting parts available in this set.
I haven’t seen to many of the new City sets at my local Target. So they’re either selling really well, even at the high price point, or the store hasn’t ordered that many copies.
Not a single cop, fireman, or crook in sight, so it's perfect <3
I appreciate the review as this wasn't a set I was aware of and like you say, some nice parts. As you mentioned 60314 , this is a set I have my eye on if only for the ice cream shooter!
It would have been nice if the road plate pieces were in dark tan or something more beachy. This set feels $10 overpriced in North America but is a solid buy when it can be found on sale.
In the top image, the girl is approaching the turtle nest with chopsticks! This isn’t going to end well, is it?
ITT: People still dont understand why they rised the price for US for City sets compared to euro.
It's because they are created to be on sale every so often especialy in bigger chains.
You can get most of Lego -30% OFF ONLINE anyway. (of course not in LEGO SHOP)
Thanks for the review!
I think that the set would have been better off with either with a more simple lifeguard station and no road for a cheap fun set, or with a bigger beach/beach front (maybe a pier?) and more expensive for a better playability. It seems here there's a lack of balance, or that this set would work better with a scenery around rather than on it's own.
It would've been a no-brainer if not for that unnecessary, price-gouging roadplate. Hopefully it's not a high-traffic area and the lifeguard doesn't have to wait 5 minutes to cross it and go save someone.
I think this is great and will go nicely with my 31118 Surfer Beach House.
Ice cream man looks like The Juggernaut. :P
Def going to watch for a deal on this, the set looks lovely and I need it to keep all my vintage pirates safe!
Why add a lifeguard if there is no water included?
Turtle is great, crab is nice, sadly no seagull which would have completed it.
Bit oversized tower but the storage use gives it some justification.
BTW second appearence of the red ladder https://brickset.com/sets/containing-part-6329922
The turtle should have his own section in the set's "pro" list
Also is the mario-type part for the nest new?
@tris said:
"the turtle is a necessity. seems like a nice set otherwise but i'll probably just wait a bit and get the turtle on bricklink!"
You can get the turtle through B&P/PAB. I already have one on order. Should reach me in about 5 weeks. Turtles are sloooow creatures.
@sipuss said:
"It would've been a no-brainer if not for that unnecessary, price-gouging roadplate. Hopefully it's not a high-traffic area and the lifeguard doesn't have to wait 5 minutes to cross it and go save someone."
I agree it’s unnecessary, but I don’t think it’s supposed to be a road as such. It’s more like the concrete walkway you get at or near the back edge of some beaches.
It really wouldn’t take much to mod this set. An extra light tan plate to make the beach deeper, a few smaller plates to hold it in place and various shades of blue plates at the water’s edge for the ocean would do it.
I agree about the price point in North America being overly high. I also believe the road plates were thrown in because they were told to, not because they bring anything to the build.
@CapnRex101
On the picture where we see the inside of the cabin, why is there a 1x4 dark blueish gray plate above the door? This serves no purposes at all and it should be flame yellowish orange (what a weird colour name!). I guess they run out of that part and put whatever they had on hand...
Also maybe the instructions say otherwise but the front fender on the quad bike should be reversed. On these bikes, the fenders go down where the legs are and are open in the front and back.
As always, nice review and nice set provided a reasonable rebate is available.
Needs a Pammy or Yasmine lifeguard, but that would require a new minifig mould. And be a 18+ set !
They've already made the Hoff 71286
This reminds me of a greatly expanded version of the very first Lego set I remember, set 6518 Baja Buggy from 1997.
As usual for City, it’s only a terrible value in America, there are parts of the set that look interesting but when there’s a Juniors set in this wave that’s a better price per part where I live, you lose me. The poop pieces work well for the ice cream, though, aside from the crap that it was invented for soft serve is the next best use for it.
I can imagine City sets being a worse value than Duplo and relying exclusively on street plates for builds in the future, but at least they’re relying on more than just cops and firetrucks this wave.
Oh, that's swell! It's Paradise 2.0.
The price is all the Star War's fault, probably! Those dang dirty gougers!
*shakes fist*
@MartyMcFly said:
"Needs a Pammy or Yasmine lifeguard, but that would require a new minifig mould. And be a 18+ set ! "
Pammy: 8684-8
City has consistently been the most over-priced theme (price per piece) in the U.S. for a long time. Ninjago is consistently under 10 cents per piece, City is often (as in this example) over 20 cents per piece. Why?
You can't blame the road plate. You can buy a whole box of road plates for $20. So a single road plate in this set can't justify it being $20 overpriced in the U.S. You can't blame licensing fees, obviously. So why?
@woosterlegos, My guess is that LEGO has done - and keeps doing - market research that shows that in NA, the market will tolerate higher prices for City. Sure, LEGO may shift fewer units as a result, but it’s worth it if sales overall are higher.
Bring back Paradisa.
@Zander said:
" @woosterlegos, My guess is that LEGO has done - and keeps doing - market research that shows that in NA, the market will tolerate higher prices for City. Sure, LEGO may shift fewer units as a result, but it’s worth it if sales overall are higher."
I agree with you completely. More specifically, I think grandparents (and other relatives) that purchase toys for their grandchildren see LEGO City as a wholesome, non-gender-specific toy that portrays predominantly rescue workers that are still perceived as heroes in the U.S. (including police). Grandparents are generally more affluent with more disposable income, and have no reservation spending it on their grandchildren.
Well, that's awfully specific, but I have seen this scenario played out many times.
@lordofdragonss said:
"ITT: People still dont understand why they rised the price for US for City sets compared to euro.
It's because they are created to be on sale every so often especialy in bigger chains.
You can get most of Lego -30% OFF ONLINE anyway. (of course not in LEGO SHOP)"
Maybe in many European countries 30% off or more sales happen quite regularly. Unfortunately it's very rare to find any sets at 30% off in the US and almost never even 20% off on any thing over $60 unless it's on clearance. So no in the US higher prices can not be excused by saying they are regularly on sale here because they aren't.
I was a big Paradisa fan back in the day -- not the builds per se, but the whole beach/resort aesthetic that this set evokes. I would love a reboot of the Paradisa theme with modern building techniques.
I had it in my hand and was gonna buy it, but i decided not to at 40 bucks. If it were 30 i would have.
Think about the surfer beach house from last year, 50 bucks. This set isnt 80% of that one, its more like 50%. Should be 25 to 30.
This is one of those sets that doesn’t look overly impressive on the box but actually much nicer in person built up.
Agree that a door would’ve been nice, and a section of water at the end of the beach would add more playability.
Definitely reminds me of the old town paradisa theme, albeit not as good of course. Should have been around $25 to 30 max considered this is not licensed.
@karrit said:
" @lordofdragonss said:
"ITT: People still dont understand why they rised the price for US for City sets compared to euro.
It's because they are created to be on sale every so often especialy in bigger chains.
You can get most of Lego -30% OFF ONLINE anyway. (of course not in LEGO SHOP)"
Maybe in many European countries 30% off or more sales happen quite regularly. Unfortunately it's very rare to find any sets at 30% off in the US and almost never even 20% off on any thing over $60 unless it's on clearance. So no in the US higher prices can not be excused by saying they are regularly on sale here because they aren't."
It's been at Costco for awhile. Priced at $30.
I love the speakers on the roof! Reminds me of 70s Space sets where they were the new cool piece.
Honestly I think the size of the beach is more than adequate for the contents of this set. After all, the main function of that middle portion of the set's footprint is as an open space that the lifeguard and ice cream seller can ride across on their respective vehicles. An 8x16 road plate serves that purpose just as well as a larger stretch of sand would.
Additionally, the set's ability to link up neatly with the other "road system" sets is a big part of its appeal for me, especially compared to beach sets of my childhood from themes like Town or Paradisa (which I remember often being quite tricky to integrate into larger layouts). I suppose the same thing could have been achieved with some Dark Stone Grey tiles to on a larger stretch of beach to represent a road terminus instead of a full road plate, but I think for this set's purposes, either solution is fine.
Including a paved area also helps this set feel less out-of-place among the rest of this year's City sets, despite this being the only one that depicts a beach setting. I think it would combine especially nicely with 60290 from last year, which contained a palm tree similar to the one in this set — and potentially also with other "coastal" sets in future years like a beach house, seaside snack bar, marina, or lighthouse.
Roads aside, the sea turtle nest is a very neat feature that makes great use of that round plate from the Super Mario theme, and also serves as a very naturalistic-looking way of connecting the two plates that make up the beach with one another. And it still leaves plenty of space on the beach for the two vacationers to enjoy the sand and sun without intruding too closely on the turtle's nesting area.
That said, I do think that a lot of recent LEGO Friends sets like 41428, 41433, 41692, and 41697 have depicted beaches a little bit better by including parts to represent the water itself, not just the sand along its edge. It's a bit of a shame that this set doesn't use any techniques of that sort, especially since including more parts i some shade of blue would help balance out the warm colors of the sand and lifeguard station.
The lifeguard station and ATV themselves are very attractive, though it's a wee bit frustrating that the color scheme doesn't quite match up with 60286 from last year. On the other hand, I do somewhat prefer the use of Flame Yellowish Orange in the newer of those two sets to the use of Bright Yellow in the earlier one. But I hope LEGO will stick with this color scheme for future beach rescue type sets so there's a little more consistency going forward.
The minifigure designs in this set are pretty great in their own right! The older vacationer's avocado-patterned swimsuit is an especially quirky and distinctive choice while still feeling believable as a fashion statement, though admittedly more generic patterns might be easier to reuse without the repetition becoming too obvious.
The younger child is also pretty cute and charming in her jellyfish-patterned swimsuit. I think it's very neat that in addition to the various fun/leisure oriented accessories like paddleboards, paddles, and ice cream cones, the set gives her a trash grabber to help clean up litter.
Incidentally, the Bright Green ice cream cone costume recolor in this set was almost certainly chosen so that it would match the prisoner from 60316, who is named "Truck" in the LEGO City Adventures TV series and rounds out the "Ice Cream Truck" trio whose other two members appear in 60314!
All in all, it's a very pleasant set that offers a welcome change of pace from the more action-driven scenarios that have often been the norm in past waves of LEGO City. I feel like I would have enjoyed a set like this quite a lot as a kid, and I hope plenty of kids today also enjoy sets like this one and 60326 so we get more like them in the future!
When seeing the small thumbnail in my mobile I initially thought it's a friends set. How cool to see it as city. But the water is really missing there
Don't get the design at all. Why is the a road between the guard tower and the beach? Has no one in Lego HQ ever been to a real beach :-) I pity the minfig lifeguards running across that boiling hot surface every time they perform a rescue, they'd melt into the road!
The road could of been left of entirely, or placed at the side or rear of the life guard. More emphasis on the beach for sure.
@Aanchir
Nice comment! I hope you are right. Given the state of the world and the prevalence in past sets, I think the cops, criminals, and fires theme has monopolized City for far too long. Let's hope we get more animals and sets centered on a peaceful, productive, interesting, and inclusive society.
Nice review! Price is ridiculous for the US (but will likely be about 20% off during its run on Amazon, and even then a bit pricey and likely for the gray path, which really is not needed, especially where it is located in the set). Stickers on the panels for the cart are also a bit disappointing especially considering the price. I do like the figures though.
I can't STAND those road plates. Without them, this is a $20 set at BEST.
"I think bright green was an unusual colour choice for the ice cream." Obviously, it's supposed to be pistachio.
The lack of hats & sunscreen (and similarity to a 10K Ideas submission) is getting some attention in Australian Parliament https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Hansard/Hansard_Display?bid=chamber%2Fhansardr%2F25469%2F&sid=0250&fbclid=IwAR2o9hPEW3Nl5VYcoFnb6RBPafrbSv2ONNxL2gxfAzI_xKsTXPJ2XMaU2Mo
Shades of 6736-1.
I find it interesting reading some people discuss the pricing of sets in the US compared to Europe.
Have a look at some price discrepancies in Australia to the US, 4 current examples below are all $99.99 in the US but the AU price varies.
76956 T Rex Breakout - $199.99
75326 Boba Fett's Throne Room - $159.99
42127 The Batman Batmobile - $169.99
42126 Ford F150 Raptor - $249.99
If anyone can explain the variance of $90 between the cheapest and most expensive of these 4 US $100 sets I'd be very interested. it is this reason that the F150 Raptor was dropped from my want list.
@sipuss said:
"It would've been a no-brainer if not for that unnecessary, price-gouging roadplate. Hopefully it's not a high-traffic area and the lifeguard doesn't have to wait 5 minutes to cross it and go save someone."
I'm a little tired of hearing about the road plates being expensive. "price gouging" is a massive exaggeration, as the $20 road plate set includes four large ones and a small one, which averages out at $4 a piece without even factoring in the other 107 parts. They go brand new on bricklink for a dollar each. That's half the price, by area, of the old baseplates. This is Lego, if you don't like it as a road plate, use it as a roof or a wall or anything your imagination can come up with. This has always been the case with every set ever made; If you don't like it, you can modify it to your hearts desire. I'll admit I had to get used to the new plates, but after picking up a few, they are much more versatile than the old road plates. Many beaches in developed areas have paved walking/cycling paths like Santa Monica beach, which is most likely the intended reference here. I don't know why this set is particularly expensive other than inflation and supply chain issues, a few people have given different explanations why, but the road plate definitely isn't one of them.
@Yergs said:
"I find it interesting reading some people discuss the pricing of sets in the US compared to Europe.
Have a look at some price discrepancies in Australia to the US, 4 current examples below are all $99.99 in the US but the AU price varies.
76956 T Rex Breakout - $199.99
75326 Boba Fett's Throne Room - $159.99
42127 The Batman Batmobile - $169.99
42126 Ford F150 Raptor - $249.99
If anyone can explain the variance of $90 between the cheapest and most expensive of these 4 US $100 sets I'd be very interested. it is this reason that the F150 Raptor was dropped from my want list."
Part menagment.
@Yergs said:
"I find it interesting reading some people discuss the pricing of sets in the US compared to Europe.
Have a look at some price discrepancies in Australia to the US, 4 current examples below are all $99.99 in the US but the AU price varies.
76956 T Rex Breakout - $199.99
75326 Boba Fett's Throne Room - $159.99
42127 The Batman Batmobile - $169.99
42126 Ford F150 Raptor - $249.99
If anyone can explain the variance of $90 between the cheapest and most expensive of these 4 US $100 sets I'd be very interested. it is this reason that the F150 Raptor was dropped from my want list."
Australia is a huuuuge country with not a big population. There's no lego production plant in Australia, the product is shipped from other continents. That means transport and storage is way more costly in Australia than in USA or Europe. Maybe also lego is not the most popular toy in Australia. Hence the higher prices.
@Richard_FS said:
" @sipuss said:
"It would've been a no-brainer if not for that unnecessary, price-gouging roadplate. Hopefully it's not a high-traffic area and the lifeguard doesn't have to wait 5 minutes to cross it and go save someone."
I'm a little tired of hearing about the road plates being expensive. "price gouging" is a massive exaggeration, as the $20 road plate set includes four large ones and a small one, which averages out at $4 a piece without even factoring in the other 107 parts. They go brand new on bricklink for a dollar each. That's half the price, by area, of the old baseplates. This is Lego, if you don't like it as a road plate, use it as a roof or a wall or anything your imagination can come up with. This has always been the case with every set ever made; If you don't like it, you can modify it to your hearts desire. I'll admit I had to get used to the new plates, but after picking up a few, they are much more versatile than the old road plates. Many beaches in developed areas have paved walking/cycling paths like Santa Monica beach, which is most likely the intended reference here. I don't know why this set is particularly expensive other than inflation and supply chain issues, a few people have given different explanations why, but the road plate definitely isn't one of them."
I've seen enough smaller City sets that include these roadplates, and their RRPs, to know that they DEFINITELY play a part in those sets being overpriced (even more than usual).
I thought the point of a quad bike with the balloon wheels was that it could be driven on the beach and did not need a road? So if I purchased this set I would ditch the road plate and use the area to play volleyball or beach tennis. Then use the garage area as a boat house to store a lifeboat, convert the quad bike into a jet ski, and add a blue sea plate so that I could use those canoes.
@ambr said:
"I thought the point of a quad bike with the balloon wheels was that it could be driven on the beach and did not need a road? So if I purchased this set I would ditch the road plate and use the area to play volleyball or beach tennis. Then use the garage area as a boat house to store a lifeboat, convert the quad bike into a jet ski, and add a blue sea plate so that I could use those canoes."
Concrete walkways at/near the back of beaches aren't just for quad bikes. They're also useful for pedal vehicles like the ice-cream cart in this set or for easily walking along the beach. Soft sand is tiring to walk on, so people either walk on the wet sand along the water's edge or on a walkway towards the back of the beach. Sometimes, there's a wooden boardwalk but often it's a concrete path as in this set.
@Lasers said:
"I can't STAND those road plates. Without them, this is a $20 set at BEST. "
Agreed. I understand that the road plates are pretty okay if you have a big city layout. I dont have space like that, so its useless.
Where's the, you know, sea?
@TheOtherMike said:
""I think bright green was an unusual colour choice for the ice cream." Obviously, it's supposed to be pistachio."
Perhaps, but wouldn't sand green have been a better match then?
I'd like to think they're soft ice and have an unrealistic synthetic color/flavour, but I'm guessing the design team just wanted something nice and bright to go with the ones in 60314. Because: City.
Also; I hate to burst some bubbles, but this clearly is a police set: the icecream guy is obviously part of the gang in 60314 and staking out the place. Presumably to steal the turtle eggs. I hear they fetch a nice buck on the black market.
@YanVanLan said:
"Also; I hate to burst some bubbles, but this clearly is a police set: the icecream guy is obviously part of the gang in 60314 and staking out the place. Presumably to steal the turtle eggs. I hear they fetch a nice buck on the black market."
Those are obviously ammunition for their buddies in 60315 ;)
@sipuss said:
" @YanVanLan said:
Those are obviously ammunition for their buddies in 60315 ;)
"
Ooh, nice catch! Pardon the pun...
This is my first set this year! I bought it because it will be nice adon on other side of a beach from 4644, that is similar to this one.
This is a heartless and uninspired set. I don't know what is worse, the unnecessary inclusion of the road plate into a beach scene or the avoidance of actual swimwear minifigs. This is a strange beach.
I get It for 24.99€ in a store next to my home... Thank God i live in Italy!