To celebrate Disney100, the LEGO Group and Disney collaborated to release a Mini Steamboat Willie (40659) gift with purchase (GWP). Fans who spent $150 or more on qualifying LEGO x Disney products were eligible for the GWP. Those who met the threshold received Steamboat Willie for free. The offer was available for only a week and was highly sought-after by fans of LEGO and Disney. The ship was a welcome addition to collectors who missed out on the larger Steamboat Willie set (21317), which was retired in 2020.
We were fortunate enough to acquire the Mini Steamboat Willie GWP and were pleasantly surprised by the attention to detail on this “mini” set. The set included a miniature steamship and a Willie minifigure. Early online feedback was also positive, with some builders stating that the Mini Steamboat Willie set was the best GWP that LEGO has ever released, citing its quality and attention to detail.
Let’s take a look at the Mini Steamboat Willie (40659):
Mini Steamboat Willie (GWP)
Enchant any LEGO® ǀ Disney fan aged 9 and up and celebrate Disney’s 100th anniversary with this nostalgic Mini Steamboat Willie (40659) buildable set. The boat and Disney’s Mickey Mouse minifigure are both replicated as close as possible to the original and are produced in black and white bricks. The paddle wheel on the steamboat rotates and moves the steam pipes up and down. The model and minifigure can inspire role-play fun or will look great on display in any home or office.– LEGO
The Mini Steamboat Willie comes in the special Disney100 box that LEGO has utilized over the past year, which features a silver color scheme and the Disney100 logo.
The set is advertised for ages 9+, so the overall build is relatively simple. However, there were many details that I enjoyed building. For starters, after Bag #1, I was shocked at how colorful the inner parts of the ship ended up being. Utilizing colors like yellow, red, green, and purple was an interesting approach by LEGO, especially for a set that was created to look like a black-and-white cartoon.
After Bag #2 we could see the iconic steamship taking shape.
The set comes with 1 Steamboat Willie minifigure. The mini-Mickey has enough detail to make it look like he popped right off the screen.
Once completed, we were left with a mini ship complete with moving paddle wheels and alternating smoke stacks.
The Steamboat Willie set has found a new home on our shelf next to our Disney books!
Overall Thoughts
The mini Steamboat Willie set has impressive detail for a gift-with-purchase product. The larger version of the set was well received during its time in circulation and is still considered a sought-after collector’s piece post-retirement. For those who may have missed out on the larger set, the mini set is the perfect opportunity to add a classic Mickey Mouse era to your shelf, or even place a mini version next to the full-sized ship. Building the set went fairly quickly, so it won’t take days, making it the perfect build while watching Disney Park’s Christmas Parades…’tis the season!
Demand for the Mini Steamboat Willie was at a high even before the set was released. LEGO valued the set at $24.99. At our most recent search of various resale sites, the set had an average sold price of approximately $40. The value of the set is expected to go up as the Willie minifigure and set become more challenging to find at feasible pricing.
Would you like to build, or gift, the Mini Steamboat Willie LEGO set?