Buying ponies in Italy and France (+ video games)

[June]

I'll be visiting Italy and France this summer and I think about getting myself a few ponies (and possibly video games) while there.
Specifically it will be Blossomforth and maaaybe some fashion styles.
So I need your advice on where to shop (which toy stores) and about the prices.

The towns I'll visit are Florence, Pisa, Cannes, Monaco, Monte Carlo etc.
Are there now any special Italy/Europe ponies like in previous gens? (not really that into g4 toys)
Are there any places I could buy older gens, like flea markets?

And about the games: Are the Nintendo DS/3DS games translated into Italian/French, where to buy, prices...?

I hope I'll avoid paying the duties 

[TheBeatlesPkmnFan42]

The Euro exclusive G4s are Skywishes, Starswirl, Daisy Dreams, and Rainbow Flash. They also have Wave 2 and higher in Europe of blindbags, where as us in the U.S. only have Wave 1. They also tend to get in G4s before us.

You could probably just find older gens at thrift stores.

[hathorcat]

Hopefully some French and Italian members can point you in the right direction! We are certainly more ahead in blind bags in Europe than in the US [most countries have had at least one of wave 2 and/or 3 and some are even on to wave 4]. However, distribution of new ponies is pretty hit and miss - certainly in the UK you can be just as likely to stumble upon a shops stock of an old wave than any newer wave.

The exclusives are not Europe wide and have only shown up in some countries but I believe both France and Italy have had the Rainbow Flash and Daisy Dreams sets - dont think Skywishes or Star Swirl have been quite as wide spread but hopefully someone can confirm if either of these sets actually made it out in France and Italy for you.

Good luck and have a fabulous time! Thats an amazing itinerary of cities to visit!

[June]

Thanks for the info and wishes:) I'm afraid if I start with blindbags, I wouldn't be able to stop (it'd be like pokemon all over again).
I hope some Italian and French folks will reply too.

I was surprised when I found both g4 brushables and blindbags in a toystore a couple of days ago. Celestia was even talking in my language  I'll be going again tomorrow and I'll check which wave is available here.

[hathorcat]

Thanks for the info and wishes:) I'm afraid if I start with blindbags, I wouldn't be able to stop (it'd be like pokemon all over again).
I hope some Italian and French folks will reply too.

I was surprised when I found both g4 brushables and blindbags in a toystore a couple of days ago. Celestia was even talking in my language  I'll be going again tomorrow and I'll check which wave is available here.

Lol! Thats true those blind bags sure are addictive! What language was Celestia speaking?

[Scraleos]

Good luck finding ponies! But if you're not from Europe, the 3DS games won't work, they're region blocked. Like a European 3DS game would not work in a British or American 3DS.

[hathorcat]

Good luck finding ponies! But if you're not from Europe, the 3DS games won't work, they're region blocked. Like a European 3DS game would not work in a British or American 3DS.

Really? Wow...I have learned something new today! Thanks!

[June]

Lol! Thats true those blind bags sure are addictive! What language was Celestia speaking?

She's speaking Croatian. Apparently there are dubbed episodes on dvd, but the show isn't being broadcasted on TV o.O
From my experience, Croatian dubs are either really great (pixar and disney movies) or either suck big time (some tv shows).

Good luck finding ponies! But if you're not from Europe, the 3DS games won't work, they're region blocked. Like a European 3DS game would not work in a British or American 3DS.

I live in Europe and I got my 3DS from UK. Region lock sure sucks - I was looking forward to the new vocaloid project diva game, but it's for Japanese market only 

[Jemofirongate]

I went to France in summer 2011 and did the rounds of a LOT of french toystores!

I would check on their websites before you go to identify the stores that are near to where you are going, but look for:

Jouetclub
Jouetland
Le Grande Recre
King Jouet

...and any of the big super/hypermarkets usually have toy sections too.

Hope that helps!

PS - 'Avez-vous le petit pacquet surprise de Mon Petit Poney' seemed to work when looking for blind bags, (apologies to any native french speakers) lol 

[hathorcat]

PS - 'Avez-vous le petit pacquet surprise de Mon Petit Poney' seemed to work when looking for blind bags, (apologies to any native french speakers) lol 

I think this is the sign of a true pony collector...when you learn how to ask if and where ponies are being sold in a variety of languages...just in case you stumble upon a toy store on holiday!

[June]

@Jemofirongate thank you very much