1991 saw the Tropical Ponies arrive in the UK (and probably they were needed, given the weather!). The set was largely the same as the release in North America in 1990, but there are some minor differences in batch probably caused by the year delay.  These ponies were in tropical colours, with tropical themed symbols and even had bright coloured eyeshadow in two shades. They intended to make an impression. They were also sold in many parts of Europe from around 1991, sometimes on translated cards, but usually with the green border shown below.

There are also some differences with hoof stamps - my childhood Sail Away (UK card, UK bought) has no Pat. Pending on her hoof, but I have the same pony from the US with Pat Pending on her hooves. I have also noticed shade differences in the body/style of both Sail Away and Hula Hula. The Pat Pend thing and the body colour differences do not seem to be regionally exclusive, as my sister's childhood Hula Hula has Pat Pend on her hooves.

Each Tropical Pony was sold on a green bordered card with a fish comb. The card mentions specifically that each pony came with a fish comb on the bottom! This is not consistent with the accessories released in the North American issue, where there were also some dove brushes.

Names

The English language names between the North American release and UK release are not the same. The name Hula Hula appears in both releases, but in North America it is the pony with a sailboat, whilst in the UK it is the pony with the hula-dancing palm trees. The pony with the sailboat here is Sail Away. I don't need to explain which one makes more sense, right? Right. On this page Hula Hula will always be the palm tree pony, because it's the only way around the names make sense.

The North American names seem to have been overlapping Fairy Tail names. It's not clear whether they were always meant to be named this way, or if this was a late decision because the names were trademarked. But Sea Breeze is a recycled pony name already in use twice before this set, and Tootie Tails sounds...unpleasant. The UK names are Surfing Days and Summer Heatwave.

I am biased, but honestly? No contest.