Bed is real wood, not particle board, though it isn't a hard wood. The headboard was a BUGGER to put together. It was like putting together one of those drying racks. You'd get one side in and the other side would fall out. And then, I put the stinking thing onto the legs backwards and had to start over. There are no pre-drilled holes for the slats. However, the slats come strung together. I've used these kind of slats before without attaching them to the frame, so I just didn't bother. They fit quite snuggly in the frame and didn't budge when I set the box spring and mattress on top. I didn't put the trundle together as I was originally going to use it as a dog bed. Then I remembered how many times I get up during the night and figure I'd just fall over it. Another commenter returned their bed d/t the difficulty in assembly. I did the main part of the bed myself, minus screwing the slats , in about two hours. If I hadn't screwed the headboard on backwards, it would have been about an hour and a half. Screwing in the slats probably would have taken another hour if you have a drill. If not, I wouldn't attempt it. Putting the trundle together looked pretty straight forward. All in all, it's a decent and nice-looking bed for the price. I wouldn't let kids jump on it. I will probably have to get a sturdier bed at some point. Didn't realize how high a pillow top mattress and box springs are. Don't know how well this will hold up to actual climbing in and out of bed. (I wrote this review and forgot to submit it before I tore it apart because my mattress was too high. I attempted to modify the bed to make shorter by removing the brackets along the side that held the slats. They were next to impossible to remove even after unscrewing. The paint chipped and the wood dented, but it did not break when I wacked it with a hammer and screwdriver. This is a well-made bed.)