Toys ‘R’ Us

Actual. Toy. Heaven!
I’m a big kid at heart, and one of my favourite things about being a parent is getting to play with toys again yaaay! Leeds City Centre is desperately lacking toy shops, so when it came to buying Xmas presents for the Mini MacDoos and their friends time around I found myself with little choice other than jumping on the bus and heading down to Birstall retail park to have a mooch round Toys R Us.
When I got there and walked in I was completely overwhelmed. I had no idea where to start! I was very glad I hadn’t taken the kids with me as I think they might have quite literally exploded with excitement. Which would have made a terrible mess.
Aisle after aisle of the stuff of every kids wildest dreams. Action toys. Role playing toys. Educational toys. Cuddlies. Cars. Electronics. You name it, they’ve got it. There are sections for all the different characters of the moment, I almost peed mutants with excitement when I saw the Hello Kitty section!
Only downsides for me really are that it’s not the cheapest place in the world for toys, but if you’re not quite sure what you’re after it’s worth going there to get some inspiration. If you’ve got a smartphone it’s easy enough to check online to see if you can get an item significantly cheaper elsewhere, and the experience of shopping there is so fab that for me it’s worth paying an extra pound or so for an item. The other thing, obviously, is that it’s not in the city centre, and if you don’t drive, then Birstall retail park isn’t the easiest or cheapest place to get to (however you can always compensate yourself for the inconvenience by heading over to the Krispy Kreme shop for a treat while you’re there!)
So all in all it gets a thumbs up from me. If you’re young at heart, get yourself there and pretend you’re Tom Hanks in Big!

year after year i go to toys r us for xmas/​birthday presents and year after year i have to take the majority of toys back to the store either from fault or missing parts, usually to find the staff are very rude and takes me forever to get a refund/​replacement. well, after today i certainly will never shop at toys r us againEVER! i bought my daughters birthday presents and when i tried to pay on my debit card there was a fault with the machine. i asked if we could use another machine but the cashier refused and said it will eventually work it just takes time as it has been playing up all day. after the 7^th attempt she tells me, in front of a massive queue that i musnt have no money in my account therefore shes taking my items back, i told her shes wrong as i knew i had the cash but she decided on embarrasing me instead. later i checks with my bank to find that toys r us had infact cleared my account out completely, they had taken xxxx amount of money for the toys over and over again, so not only did i have the embarrasment and my 1 year old daughter crying becuase she is told she cant have her toys but i had no money neither! i was given an authorization code from my bank to give to toys r us to prove the money had gone out but toys r us refused to check this and said the money may go back in in a few days, well im sorry but i dont have a few days, i have bills coming out, my daughters birthday which is tommorrow and iv no present and no longer no money as TOYS R US BIRSTALL have STOLEN it all from me. i am suing for liability!

Now I know this is hardly an independent charming little shop but I felt the need to give it a mention. Why? Well because as far as toy shops go, this is the daddy. Even now my jaw drops at the huge toy brimming stacked shelves on row upon row. It’s Christmas come early and they are right, it really is.
Out in the Birstall retail park too, it’s a great location. You can get straight in and out with on sight parking and easy access to the motorways, Leeds, Wakefield or the surrounding areas. You’ll then be able to get a bite to eat at one of the chained eateries nearby or my tip is to head down to the Peasant pub just down the road.
As for the store itself, what doesn’t it have? From American football attire to board games I didn’t know existed. The new craze gadgets, weird contraptions that I’m too old to get anywhere near and so much more. It may not have the charm of many independent retailers but it’s got to be worth a shout when you are looking for some presents to spoil anyone from the age of conception almost. Just don’t expect to get out of here anytime soon because it really is that big. Maybe leave said children at home or it may take a search party.

Toys R Us is a not just any old toy store its a toy mega store. It is very popular with my 3 year old who loves toys. I found myself queing outside this store on a cold December morning trying to get hold of the number 1 toy for Christmas 2009. I rang the night before and was told they were expecting a delivery the following day.
When I arrived there was a small queue outside once the doors opened it was well organised and there was no pushing or shoving staff handed you the items you asked for. I was really pleased.
This store has so many types of toys it is amazing I bet kids would be happy to spend the whole day there if you would let them.