The greatest toy store in London
When shopping for Christmas gifts, there is only one store you need to go to for toys… Hamleys. It is by far the greatest toy store in all of London.
Hamleys started as a toy shop back in 1760, and first had a Regent Street location in 1881. They moved into the current Regent Street premises in 1981. Spread over seven floors, it was once the largest toy store in the world.
Here is a quick guide to the floors:
5th - Boys
4th - Hobbies
3rd - Girls
2nd - Preschool
1st - Games
Ground - Soft toys
Basement - Interactive
I have to warn you, however. The greatest toy store in London can also be an absolute madhouse. It has millions of customers a year, and you can guess what season most of those are concentrated in! Plus, you can play with lots and lots of toys, which makes children excited and can make “big kids” distracted. See this photo for an example:
That said, Hamleys is one of those toy stores that has to be seen to be believed. I certainly recommend a visit, though if it’s near the holidays, be prepared! (Or go early in the morning.)
Hours:
Mon – Fri: 10am – 8pm
Sat: 9am – 8pm
Sun: 12noon – 6pm
(These are the baseline hours, they are extended somewhat in November & December for the holidays.)
Getting There: Take the Underground to either Oxford Circus or Piccadilly Circus stations, on the Central, Bakerloo, Piccadilly or Victoria lines.
Map:
View Larger Map
7 Comments
It looks like the FAO Schwarz Toy Store in New York City, which gets insane near the holidays. Tourists line up and can wait for up to an hour just to get in. Locals walk in without waiting becasue they know to use the never crowded rear entrance.
Jed,
Thanks for posting what’s on which floor – very helpful as it’s near impossible to find the store guide as Christmas approaches.
I love Hamleys – been in London for 11 years and I just love the energy of the store, the enthusiastic store attendants, and Regent Street! One of the best toy stores around in the world.
Holy cow that’s a crowd… I’m a horrible shopper, so I would definitely have to wait for the “off” season.
Hi, Matt and Monica. I’m glad you found this helpful! Matt, that’s the crowds you might see on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon in November/December. If you get there shortly after they open it’s certainly quite a bit better!
Hi,
Do you have a high res image of the second hamleys shot, the one with the mad crowds!!!
As we we would like to put it in the christmas edition of the oldie magazine, showing the full horrors of the crowds.
We would of course credit you and could pay for a high res image.
Cheers
Joe
wow, thisis the hamleys toy shop, im spanhis and we gong to london to see hamleys, big ben and harrods, goodbye. speaking spanish:
hola me llamo gonzalo y vivo en zaragzoa ,españa, me gustaria ir a londres y ver la tienda de jugetes hamleys y otras cosas mas, adios
im doing a shoot for girl tlak and top of the pops magazine in hamleys at 8 oclock on wednesday before it opens, i cant waittttttt!
x