Toys R Us Times Square Grand Opening 2017

Almost 2 years after Toys R Us closed down its flagship store in Times Square, the company opened a temporary holiday store today at 1466 Broadway, New York, NY! They announced:

Good things DO come in small(er) packages! The opening of our temporary holiday store in Times Square is set for 9am, Sat., Aug. 26. You’ll find all the hottest toys, NYC souvenirs, interactive displays and an awesome play space!

Even for a “temporary” store, TRU boasts this 35,000 square foot space complete with 3 levels. Ironically this space previously belonged to Gap, who is slated to take over TRU’s old Times Square location very soon.

Without disappointment, the doors opened promptly at 9am, letting the growing crowd inside the store in a civil manner. But I don’t know who was more excited, the crowd or the huge army of employees cheering us on as we marched in! Loud whoops, balloon bats, and Geoffrey the Giraffe greeted us as we entered, complete with a mini Geoffrey plush for every visitor!

Everyone was led to the lower level to begin our journey where you encounter a couple of custom brick Minions from Despicable Me 3. Then the actual basement is filled with remote control toys, trading cards, Pokemon, sports, and bicycles.

While there are no escalators or giant ferris wheel to help time pass by as you travel from floor to floor, there are still elevators which (like the entrances) sport the new NYC Subway theme lettering:

In fact, you’ll find the subway lettering all throughout the store, which makes it a fun way to pinpoint key stations such as checkout, store pickup, or customer service. You’ll even encounter fun directional paths on the ground for fun navigating.

So what makes this Toys R Us stand out? New York City collectibles, of course! Everything about this location screams NEW YORK!

One of the things I was most curious about was how they would handle their iconic Star Wars section. With Force Friday II just 5 days away, would this Toys R Us even bother putting out old The Force Awakens & Rogue One merchandise? How many Forces Of Destiny dolls could they really push onto shelves?

Thankfully, the pegs weren’t overflowing with tons of warmers. You can tell that the products were spread out a lot to make for an easy reset next week in anticipation for Force Friday II (which, by the way, is at midnight at this location as well!)!

And what else? Not 1, not 2, but 4 photo opportunities with life-size Star Wars characters! Lego versions of First Order Stormtrooper, Finn, Rey & BB-8, and a life-size statue of Darth Vader!

I couldn’t resist…

But apart from preparing for The Last Jedi, TRU Times Square also had fresh offerings from Justice League, Defenders (Netflix Marvel Legends), and Thor Ragnarok! What a great year for toy collecting…

And Lego Ninjago fans rejoice! There’s a little something for you as well on Level 3! First, as you get to the top of the building, in the Lego section, check out large versions of a police officer, race car driver, Lego Friends, and Lloyd (L-loyd)!

Next, on the way to the PlayLab, stop by the Magic Mirror! This is a newer feature that Toys R Us is trying to roll out. It’s an interactive screen that allows an iconic character to mirror your actions! Choose from Geoffrey, Donatello, Mickey Mouse, Optimus Prime, and a Lego Minifigure!

It’s not extremely advanced, and the late Discovery Times Square had a more sophisticated version, but it’s a lot of fun for your young ones and it’s funny to see what some of these characters can do! See some examples in my video at the end of this post.

Finally, the last stop today is the PlayLab itself. But don’t forget to say hi to the animatronic dinosaur first!

There are tons of opportunities for Lego enthusiasts to get their brick on! Plus, more interactive play stations, and even more photo opportunities.

Some of the interactive play stations include a Ninjago build board:

And a Nerf target range!

There were a couple of guns to choose from but always make sure to ask for help!

All in all, it’s great to have Toys R Us back in Times Square. Whether it’ll truly be temporary is unknown for now but I’ll be enjoying a trip here every time I’m in the area! Just look out for those prices – on average, I’ve noticed that everything is about $2-3 more expensive than your local TRU. But I guess you could consider it a fun (aka convenience) fee!