Macaulay Culkin in Home Alone (1990)
(Picture: 20th Century Fox)There’s always an extra sprinkling of magic at Christmas if you’ve got little ones around.
Their excitement is infectious; whether they’re penning wish lists bound for the North Pole, helping decorate the tree with family baubles, or tearing open advent calendar windows and stuffing themselves silly with chocolate well ahead of their allocated days.
So, it’s fair to surmise that the stakes are never higher than when shopping for Christmas gifts for kids. Get it wrong, and you’ll know instantly: after all, how many kids have learned the socially vital art of masking their disappointment?
But how to decode current playground trends and get them what they really want? It’s tough enough trying to figure out what your grown up friends and family want for Christmas. Fidget toys remain inexplicably popular, yet they’re a bit of a damp squib when it comes to festive gifting.
Luckily this year, you can save your brainpower for strategising Christmas lunch timings because your merry band of shopping elves (that’s us) have been busy curating the last Christmas toy gift list you’ll need.
We’ve sifted through the mountain of toys on offer and whittled it down to the biggest, baddest, and coolest options, guaranteed to have them shrieking with glee come December 25.
From tech-centred toys that sneak in learning, to adorable otherworldly creatures that sing and dance, our Christmas toy list 2022 will deliver serious brownie points.
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Leap Frog Magic Adventures Microscope
Age: 5+
Their curiosity will go into overdrive with this interactive STEM toy from Leap Frog. With the controls and LCD screen provided, they can operate the microscope and get up close and personal with real slide samples in 50-2000x magnification. There are nine of these slides that features the likes of insects, plants and even bread with fun facts offered as they navigate around. They’ll never get bored with the adventures, quizzes and hours of learning and fun to be had.
Buy now £54.99, Amazon
Disney Princess Enchanted Princess Castle Playset
Age: 6 months+
Disney princess toys and dolls have traditionally come with copious amounts of plastic, so it’s really refreshing to see the introduction of a wooden range. If your child loves the magic of Disney and is a fan of Snow White, Jasmine, Aurora and Merida, they’re going to love this larger-than-life wooden playset.
Measuring a substantial 65cm tall, this chunky and durable playset is made from FSC-certified wood which has been beautifully decorated to resemble an enchanted castle - it even has a drawbridge-style front door!
With 10 pieces of furniture and six doubled-sided wooden figures included, children will love making the characters spin on the balcony ballroom dance floor, relax on the seashell boutique swing, or sit on their golden thrones, before whizzing them down the slide to the lower floor.
It does require adult assembly with the use of a screwdriver, and whilst the number of pieces may feel daunting at first, it’s relatively simple and easy to construct, even for the flatpackaphobes amongst us.
Buy now £59.99, Amazon
4M Frozen II Code AMaze
Age: 5-14 years
Let’s face it: it will never be time to Let It Go when it comes to the Frozen franchise. It makes sense then that Disney’s phenomenally successful movie has branched out into coding.
Promising a screen-free experience, kids are challenged to solve the maze by laying out direction cards; the cards are then coded into the device’s system with an easy-use scanner. Elsa moves according to the input directions, with support from the maze-making ensemble cast of Anna, Olaf, et. al cheering her on.
Perfect for making a subject that could be perceived by young minds as a bit - whisper it - dull, this colourful kit makes coding instantly familiar. Due to its broad recommended age group, it’s a great choice for newbies and confident coders alike.
Buy now £56.99, Robert Dyas
Melissa & Doug Animal Stamp Set
Suitable for: 3+ years
A wonderful set for animal lovers. From wild, safari creatures to farm cattle and domestic pets, kids can mix and match a selection of stamps to create colourful scenes of land and sea. Let their storytelling play out onto paper, cards and notebooks using a mix of washable inks. All packs away into a sturdy wooden box for ideal storage.
Buy now £21.98, Amazon
Kumber Tie-Dye Kit
Suitable for: 3+ years
Take your kids back to the 60s and 70s with this funky tie-dye kit. Use the surface cover provided to protect your kitchen table, pop the gloves on and get customising T-shirts and sweatshirts with funky psychedelic patterns. Mix colours, tie clothing with elastic bands and create vibrant patterns to wear away that are totally unique.
Buy now £17.99, Amazon
Slime Cra-Z-Slimy Creations Slimy Fun Kit
Suitable for: 6+ years
The slime craze shows no signs of subsiding and we have to admit that even we find the stuff rather appealing. Your little one can create their very own glittery and neon slime with this set, which includes white glue, clear glue, neon colourant, glitter, a measuring cup, slime sticks and the slime activator.
Buy now £12.45, Amazon
Nerf Go Kart with Blaster/Darts
Okay so not technically a Nerf gun, but with firing abilities on board, we couldn’t leave out this Nerf Go Kart from our roundup. The mini vehicle, which works in two modes (pedal and freewheel), is made for playtime with a robust steel frame and chunky tyres to speed across the garden. There’s even a handbrake for making quick stops.
Firepower wise, it comes with two Blasters and a set of 10 Nerf-branded darts, ready and waiting to vanquish foes when they’re found.
Suitable for ages 3+.
Was: £199.99
Buy now £99.99, Very
Barbie Dreamhouse Playset
Age: 3+
With the hotly-anticipated Barbie movie out next year, Mattel’s doll is as popular as she’s ever been. If your little one is similarly Barbie mad, it’s time to heighten their obsession, and how better than to invest in some dream real estate?
This showstopping house lives up to its name with dreamy details and features galore: think three floors and 10 rooms packed with non-stop imaginative play. There’s a pool and garden if Barbie and hr pals fancy taking a dip (what a life). Furniture serves double duty too, transforming from BBQs to heaving dessert buffets and an entertainment centre into a pet play area.
Throw in audio, soundscapes and even light settings and you’re looking at a toy they’ll want to play with all Christmas Day and beyond.
Buy now £249.99, Very
PAW Patrol Total Team Rescues: Chase's Team Police Cruiser Vehicle with 6 Pup Figures
Ages: 3+
In a (playtime-based) crisis, this is the only squad you need to call. Perfect for PAW Patrol fans, Chase’s Team Police Cruiser comes with six pups ready for action on the blue vehicle. The features bring it to life: little ones can raise the driver’s compartment; extend barriers; lift the back door; and pull out the working winch to move objects and rescue other helpless toys in their room.
Buy now £23.99, The Entertainer
Monster Jam Official Megalodon STORM
Whether or not you’ve experienced a Monster Jam stadium event in real life, this remote control replica of the Megalodon truck is a whole lot of fun. In true Monster Jam style, it’s as rough and ready as they come, and able to tackle pretty much any terrain, in all weathers. It clambers across rocks, speeds off ramps and even skits across the surface of puddles and paddling pools.
We particularly like the fact the car itself is rechargeable via USB, although you’ll need batteries for the handheld remote control. It’s got some serious speed, too, which is another reason this is best suited to outdoor use somewhere with plenty of space – unless you want it to be constantly bashing into your ankles.
Buy now £39.50, Amazon
NEHOPE Walkie Talkies
- Range: 4 miles
- Battery type: 3 x AAA batteries
- Channels: 22
- Number in pack: Two
For extra flexibility on when and how your kids use their walkie talkies, the NEHOPE Walkie Talkies offer a choice of 22 channels and offer either ‘one to one’ or ‘one to more’ communication, meaning children can easily team up with friends for wider group communication.
With a robust and ergonomically shaped design, these walkie talkies are lightweight and easy to carry, with the option of even attaching to clothing using the integrated belt clip.
They work via a simple push to talk operation, whilst providing the reassurance of VOX for younger users, and the sound quality is clear and crisp with high anti-interference to avoid static or background noise distorting clarity.
With a built-in flashlight and a bright backlit LCD screen to keep children safe during nighttime missions, they also clearly display the channel, volume and battery status.
Buy now £21.58, Amazon
Science Museum Mio the Robot kit
Age: 8+
This kit teaches kids the basics of robotics, electronics, programming and engineering. Not bad for a 31cm tall robot named Mio, right?
We loved the ‘science lesson’ feel of this particular coding toy for kids, which encourages the user to observe how the robot reacts to specific sounds and commands. It can be used both in conjunction with a screen as well as on its own. The app allows you to control the robot and experiment with sounds and lights, while screen-free offline mode lets you experiment with manual coding thanks to the circuit board.
Kids can task the robot to pick up certain objects (it has a magnet built into its base) and navigate an obstacle course, while the option to put a pen between its two orange hands can result in some surprising artwork.
Buy now £24.99, Currys
Mindstorms Robot Inventor 5 in 1
Age: 10+
If you’ve got the budget, this fantastic coding toy for kids from Lego is a must. As much an investment as it is a fantastic learning tool, the Mindstorms Robot Inventor 5 in 1 kit is as appropriate for older kids as it is for adult Lego fans who are looking to dip their toe into the world of coding.
Comprising 949 pieces - including bricks, motors and sensors - the builder can take their pick from five different robot models. Each one can do different things: we were impressed by Tricky’s ability to throw a ball, for example, while Charlie can dance, and Blast is prone to firing missiles. (Don’t worry - your living room will be safe).
Once construction is complete, simply download the Mindstorms Robot Inventor App (which can be used on almost any device) and watch your creation come to life. This kit is definitely more involved than some of the options out there and offers some particularly fantastic learning opportunities for a child who’s already dabbled with coding.
Perhaps most excitingly of all, it’s delivered with its own rechargeable batteries, meaning there’ll be no hanging around when it needs an energy boost.
Buy now £314.99, LEGO
Tonies
This brilliant and durable speaker system gives your kids complete control on what they want to listen to, and helps make bedtime so much easier. There is an extensive list of over 60 mini figurines ranging from The Snowman and the Gruffalo, to Beethoven and The age of Dinosuars. It also durable with a soft and bouncy construction, and has superb battery life even when not connected to the docking station which makes it brilliantly portable. A great intro into music technology. Age 3+
Buy now £79.95, Amazon
Green Science Wind Turbine
With climate change and environmental issues at the forefront of our agenda, this wind turbine will show your children how we can work with nature - wind in this case - to create light. Most importantly it will help them understand the values of renewable energy. It’s also a great bit of mini engineering to show the inner workings of the full scale versions that we see more and more of these days. Age 5+.
Buy now £29.99, Amazon
