One of the best Christmas toys for youngsters, in response to the consultants

What are the top toys for Christmas 2024?

Everyone knows that Hamleys is the home of toys (with queues out the door come December), so we couldn’t believe our luck when the store’s head buyer, Victoria Kay, invited us down to take a sneak peek at her top picks for 2024.

According to Victoria, the common theme on all children’s wish lists this year will be much-loved screen characters. “There’s a giggling, wiggling Stitch from the live-action remake of Lilo & Stitch that comes out next year,” she says. “And we have a Moana toy where you press the button on her chest and she sings a song from the movie.”

These character-inspired toys stretch across all ages, too. There’s a Lego Transformer Bumblebee collectible with 950 pieces that’s great for teens and adults, while the Numberblocks Five Musical Superstar Stage is a clever interactive playset that helps children of preschool age practise their number skills.

“The toys on this year’s list foster a sense of connection, comfort and familiarity,” explains Victoria. “There are also the ones that simply endure year-on-year like Play Doh, fun cars and the latest dart blaster.”

Founder of CIJ Group and gifting expert Courtney Rogers, who works with all the big toy brands, including the likes of Lego and The Pokémon Company, predicts a similar trend in the popularity of licensed toys.

“As of September, Disney’s Star Wars-themed toys were the highest seller in the UK,” she says. “Similarly, we anticipate that gifts from big name brands, such as Lego Duplo’s Peppa Pig’s Birthday Playhouse will fly off the shelves this Christmas, as they celebrate big milestones.”

Despite the cost-of-living crisis, Courtney believes many consumers will still be saving up for those big-ticket items.“The Sylvanian Families Secret Forest Falls Playset is a perfect example of one of the larger gifts we anticipate parents saving up for,” she says.

For bigger kids (and maybe even adults, too) Courtney says the popular toys will be ones that allow them to explore their creative minds and reduce screen time, “whether that’s building a collection of Lego roses, allowing for a mindful hour in the day, or providing the little ones with an outlet to learn, engage and play.”

As always, we’ll keep this article up to date as we get closer to the big day, as more trends and toys start to emerge… just call us Father Christmas.

So, without further ado, these are the toys children will have on their wish list this Christmas. (And, yes, Stitch is so popular this year, he made our list twice).

” data-next-head/>