A crowd near the stuffed animals display inside FAO Schwarz
Important Information:
- The best time to visit FAO Schwarz NY is before lunch on a weekday. If you decide to visit FAO Schwarz NYC on Saturday or Sunday, try to get there early, as the store gets crowded towards mid-afternoon.
- This New York City toy store is most crowded during the holiday season.
- FAO Schwarz New York City offers complimentary gift wrapping services and personal shopping assistance.
- FAO Schwarz NY offers free delivery to many of the best Manhattan hotels. Purchases may also be shipped home.
FAO Schwarz Hours NYC: Mon.-Sat. 10am-7pm, Sun. 11am-6pm
FAO Schwarz: The Best Toy Store in NYC
This full-size section is dedicated to Barbie(tm) and her friends and their various accessories. You can't find a selection this vast anywhere else.
There's something for everyone at FAO Schwarz NY! Animal lovers, for instance, will want to check out FAO's famous stuffed animals. This magnificent menagerie of cute and cuddly animals, sponsored by the American Museum of Natural History, features miniature monkeys and a giant giraffe! Boys will love the Legos and Star Wars merchandise, and girls will love exploring the section devoted to Barbie. Kids of all ages will enjoy browsing the children's books section, where the books of Dr. Seuss are prominently displayed. Puppets and board games may be found in abundance. You can even ride an elevator shaped like a robot (named, appropriately enough, GO-2-FLOOR-2)!
A friendly-looking robot holds the elevator to the second floor.
F.A.O. Schwarz also regularly features special activities and events, including performances by piano dancers (remember the piano scene from Big?) and arts and crafts demonstrations. Kids can also sit down and enjoy a special storytime hour in the children's books section. This NYC toy store is truly one of the best places to take kids in New York City.
With so much to see at FAO Schwarz, you might want to begin your visit by talking to Spanky the Gund Teddy Bear, who will tell you where everything is. Then your adventure can begin!
History of FAO Schwarz NYC
Even the limited edition collectibles of various toys and product lines have their own section.
FAO Schwarz Toys was founded by Frederick August Otto Schwarz and his brothers in Baltimore in 1862. In 1870, Schwarz opened his first toy store in NY, on 42 East 14th Street in Union Square NYC. After a few years, this cherished NYC toy store, originally known as the Toy Bazaar, moved to 745 Fifth Avenue, where Bergdorf Goodman Men's Shop NYC now stands. The oldest toy store in the United States, FAO Schwarz was acquired by Toys"R"Us, Inc., in 2009. As of 2011, the last FAO Schwarz store in NYC is located in the GM Building on Fifth Avenue.
