Today is the day when the holiday shopping season officially begins (at least in the USA), which of course also means LEGO shopping! Whether you are planning to get LEGO sets for kids, relatives, friends, or yourself, you can take advantage of the myriad of offers, as local retailers and online shops are vying to offer the best deals. Here we will look at some of the best places to shop for LEGO, as well as what to look out for during your LEGO shopping mission. So let’s dive right in! 🙂
➡ LEGO Stores & Online LEGO Shop: LEGO stores carry the full line of currently available LEGO sets, and if you have one near you, I would definitely recommend checking it out. There will be various promotions until Christmas, so keep an eye out for announcements. Right now LEGO is offering free shipping on all orders, and you will also get the LEGO Gingerbread House for free with orders over $99. The added benefit of shopping at the Online LEGO Shop is the largest selection of items and no need to fight the crowds. Besides the deals mentioned above, sales tend to be moderate, but don’t forget that you also earn VIP points, which definitely makes those deals a lot sweeter! 🙄
➡ Toys’R’Us & Other Toy Shops: Toys’R’Us usually has the best selection of LEGO sets – not counting LEGO stores – and they often carry new releases early, not available anywhere else. The issue with Toys’R’Us and toy-shops in general is that they take advantage of unsuspecting customers by significantly inflating prices. They will advertise all kinds of sales, but with their inflated prices, those so-called sales end up being worse than just shopping at a generic retail store or directly at LEGO. Having said that, the numbers sometimes do work. The key with shopping at Toys’R’Us is knowing the original prices sets should be selling for. Take a calculator and do the math before being swept away in the shopping excitement.
➡ Wal-Mart, K-Mart, Target & Other Retailers: These are the generic big-box retail stores. They have an excellent LEGO selection, their prices are not inflated, and they often have great deals around the holiday season. One tip I would give is that don’t take the shelf-prices for granted. They often have sales going on which are not yet marked on the shelves, especially around this time of the year when stores are so busy. Take items up to a price-checking station to get the most current price. Wal-Mart, K-Mart, and Target often have steep discounts somewhere in the 25-50% off range.
➡ Barnes&Noble, Sam’s Club & Other Retailers: These are some places where you might not think of looking for LEGO, but they are in fact great for finding hidden gems and great discounts. Barnes&Noble in particular tend to have great deals on LEGO sets before Christmas (also don’t forget about the excellent LEGO related books). Shopping clubs like Sam’s Club also carries LEGO around the holidays. The selection is usually very small, but you might find some good deals.
➡ Amazon.com: One of my most favorite places to shop for LEGO in general, and definitely around the holidays, is Amazon.com. Their free shipping over $35 and no tax in most states is a significant saving in itself. In addition their prices are excellent, as they like to undercut everyone else. Always look out for the Eligible for Free Super Saver Shipping icon in the item description. These are items shipped directly by Amazon. (Amazon also has affiliates and their shipping may not be free.) Besides Amazon having their own dedicated Amazon LEGO Shop
➡ Other Online Shops: Toys’R’Us, Target, Wal-Mart, Barnes&Noble, etc. all have online shops as well. During the holidays they usually offer free shipping and the same or larger selection than at their retail locations. Sometimes they also have online-only deals. You can sign up for email alerts to get updates on the latest offers.
➡ Shopping for Retired, Used & Bulk LEGO: If you have your eyes on a retired LEGO set, or just want to pick up some used or bulk LEGO, eBay.com and BrickLink.com are the best place to shop. Always check the seller’s feedback and ask questions before making a purchase. One thing to remember when shopping on eBay and BrickLink is that these are usually small hobby sellers who will need to pack and ship your order in their spare time. Place your order at least two weeks before Christmas to make sure the package arrives on time. You can read more at Shopping for LEGO on eBay and Shopping for LEGO on BrickLink.
And that pretty much sums up where to go LEGO shopping. I know it is a lot of places to keep a tab on, but I thought to give you an overall idea of where to look, and depending on your own location and situation, you can narrow down the list to what works best for you. Personally I almost always shop for LEGO at Amazon, not just because they have excellent prices, no shipping and no tax, but I can also pick up other, non-LEGO items in the same order (throw in some books, a couple of DVDs, some vitamins, or whatever else I need). Also, not having to spend gas and fight the traffic and crowds is a nice bonus.
Having said that, it is worth to check a LEGO Store (if you are lucky enough to have one near you) or Toys’R’Us to see LEGO sets displayed. I have found that no matter how many images I see online, there is nothing like seeing a LEGO set in person. It could actually be a really interesting experience! Sometimes you may not be interested in a set you see pictures of, but you fall in love with it after seeing it personally. Other times it is just the opposite. LEGO is full of surprises!
Hope this guide helps you a little in your holiday LEGO shopping. If you would like to add your own LEGO shopping tips feel free to share them in the comment section below, along with any great deals you run across between now and Christmas. Happy huntin’! 😉
And you might also like to check out the following related posts:
Guys, major sale going on at S@H! Check the sales section!
Yep, really huge sale! The one on LEGO Dimensions sets is awesome. Many others too! See here: LEGO Sales & Deals at the Online LEGO Shop
But all the good sets are sold out already! Including the B-wing… I really wanted that. 🙁 Well, online is different that in stores, so maybe there’ll be some good sets left tomorrow.
On a side note, maybe I should get the Gimli pack… my only indecision there is I’d rather get Helm’s Deep off of Bricklink sometime in the future. 😕
Yeah, it is not easy to decide what to get. That’s why I usually recommend to start making a list a few weeks ahead, including a few alternate options in case one of the sets you want is sold out. There is always the risk of sets being sold out this close to Christmas. My strategy is to get the must-buy sets during the Double VIP Points period earlier in the season, and only leave enough sets for this time to be able to get the special (if and when I want it). I hope you have luck finding the sets you are looking for. 🙂
Unfortunately, no luck today. Neither the B-wing nor Invizable Gold Getaway were there – in fact, there were no Ultra Agents sets there at all! The person at checkout said the B-wing was there on sale yesterday… now my parents are asking why we didn’t go then, when earlier they said not to go because it was mayhem. 😕
Anyways, I did get the Morro Dragon and the Flash Speeder, and got the Gingerbread House (also a small Friends set as a pollyanna gift). The PAB wall was very lame; all the good parts were in Pick-A-Model (not that I care, but even those weren’t worth the whole cup).
Now I have to try to get my parents to help me buy 70167 from TRU’s site. Although, it says “Store pickup today” only…. 😕
Hm… when I shopped on the TRU website a couple of days ago, the only set that was store pickup only was the HQ set. The rest they would ship for free. 😐
They still say Free Shipping, 70167 just has an “x” next to “Ship to Home.” Why must it be one of the five of 14 sets that have that? 😡 😕
Hm… I see… is your TRU far? If it’s not too far you may be able to pick it up at the store. Or perhaps the have it shipped to home option will come back. Hopefully…
No, the nearest one should be within a half-hour’s drive from my house (it said about 7 miles). The problem is getting my parents to even drive that far…. Plus it’s no longer on sale. 🙁
On a side note, I can give up on the B-wing… after all, I have the Falcon. And that new Resistance Troop Transporter looks like a B-wing (on purpose, no doubt), and probably will be similarly priced, so I can get that. Maybe. 😕
Hm… yes, that sounds like a good option as far as the B-wing, but it would be sad it you can’t get the Ultra Agents set. It is so good…
@admin: Change of fortune, actually. For some reason 70167 said out of stock for all the TRU stores, so my dad made me Google search the set, and we found it was available at a Barnes&Noble relatively close to us. So I reserved one, and when we went to get it, we found a full box of CMF Series 14! I got the Spectre (which I wanted), for 1/2 off because of B&N’s sale, as well as 70167. I’ve already built them; I’m happy with both. 😀
Also, I got an extra Chain 16M with 70167. Is that normal for 2015 sets?
Wow! That’s awesome! Great find! Yes, extra chains are pretty common, and it is always nice to get them. 🙂