Intertoys is the largest physical toy chain in the Netherlands: more than 175 stores, one in nearly every town, open late in December. That is the strength. You walk in, take a LEGO box off the shelf and you’re done, no delivery date and no stock gamble. On price the story is different. Intertoys moves slowly, price drops trail the market, and online the chain sits almost always above Bol.com. The rule of thumb: buy on convenience and certainty and Intertoys is fine; chase the lowest price and you’re almost always off the mark.
Compare the lowest online price for each set first on the daily deals at BricksDeal, and you’ll see straight away whether Intertoys comes close.
Where Intertoys is strong and weak
The kids LEGO catalogue up to around 200 euros RRP is complete at Intertoys: City, Friends, Ninjago, Minecraft, Marvel, Star Wars. For a birthday or Sinterklaas gift for a child you’ll always find something. Where it stops is the top end. Modular Buildings, UCS Star Wars and the premium Icons sets are not on the shelves, and not online either. Intertoys buys deliberately for the children’s audience and leaves the 18+ collector to others.
One thing counts unconditionally in its favour: everything Intertoys sells is its own inventory. No outside sellers, so no counterfeit risk and no hassle with an unknown third party on returns or warranty. That is a real advantage over the marketplace side of Bol.com and Amazon, where some sellers do need watching.
The price reality: structurally dearer online
Online, Intertoys sits structurally 5 to 10 percent above Bol.com on the same set. That sounds small, but on an 80-euro box it’s 4 to 8 euros, and across a year of gifts it adds up. The chain only closes that gap at two moments: Black Friday week at the end of November and the Sinterklaas run-up from October. Then Intertoys gets close to Bol.com’s level, but dropping below it is rare. I’ve seen the chain win on a single City set that Bol.com happened not to have on promotion, but that is the exception.
Before you check out: run this quick check
Intertoys doesn’t win on price, so let the chain win on what it can: stock you take home today, in-store wrapping, and returns without shipping a big box back. Run these four points before you decide.
| Check | Why it matters | What I would do |
|---|---|---|
| Store stock | Pickup only helps when the set is actually available nearby | Check local stock before comparing price |
| Gift service | Wrapping matters for Sinterklaas or a birthday | Use it as a tie-breaker, not the whole reason |
| Price history | A toy promotion can be shallow | Put the price next to the last 30-90 days |
| Returns | Returning in-store is easier than shipping a big box | Prefer Intertoys when service closes a small price gap |
Always run the price check: the same set on BricksDeal shows the lowest online price at a glance. If Intertoys is close to it and pickup or wrapping solves a real deadline, then it’s the right choice.
When Intertoys is the better choice
There are three situations where I go to the store without hesitation. The first is last-minute Sinterklaas: order online after 1 December and delivery before 5 December is no longer guaranteed. Intertoys stores then hold physical stock, keep extended hours in weeks 48 and 49, and wrap for free. That is exactly the gap a webshop can’t fill at that point.
The second is a child who gets to choose. Sets are out on open shelves; a seven-year-old picking their own box off the shelf experiences that differently from scrolling through a webshop. For a birthday trip to the store, that’s half the gift.
The third is the small set under 25 euros. There the online price gap is so small that shipping costs flip the balance: taking one home from Intertoys works out practically the same as ordering from Bol.com, without the wait.
When to skip Intertoys
- You want the lowest price on a set above 60 euros. Bol.com or Amazon.nl wins that almost every time.
- You want an 18+ set, a Modular Building, UCS Star Wars or a large Icons model. Intertoys doesn’t carry them.
- You want fast, transparent comparison. Intertoys promotions are laid out less clearly online than at Bol.com or Amazon.nl.
Price calendar: when Intertoys moves
| Period | Intertoys promotion |
|---|---|
| January | Clearance deals on the previous wave |
| April–May | Star Wars Day, sometimes a small bargain week |
| October | Sinterklaas run-up: first price drops on kids sets |
| November | Black Friday week: 10–20% on a selection |
| December | Christmas deals, extended store opening hours |
The Intertoys Club: the birthday coupon is the useful part
The Intertoys Club is free and gives points on every purchase, around 1 to 2 percent back. That is less than the 3 percent LEGO Insider gives at LEGO.com, so as a savings scheme it’s nothing special. The part that does count is the 10 percent birthday coupon. On an 80-euro set that’s 8 euros off, and combined with a Sinterklaas or Black Friday deal it closes most of the price gap with Bol.com. If you shop at Intertoys now and then, joining is worth it; as a standalone reason to buy there, it’s too thin.
In short
Go to Intertoys when you need a Sinterklaas gift after 1 December, when a child wants to pick their own set, or for a small box under 25 euros. For everything else, and certainly above 60 euros, compare on BricksDeal first and buy where it’s cheapest: almost always Bol.com or Amazon.nl.
How BricksDeal helps here
BricksDeal tracks the major online retailers, from Bol.com, Amazon.nl and LEGO.com to dozens of smaller webshops, every day. Intertoys itself isn’t in that daily comparison, but it doesn’t need to be: the lowest online price is the benchmark you need. Once you see what the cheapest webshop charges on the set page, you know at once whether the Intertoys shelf price is fair or whether you’re better off ordering online.
Gift sets for immediate stock
Child-focused LEGO sets where physical stock and quick delivery matter.
Best for each buyer type
These are the Intertoys checks I would run first: giftable boxes, visible stock and prices that beat the broader market.
Classic Beach Streetcar is the Intertoys benchmark because store pickup, gift timing and price all matter at once.
Heartlake City Grand Hotel fits Intertoys best when you need a recognisable gift with local pickup or in-store wrapping.
Compare The Twin Titan Mechs against online retailers first; Intertoys needs a clear price or service advantage on bigger boxes.
Track Belle & the Beast's Enchanted Castle before a toy promotion starts, then buy only if Intertoys beats the wider Dutch market.
