Berlin is a step back into childhood for those who still remember the days before toys required batteries. Of course you can get all of the latest high-tech games that kids beg for these days, but the city has more than its fair share of toy shops that keep playtime simple.

Prenzlauer Berg offers a toy store so engrossing that it’s just as likely to be the kids dragging their parents out of the store kicking and screaming. Holzspielzeug Zartholt has items sorted according to the appropriate age group, with a large assortment of beautifully crafted wooden toys and games – the real showstoppers are the gorgeous handcrafted wooden bicycles and motorbikes (suitable for 2 to 5 year olds). Siebenschön also has a great range of wooden toys, many coloured with eco-friendly paints that won’t harm your precious offspring or the environment.

For authentic vintage, Bearlin Toys has teddy bears and model trains from the last century. Prenzlauer Berg has its own local gem, Onkel Philipps Spielzeugwerkstatt, which sells a mix of old-style wooden toys (including an amusement park with moving miniature ferris wheel) and high-tech gizmos, such as remote control helicopters.

Die Wilden Schwäne has helpful staff who are more than happy to help you find the perfect toy, whether it’s a dollhouse, a detective’s binocular/magnifying glass headset or a clock that sings like a canary on the hour.

If you’d prefer your kids (or yourself) to play with things that require a bit more brain power, Spielwiese in Friedrichshain stocks just about every board game ever invented. Heidi’s Spielzeugladen has a good range of kids’ books among its wooden toys and dollhouses.

For cuddly toys, Steiff is a Berlin institution. Its flagship store on Kurfürstendamm has a large selection of durable teddy bears in all shapes, sizes and colours – even an enormous €300 Knut model (the popular polar bear that captured the hearts of Berliners). Thankfully, it will home deliver (it won’t fit in your average cab).

The department stores, including KaDeWe, Wertheim and Galeria Kaufhof all have large toy sections, while the international chain Toys R Us has everything from the latest electronic gadgets to this season’s must-have doll. Second-hand toys in good condition can be purchased or hired at Fantasia, which also undertakes repairs.

Build-A-Bear outdoes the lot as it’s the only place in town where kids get to create a new teddy. There are 30 bear bodies to choose from, which children then get to personally stuff, fluff with a brush, create a birth certificate for and dress in their chosen souvenirs before taking their new cuddly creation home.

If you would like your kids to get into recycling, second-hand toys are available in many of the vintage children’s clothes shops such as Fantasia, which has both new and used toys in great condition, and also repairs playthings in need of a little care.