About
Sunriver Toyhouse Toys in Sunriver, Oregon isn’t what you might think. This is serious fun for grownups. Well, there’s fun gear for the whole family, but Toys R Us it isn’t. I was blown away by the amount of water fun gear that Sunriver Toyhouse Toys has available. They’ve really got all the bases covered, no matter what you plan on getting up to on Sun River. I mean, have you ever seen a paddle board for four? I hadn’t but I have now!
They also have gear for trekking around Sun River, like bikes and trailers that you can bicycle around with your toddler, your dog or your pet bunny. (I’m not even kidding. I actually saw this!) But what that says to me is, that this outfit is totally chill with almost everything. They aren’t overly uptight about a bunch of rules and regulations. At the same time, they do insist on safety, and that means life vests for all humans, and they even have life vests for dogs readily available. From the moment my group arrived, we were treated like royalty, and I could tell the staff were having almost as much fun at their job as their guests were out on the water.
Location & Environment
Sunriver Toyhouse Toys is on Spring River Road, less than half a mile west of Harbor Bridge on Deschutes River, right next to the Willow Bar & Cafe. You can easily get to it from your Sunriver vacation rental. The location couldn’t be better. If you’re taking 97 (Dalles-California Highway), take the Sunriver Exit and that will put you right on Spring River Road. Sunriver Toyhouse would then be on your left after passing over the bridge. You can’t miss it, because you’ll see the huge array of rental toys right out front. There’s a huge parking lot out front; plenty of room for your SUV or pickup.
As far as the environment, you’re already in Sunriver, so you know how pristine it is here, but honestly, the fresh air is something you don’t get in other parts of the country. It’s not far from Deschutes National Forest, and Mt. Bachelor. It’s breathtakingly beautiful in this region of the country.
The atmosphere at Sunriver Toyhouse is receptive and friendly. This is a family-run business, operated by David, his wife Christine and their son (whose name escapes me). They also have some other employees on hand to help out and keep things running along.
As long as you have made your online reservation, you’ll be greeted and outfitted right away. The way the operation is set up, you can’t really just show up and expect to rent something. There’s a lot of work involved with each rental, and in order to manage all their reservations, they keep things on schedule as much as humanly possible. The good thing about that is you won’t to wait long to head out with your reserved rental gear. You just have to be sure to plan ahead and make the reservation online.
Toys Available
This list would be shorter if I mentioned what they don’t have, because Sunriver has everything under the sun to have fun on water and on land. I’ll list just a few here, but if you don’t see what you want listed, just shoot them an email and ask because they might have it.
- River Floats
- Kayaks
- Skidoo
- Canoes
- Jet Ski
- Inflatables (Rafts, Etc.)
- E-Bikes
- Trailers
- And more…
Before I forget, they also have a virtual reality arcade, with all the VR equipment that you could possibly need. I didn’t do the VR experience, but for anyone who’s into it, or for anyone who hasn’t tried it before and wants to, I can’t imagine a better place to do it.
Rentals
As I mentioned, all rentals have to be done with a reservation. This is to ensure that people don’t end up having to wait for their equipment and start their day of fun. Honestly, this place runs like a well-oiled machine. Just go online to their website to make your reservation. You can get 24-hour rentals on certain gear, so you can play all day and worry about returning the stuff the next day. Note that if you rent an inflatable, you have to deflate it and return it yourself to the location. Because it’s a different business, Sunriver Toys aren’t allowed to come into the marina to pick up their inflatable gear. I think deflating is a small price to pay for such a great experience. Anyway, they’ll show you what to do and how to do it when you rent.
That takes us into the safety part. You and your group will go through a little training and safety course, so that everyone knows how to operate the equipment, how to stay safe and what to do if things go wrong. They have tons of safety gear for you, like helmets, walkie talkies, battery charges, etc., so you can stay personally safe and keep in touch with your group. During your stay in Sunriver, this is the place to rent all your fun gear. The level of customer service is outstanding, and the prices are very affordable and the gear is in great condition.