It has seen some water damage and the varnish is flaking off (especially on the top). But I don't necessarily have the time/energy for a full strip/sand/refinish, especially as this may get dinged up; I'm just looking for a reasonably pleasing look.
Looking at the bare wood that was between assembled pieces, it looks like the piece was stained and then varnished. What's a good way to get the old flaking varnish off without messing up the stain -- Citristip, just sanding? Thinking I'll just put some coats of new polyeurethane varnish on as the new finish. Most instructions I see online are for a really thorough refinishing, so I'm wondering if there's some middle ground that will clean up the worst of the water damage and protect the wood, even if it doesn't look like new.
Closer view of the top:
If it's for kids and you're not looking to get it back, hit it with sandpaper and paint it their favorite color. They'll love it and you really don't have to do much more then shake off the flakes.
This is what I'd do as well, paint will be a lot less effort and a whole lot easier to touch up as it gets used. Plus the kid can paint their own patterns or emblems or logos or whatever on it