Day Out With Thomas - The Workshops Rail Museum, Ipswich

I love it when other blogs provide awesome reviews of local places to visit. So today it's my turn:


Chances are, if you live in Ipswich you already love this place. If you are in Brisbane, you may have heard of it but not yet made the trek out to visit. Let me tell you, The Workshops Rail Museum is totally worth it.

This one had been on the cards for us for 6 months. I thought a "Day Out With Thomas" would be perfect for Brian's birthday (in June) but then found out it only runs at one time during the year (late Dec - Jan).

Day Out With Thomas is on now until 30th January at The Workshops Rail Museum in Ipswich. All three of us had a fantastic day out. We got there just before the gates opened at 9:30am and went home after lunch and a play inside Thomas, around 1pm. Your kids will sleep well after this one.

Here's a little look around:

The Thomas Play Pit - a room full of Thomas train tables with both the Wooden Railway (perfect for toddlers) and Trackmaster (perfect for older kids and geeky Dads alike) sets to play with. Note the Thomas tattoo on Brian's arm, you can also pick up one of these in this room.

Tilt Train Simulator - fun for the young and old alike! Here Brian was pretending to talk to the Fat Controller, it was too cute. That white board in the top right of the picture is a screen to see where you are driving the train.

Nippers Railway - This place is fantastic. I had to do some serious cropping to cut other kids out of this shot as it was pretty busy. As you can see there are little tracks, fake crossings, plus a station and all kinds of other fun things for the little kids. This "exhibit" is the sole reason I would get a yearly membership if I lived closer. Our Mum's Group has great issues finding undercover/indoor play areas on those wet days - which are all too often lately. And the price is perfect.

Model Railway - Are you getting the idea that this is a great day out for both Dad and the kids? Every time we walked past here "the boys" stopped, looked and smiled. The attention to detail on this railway is pretty awesome. And there is even a little Thomas riding the rails that you can search for, as well as a lot of other (stationary) Thomas' dotted about the place.

Other Day Out With Thomas attractions are:

• The Fat Controller Show and Photo Opportunity - the "actor" was fantastic. I'm pretty sure this guy could talk under water, and still with incredible enthusiasm.
• Thomas Time - Throughout the day you can sit on Thomas (the big one in the picture at the top of this post), but between the hours of 11:30 am - 1:30 pm they open Thomas up and you get to go inside and "drive" him. Note: We did this a little later, just after 1pm and had no queue.
• Thomas Creation Station - A place to colour Thomas in.
• Thomas & Friends Cinema - We skipped this one, but the program says that Misty Island Rescue screens continuously throughout the day.
• Workshops Express Miniature Train Ride and Bouncy Castle - We skipped these ones too. Tickets are $3 per person but we found we had enough to keep us going until Brian was totally worn out.

There is also a cafe on the premises, so no need to bring lunch, although a lot of seasoned locals did. The cafe has lots of sandwiches and a selection of hot snacks like pies and sausage rolls as well as some burgers and fish and chips. Just remember that there may be a big line up so don't head there once you are already starving like we did. It was a long wait.

I'm pretty sure we will be back for Day Out With Thomas next year!

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The Workshops Rail Museum

North Street

North Ipswich

Phone: 3432 5100

9:30am - 5:00pm daily (see website for public holiday hours)

Adult: $19

Child (3-15 yrs): $11

Child (Under 3): Free

Family (2 Adults & up to 4 Children): $57

Yearly Membership: Double the above prices (eg. $38 Adult)

Day Out With Thomas ends 30th January 2011

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