Best wooden train set

Ultimate train set

Wooden train sets have been popular toys for younger children for years and years. The encourage building and imagination and I’m going to talk you through the ultimate wooden train set – one where you can start small and as they get to building and enjoying you can add to it.

So you want to know what the best train set is?

Here you go!

*Scroll down the page if you want to see the Thomas the Tank engine accessories 🙂

Best wooden train set for under 5s

I’ve selected this set for one main reason – It’s really easy to build together!

The parts go together easily and there is enough give that you can move them around a little to make the tracks. My boy has just turned 3 and has been building tracks on his own for a few months now. This track is the perfect one for little hands and comes with numerous accessories to allow the track to grow (We currently have the main track plus the pirate track and 2 add on boxes of track – these are great value)

*This set is compatible with big jigs sets and biro sets.

Here’s the best starter train set!

Top childrens wooden train set

 

This is a figure of 8 set by a company called big jigs who make lots of tracks and accessorises that all fit together. Their sets are good and robust enough that they can take a bit of rough play – including children throwing all the pieces back into the box! You can get this exact set on Amazon through the button below!

*There is a pink fairy version of the track too (you can see it here)

If you want to start off with something a little bigger then you have a few more options available to you. Personally we started with the figure of 8 then added expansion packs as it got played with more. If I’d known it was going to be so popular I would have started with this set – (Get it here)

Ultimate train set

This is the freight set and has an impressive 130pieces to build – this is important as it gives you options to mix it up! The figure of 8 set and the pirate set only has one option but with all these pieces then you can mix it up and build different tracks – this is what my kids love doing the most. This may not be suitable until they are 3 as it takes a little building, you can alway help them if they are younger!

This has some of the additional options that we like that really mixes up the play and what you can build, including –

  1. 3 Train garage
  2. Split level play with the viaduct
  3. 3 bridges
  4. Magnetic crane for moving the cargo from train to train
  5. 2 trains and carridges
  6. Multiple people, houses and trees.

As a full set I’d say this was the ultimate wooden toy train set and would provide hours and hours of play.

Alternative toys?

If you’re not sure that a train set is the right toy for your little one then here’s a couple of alternatives-

Play cafe – There are always popular with boys and girls, along with some play food they can provide hours of entertainment (usually while you’re served pretend food!). Add in a small play kitchen and you’ve got the full setup.

Cars – If it’s not trains it could be cars, check out our selection for the best wooden car garage [easyazon_link identifier=”B0177Z58ES” locale=”UK” tag=”best3oe-21″]here[/easyazon_link].

As an alternative to a train set a play kitchen is always

Thomas the tank engine accessories

I’d take a guess that if you child loves trains then they’ll love Thomas the tank engine too – mine certainly does. As the bigjigs sets fit perfectly with the Biro sets then there’s tons of accessories to choose from including, obviously, all the trains. The Thomas accessories are slightly pricey compared to the other sets so it maybe a good idea to just get a Thomas or a couple of others to keep the cost down. Here’s my picks of the best wooden train accessories –

1 – Thomas the tank engine (and friends)

You can see the selection of trains available here. These include – Thomas, James, Percy, Emily, Edward, Gator, Hiro and lots more. In total there’s 30 engines available to pick from so they’re sure to have your child’s favourite.

2 – Tidmouth Sheds SetUltimate wooden train accessory - Tidmouth sheds

What better Thomas accessory than to have all the trains in Tidmouth sheds. This is a classic wooden version of the shads where the trains sleep. You’ll need an expansion pack in order to get enough track going in to it (It’s not one to get if you’ve just got a figure of 8 loop).

This also has a turntable to get the trains into the different sheds and adds an extra element of play to the track. You check the price of this exact one [easyazon_link identifier=”B009NFG304″ locale=”UK” tag=”best3oe-21″]on Amazon here[/easyazon_link].

Wooden train accessories

There are absolutely loads of additional accessories you can get from trains to pirates! Here’s some our our favourite ones to help make your train set even better –

Bridges

Create multiple levels of track with some funky bridges. These really help with the imaginative play of the trains.

Tip – Get the duplo out and build your own bridges and viaducts to mix the play up.

best train set accessory

This is the awesome draw bridge from Big Jigs toys and has some really cool features to make it more than “just a bridge”. Its castle themed so it obviously needs a draw bridge to ad an element of peril to the play. Round the back there is a tunnel to go through and a ramp up – here’s where you could use tome extra track pieces and the duplo to create a longer viaduct.

You can get this [easyazon_link identifier=”B01N2L446M” locale=”UK” tag=”best3oe-21″]on Amazon here :)[/easyazon_link]

There is another option to consider that is very similar with is the dungeon (shown below). For the money the castle offers more play and track options but this is a nice alternative –

Dungeon accessory

Play table

There is an option for a table set thats really nicely designed and comes with a good set. We’ve left this out of our main best wooden train sets guide as it takes up space. We prefer the option of throwing it all back in a box at the end of the day rather than having a table out all the time. This would be a good option in a separate play room or left in the Childs room – if it’s safe to do so. Here’s the main one that is available

This is a truly awesome looking table and would make a great present. It’s got loads of options for play, split over 3 levels and theres loads of different ways you can set it up. If you’re looking for the ultimate table train set then this could be the one. It’s available [easyazon_link identifier=”B06XGWNBF8″ locale=”UK” tag=”best3oe-21″]on amazon here[/easyazon_link].

We hope you’ve enjoyed our guide 🙂


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