Day Out With Thomas

Ok, before you say anything let me explain. My friend loves all things trains. He has model trains, loves train expos, and knows everything there is to know about trains. So as a joke, I got him tickets to Day Out With Thomas at the NSW Rail Museum for his birthday. At first, my friends and I were laughing at the thought of going to see Thomas the Tank Engine in person. But when it got closer to the actual day of the event, we were actually really excited to spend a day in Sydney together. We packed our bags, grabbed our snacks, turned up the music, and off we went to see Thomas and Friends!

The event was being held at the NSW Rail Museum at Thirlmere Sydney, so there would still be much to see and do for my friend’s birthday. As a heritage museum, it had a lot of trains and other transport vehicles from over 100 years ago, all with different purposes at the time. There were trains to transport prisoners, postal trains, and even a train reserved specifically for Queen Elizabeth II and the royal family when they were visiting Australia. You could walk through some of the carriages at the rail museum to better immerse yourself in the period and atmosphere of the vehicles, with some of them being very…interesting. Let’s just say I wouldn’t want to be a prisoner on one of these trains.

Anyway, let’s get to Thomas and Friends! The place was full of kids, obviously. There were a lot of different activities for children to enjoy including mini train rides, which we sadly couldn’t seem to convince our friend to go on. Maybe next time. There were also jumping castles, colouring competitions and story-telling. Of course, it wouldn’t be very fair if we entered a colouring competition as adults, and I don’t think it would be a good idea for us to have a turn at the jumping castle. But the kids seemed to be having tonnes of fun. There was also face painting! I honestly really wanted to get a face painting of Thomas, mostly for jokes but also for nostalgia, but the lines were pretty long each time we walked past. In all seriousness, the whole event seemed so perfect for children and fans of Thomas, and the museum even offered a specific time for people with autism and sensory issues so that they wouldn’t feel overstimulated. The NSW Rail Museum clearly knows how to throw an event!

We bought tickets that included a 30-minute train ride on one of the characters in the show, Donald. When I bought the tickets I thought the train ride would be with Thomas but it didn’t really matter because it was still a great experience in the end. We took our seats in our little booth while the remaining passengers were boarding the train. Because it was only the 3 of us, we were sharing our booth with a pair of kids, their dad and their pop. This wasn’t an issue however because they were both adorable and so well behaved! The trip was lovely, taking us from Thirlmere to Buxton and back with lovely scenery to look out at. It was also just a nice experience to relax and enjoy a steam train ride, something we don’t get to do very often. We got to sit and talk, take photos and videos of the trip, and laugh about how we were adult passengers on Donald the Scottish Tender Engine.

When we finished our train ride, we continued to look through the museum and the trains. The back of the museum has a much larger collection of heritage trains to look through. This is where my friend’s knowledge really shone through. Every train we passed ignited a different fact and interest. It was actually really sweet to see him so happy in his element like this, feeling so comfortable to speak freely about his interests without judgment. All three of us have had issues in the past with our interests or needs being shut down by those we cared about, so being able to create a safe space for each other to share without these dark thoughts is so important. Although these tickets were mostly a joke, he still seemed to be having a lot of fun for his birthday, so we were all happy!

The NSW Rail Museum also has a Refurbishment and Restoration Facility where old locomotives can be repaired and brought back to their original state for visitors to enjoy once more. The building had glass windows all around so that you can look inside and see what the professionals are currently working on when you visit. It’s really cool to see how museums and their exhibits are brought to life and the amount of work it takes. There wasn’t anything happening when we were looking in, but we still got to see the vehicles they were currently working on which was pretty cool!

The NSW Rail Museum also has a gift shop, so you know what that means! There was obviously Thomas and Friends merchandise that I was honestly considering, but it was all targeted towards children of course. How rude. So I looked around the store at the less specific items the museum had to offer and found an adorable self-assembled wooden train model. I’m currently in the process of building it, and with 308 tiny pieces, it’s a lot harder than I thought it would be. But I guess that just makes it all the more fun. I also bought some “chocolate coal” that was too cute to pass up. Plus it’s chocolate so of course I’m going to buy it. 

So yes, I bought these tickets as a joke. But honestly, I had the best time with my friends and learnt a lot about trains. We had a lot of laughs, a lot of cackles and a lot of sincere smiles, something we haven’t had in a while. We got to act like our childish selves for a day, without judgement from others. And best of all, we got to spend time together, not just as friends, but as a family. Now that’s something I’m sure Thomas can appreciate!