If you are a parent to any kid under 5, I’m almost pretty sure you know all the characters to the most popular kids to show – including Thomas the Tank Engine. The amount of random knowledge I know of trains, the train numbers and inter-personal relationships between the trains is a little scary. That being said, of course when we found out that Thomas would be making an appearance, we just had to visit.
The event happens over a couple of weekends at the Railway Museum of BC in Squamish – its about an hour and a half drive from Vancouver and the Sea to Sky highway is curvy – Winston felt a bit sick by the time we got to the museum.
We were greeted with inflatable friends that were great photo-ops. While we waited for our scheduled train to arrive, there were other activities to do – there were games, a bubble machine area, painting, a mini train similar to the Burnaby Central Railway. There were a couple food trucks as well, but there are plenty of great eats around Squamish as well. Inside the museum was entertainment and also the gift shop, which was full of Thomas merchandise.
The life size Thomas train is truly something – Winston was so excited to see it – as was all the other kids who were waiting for the train. When we boarded the train, it was a little beat up and could probably use some re-upholstering. The train ride is to their yard – about a 10-15 minute ride, you go over a river and its mostly greenery. I think it would be great if they planted some Thomas themed items to look out for on the train ride.
The ticket price for 2023 was $29.00 before fees and taxes. It was a good day trip for us, we’d definitely go again and wouldn’t mind paying more for more photo ops with other trains and a more upgraded train ride experience.
For more information, check out: dayoutwiththomas.com
