Thomas the Train for Christmas-please help

[dismom9761]

My DD2 has asked for Thomas The Train for Christmas and I don't know what to get.None of my other kids were ever interested .My sister said to be careful because not all the peices will connect to one another.My SIL is giving me all her boys' track so all I need is the train.How expensive is it?Where should I start?She wants the one that is connected with magnets .

Any help would be appreciated.
Amy

 

[carissanboys]

Is she giving you the wooden track? You can get the trains for about $10 I believe (been a while since I bought some). I'd start with Thomas and maybe Annie and Clarabel (those are his coaches). You can also buy any of the Brio trains...they'll all work together. Just don't get the take along thomas trains as they're a completely different set.

 

[ZanneMarie]

OOps! I answered you on the other thread that was a double post. Check over there for my thoughts.

 

[ilovejack02]

All of Thomas the tank engine brand wooden pieces WIll connect with each other. Cheaper versions will also connect but they dont hold together well. Much too lose. I would just start with 4 or 5 train pieces and maybe some people. Did she give you any buildings? Since she is only 2 i wouldnt get too elaborate and if she continues to be interested then you could get more pieces.
There are some battery powered wooden train pieces that can pull a none battery powered one.

Some great websites...
rrgifts.com my favorite
mytoybox.com
totallythomas.com

 

[dismom9761]

Is she giving you the wooden track? You can get the trains for about $10 I believe (been a while since I bought some). I'd start with Thomas and maybe Annie and Clarabel (those are his coaches). You can also buy any of the Brio trains...they'll all work together. Just don't get the take along thomas trains as they're a completely different set.

Yes she is giving me the wooden track.Thanks for the advice on the trains.

 

[dismom9761]

All of Thomas the tank engine brand wooden pieces WIll connect with each other. Cheaper versions will also connect but they dont hold together well. Much too lose. I would just start with 4 or 5 train pieces and maybe some people. Did she give you any buildings? Since she is only 2 i wouldnt get too elaborate and if she continues to be interested then you could get more pieces.
There are some battery powered wooden train pieces that can pull a none battery powered one.

Some great websites...
rrgifts.com my favorite
mytoybox.com
totallythomas.com

She doesn't have any buildings for me-only some track.I won't be getting a whole lot-she plays with a cheaper version at daycare and told me she wanted Santa to bring her one so that she can play with a train without sharing. A few days ago her Aunt gave her some old Thomas movies and now that is all she watches.If she really likes what I get her for Christmas then I will get her more for her birthday in March.I thought I might find some good deals on the trains the day after Thanksgiving.

 

[Frye7127]

Our little boy is a Thomas fanatic, starting at age 1 1/2. He carried those trains around forever. He is six now and still loves them - the movies, Day Out with Thomas events, the actual trains, coloring books, story books, you name it. We bought him the Roundhouse set for Christmas when he was 2 1/2. He came down the next morning and couldn't believe it was still there and his only. Normally sells for $600 in the stores. We have bought most of his stuff on Ebay. We bought the RH set for $227 and it was brand new, never out of the box. We got our money's worth with it. They also sell an under-the-bed table, which i think is way cool and will not take up as much room as a table - pottery barn's is nice though with storage carts and could be used as a coffee table after they outgrow. Look into ebay for buildings, much cheaper than the stores even on sale.

 

[loveswdw]

We too have an almost 3 year old Thomas fanatic. He's been that way since about 1.5 years old. We've got the wooden railway set. He's got LOTS of engines and cars and several accessory pieces. It is an EXPENSIVE habit! We watch for deals whenever we can find them (sometimes Books-A-Million will sell discontinued pieces for 50 percent off and TRU runs a buy 2 get 1 free a couple of times a year). We did find the Deluxe Roundhouse that retails for $120 at TRU for $80. The box had been opened but everything was in it and it works fine. DS is getting that for his birthday. He will be thrilled!

We sometimes tire of everything Thomas but DS loves it and we figure that they (the stories) do teach good values so it could be a whole lot worse!!

 

[carissanboys]

One more recommendation. A good set to start with that is actually fairly inexpensive compared to most of the Thomas the Tank Engine prices is the Figure 8 Set. You can find it at many places and I think I bought it for my nephew for about $30. This is what it includes:

The Figure 8 Set Includes Thomas the Train, box car, Sodor Line Caboose, Sir Topham Hatt, a tree, signal, stop sign, Arched Stone Bridge (3 pieces), Conductors Shed, 11 pieces of curved track, 3 pieces of straight track, 1 curved switch track (mmf) and 1 track to surface ramp(f).

It's really a great deal!

 

[kat3668]

Ac Moore sells Thomas the trains here In Mass (not sure if you have one locally) then we use the 40% off coupon a couple of times to get different trains.. heres a link tp the coupon.
http://www.acmoore.com/showweeklyspecialcoupon.asp?ID=38
Good Luck!

 

[Not so Dumbo]

Michaels craft store also sells Thomas the Train. Look for the 50% off one item that they usually run in the Sunday paper. Other than ebay, this is the best way I have found to buy TtT.

My DS4 loves the Watertower. It looks like it fills and drains into the trains. It's one of the smaller building pieces.

 

[Christypl]

I have a major Thomas fan!!!! We buy all our stuff at allaboardtoys.com but all our track is generic track that I got in a cheap set from Target. If you have an IKEA they have a cheap set as well.

 

[dismom9761]

One more recommendation. A good set to start with that is actually fairly inexpensive compared to most of the Thomas the Tank Engine prices is the Figure 8 Set. You can find it at many places and I think I bought it for my nephew for about $30. This is what it includes:

The Figure 8 Set Includes Thomas the Train, box car, Sodor Line Caboose, Sir Topham Hatt, a tree, signal, stop sign, Arched Stone Bridge (3 pieces), Conductors Shed, 11 pieces of curved track, 3 pieces of straight track, 1 curved switch track (mmf) and 1 track to surface ramp(f).

It's really a great deal!

That sounds like it would be a great start.Do you know if TRU sells that?or Target?

 

[dismom9761]

Michaels craft store also sells Thomas the Train. Look for the 50% off one item that they usually run in the Sunday paper. Other than ebay, this is the best way I have found to buy TtT.

My DS4 loves the Watertower. It looks like it fills and drains into the trains. It's one of the smaller building pieces.

I just called my best friend and she has a Michael's coupon-thanks for the tip.I am going to see what they have tomorrow.

 

[dismom9761]

Ac Moore sells Thomas the trains here In Mass (not sure if you have one locally) then we use the 40% off coupon a couple of times to get different trains.. heres a link tp the coupon.
http://www.acmoore.com/showweeklyspecialcoupon.asp?ID=38
Good Luck!

Unfortunately I have never heard of AC Moore,do you know if the store has a website?

 

[carissanboys]

That sounds like it would be a great start.Do you know if TRU sells that?or Target?

I'm not sure. I know I bought mine online...probably from Amazon (which probably would have been TRU). Good luck finding it!

 

[ZuZugal]

One more recommendation. A good set to start with that is actually fairly inexpensive compared to most of the Thomas the Tank Engine prices is the Figure 8 Set. You can find it at many places and I think I bought it for my nephew for about $30. This is what it includes:

The Figure 8 Set Includes Thomas the Train, box car, Sodor Line Caboose, Sir Topham Hatt, a tree, signal, stop sign, Arched Stone Bridge (3 pieces), Conductors Shed, 11 pieces of curved track, 3 pieces of straight track, 1 curved switch track (mmf) and 1 track to surface ramp(f).

It's really a great deal!

I also vote for the figure 8 set. You get quite a few pieces for a very good price.

I think most Target stores only sell the "take along" trains/sets, so do not buy there since they are not compatible w/the wooden trains. TRU does carry them and will sometimes have a "buy one get one for 1/2".

If you do an internet search you'll come up w/lots of online stores that sell Thomas. Sometimes you can find really good deals, especially if they have free shipping.

I have also found good deals at our local Sams Club. They have a DVD/wooden train bundle pack in the video/DVD section. It sells for around $10/$12 which is quite often the price of just the train alone.

Good luck!

 

[DisneyDazed]

ACmoore currently has their Thomas at 40% off. If you sign up for the Michaels emails though you will get the 50% off ones sent right to you and you can print them out many times. We added a great amount this christmas with the 50% coupons.

 

[HelenePA]

ebay ebay ebay!! You can get some great deals on unopened trains, sets, ect ect... I also second the look in the video dept. You can get a movie and a train for what you'd just pay for the price of a train.

 

[disneymoss]

My DS9 was a Thomas the Tank Engine fanatic. Yeah it might cost alot but if you ever read the little book that comes with each train or set of tracks, all their items come with an UNCONDITIONAL LIFETIME WARRANTY. I have spent thousands of dollars on the table and tracks and he has almost all of the trains(wooden with magnets). He played with them for about 5 years he started at age 1 1/2 collecting them, so I figure I did get my money's worth and he has something that when he has children of his own he could pass on.