Thomas Wooden Talking Railway Review: Must Have!

Aidan loves trains and Thomas is no exception!  We actually made the mistake of buying him his first small sampler set for his first Christmas and we have been doomed ever since!  Something about how durable the tracks are and how easy they go together, just makes it so much more appealing to me and my sons since now my 16 month old is getting into trains too!

Well now there is a set inspired by the “Hero of the Rails” DVD featuring a new Thomas & Friends play set from The Talking Railway series called “Farewell at the Docks.”  This set is like no other Thomas set that I have seen as it features Engine Recognition Technology so when certain engines chug past Cranky, Sir Topham Hat will recognize and call the engine by name.   The trains have RFID chips planted in them so when they pass over an RFID reader, which is embedded in special stations like this one, kids will hear the messages. Other than Cranky and a talking Sir Topham Hatt, this set contains a specially decorated Thomas and Spencer, and then a tunnel, bridge, and more track.

I found this video on You Tube that features the Talking Railway Series – not particulary this set as it is new, but I wanted to show off how cool it is when it talks!  (Soon I will be able to post videos!)

Overall, this set was definitely a hit in my house and now I know I will be slowly adding in more of the talking railway series engines and destinations.  The only flaw is that for example Aidan gets frustrated when Cranky doesn’t recognize his older trains, but it does at least make some sounds and messages just not engine specific.  I think this set would be especially perfect for a beginner collector, but it is compatible with other wooden Thomas sets and vehicles.  The Take Along Thomas items are not compatible but we actually use them even though they are a little different sized Aidan doesn’t mind.   As always though Thomas track is interchangeable.  Even though this piece was $100, it is still a good price I think since it really is adorable how it talks and for Thomas products it is average priced.

BUY IT:  This particular Thomas Wooden Talking Railway set is exclusive to Toys R US and retails for $99.99.  (You can also find this set at Amazon but it is a little more expensive.)  You can also buy the small talking engines for $14.99 and the larger engines at $24.99 each. 


Mama’s Money Savers Disclaimer: I was given a set to review. This review is 100% my opinion and has not been edited or reviewed by anyone. I was not compensated in any other way for this product review.