2yr 7months...trains or ?

[Scout]

My daughter will be just over 2 and a half at Christmas and I've already got her Santa, but.....she really loves the train table at church. And now, when we go to the mall to play in the soft play area, she'd rather go to Barnes and Noble and play with the train table there. She doesn't really push the trains along the track, but rather sorts them and pushes them around on the table and plays with the pieces that go with the track, like the draw bridge and train gates and such, and is always asking me for a train. Also, when we went to Costco the other day, they had a city set with a fire truck and police car and other things that lit up and made sounds and she loved that. I realized she doesn't really have toys that light up and make sounds.

From what I've said, do you think she'd enjoy a train set or something else that lights and sounds? I'm not getting a table, but thought of putting rollers on the bottom of a piece of plywood so we can set up a train set and then roll it under her bed. The reason I hesitate is bc my nephew loved the train table at ToysRUS, so my sister bought it and he played with it only a few times. I don't know if she plays with them so much at church and the mall bc those are the only times she gets to, or if she'd really enjoy one at home. What's your experiences??
Sorry this was long. thx

 

[dizzy65]

my son will be that age at christmas as well he and his brother share a train table and they love it so much, it was by far the best gift ive gotten them

 

[kwood]

My lo has had wooden trains since he was 18 months and it is still his most played with toy. You never know for sure which toys will be a hit or miss but the fact that she wants to use them at other places might mean she would play with them at home.

 

[biglebowski]

My lo loves his wooden set. Its like all his toys, if they are out all the time he can take it or leave it. I keep it in a box and pull it out and rotate it with other toys. Hes asking for it more and more at 2 yrs 9 mo. We have asked relatives to add bits to it for Christmas. You can get so many brands that you could always buy a cheaper set for her, and then add more if shes interested. Theres a Chad Valley set in Argos that has good reviews, and also Ive heard good things about Tescos. The wooden ones are all compatible.

 

[Scout]

Thanks for your opinions ladies. I think I'll get her a cheaper wooden set (I've seen one on Amazon...I"m in US and we don't have tesco or argos unless they go by a diff name here) and see how she likes it. She doesn't really have any similar type toys. My gut was telling me to go ahead but feel even better with more opinions

 

[Lilicat]

Definitely go ahead, wooden railway is a great toy you can add to. Brio is the main brand but Melissa and Doug and Bigjigs also do great items which are compatible.

You can get trains with noises and lights, Brio do a light up police car, fire engine and ambulance which is really cute.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/300/dp/B00...d=1444238675&sr=8-1&keywords=brio+fire+engine

My youngest loves his wooden railway, he is never bored with it. We have loads of railway stuff as I got it for my eldest so we have been collecting for years. His favourite bits are the tunnels, the battery trains that go round on their own and the 'special cargo' like these:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Thomas-Woo...44239054&sr=8-1&keywords=wooden+railway+shark

This Christmas and birthday (January) we are expanding his collection with a Brio box car train, a Brio aeroplane, a Brio exploding tunnel and a Melissa and Doug Suspension bridge.

I would suggest buying a basic set and maybe getting a few special trains or accessories you think she would like. You can build on it in future Christmases and birthdays. It is great because it always keeps it interesting.

 

[Eleanor ace]

My 2 love their train set- DS is 4, DD1 is 2.5 and its one of their most played with toys. Every time we add a new bit it makes it more exciting . We have trains which make noise, crossing sections which make noise/ring a bell.

 

[Sparrow85]

I think it's one of the best presents you can buy. I bought my LO a huge wooden train set from John Lewis last Christmas, and it has been played with every day since. We ended up buying a table for him too earlier this year, but he is just obsessed with trains. The wooden stuff is timeless and so much you can add to it. He is now thomas mad, but the enjoyment he gets from trains is worth every penny.

 

[c1403]

My DD was two when she got her train set, she loves it. So we are getting extra bits to add to it this year.
My younger daughter is only one and is showing interest in the set too. We got ours from ikea but it seems to fit other brands like bigjigs and brio.

 

[Scout]

Was at ToysRUS today and they had an Imaginarium train set on sale so I got it. (will post pic in Christmas buys) It's compatible with Thomas and Brio and the other wooden sets, so thought I'd start out with a cheapy and then add if it's a hit. I'm building her a reading loft with a playhouse underneath for her playroom for her big Christmas gift from Santa and I think I'll assemble the train in the loft. (since she's only 2 I don't guess she'll be doing lots of reading up there just yet LOL)

 

[wildflower79]

My daughter has had her wooden train set from around 18months old and it's the toy she's played with the most. She gets it out to play with everyday.

I'd also suggest just buying a cheap starter set and seeing how interested she is in it. You can always add bits later. We started out like this and now have quite a collection!

We never bothered buying a train table, as to me they always seemed expensive and pretty limited in what you could build on them. My lg loves to build a huge track that covers the entire floor space downstairs!

 

[JessdueJan]

I'd say definitely go for it. My eldest got a wooden train set for his 2nd birthday and it is the most played with toy in our home...eldest is now 5 and a half and him and his 2 year old brother can play for hours setting up a track and organising and pushing round the trains.
Bigjigs do a princess themed track with pink trains I know if your little girl is a girly girl she may like that, it's compatible with brio and cheap sets from tesco or asda so can be expanded over the years if she's enjoying it xx

 

[Scout]

I actually bought a cheapy set from ToysRUs...their imaginaruim set. But then I decided to look on Craigslist and ended up getting a huge load of very nice Thomas the Train stuff. Over 100 pieces of track and a bunch of stuff that goes with it for only $45. I'm so excited. Heck, if she doesn't like it I'll play with it LOL