Brio/train set experts please come and talk to me!

[onlyatchristmastime]

Feeling very cosy and excited to have the Christmas username dusted off!

I’m set on a classic, probably Brio, train set for Christmas for my DS who will be just turned 2. I also have a daughter who will be 4 who is Disney princess-mad but I think she would also love a train set (they’re both mini engineers like DH, always twiddling at things to see how they work) and I suspect the more they have of it to put together, the more enjoyable a toy it will be. Most threads on here seem to agree that the track doesn’t need to be Brio, but that their special things - trains, stations, bridges etc - are worth the money.

Strategising the most fun/cost effective way to do this - thinking I should get DS a Brio starter set, maybe the one with the light up rainbow thingy? And get DD the Brio Disney princess railway. And then supplement it with a track expansion pack from somewhere like John Lewis or Bigjigs so they can put it all together and cover the playroom floor. Or should I prioritise getting a train with an engine - if so should it be the steam one? Any tips on when and where is the best way to purchase all of this? So many options!

Should say I don’t (currently) have any concerns about them playing together, and I would prefer not to buy second hand as I am a bit weird about things that have been on the floor in houses I can’t vouch for…

TIA Christmas fans 🤶

I'd buy a big layout between them, then a special train each, and an accessory each.

Mine particularly liked the magnetic cranes for loading/unloading, bridges and turntables.
The electric powered train was the least popular.

I would wait for Black Friday before making a decision. We got DS a Brio Train Set and extras then (just after his second birthday) and it was a lot cheaper. I think the Classic Figure 8 Train Set was about 50% off on Amazon.

Duplo train would be good and you can get Disney themed sets to go with it.

Have a look at Big Jigs - much cheaper than brio and I found they have more fun things like junctions, cranes etc. Ikea and Tesco have compatible track as well for much much cheaper. We love the electric trains as well - I'd recommend one that doesn't also make a noise though! Lots of track is fun as you can make huge tracks all around the house which my two always loved. You can get duplo compatible links which are great for making bridges if you also have lots of duplo already.

IKEA track is very affordable and they have some little bits like a basic turntable and some extra bridges. We’ve got an enormous box full (board a few packs and inherited some) and it’s great, you can build huge tracks with it. That plus some brio bits like a crane or something would make for an amazing Christmas for kids those ages.

I would start looking on vinted and eBay - there is so much variety and lots of fun stuff.

For the actual track I don’t think you can tell it it’s brio or not, again vinted/eBay.

The only thing to avoid is ikea track. It has little plastic bits in, so look carefully on photos if you’re buying on line. It’s often sold as “being compatible” with brio. It definitely is not.

One thing to beware off... the cheaper tunnels were sometimes too small for the fancier trains. However our set was bought 12 years ago so the design may have improved!

We got about 4 different track sets - IKEA, tesco, sainsbury which all fit happily worth Brio. Meant DS had loads of track, could fill a whole room.with different routes as added turntables, stations, cranes etc we also added better trains for them. It lasted them for several years & still being used daily by my minded kiddies.

Just don’t do what we did….we bought ds some Lidl brio and then thought it would be a good idea to glue it all down to boards so bits wouldn’t get lost.

He played with it for a couple of months and then that was it.

Shame really as it was a nice set

Buy an battery driven train to go on the Brio / ikea track as it's super fun for DC

The whole point of it is to rebuild and create different tracks so sticking it down defies the whole point of playing and learning and having fun with it

What a bizarre thing to do sticking it down

We've got a few JL sets, bridge, turntable etc and a Brio electric train. DD is 3 and loves it. So does DH who is 38!

At the time it made sense. Ds was only 2 (nearly 3) and had this thing of breaking tracks up and then getting frustrated because it was broken. It felt like a good idea to glue it down so he couldn’t break it and avoid tantrums.

The timing may not work out but when he was 2, my DS had a Brio advent calendar that was great.

I think it’s been redesigned? There is no plastic is the basic track pieces I bought in IKEA from 2019 onwards.

Why is this so funny 🤣🤣🤣🤣 I totally see how this could come about when you’re demented with toddler destruction. The boards are so nicely done too!

I wondered about getting a JL set instead of Brio for DS’s main gift. They are so much cheaper and look really nice.

Really tempted by this (looks like you can get a previous edition for around £23) but would it spoil the magic of the gift on Christmas Day? 🤔

I'm doing brio style train for Christmas this year for ds almost 5 and dd almost 2. A lovely poster has sent me a huge amount of fab track sets and trains including a dinosaur set, mountains, spiral track. I'm planning to get 2x rc trains on black friday, maybe a crane or something too. I'm also planning the brio advent calendar so we have a Christmas train, and was already getting some specific little playmobil animal families for stockings that I'm sure will play too!

Aldi always do a good set mid November. About £25 and has loads of track. I'd get that plus special trains each plus perhaps a special accessory. The aldi stuff is compatible.

@onlyatchristmastime Yes, that's what I was thinking too. It's also better when they have a set already because its a mix of little bits of track and accessories but probably not enough to build a full set IYSWIM.

Thanks, that’s along the lines I was thinking. Interesting they weren’t so keen on the electric train. I do suspect that the magic of a wooden train set is in its simplicity.

I got mine the JL one - it's very good value compared to Brio - I think you are mainly paying for the name TBH - at age 2 you done know how much he will actually play with it so best to not spend too much now and if he really likes it then invest in the odd Brio piece

My boy loves it and gets it out all the time to build things (he's 2.5) - I got the JL one - my nephew on the other hand barely played with his after the initial excitement and hr was bought the Brio one - his parents are a bit gutted that they didn't go for a cheaper set first

You didn't want second hand because of having been on unknown floors - but you can wash it. It's pretty robust. Or wipe with anti bac.

That’s very true. I’m leaning towards a combo of the Disney Princess Brio railway for DD and the biggest JL set plus extra track for DS. Maybe a couple of extra accessories.

Anyone have any tips on storage?!