Disclosure: I received comp tickets for my family to this event from HIT Entertainment for sharing my experience with this tour. All thoughts an opinions are my own. Your experience may differ.
We had such a wonderful adventure this past Sunday. We wrapped up a week at the beach with the family, by heading to the beautiful NC mountains on Sunday morning to catch a ride on Thomas the Train, as part of the 2013 Go Go Thomas Tour! We were offered a chance to visit Tweetsie Railroad, located in charming Blowing Rock, NC, about an hour and a half from where we live in Salisbury. Being huge fans of Thomas the Train, my husband and I loaded up the car with our son Balian, and our young cousin Connor, and headed up the mountain to experience the wild west!
Excitement! The boys could hardly contain themselves in the parking lot at Tweetsie!
Tweetsie Railroad is a big, beautiful Railroad and Wild West family park, nestled into the mountains. This was our first ever visit to Tweetsie, so we were pretty excited about visiting the park. What made it even more special, was the fact that we were going to get to experience all sorts of Day Out with Thomas activities, an even take a ride on Thomas the Train! It rained on us off and on all day long, but we were determined to make the most of the day, and enjoy the activities and attractions at the park!
Our first glimpse of Thomas, once inside the park...
After we picked up our tickets and meandered into the park, we spotted Thomas, who was being loaded with passengers for a 30 minute train ride! We took a quick potty break (restrooms were gloriously clean!), and then decided to walk through the first couple of many gift shops. The boys had stars in their eyes as they glanced at toys, hats, cowboy boots and lots of wild west goodies! After we walked through the second shop, the boys found themselves in a jail cell with another prisoner, who looked like he'd been there for quite a while. We stopped and took a few photos before heading to the special Thomas Gift Shop!
'Let us outta here!'
'Um- I think we need horses, mommy!'
Thomas the Train...
Once inside the Thomas Gift Shop, the boys went crazy! There were all sorts of Thomas themed trains, accessories, toys, t-shirts and other merchandise, as well. The boys were each given a map, which had four stops on it. The gift shop was the first stop, and they were able to get their maps stamped there by the Day Out with Thomas staff. They were told that after they got their maps stamped at each station, they could bring it back, show it to the staff, and then they'd each get a special prize!
Balian, playing with toys in the Gift Shop...
Connor, getting his map stamped at the Imagination Station...
The Imagination Station was just one of the Day Out with Thomas special events! There were train tables and Mega Block tables set up inside for the kids to play with, while the show-girls sang and danced on stage! There were also coloring stations, the boys got Thomas tattoos on their hands, and they got some Thomas stickers!
Look who we found in the Imagination Station!
The boys, playing with trains at Imagination Station...
A glimpse of the stage show...
After we left Imagination Station, we headed over to the Feed and Seed for some lunch. We spent about $30.00 on lunch for the three of us- two kids chicken and fries combos, corn dogs for daddy and a chicken sandwich for mommy- we split fries and shared a drink. The food was really yummy, and we sure were given quite a bit of it. We definitely got our money's worth on that.
Lunch at the Feed & Seed...
After lunch, we made our way down the path to meet Sir Topham Hat. The boys were both too shy to have their photo made with him. but they got their maps stamped, and then we hit the bounce house, and the big inflated slide for a little fun!
Boys in the bounce house...
Connor on the big, big slide...
After the slide, we took a trip to the candy shop, where there were all sorts of yummy looking treats! The boys fell in love with the helicopter candy, and I couldn't resist buying them each a helicopter of their own.
A sugar lover's dream!
Balian, selecting just the right helicopter...
After the candy shop visit, it was time for us to load on into the cars for our ride on Thomas the Train! B and C were both excited! We had a wild west cowboy named Houston hop into our train car to ride with us and give us a little history lesson during our ride through the mountains. He also told us that he was there to protect us... so we weren't quite sure what we were in for! The train stopped at a halt in front of a big red barn, where a bunch of cowboys were gathering. They told us to let them know if we saw any Indians. Well, considering that they were hopping through the train cars- yeah... we saw them! A chase went down, and eventually, the cowboys came to an agreement with the Indian chief- that the two groups would respect one another, so they could live in the mountains in harmony. Our train ride was nice and relaxing, lasting 30 minutes total.
Time to board the train!
The boys and their candy toys aboard Thomas...
Daddy, B, and Connor in front of Thomas...
We got caught in some pretty heavy rain, just as we were about to enter the County Fair, where all of the rides were located. We waited the storm out in the arcade for a bit, and then headed back out after we saw the staff opening the rides back up. We rode the carousel, the tilt-a-whirl, the Ferris wheel, the race cars, the scrambler, the boats, the twistin' tornado, Mouse Mine #9 train, the free fall ride and the chair lift!
Balian's first arcade experience...
Sacha and Connor on the Tornado ride...
Toot, toot!
Aboard Mouse Mine #9...
Inside of Mouse Mine #9...
Sacha and Connor on the Scrambler...
Balian, very excited to ride the little boat ride, sans adults...
We were bummed about the rain at first, but it kept the park from being crowded, and there were zero lines for the rides. The boys got to ride whatever they wanted to- over and over again! This was really Balian's first experience with carnival rides, and he really enjoyed the ones he was able to go on. I even had a few little thrills on the tilt-a-whirl and the scrambler!
At the end of the day, we went back to the Thomas Gift Shop one last time, so the boys could turn in their stamped maps and get their prize- which was a sheet of Thomas stickers, each! They loved those stickers! They also each got to choose a train toy, which Sach and I treated them to. We stayed until just before 6 pm, which was when the park was closing. We felt like we were among the last to leave!
Out for the count after a very exciting day!
It took the boys about ten minutes to fall asleep after we got into the car and back on the road. We had a jam-packed day of fun at Tweetsie Railroad. My husband and I were both really impressed by how friendly both the staff at Tweetsie Railroad, and the Day Out with Thomas event staff were to us, and the kids. There were smiling faces at every turn and I can honestly say that this has been the most enjoyable family park experience we've ever had!
The Day Out with Thomas events were so much fun! We loved all of the different activities and surprises that there were for the kids, and we all loved our ride on Thomas, the No. 1 blue engine! You can spend a Day Out with Thomas, too, because he's likely on his way to a city near you! Check out the tour schedule and get your tickets while you still can!
If you're ever in NC- just passing through, here on vacation, or you're a NC resident, I highly recommend visiting Tweetsie Railroad with your family! You'll love everything the park has to offer, and if you're like us, you'll want to visit again! The Day Out with Thomas Tour is at Tweetsie Railroad through June 9, 2013.
We'd like to say a huge thank you to Sarah G., HIT Entertainment and Tweetsie Railroad for allowing us to experience the fun and magic of Thomas the Train and the beautiful NC mountains!
How cool, looks like everyone had a great time. My boys would have loved this they are true Thomas The Train kids. Love the pictures! Great post
ReplyDeleteWow, what an awesome time y'all had... thanks so much for sharing, I know my little ones would have loved everything you did
ReplyDeleteWe have Thomas coming in November and already marked on our calendar! lol! Love the pics! Hope ours is just as fun!
ReplyDeletewe have never been but this looks like a fun time. My kids are no longer into thomas and wish I had gone when they were.
ReplyDeleteThis is just THE place for my boys!! They love arcade games, sugar, trains, Thomas & Friends, legos...wow, they would be in heaven!
ReplyDeleteThis sure looks like a VERY BUSY DAY--I like the Mega Block Thomas!!--We have a Day with Thomas but it's about two hours away from our house and my son wasn't THAT into him so we skipped it--if it was like this might have been worth the drive.
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