2011 Holiday Shopping Guide for Wooden Thomas Trains

Happy Holidays Everyone!
See below for my updated Thomas shopping guide for the 2011 holiday season.  Many of you visit this site looking for gift ideas, so hopefully this will help you find the perfect present for your little train engineer.

Keep in mind this website focuses mostly on the Wooden Thomas Trains made by Learning Curve. Obviously there is a whole world of Thomas toys out there, but it would be a tall task to cover everything.  My son’s affection for the wooden trains is what inspired this website and so that is what I have the most experience in.

Black Friday / Cyber Monday Deals:
Unfortunately there is not a lot going on in terms of Black Friday deals on wooden Thomas trains. The only store that even offers a featured deal on 11-25-11 is Toys R Us. They are offering this basic set for $17.99 as a "door buster". You can also claim this Toby's Windmill piece for free if you buy $100 or more of wooden Thomas items. In my opinion you would get a better overall deal buying $100 of stuff from Amazon and their heavily discounted prices.

Where to Buy:
When it comes to everyday prices, Amazon.com is far and away the cheapest place to buy Thomas trains online.  Most orders over $25 ship for free, which is an important factor to keep in mind when calculating the true cost of any online transaction.

Sometimes you can find a random deal on Overstock.com that will save you 20 – 40% off retail prices, but the selection is hit or miss.

AllAboardToys.com has a great selection of hard-to-find characters and sets. Prices are close to retail, so expect to pay more than Amazon if you have are looking for a rare item.

What’s Hot Now:
All of the latest wooden toys coincide with the recent release of the “Day of the Diesels” DVD. With that in mind, see the slideshow below for ideas related to the movie. You can click on the images to read a full description from Amazon.

Beginner Gift Ideas:
If your child is new to the wooden train world then this slideshow features some of the more popular characters and destinations in the Thomas and Friends world…

Cheap Expansion Ideas:
When it comes to track layouts and accessories, you can save a small fortune by using compatible systems from other manufacturers. Here are some ideas for expanding your play world on the cheap. Click on the images to see the full Amazon description and customer reviews.