Does anybody have the fisher price geotrax train...how do you like it

[liksmom]

I bought one of these from a store that was closing got some of the accessories too. I was planning on giving it to my son for christmas (i know its still a little early for that) he will be 16 months then. Would he still be too young for this set? What other train sets are out there for younger kids? If you have this set how does your child like it and at what age did he/she get it.
thanks- I know nothing about trains...
Gloria

[Momof3Labs]

I think he will be too young for it. Can you wait until his second birthday? Colin plays really well with the Brio/Thomas wooden sets and has for months, but had a very hard time playing with someone else's Geotrax train recently. It seemed very easy to derail, and he had a very hard time getting it back on the tracks again (whereas he has no problems with his Thomas set).

[Lucian and Gabriels Mommy]

We bought this for my son's second b-day. He enjoyed watching it, but didn't really play with it too much. So, we put it away and just took it out about a month ago. He is 2 1/2 now and he is really able to play with it. He operates the remotes by himself and builds the tracks. So, I would probably wait. He played with the Thomas trains at 16 months, but still had trouble with the tracks until he was past 2. Now he puts them together, takes them apart, etc. One thing I would suggest with the wooden tracks is a great product called Sure Track (I think). They are tiny clips that hold the track together at the joints. They kept us from having to constantly rebuild the track. Our son loves trains and all of our trains now get so much use - and the train table has been wonderful as well.
HTH

[liksmom]

I am going to hold off on the geotrax until his second b-day or christmas 05. I was thinking he was too young for that set. Where can you find the Thomas trains?
thanks again
Gloria

[Lucian and Gabriels Mommy]

You can find the Thomas Trains at Toys R us, hobby stores, and on-line. We got quite a few last year at Sam's club because they came free with a video or DVD purchase - a fantastic deal. I'm not sure if these are still around at any of the warehouses. Oh, I just recently saw a few trains at TJ Maxx for about 1/3 of the retailprice. Another idea (highly recommended)is to get a small starter set that has a simple track (usually a figure 8) and a few trains. They have these sets at toys r us for I think around $40. It is a really good deal, because to buy everything separately would probably be over $100. Check at toysrus.com. We have gradually expanded our set - we started with the simple one. Last Christmas when people asked what to get our son we just suggested Thomas. BTW, our son plays with his trains sometimes for several hours a day. He is starting to get very imaginative with them adn the possibilities are endless. Very fun!!

[Momof3Labs]

overstock.com and tracksideimaginationstation.com both have pretty decent prices on Thomas trains and sets.